Chuck Woolery has died at the age of 83.
The original Wheel of Fortune host passed away in his Texas home, according to a longtime friend.
As AP News reports, Chuck’s podcast co-host and friend, Dr. Mark Young, shared the news on Sunday morning.
In an email to AP News, Dr. Young stated that Chuck passed away with his wife, Kristen, present.
Dr. Young wrote, “Chuck was a dear friend and brother and a tremendous man of faith. Life will not be the same without him.”
Over on X (formerly Twitter), Dr. Young shared the news in a public tweet, along with a collage of photos of himself and Chuck.
“It is with a broken heart that I tell you that my dear brother @chuckwoolery has just passed away,” Dr. Young wrote in the post.
“Life will not be the same without him, RIP brother,” he added.
Chuck Woolery had trouble breathing shortly before his passing
Dr. Young spoke with TMZ, telling the outlet that he was at Chuck’s Texas home when “Chuck said he wasn’t feeling well and went to lie down.”
According to Dr. Young, he returned to the room later that day and found Chuck having trouble breathing.
TMZ reports that 911 was called, but they weren’t able to arrive in time to save Chuck.
Chuck was a game show icon
Chuck was a legendary television host, having worked on several game shows during his decades-long career.
Most notably, Chuck served as the original host of Wheel of Fortune.
In 1975, Chuck was offered the host job of Wheel of Fortune during its inception before Pat Sajak came along several years later.
Chuck worked on Wheel of Fortune until 1981 when he left due to a salary dispute.
Ultimately, after Chuck demanded a raise to $500,000 per year, producer Merv Griffin decided not to renew Chuck’s contract, and Pat Sajak was hired as his replacement.
Chuck regretted leaving the popular weeknight game show, telling The New York Times in 2003, “If I wouldn’t have left Wheel of Fortune, I’d be making about $10 million a year now.”
After his tenure on Wheel of Fortune, Chuck hosted Love Connection, arguably his most famous role.
Love Connection followed couples who were set up on dates, and Chuck interviewed them afterward to find out how their dates went.
Chuck’s famous tagline was that viewers would hear everything that happened on couples’ dates in “two and two.”
Chuck was also famous for hosting Scrabble, Lingo, and a revival of The Dating Game and tried his hand at acting in a few small television roles, including the sitcoms 227 and Scrubs.
He was nominated for a daytime Emmy in 1978 and was inducted into the American TV Game Show Hall of Fame in 2007.