Bob Barker Dies At Age 99, Reportedly Watched ‘Two & A Half Men’ Reruns In His Final Days
As you probably heard this past weekend, ‘Price is Right‘ host Bob Barker passed away at the age of 99 on Saturday, August 26.
Even though he was pushing 100, his death was still a shock to many. He seemed like one of those figures that would just somehow live forever. Barker was hired to host ‘The Price is Right’ back in 1972, and he served as host until 2007 when he retired.
When producers hired Barker to host ‘The Price Is Right’ in 1972, they hit the jackpot. The game show had faded significantly from its glory days in the late ‘50s and had been punted by two networks before it landed at CBS. But in Barker, the show found its voice, and it has continued to air a decade and a half after he retired.
According his longtime rep, Roger Neal, Barker spent his final days watching television. Neal says he watched reruns of the CBS sitcom ‘Two and a Half Men‘, which showed Neal that he still had his sense of humor.
He reportedly also watched new episodes of ‘The Price is Right’ and had nothing but praise for new host, Drew Carey.
Now, as for what’s going to happen to Bob’s estate in the wake of his passing … we’re told a majority of it is going to be divvied up and donated to a number of causes he was passionate about, especially as it pertains to animals and vets.
Bob was a longtime animal rights activist, ending each episode of The Price is Right with the plea: “Help control the pet population. Have your pets spayed or neutered.”
He founded a charity in 1995 that provided just such services for pet owners — the DJ&T Foundation, named after his wife and her mother. His passion for the cause can be traced to the first prize he gave away as host of ‘The Price Is Right’ — a fur coat.
He reportedly went to the show’s producer and told him that he didn’t want to be on the stage with fur coats, and surprisingly, the producer listened to his request, and since then, no fur coats have been featured on the show.
Truly one of the greats. He loved life. He loved people. And he loved animals.
The world will miss him.
