Chuck Woolery, Host of ‘Love Connection’ and Original ‘Wheel of Fortune,’ Dies at 83

Woolery died at his home in Texas, according to his longtime friend Mark Young

Chuck Woolery, the original host of Wheel of Fortunehas died. He was 83.

Woolery died at his home in Texas, surrounded by his wife, his friend and Blunt force truth podcast co-host Mark Young confirmed this in an email to the Associated Press on Sunday, November 24. Representatives for Woolery did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

“Chuck was a dear friend and brother and a wonderful man of faith, life will not be the same without him,” Young wrote to the AP.

Young also wrote about Woolery’s passing on “

According to TMZ, Young told the newspaper that Woolery “said he wasn’t feeling well and lay down.” Young claimed that Woolery later returned saying “he was having trouble breathing” and 911 was called, but “he didn’t make it.”

Woolery was a staple television product for decades. He was the original host of Wheel of Fortunehost of the popular dating show Love connection for over a decade and also organized shows Scrabble, Greed And Language use.

He was born in Ashland, Ky., in 1941. Woolery lived with his parents and sister in a two-story clapboard house and told PEOPLE in 1991 that his childhood was “very happy and very simple.” He sang from an early age, and a memorable moment occurred when Woolery — in seventh grade and 6 feet tall — sang Nat King Cole’s “Too Young” at an assembly. “I looked and sounded like a man to all these little kids,” he told PEOPLE. “Girls liked me, and boys hated me.”

Woolery enrolled at the University of Kentucky in 1960, but after two years he left and joined the Navy, where he spent two years. He then returned to school at Morehead State University in Kentucky, but left again to study music. In Nashville, he and Bubba Fowler – under the name The Avant-Garde – recorded a single, ‘Naturally Stoned’, which became a Top 40 hit. He later also released music as a solo artist.

Woolery moved to Los Angeles in 1972 and eventually settled down The tonight show and other programs.

In 1975, producer Merv Griffin hired him to host a new game show called Wheel of Fortune. Initially, the show aired during the day. “When I arrived, I couldn’t stop talking to people,” he said The New York Times in 2003 about his hosting style. ‘I wanted to know who they were and what they did. I wanted them to win, and I became emotionally involved in their victory.”

Woolery hosted until 1982, when he and the producers could not agree on his contract. He was replaced by Pat Sajak. He long regretted his decision to leave the game show. ”If I hadn’t left Wheel of Fortune“I’d be making about $10 million a year now,” he told the paper Times in 2003.

In 1983, Woolery started hosting Love connectionwhich became a great success. The show not only set people up on dates, but also followed them on their night out and quizzed them afterwards about how it went. The show was a precursor to the now ubiquitous reality dating genre.

Woolery told PEOPLE in 1986 that while audiences enjoyed seeing contestants find love, they “enjoy even more dates that fail.” The show was so popular that a young Jim Carrey did an impression of the famously imperturbable Woolery op In living color. “Dating and romance are real common denominators,” Woolery told PEOPLE.

During his time at Love connectionWoolery also hosted The big twist And Scrabblebut the dating show was his favorite. “This is really the only show I do that I’m going to watch at home,” he told PEOPLE. “I really like the unpredictability of it.”

Woolery hosted a short-lived talk show, The Chuck Woolery Showin 1991. Love connection ended in 1994. From 1997 to 1999, Woolery staged a revival of The dating game. Later he was a host Greed And Language use.

Woolery and his family were the subject of a short-lived reality show in 2003 Chuck Woolery: Naturally stoned. He told PEOPLE in 2003: “When they wanted to do this, I thought, I can’t imagine anyone looking at my life. But after we got into it, I thought, ‘If it’s funny, they’ll watch.’

Woolery was married several times. From 1963 to 1970 he was married to Margaret Hayes. They shared three children: Cary, Katherine and Chad. Chad died in a motorcycle accident in 1985. He was 19 years old.

“My Christian faith is probably the only thing that got me through this,” Woolery told PEOPLE in 1997 about Chad’s death. “Without the understanding of where Chad is and what I expect in the future, it would have been very difficult. I believe he is much better off now than he was then.”

From 1972 to 1980 he was married to actress Jo Ann Pflug. They shared a daughter, Melissa. From 1985 to 2004 he was married to Teri Nelson. They shared sons Michael and Sean. In 2006 he married Kim Barnes.

Woolery was a Republican and was vocal in his support of conservative politics, including publicly pushing conspiracy theories about COVID-19.