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Bill Leyden

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Bill Leyden Famous memorial

Original Name
William Thomas
Birth
Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, USA
Death
11 Mar 1970 (aged 53)
Hollywood, Los Angeles County, California, USA
Burial
Hollywood Hills, Los Angeles County, California, USA GPS-Latitude: 34.145181, Longitude: -118.323115
Plot
Morning Light section, Map #G05, Lot 8032, Single Ground Interment Space 1
Memorial ID
View Source
Television Game Show Host, Announcer. He who emceed six game shows, including It Could Be You (1956–61), Your First Impression (1962–64, with Dennis James), and You're Putting Me On (1969). In addition, he hosted movies on KTTV, and in fact played small roles in a handful of films, including Jerry Lewis' The Patsy (1964). A World War II veteran serving in the Marine Corps, he returned home following the war and found work as a radio announcer on stations KMPC and KFWB in Los Angeles and later served announcer for the syndicated radio series The Liberace Program (1954–55) before moving over to television, where he hosted several game shows, the most successful of which was It Could Be You. During his run on It Could Be You, Leyden was touted by announcer Wendell Niles as "the man who will amaze you with what he knows about you", partly because Leyden was often helped onstage and in the audience by well-concealed TelePrompters and "a team of spies and operatives" who investigated potential contestants. Although he was extremely popular, both in front of the camera and behind the microphone, Leyden's chronic health problems limited his on-screen work in the latter half of the 1960s (Bill Cullen and Larry Blyden filled in for Leyden on You're Putting Me On, with Blyden becoming the permanent host of the show when Leyden suffered a cerebral hemorrhage in September 1969). For his television work, Leyden received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Television Game Show Host, Announcer. He who emceed six game shows, including It Could Be You (1956–61), Your First Impression (1962–64, with Dennis James), and You're Putting Me On (1969). In addition, he hosted movies on KTTV, and in fact played small roles in a handful of films, including Jerry Lewis' The Patsy (1964). A World War II veteran serving in the Marine Corps, he returned home following the war and found work as a radio announcer on stations KMPC and KFWB in Los Angeles and later served announcer for the syndicated radio series The Liberace Program (1954–55) before moving over to television, where he hosted several game shows, the most successful of which was It Could Be You. During his run on It Could Be You, Leyden was touted by announcer Wendell Niles as "the man who will amaze you with what he knows about you", partly because Leyden was often helped onstage and in the audience by well-concealed TelePrompters and "a team of spies and operatives" who investigated potential contestants. Although he was extremely popular, both in front of the camera and behind the microphone, Leyden's chronic health problems limited his on-screen work in the latter half of the 1960s (Bill Cullen and Larry Blyden filled in for Leyden on You're Putting Me On, with Blyden becoming the permanent host of the show when Leyden suffered a cerebral hemorrhage in September 1969). For his television work, Leyden received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Bio courtesy of: Wikipedia



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  • Maintained by: Find a Grave
  • Originally Created by: Chris Mills
  • Added: Feb 28, 2012
  • Find a Grave Memorial ID:
  • Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/85906728/bill-leyden: accessed ), memorial page for Bill Leyden (1 Feb 1917–11 Mar 1970), Find a Grave Memorial ID 85906728, citing Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Hollywood Hills, Los Angeles County, California, USA; Maintained by Find a Grave.