Tom Kennedy Biography
Tom Kennedy born James Edward Narz is an American television host best known for his work in game shows. He has hosted game shows including You Don’t Say!, Split Second, and Name That Tune.
Tom Kennedy Radio
Kennedy graduated from the University of Missouri and the University of Kentucky. While attending the University of Missouri, he worked at KFRU in Columbia, Missouri.
While in Lexington, Kentucky, Kennedy worked at WKLX. After moving to Los Angeles, he worked for five years at KPOL and had a part-time job at KGIL.
Tom Kennedy Show
His biggest hit series were You Don’t Say! which aired on NBC from 1963 to 1969, and on ABC in 1975; Split Second (1972–75); Name That Tune (1974–81); and Password Plus, which he hosted from 1980 to 1982 following the illness (and later death) of original host Allen Ludden.
Kennedy’s other hosting credits include The Big Game (1958), Doctor IQ (1958–59), It’s Your Bet (1971–72), 50 Grand Slam (1976), Break the Bank (1976), To Say the Least (1977–78), Whew! (1979–80), Body Language (1984–86), a syndicated nighttime version of The Price Is Right (1985–86) and Wordplay (1986–87).
Narz briefly hosted a talk show, The Real Tom Kennedy Show, in the early 1970s, and appeared as a guest panelist on To Tell the Truth, Liar’s Club, The Hollywood Squares, and other game shows.
As an actor, Kennedy made guest appearances on such shows as Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In, Cannon, The Ghost & Mrs. Muir, Hardcastle and McCormick and Cybill.
Tom Kennedy Retirement
Kennedy retired in 1989 after several game show pilots produced by his production company failed to sell. In 2003, Kennedy appeared on Hollywood Squares during “Game Show Week Part 2”.
Tom Kennedy Awards
In 2005, Kennedy and his brother, Jack Narz, were co-recipients of the Game Show Congress’ Bill Cullen Award for Lifetime Achievement. (Cullen was a brother-in-law to Narz and Kennedy.)
Tom Kennedy Age
Kennedy was born on February 26, 1927 in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. He is 92 years old as of 2019.
Tom Kennedy Family
Kennedy is the son of John Lawrence Narz Sr. He is the younger brother of host Jack Narz, whose son, David, related about his uncle’s name change that the brothers wanted to avoid the perceived conflict of having two announcers with the same last name promoting competing products. “After a lunch meeting with their agent,” he said, “… they emerged as Jack Narz and Kennedy.”
Tom Kennedy Wife
Kennedy was married to Betty Gevedon from 1952 till her death in 2011. The couple had four children. Details about his children are not yet provided.
Game Shows
- You Don’t Say (1963–69, ’75)
- Name That Tune (1974–1981)
- Whew! (1979–1980)
- Password Plus (1980–1982)
- Body Language (1984–1986)
- The Price Is Right (1985–1986, nighttime)
- Wordplay (1986–1987)
We endeavor to keep our content True, Accurate, Correct, Original and Up to Date.
If you believe that any information in this article is Incorrect, Incomplete, Plagiarised, violates your Copyright right or you want to propose an update, please send us an email to informationcradle@gmail.com indicating the proposed changes and the content URL. Provide as much information as you can and we promise to take corrective measures to the best of our abilities.