Robert Leland Eubanks was born on January 8, 1938. He is an American disc jockey, television personality, and game show host. He is best known for hosting the game show The Newlywed Game from 1966 to the present. He also hosted the updated version of Card Sharks from 1986 to 1989. In 2000, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his work as a radio DJ. The star is located in front of Grauman's Egyptian Theatre, where he began his broadcasting career. In 2005, he was honored with a lifetime achievement Emmy Award by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.

Biography

Eubanks was born in Flint, Michigan, but was raised mostly in Pasadena, California. He grew up listening to music, especially favorites like Frank Sinatra and Doc Watson. His parents, John Otho Leland Eubanks (September 28, 1905 – April 11, 1995) and Gertrude Eubanks (née McClure; 1907–1997), were originally from Missouri. They moved to Flint during the Great Depression, where their only child was born, before relocating to California. As a young boy, he became a child model, working on ad photo shoots and meeting his idol, Gene Autry, during one of these sessions.

Eubanks enjoyed watching classic TV shows and quiz programs. Growing up in the 1940s and 1950s, he was influenced by Cary Grant, Howard Hughes, Buddy Hackett, and Bill Cullen. He attended Pasadena High School, where he graduated in 1955. After high school, he attended Los Angeles Pierce College (according to his comments on a Card Sharks episode) and later became one of California’s most popular disc jockeys. In 1956, he worked at his first radio station, KACY in Oxnard, California. He joined KRLA in Pasadena in 1960 to do the overnight show. In the spring of 1962, he was promoted to the morning drive time slot; a year later, he moved to his long-running 6–9 pm evening slot. During most of the 1960s, he helped promote concerts such as the Beatles’ 1964 and 1965 Hollywood Bowl performances and the Rolling Stones during the first two years of their American tour. While still in Los Angeles, he also promoted artists like Barry Manilow, The Supremes, Dolly Parton, Bob Dylan, Elton John, and Merle Haggard, among others.

Eubanks married Irma Barnard of Ann Arbor, an athlete, ranch forewoman, and artist, on September 10, 1969. They had three children: Trace, a retired firefighter; Corey, a stuntman; and Theresa. In 1970, the couple purchased a 20-acre (81,000 m²) portion of a working cattle ranch and later expanded it to 26 acres (110,000 m²). The entire family enjoyed roping and riding, with Eubanks participating in rodeos during his spare time. Eubanks is a gold card member of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association. Barnard managed interior decorating, landscaping, and hosted one to two equestrian shows a year. She died in 2002 after a long illness.

In 2004, Eubanks married Deborah James, a woman 29 years younger. James works as a wedding and events coordinator in Ventura, California, and owns a company called Bella Vita Events. The couple has a young son, Noah. In October 2010, Eubanks and James listed their Westlake Village, California home for sale.

The Newlywed Gameand country music business

In 1966, Eubanks received a phone call from Chuck Barris, asking him to host a new game show called The Newlywed Game. The show began broadcasting on ABC later that year. When it first aired, it became very popular quickly. Because of its success, the network added more shows to its prime-time lineup, and The Newlywed Game remained on the air for five years. At just 28 years old when he started hosting, Eubanks became well-known for bringing a lively, youthful style to daytime television. He encouraged contestants to answer questions in ways that sometimes led to funny or embarrassing moments. Between 1968 and 1973, The Newlywed Game was ranked among the top three daytime game shows for five seasons. It also held a top-three ranking for prime-time game shows for five seasons between 1966 and 1971.

While hosting The Newlywed Game, Eubanks used the phrase "makin' whoopee," which refers to sexual activity. He borrowed the term from a song with the same name. He used it to avoid making young children watch a show that might require parents to explain adult topics. The network allowed the phrase "making love" but did not permit the word "panties" to be used on the show.

During breaks from taping episodes, Eubanks worked in the country music industry. He managed artists such as Dolly Parton, Barbara Mandrell, and Marty Robbins. In the same year, he signed Merle Haggard to a contract for exclusive live performances, producing over 100 shows per year with him for nearly a decade.

The Newlywed Game ended in 1974 after 2,195 episodes, making Eubanks one of the most-watched game show hosts of his time. He later hosted the show again in syndication (1977–1980, 1985–1988, and 1997–1999). In 2009, during the show’s revival on GSN, Eubanks hosted a celebrity charity episode featuring Carnie Wilson and her family. In 2010, he hosted another episode titled Game Show Kings, which included famous game show hosts and their spouses. This made Eubanks the only person to host The Newlywed Game in six different decades (1960s through 2010s).

In 1988, Eubanks left The Newlywed Game to pursue other projects, though he continued hosting Card Sharks on CBS for seven more months. He was replaced by Paul Rodriguez.

In 1996, Eubanks appeared as a guest host on Prime Time Country, a show that aired on The Nashville Network.

Other game shows

After the show Newlywed Game, Eubanks hosted several other game shows during his career, including Rhyme and Reason, Card Sharks, Dream House, The Diamond Head Game, Trivia Trap, and Powerball: The Game Show. He also tried out to host the CBS daytime version of Wheel of Fortune, but Bob Goen was chosen instead.

In 1985, Mark Goodson hired Eubanks for a second time (his first hosting job was Trivia Trap) to host an updated version of Card Sharks for CBS. Eubanks hosted Card Sharks on CBS from January 1986 until the show ended in March 1989. Before hosting Card Sharks, he appeared as a guest on the original NBC version of the show with Jim Perry to promote his 1979 game show All Star Secrets, which he also produced.

His last game show on a major network was Family Secrets. In recent years, he has hosted or co-hosted all five of NBC’s Most Outrageous Game Show Moments specials. Eubanks was also one of three hosts who took turns (along with Chuck Woolery and Jamie Farr) on the "$250,000 Game Show Spectacular" at the Las Vegas Hilton until the show closed in April 2008.

In addition to producing All Star Secrets, the company he co-founded, Hill-Eubanks, also produced The Guinness Game from 1979 to 1980, The Toni Tennille Show in 1980, Buddy Hackett’s revival of You Bet Your Life in 1980, and Infatuation (which Eubanks also hosted) in 1992. Between 1994 and 1995, Eubanks traveled to Britain to host a version of Infatuation called Infatuation UK, produced by Thames Television for UK cable network Living TV. Eubanks tried acting but found it difficult to memorize lines. He also discovered that working in the game show business was more profitable and less restrictive than acting.

Radio

Before joining game shows, Eubanks worked as a well-known radio DJ at station KRLA 1110 in Los Angeles from 1960 to 1968. He also managed music and promoted events during this time. Eubanks helped bring The Beatles to Los Angeles for their first performances on the West Coast at the famous Hollywood Bowl in 1964 and 1965. To fund these events, he used money from his home. Other KRLA DJs, Dave Hull and Reb Foster, helped introduce The Beatles to the public. Eubanks also owned several Cinnamon Cinder nightclubs. During the early to mid-1960s, the main band that performed at his Traffic Circle Cinnamon Cinder club was called The Vibrants.

In the early 1980s, Eubanks filled in for Casey Kasem on the radio show American Top 40. He hosted episodes on January 9–10, 1982 (the first regular episode of that year) and again on April 16–17, 1983.

Other appearances

In 1964, Eubanks hosted the Miss Teen USA pageant on television. Actor Sebastian Cabot was a guest at the event.

In 1989, Eubanks appeared in Michael Moore’s documentary called Roger & Me. The film showed Moore trying to find General Motors CEO Roger Smith to talk about the problems caused by closing 11 factories in Flint, Michigan. Eubanks, who was born in Flint, talked about his thoughts on the job losses. He also told a joke that was considered offensive and disrespectful.

According to Moore in the film’s DVD commentary, Eubanks tried to report the film to the Anti-Defamation League for having anti-Semitic content. However, the only anti-Semitic part in the film was the joke Eubanks himself told. In a 2010 interview, Eubanks explained how the joke happened.

In 1992, Eubanks appeared on the TV show The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air in an episode called Eyes on the Prize. He hosted a game show called Double Trouble during that episode. That same year, he also appeared in the movie Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, where he hosted a game show called Ding-Dang-Dong. He mentioned that contestants stayed at the Plaza Hotel in New York City and gave the hotel’s phone number.

Since 1976, Eubanks has hosted the Tournament of Roses Parade on KTLA. He worked with Stephanie Edwards from 1978 to 2005. In 2006, he continued hosting with Michaela Pereira, a KTLA Morning Show anchor. Edwards returned as co-host in 2009. In September 2015, Eubanks and Edwards announced on KTLA Morning News that they would not host the 2016 parade. In 2017, they were replaced by Leeza Gibbons and Mark Steines.

Eubanks appeared as himself on the Nickelodeon show Kenan & Kel in an episode called The Honeymoon’s Over. He also guest-starred on That '70s Show in an episode called Eric’s Stash.

From 2000 to 2003, Eubanks hosted the Miss California USA Pageant and the Mrs. International Pageant, which is connected to the Miss International (United States) Pageant.

On July 6, 2007, Eubanks participated as a celebrity “Mob Member” on the NBC game show 1 vs. 100. A year later, he appeared as a guest on GSN Live. He returned to the show in 2010. His most recent TV appearance (not counting his annual KTLA Rose Parade hosting) was on the Amazing Race season 17 finale, which aired in December 2010. In 2011, Eubanks hosted a special version of The Newlywed Game live at Champion