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Art Fleming

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For persons of a similar name, see Arthur Fleming (disambiguation).

Art Fleming
Fleming in 1970
Born
Arthur Fleming Fazzin

(1924-05-01)May 1, 1924
New York City, U.S.
DiedApril 25, 1995(1995-04-25) (aged 70)
Crystal River, Florida, U.S.
Occupations
  • Television host
  • radio host
  • actor
Years active1949–1992
Known forOriginal host of Jeopardy! (1964-1975; 1978-1979)
Spouses
  • Mildred Goodrich
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1946; div. 1954)​
    Peggy Ann Ellis
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1954; div. 1972)​
  • Becky Weaver
    ​
    (m. 1977)​

Arthur Fleming Fazzin (May 1, 1924 – April 25, 1995), known professionally as Art Fleming, was an American actor and television host. He was the original host of the television game show Jeopardy!, hosting its first three versions as a network show on NBC (1964-1975 and 1978-1979) and as a weekly syndicated show (1974-1975).

Early life and career

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Fleming was born in New York City.[1] His parents, William and Marie Fazzin, a dance team popular in Europe, had immigrated to the United States from Austria. Fleming played varsity football at James Monroe High School in New York,[2] where he earned a letterman award. He stood 6 feet 4 inches (1.93 m) and weighed 220 pounds (100 kg). He later attended Colgate University and Cornell University,[2] playing on the football and water polo teams at both colleges. Fleming served in the U.S. Navy for three and a half years during World War II as a patrol bomber pilot over the Atlantic.[2]

After leaving the Navy, Fleming became an announcer at a radio station in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, where he changed his name. His radio career later took him to Akron, Ohio and back home to New York. He was the first announcer to deliver the slogan "Winston tastes good like a cigarette should" for Winston cigarettes.[3]

A 1970 NBC publicity photo featuring Art James, Bob Clayton, Jack Kelly and Fleming

Fleming's first television role was as a stunt double for Ralph Bellamy in the detective series Man Against Crime. In 1959, he starred as detective Ken Franklin in the ABC series International Detective[4], credited as Arthur Fleming. He also played attorney Jeremy Pitt in The Californians[5], an NBC Western set in San Francisco during the gold rush of the 1850s. Fleming also appeared in many television commercials in addition to anchoring the 11:00 news on WNBC.[6]

Jeopardy!

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In 1964, Fleming was living in New York City when he was contacted by Merv Griffin regarding his availability to host a daytime game show[7]. Griffin and his wife Julann had spotted Fleming on a commercial for Trans World Airlines,[8] and Griffin thought that Fleming was "authoritative, yet warm and interesting".[9] Fleming auditioned, competing against two other candidates,[7] and was selected by Griffin, his associates and NBC executives.[7]

Jeopardy! was filmed at the NBC Studios at 30 Rockefeller Center in New York and began its original run on March 30, 1964 at 11:30 a.m., with Fleming as host and Don Pardo as the announcer. The show was a success from the start, appealing to working people and college students on their lunch break. In 1965, the show was moved to noon Eastern Time, which proved to be its most popular time slot. Because of the show's success, Fleming was nominated for the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Game Show Host at the 1st Daytime Emmy Awards in 1974.[10] During his tenure as host of Jeopardy!, Fleming never missed a taping.

Because he hosted a quiz show, and in part because he was an avid reader with multiple college degrees, Fleming earned a reputation as a storehouse of trivia. However, in 1990, Fleming admitted: "If I didn't have that sheet in front of me you wouldn't find me in the studio".[11]

Jeopardy! was successful until 1974 when Lin Bolen, NBC's vice president of daytime programming, canceled the show.[12] Bolen believed that the show had run its course and that Fleming was too old to attract younger viewers.[12] In January 1974, the show was moved to 10:30 a.m. and it lost most of its core audience, although it continued to beat its competition. In July, the show was moved to 1:30 p.m. The original Jeopardy! aired its 2,753rd and final show on January 3rd, 1975.

In an effort to keep the show alive at the end of its NBC run, Griffin unsuccessfully attempted a weekly syndicated version of Jeopardy! with Fleming as host. The syndicated program aired 39 shows between late 1974 and early 1975 but was not renewed. In 1978, Jeopardy! was revived as a network show on NBC, filming at the NBC Studios in Burbank, California. Although Fleming returned as host, format changes and difficulty with time slots meant that the show could not find an audience, and it was canceled after 108 shows.

Later career

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At the conclusion of Fleming's tenure as host of Jeopardy!, he had hosted about 2,900 shows. After Jeopardy!'s cancellation in both 1975 and 1979, Fleming returned to acting. In 1977, he played the role of Harry Truman's Secretary of Commerce W. Averell Harriman in the film MacArthur and appeared in the comedy film Prime Time (originally known as American Raspberry)[13]. He also appeared in an episode of the television police drama Starsky and Hutch[14] as well as episodes of shows such as Kingston: Confidential[15] and the 1976 miniseries The Moneychangers.[16]

Fleming also hosted a radio version of College Bowl for CBS Radio from 1979 to 1982. He hosted the NBC radio weekend magazine Monitor during 1972. Fleming reprised his role as host of Jeopardy! in the 1982 film Airplane II: The Sequel and "Weird Al" Yankovic's music video "I Lost on Jeopardy". Fleming was also often asked to host mock versions of Jeopardy! at trade shows and conventions.

When Merv Griffin began developing a new revival of Jeopardy! in 1983, he opted not to invite Fleming to host.[17] Alex Trebek was offered the position, when suggested by actress Lucille Ball, and hosted the program until his death in 2020.[17][18] However, Fleming claimed in interviews that he had declined the position.[19]

In interviews conducted in the early years of the Trebek version, Fleming expressed his displeasure with the show's new direction and various changes that the revival's producers had implemented. He disapproved of moving production from New York to Los Angeles, suggesting that filming in California made the show feel superficial and anti-intellectual.[20] He also claimed that the new show's questions and answers were too easy and feuded publicly with the staff of the modern Jeopardy! over the nature of the material, as he believed that the writers were inserting hints to allow the correct questions to seem more obvious and easier to guess.[11] Despite his disagreements, Fleming believed that the modern version was one of the better shows on television.

From 1980 until his retirement in 1992, Fleming hosted a daily radio talk show on St. Louis radio station KMOX.[2][19] He had been recommended to the station by Bob Costas.[11] On Sunday evenings, he occasionally cohosted Trivia Spectacular with David Strauss, a St. Louis schoolteacher.[19] He also hosted the syndicated radio program When Radio Was from 1990 until shortly before his death. Fleming's final game-show hosting assignment occurred during two installments of the PBS science program Nova as part of the National Science Test, in which a studio audience tested their knowledge of science against that of a celebrity panel.[21]

Personal life

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Fleming was a devout Christian. He served as a deacon at Marble Collegiate Church in New York City[22] and was a friend of Norman Vincent Peale and Robert Schuller.[19]

Fleming married Mildred Goodrich in 1946 in North Carolina,[23] and they had a daughter, Jan.[24] In 1954, he married actress Peggy Ann Ellis, who had worked on The Merv Griffin Show. Fleming denied having any children in a 1974 interview, conducted after his divorce from Ellis.[25] Despite insisting he would never marry again after his divorce from Ellis,[25] Fleming married Becky Lynn in a private ceremony at Peale's home. He adopted Becky's two children from a prior marriage, and together they had five grandchildren.

In 1992, Fleming retired and the family moved to Crystal River, Florida. He remained active in charity work, hosting fundraising videos for the Citrus County United Way and becoming involved with the Citrus County Abuse Shelter Association. He also hosted the syndicated television program Senior America, which showcased seniors and senior activities.

Death

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Fleming died of pancreatic cancer on April 25, 1995 at age 70 at his home in Florida.[26] According to his obituary in the Los Angeles Times, he had been diagnosed with cancer two weeks before his death.[26] He was cremated and his ashes were scattered at sea.[27] On November 8, 2020, his successor on Jeopardy!, Alex Trebek, died of the same disease at the age of 80.[28][29]

Legacy

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As Jeopardy!'s original host, the show is perhaps Fleming's most-remembered accomplishment. He was considered by many as the face of the show even after Alex Trebek took over as host. An article from The Washington Post written on the day of Fleming's death in 1995 asked: "Who will always be the embodiment of 'Jeopardy!' even if Alex Trebek plays the role for another 40 years?"[30]

Because of network tape-wiping practices in the 1960s and 1970s, only a small number of Jeopardy! episodes hosted by Fleming currently exist, and only a fraction of these exist as complete color videotapes. However, there have been many recent efforts to uncover lost episodes from Fleming's tenure.[example needed]

Filmography

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Year Title Role Notes
1957 A Hatful of Rain Jack - Mounted Cop
1959 Career Mounted Policeman Uncredited
1959 International Detective Ken Franklin
1964-1975; 1978-1979 Jeopardy! Host
1977 American Raspberry Colonel Grant
1977 MacArthur W. Averell Harriman
1977 Kingston: Confidential Ted Corbin
1977 The Moneychangers Prosecutor
1977 Starsky and Hutch Lt. John Blaine
1982 Airplane II: The Sequel Himself
1984; 1985 Nova Host National Science Test

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Arthur Volk Fazzini discovered in U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947".
  2. ^ a b c d Jeopardy tribute website
  3. ^ Fisher, Marc (April 26, 1995). "A Host of Questions: Art Fleming of Jeopardy!". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  4. ^ "International Detective". www.imdb.com. Retrieved March 2, 2026.
  5. ^ "The Californians". www.imdb.com. Retrieved March 2, 2026.
  6. ^ Rogak, Lisa, Who is Alex Trebek?: A Biography, Thomas Dunne Books, 2020, p. 72.
  7. ^ a b c Fleming, Art (1979). Art Fleming's TV game show fact book. Internet Archive. Salt Lake City : Osmond. pp. 1–4. ISBN 978-0-89888-005-2.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)
  8. ^ United Jet Mainliner (August 29, 2021). TWA Commercials Through the Years - 75 Years of TWA. Retrieved March 1, 2026 – via YouTube.
  9. ^ David Schwartz, Steve Ryan & Fred Wostbrock, The Encyclopedia of TV Game $hows, Checkmark Books, 1999, pp. 112–115.
  10. ^ "Daytime Emmy Awards (1974)". IMDb. Retrieved March 2, 2026.
  11. ^ a b c Later with Bob Costas interview with Art Fleming, early 1990s, posted by Wink Martindale on YouTube.
  12. ^ a b Griffin, Merv; Bender, David (2003). Merv : making the good life last. Internet Archive. New York : Simon & Schuster. pp. 98 & 99. ISBN 978-0-7432-3682-9.
  13. ^ "Prime Time". www.imdb.com. Retrieved March 2, 2026.
  14. ^ "Death in a Different Place". www.imdb.com. Retrieved March 2, 2026.
  15. ^ "Seed of Corruption". www.imdb.com. Retrieved March 2, 2026.
  16. ^ "Part I". www.imdb.com. Retrieved March 2, 2026.
  17. ^ a b Griffin, Merv; Bender, David (2003). Merv : making the good life last. Internet Archive. New York : Simon & Schuster. p. 106. ISBN 978-0-7432-3682-9.
  18. ^ Dagan, Carmel (November 8, 2020). "Alex Trebek, Revered Host of 'Jeopardy!' for 36 Years, Dies at 80". Variety. Retrieved April 11, 2022.
  19. ^ a b c d Perception with Don Johnson interview with Art Fleming, 1987.
  20. ^ What is Jeopardy!?, 05.01.89 – Sports Illustrated
  21. ^ Baber, David. Television Game Show Hosts: Biographies of 32 Stars. McFarland: Jefferson, North Carolina, 2008, page 101.
  22. ^ The Bobbie Wygant Archive (June 18, 2020). Art Fleming for "Jeopardy" - Bobbie Wygant Archive. Retrieved March 2, 2026 – via YouTube.
  23. ^ "Arthur Fazzin discovered in North Carolina, U.S., Marriage Records, 1741-2011".
  24. ^ "Discovered in 1950 United States Federal Census".
  25. ^ a b "YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE A GENIUS TO BE A CONTESTANT" "We Want Average Americans Who Are Aware of What's Going On" from Daytime TV magazine, July 1974
  26. ^ a b "Art Fleming, 70; Original Host of 'Jeopardy!' TV Game Show". The Los Angeles Times. April 26, 1995. Retrieved September 28, 2022.
  27. ^ Thomas Jr., Rober Mcg. (April 27, 1995). "Art Fleming, 70, Television Host Who Gave Polish to 'Jeopardy!'". The New York Times.
  28. ^ Effie Orfanides (March 8, 2019). "Art Fleming, Alex Trebek's 'Jeopardy' Predecessor, Died From Same Illness 2 Weeks After Diagnosis". heavy. Archived from the original on March 8, 2019.
  29. ^ Josh Peter (November 8, 2020). "Alex Trebek dead at 80: Why pancreatic cancer is so deadly". USA Today.
  30. ^ "A HOST OF QUESTIONS: ART FLEMING OF JEOPARDY!'". The Washington Post. April 26, 1995. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved March 2, 2026.
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