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Creator of Wheel of Fortune dies Creator of Wheel of Fortune dies
(20 minutes later)
Merv Griffin, the US entertainer who created game shows Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune, has died aged 82. Merv Griffin, the US entertainer who created the game shows Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune, has died aged 82.
He had been suffering from prostate cancer, a family statement said. He had been diagnosed with prostate cancer earlier this year.
He was known for his self-titled TV series, which ran for more than two decades, and also had spells as an actor and a vocalist. Griffin was known for his self-titled TV series, which ran for more than 5,500 editions in the 23 years to 1986, and had spells as an actor and singer.
But the quizzes secured his financial future, after he sold the rights to both programmes to Columbia Pictures and kept a share of the profits. But the quiz shows secured his financial future, after he sold the rights to Columbia Pictures and kept a share of the profits.
Jeopardy was first broadcast on US television in 1964, while Wheel of Fortune made its debut 11 years later.
Griffin bought a hotel when he tired of trying to invest his money, having been "so bored" spreading his fortune across bonds and stocks.
"I said, 'I'm not going to sit around and clip coupons for the rest of my life'," he recalled in an interview in 1989.
The Merv Griffin Show made its debut on US television in 1962"That's when Barron Hilton said, 'Merv, do you want to buy the Beverly Hilton?' I couldn't believe it."
But Griffin did acquire the property, spending $100m (£49m) and then spending millions more dollars completely refurbishing it.
Further profits were made following the purchase of Resorts International, which ran casinos and hotels from Atlantic City to the Caribbean.
He told Life magazine 19 years ago that the "gamesmanship" in such business deals "parallels the game shows I've been involved in".
Born on 6 July 1925 in San Francisco, Griffin's first job was as a singer on the radio programme San Francisco Sketchbook.
According to his website, within two days the programme was renamed The Merv Griffin Show, and soon afterwards he was earning in excess of $1,000 (£490) a week.
He became the featured vocalist in Freddy Martin's big band, before topping the US chart with a version of I've Got a Lovely Bunch of Coconuts in 1950.