Richard Dawson (born November 20, 1932) is a
BritishThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
-born
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor, comedian, game show panelist, and host. He is best known for his role as
Bob CraneRobert Edward "Bob" Crane was an American disc jockey and actor, best known for his performance as Colonel Robert E. Hogan in the television sitcom Hogan's Heroes from 1965 to 1971, and for his unsolved death....
's British non-commissioned officer, Corporal Peter Newkirk, on the World War II
situation comedyA situation comedy, usually referred to as a sitcom, is a genre of comedy programs which originated in radio. Today, sitcoms are found almost exclusively on television as one of its dominant narrative forms...
Hogan's HeroesHogan's Heroes is an American television sitcom that ran for 168 episodes from September 17, 1965, to July 4, 1971, on the CBS network. Starring Bob Crane as Colonel Robert E. Hogan, the show was set in a German prisoner of war camp during the Second World War...
, and as the original host of the
Family FeudFamily Feud is an American television game show that pits two families against each other in a contest to name the most popular responses to a survey-type question posed to 100 people...
game show from 1976–1985 on
ABCThe American Broadcasting Company is an American television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. It first broadcast on television in 1948...
and in syndication, and again in syndication from 1994 to 1995, replacing
Ray CombsRaymond Neil "Ray" Combs, Jr. was an American comedian and host of the game show Family Feud on CBS and in syndication from 1988 to 1994.- Early life and career :...
. Dawson also appeared as a panelist on the 1970s version of
Match GameMatch Game is an American television game show featuring contestants attempting to match celebrities' answers to fill-in-the-blank questions...
on
CBSCBS Broadcasting Inc. is an American television network, one of television's original "big three", which also include NBC and ABC. Like NBC, CBS started out as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System...
, from 1973–1978.
Dawson was born as
Colin Lionel Emm in
GosportGosport is a town, district and borough in Hampshire with around 79,000 resident inhabitants, with a further 5-10,000 during the summer months, situated on the south coast of England...
,
HampshireHampshire , sometimes historically Southamptonshire, Hamptonshire, , or the County of Southampton, is a county on the south coast of England. The county borders , Dorset, Wiltshire, Berkshire, Surrey and West Sussex...
,
EnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
to an American father and
BritishThe British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, one of the Channel Islands, or of one of the British overseas territories, and their descendants. In a historical context, the term refers to the ancient Britons, the indigenous inhabitants of Great Britain south of the...
mother.
Richard Dawson (born November 20, 1932) is a
BritishThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
-born
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor, comedian, game show panelist, and host. He is best known for his role as
Bob CraneRobert Edward "Bob" Crane was an American disc jockey and actor, best known for his performance as Colonel Robert E. Hogan in the television sitcom Hogan's Heroes from 1965 to 1971, and for his unsolved death....
's British non-commissioned officer, Corporal Peter Newkirk, on the World War II
situation comedyA situation comedy, usually referred to as a sitcom, is a genre of comedy programs which originated in radio. Today, sitcoms are found almost exclusively on television as one of its dominant narrative forms...
Hogan's HeroesHogan's Heroes is an American television sitcom that ran for 168 episodes from September 17, 1965, to July 4, 1971, on the CBS network. Starring Bob Crane as Colonel Robert E. Hogan, the show was set in a German prisoner of war camp during the Second World War...
, and as the original host of the
Family FeudFamily Feud is an American television game show that pits two families against each other in a contest to name the most popular responses to a survey-type question posed to 100 people...
game show from 1976–1985 on
ABCThe American Broadcasting Company is an American television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. It first broadcast on television in 1948...
and in syndication, and again in syndication from 1994 to 1995, replacing
Ray CombsRaymond Neil "Ray" Combs, Jr. was an American comedian and host of the game show Family Feud on CBS and in syndication from 1988 to 1994.- Early life and career :...
. Dawson also appeared as a panelist on the 1970s version of
Match GameMatch Game is an American television game show featuring contestants attempting to match celebrities' answers to fill-in-the-blank questions...
on
CBSCBS Broadcasting Inc. is an American television network, one of television's original "big three", which also include NBC and ABC. Like NBC, CBS started out as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System...
, from 1973–1978.
Early life and career
Dawson was born as
Colin Lionel Emm in
GosportGosport is a town, district and borough in Hampshire with around 79,000 resident inhabitants, with a further 5-10,000 during the summer months, situated on the south coast of England...
,
HampshireHampshire , sometimes historically Southamptonshire, Hamptonshire, , or the County of Southampton, is a county on the south coast of England. The county borders , Dorset, Wiltshire, Berkshire, Surrey and West Sussex...
,
EnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
to an American father and
BritishThe British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, one of the Channel Islands, or of one of the British overseas territories, and their descendants. In a historical context, the term refers to the ancient Britons, the indigenous inhabitants of Great Britain south of the...
mother. At the age of 14, he ran away from home to join the Merchant Marine, where he pursued a
boxingBoxing is a combat sport where two participants, generally of similar weight, fight each other with their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee and is typically engaged in during a series of one to three-minute intervals called rounds. There are three ways to win...
career. After his discharge, he pursued a comedy career, using the stage name "Dickie Dawson;" when he reached adulthood, he revised this to become "Richard Dawson," which name he would later officially legalize and by which name he would thus be known for the rest of his life. In the course of his career in comedy, Dawson is known to have played the
PalladiumPalladium is a chemical element with the chemical symbol Pd and an atomic number of 46. Palladium is a rare and lustrous silvery-white metal that was discovered in 1803 by William Hyde Wollaston, who named it after the asteroid Pallas, which in turn, was named after the epithet of the Greek...
Theater in London. The other venues where he plied his comedy trade are not known.
Hogan's Heroes (1965-1971) & other 1960's works
Having married British
sex symbolA sex symbol is a famous person of either gender, typically an actor, musician, model, teen idol, or sports star. The celebrity "star system"—the tabloid papers, paparazzi, and gossip talk shows—play an important role in creating and sustaining the public perception of which stars are viewed as...
Diana DorsDiana Dors was an English actress and sex symbol. She was born Diana Mary Fluck in Swindon, England and was educated at Colville House in Swindon...
, Dawson moved to
Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles is the largest city in the state of California and the second largest in the United States. Often abbreviated as L.A. and nicknamed The City of Angels, Los Angeles has an estimated population of 3.8 million and spans over in Southern California...
, where he gained fame in the hit show
Hogan's HeroesHogan's Heroes is an American television sitcom that ran for 168 episodes from September 17, 1965, to July 4, 1971, on the CBS network. Starring Bob Crane as Colonel Robert E. Hogan, the show was set in a German prisoner of war camp during the Second World War...
as Cpl. Peter Newkirk, opposite
Bob CraneRobert Edward "Bob" Crane was an American disc jockey and actor, best known for his performance as Colonel Robert E. Hogan in the television sitcom Hogan's Heroes from 1965 to 1971, and for his unsolved death....
's lead character. The war-related sitcom was one of the highest-rated shows on television during its six-year run from 1965 to 1971. Earlier, in 1963, a svelte, dapper young Dawson had appeared in an episode of
The Dick Van Dyke Show in the role of Brit entertainer "Racy Tracy" Rattigan. In 1965, Dawson had a small role at the end of the film
King RatKing Rat is a 1965 film version of the James Clavell novel King Rat. The film was directed by Bryan Forbes and starred George Segal as Corporal King. Among the supporting cast were John Mills, Tom Courtenay, James Fox and Leonard Rossiter....
, starring George Segal, playing a 1st recon paratrooper, Capt. Weaver, sent to free allied POW's in a Japanese camp.
Late 1960s and early 1970s
In 1967, Dawson released a psychedelic 45rpm single including the songs "His Children's Parade" and "Apples & Oranges" on Carnation Records. Dawson was also in the movie
The Devil's BrigadeDevil's Brigade can refer to:* Devil's Brigade, the joint Canadian-U.S. First Special Service Force* The Devil's Brigade , a 1968 war film based on the exploits of the brigade starring William Holden.* Devil's Brigade...
, as Private Hugh McDonald, in 1968. Dawson and Dors eventually
divorceDivorce or dissolution of marriage is the final termination of a marriage, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between two persons...
d, and he gained
custodyChild custody and guardianship are legal terms which are sometimes used to describe the legal and practical relationship between a parent and his or her child, such as the right of the parent to make decisions for the child, and the parent's duty to care for the child.Following ratification of the...
of both their children, Gary and
MarkMark Richard Dawson is an entertainment manager and CEO of Dawson, Reeves and Zutaut Entertainment Group . Dawson is also the first son of veteran actor/game show host Richard Dawson and the late actress Diana Dors...
. Immediately following the cancellation of
Heroes, Dawson performed as a regular on the popular
NBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices in Burbank,California...
variety show
Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In from 1971 to 1973, and would also be a regular on
The New Dick Van Dyke ShowThe New Dick Van Dyke Show is an American sitcom starring Dick Van Dyke that aired on CBS from 1971 to 1974. This was Van Dyke's first return to series television since The Dick Van Dyke Show.-Production:...
from 1973 to 1974. Dawson also appeared as a panelist on the 1972–73 syndicated revival of
I've Got a SecretI've Got a Secret is a weekly panel game show produced by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman for CBS television. Created by comedy writers Allan Sherman and Howard Merrill, it was a derivative of Goodson-Todman's own panel show What's My Line?. The original version of the show premiered on June 19, 1952...
.
Mid-1970s to mid-1980s
After
Laugh-In left the airwaves in 1973,
game showA game show is a type of television program in which members of the public or celebrities, sometimes as part of a team, play a game which involves answering questions or solving problems usually for money and/or prizes. On some shows contestants compete against other players or another team while...
pioneer
Mark GoodsonMark Goodson was a successful American television producer who specialized in game shows.-Life and early career:...
signed Dawson to appear as a regular on
Match Game '73Match Game is an American television game show featuring contestants attempting to match celebrities' answers to fill-in-the-blank questions...
, alongside
Brett SomersBrett Somers was a Canadian-born American actress, singer, and comedienne. She was best known as a panelist on the 1970s game show, Match Game.- Personal life :...
,
Charles Nelson ReillyCharles Nelson Reilly was an American actor, comedian, director and drama teacher known for his comedic roles in movies, children's television, animated cartoons, and as a panelist on the game show Match Game....
, and host
Gene RayburnGene Rayburn was an American radio and television personality. Born Eugene Rubessa in Christopher, Illinois, he was an only child of Croatian immigrants and graduated from Lindblom Technical High School and later from Knox College...
. Dawson, who had already served a year as panelist for Goodson's revival of
I've Got a SecretI've Got a Secret is a weekly panel game show produced by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman for CBS television. Created by comedy writers Allan Sherman and Howard Merrill, it was a derivative of Goodson-Todman's own panel show What's My Line?. The original version of the show premiered on June 19, 1952...
, proved to be a solid and funny gameplayer and was the frequent choice of contestants for the "Head-To-Head Match" portion of the show's "Super-Match" bonus round, in which, after winning prize money in the "Audience Match" portion, the contestant and Dawson (or any celebrity the contestant chose) had to obtain an exact match to the requested fill-in-the-blank prompt. In a classic episode of
Match Game '77Match Game is an American television game show featuring contestants attempting to match celebrities' answers to fill-in-the-blank questions...
, he and fellow panelist
Debralee ScottDebralee Scott was an American actress best known for her role on the sitcom Welcome Back, Kotter as the sweathog Rosalie "Hotsy" Totsy...
revolted when their answer "Finishing School" did not match the answer "school" in the judges's minds; thus sparking the "School Riot." On the show Dawson would sit in the lower middle seat, directly below fellow regular Somers.
Dawson hosted a one-season syndicated revival of
Masquerade PartyMasquerade Party was an American television game show. During its original run from 1952–1960, the show appeared at various times on all three major networks and even aired on all three at 2:00 PM on September 26, 1954....
in 1974; the program featured regular panelists
Bill BixbyBill Bixby, born Wilfred Bailey Bixby, was an American film and television actor, director and frequent game show panelist....
,
Lee MeriwetherLee Ann Meriwether is Miss America 1955, and an American actress, appearing primarily in movies, soap operas and television...
, and
Nipsey RussellJulius "Nipsey" Russell was an American comedian, best known today for his appearances as a guest panelist on game shows from the 1960s through the 1990s, especially Match Game, Password, Hollywood Squares, To Tell the Truth and Pyramid...
. Produced by Stefan Hatos and
Monty HallMonte Halperin, OC, OM , better known by the stage name Monty Hall, is a Canadian-born emcee, producer, actor, singer and sportscaster, best known as host of the television game show Let's Make a Deal.-Life and career:...
(of
Let's Make a DealLet's Make a Deal is a television game show which originated in the United States and has since been produced in many countries throughout the world. The show was based around deals offered to members of the audience by the host. The contestants usually had to weigh the possibility of an offer...
fame), the program was not popular enough to warrant a second season.
Match Game (1975) and Family Feud (1976)
In 1975, during his tenure as one of
Match GameMatch Game is an American television game show featuring contestants attempting to match celebrities' answers to fill-in-the-blank questions...
's regular panelists, Dawson was hired by Mark Goodson to host an upcoming project titled
Family FeudFamily Feud is an American television game show that pits two families against each other in a contest to name the most popular responses to a survey-type question posed to 100 people...
, which debuted on July 12, 1976, on
ABC'sThe American Broadcasting Company is an American television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. It first broadcast on television in 1948...
daytime schedule. Unlike his flop with
Masquerade Party, Family Feud became a breakout hit (particularly the syndicated nighttime version), eventually surpassing the ratings of
Match Game in late 1977. In 1978 he left
Match Game and won a
Daytime Emmy AwardThe Daytime Emmy Awards are awards presented by the New York-based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and the Los Angeles-based Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in recognition of excellence in American daytime television programming....
for Best Game Show Host for his work on
Family Feud. One of his trademarks, kissing all the female contestants, was one of the things that made the show appear to be a warm and friendly program. He was nicknamed
The Kissing Bandit. However, Dawson was actually not averse to insulting contestants or sparking controversy, a fact which tended to escape references to the program. During 1983, Dawson made an appearance on
Mama's Family as himself hosting an episode of
Family Feud where the Harpers come in for a visit. After Dawson became a naturalized citizen of the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1984, he showed his
passportA passport is a document, issued by a national government, which certifies, for the purpose of international travel, the identity and nationality of its holder. The elements of identity are name, date of birth, sex, and place of birth...
and photo during the introduction of an episode of
Family Feud. He continued hosting the
Feud for nine years until both editions were canceled, the ABC edition on Flag Day, 1985, and the syndicated edition on September 13, 1985.
Mid-1980s – present career
Dawson parodied his TV persona in 1987 by co-starring in the action movie
The Running ManThe Running Man is a 1987 film adaptation loosely based on the Stephen King novel The Running Man. Directed by Paul Michael Glaser, the film stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, María Conchita Alonso, Jesse Ventura, Jim Brown, and Richard Dawson....
, in which he acted out the evil, egotistical, dark-sided game-show host Damon Killian. Of Dawson's performance, film critic
Roger EbertRoger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter.He is known for his film review column and for two television programs Sneak Previews and Siskel & Ebert at the Movies, which he co-hosted for a combined 23 years with Gene Siskel...
wrote, "Playing a character who always seems three-quarters drunk, Dawson chain-smokes his way through backstage planning sessions and then pops up in front of the cameras as a cauldron of false jollity. Working the audience, milking the laughs and the tears, he is not really much different than most genuine game show hosts--and that's the movie's private joke."
Dawson hosted an unsold
pilotA television pilot is a test episode of an intended television series. It is an early step in the development of a television series, much like pilot lights or pilot studies serve as precursors to the start of larger activity, or pilot holes prepare the way for larger holes. Networks use pilots to...
for a revival of the classic game show
You Bet Your LifeYou Bet Your Life is an American radio and television quiz show. The first and most famous version was hosted by Groucho Marx, of Marx Brothers fame, with the unflappable announcer and assistant George Fenneman. The show debuted on ABC radio in 1947, then moved to CBS in 1949 before making the...
that was to air on
NBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices in Burbank,California...
in 1988, but the network declined to pick up the show, which would eventually have two failed renditions with hosts
Buddy HackettLeonard Hacker was an American comedian and actor. In his later life, he and his wife set up the Singita Animal Sanctuary in the San Fernando Valley, California.-Early life:...
and
Bill CosbyWilliam Henry "Bill" Cosby, Jr. is an American comedian, actor, author, television producer, musician and activist. A veteran stand-up performer, he got his start at various clubs, then landed a starring role in the 1960s action show, I Spy. He later starred in his own series, The Bill Cosby Show,...
. On September 12, 1994, Dawson, returned to the syndicated edition of
Family FeudFamily Feud is an American television game show that pits two families against each other in a contest to name the most popular responses to a survey-type question posed to 100 people...
, replacing
Ray CombsRaymond Neil "Ray" Combs, Jr. was an American comedian and host of the game show Family Feud on CBS and in syndication from 1988 to 1994.- Early life and career :...
for what became the final season of the show's official second run (1988–1995). On Dawson's first show back, he received a 25 second standing ovation when he walked out. Afterwards, he said "If you do too much of that, I won't be able to do a show for you because I'll cry." The final episode aired on May 26, 1995. He was considered for the current version of
Family Feud, but elected to retire instead of accepting the offer to host.
Personal life and family
Upon his retirement, Dawson took up residence in
Beverly Hills, CaliforniaBeverly Hills is a city in the western part of Los Angeles County, California, United States. Beverly Hills and the neighboring city of West Hollywood are together entirely surrounded by the city of Los Angeles. The area's "Platinum Triangle" of wealthy neighborhoods is formed by Beverly Hills and...
with his wife since 1991, Gretchen (Johnson) Dawson, whom he met when she was a member of one of the contestant families on
Family Feud in 1981. They have a daughter, Shannon Nicole Dawson. He did not kiss the female contestants in his second run on
Family Feud due to a commitment he made to his wife and daughter
http://archive.deseretnews.com/archive/367164/DAWSON-IS-BACK-BUT-KISSING-ISNT.html. He also has two sons,
Mark DawsonMark Richard Dawson is an entertainment manager and CEO of Dawson, Reeves and Zutaut Entertainment Group . Dawson is also the first son of veteran actor/game show host Richard Dawson and the late actress Diana Dors...
(born 1960) and Gary Dawson, (born 1962) from his previous marriage to
Diana DorsDiana Dors was an English actress and sex symbol. She was born Diana Mary Fluck in Swindon, England and was educated at Colville House in Swindon...
. Richard also has three grandchildren: Lindsay Dors Dawson, Tyler Emm Dawson, and Emma Rose Dawson.