Peter Marshall, original “The Hollywood Squares ”host, dies at 98

Marshall hosted the long-running game show for 16 years, appearing also on episodes of "The Lucy Show," "Fantasy Island," and "CHiPs."

Peter Marshall, the original host of The Hollywood Squares, has died of kidney failure at 98.

The actor and presenter's death was announced on his website on Thursday in a lengthy post that noted, "According to his wife of 35 years, Laurie, Peter passed at home, surrounded by loved ones."

Marshall won two Daytime Emmys during his tenure on The Hollywood Squares from 1966-1981 and was nominated an additional four times. He became one of the most beloved hosts on American television and had a prolific acting career beyond the game show world, which spanned appearances in films and series like Annie, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, The Love Boat, CHiPs, and more.

Marshall's storied career in the entertainment industry began in the late 1940s. He followed his sister, the actress Joanne Dru (Red River, All The King's Men) to New York City where worked a succession of small-time starters, from NBC radio page to Paramount Theater Usher.

After a stint stationed in Italy for the Army during WWII, Marshall hit the comedy circuit with an act developed with comic actor Tommy Noonan. Nightclub gigs led to opening bits on late night programs likeThe Ed Sullivan Show, which led to a contract at 20th Century Fox. Marshall remained a Fox contract player for decades, appearing in films like the Ann Dvorak Western The Return of Jesse James; The Rookie, alongside Julie Newmar; and later, TV movies like H.M.S. Pinafore. He made a memorable appearance as the radio jockey Bert Healey in the 1982 film adaptation of Annie.

On stage, Marshall starred opposite Chita Rivera in a West End production of Bye Bye Birdie, opposite Julie Harris in Skyscraper on Broadway, and performed as Georges over 800 times in a national tour of the Broadway musical La Cage aux Folles.

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Marshall already enjoyed a full, successful career before Hollywood Squares came knocking. Hosting the instantly successful game show catapulted him from working actor to in-demand A-lister. Marshall presided over the show while some of its most iconic guests duked it out for circles and squares. Paul Lynde, Joan Rivers, Vincent Price, Gypsy Rose Lee, Charo, Ernest Borgnine, Eartha Kitt, Don Rickles, and more got to shine due to Marshall's unsurpassed "straight man" routine and knack for setting up punchlines.

Following The Hollywood Squares, Marshall hosted his own variety show, The Peter Marshall Variety Show, which allowed him to show off the singing voice he'd honed since the age of 15 with the Bob Chester Orchestra, but was unable to utilize as a game show host. He also hosted series like Big Bands From Disneyland, All-Star Blitz, and Fantasy.

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"I'd been in the business a long time, so stars were never intimidating to me. So I enjoyed it," he told the Television Academy in a 2010 interview. "I never thought it would work. I thought it was a 13-week gig, really. It was easy for me, it was the easiest thing I'd ever done in show business. No rehearsal, I walked in and said, 'Hello stars!' I read questions and laughed, and got paid wonderfully well."

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A revival of Hollywood Squares has been ordered by CBS and is set to air in January, anchored by Drew Barrymore as the center square.

Marshall is survived by his wife Laurie, daughters Suzanne Browning and Jaime Dimarco, son Pete LaCock, twelve grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren. Another son, David LaCock, died in 2021 due to complications from COVID-19. No services have been announced, but "in lieu of flowers," reads the family's statement, "donations can be made to Actors & Others for Animals."

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