Game Show Icon Wink Martindale, Early Elvis Interviewer, Dies at 91

Wink Martindale — the charismatic host who brought charm and energy to classic game shows like Gambit and Tic-Tac-Dough — has died at the age of 91.

Martindale passed away Tuesday at Eisenhower Health in Rancho Mirage, California, after a year-long battle with lymphoma, according to his publicist Brian Mayes.

“He was doing pretty well up until a couple weeks ago,” Mayes said.

A Television Trailblazer

Wink Martindale’s legacy in American television is undeniable. His breakout game show, Gambit, premiered in 1972 — on the very same day as The Price Is Right with Bob Barker and The Joker’s Wild. Martindale’s smooth style and ability to connect with contestants made Gambit an instant hit.

“From the day it hit the air, Gambit spelled winner,” he wrote in his memoir Winking at Life. “Like playing Old Maids as a kid, everybody knows how to play 21.”

Despite Gambit’s success, it eventually lost its spot to a new juggernaut — Wheel of Fortune, which debuted in 1975. But Martindale wasn’t down for long.

In 1978, he struck gold again with Tic-Tac-Dough, where he hosted for seven years. The show saw history in the making with Navy Lt. Thom McKee’s legendary 88-game winning streak — bringing in over $300,000 in prizes, including eight cars and 16 vacations.

“Overnight I had gone from the outhouse to the penthouse,” Martindale wrote.

Martindale’s entertainment career began long before TV. Born Winston Conrad Martindale in Jackson, Tennessee, on December 4, 1933, he was a radio DJ by age 17. His early gigs included stations in his hometown and Memphis — where fate put him near a young Elvis Presley.

On July 8, 1954, Martindale was in the studio the night Presley’s first record, That’s All Right, debuted on WHBQ. By 1956, he invited Elvis for one of his earliest TV interviews on his show Top Ten Dance Party. The two stayed in occasional contact over the years, even conducting a transatlantic phone interview while Presley served in the Army in Germany.

Martindale’s second wife, Sandy, also briefly dated Presley after meeting him on the set of G.I. Blues.

Wink’s smooth voice wasn’t limited to hosting. In 1959, he recorded Deck of Cards, a spoken-word wartime piece that reached No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and sold over a million copies. That same year, he moved to Los Angeles, kicking off decades of radio and television work.

He hosted his first network game show, What’s This Song?, in 1964 and continued with numerous others — including Dream Girl ’67, How’s Your Mother-in-Law?, and a Las Vegas revival of Gambit in the 1980s.

His production company, Wink Martindale Enterprises, brought new shows like Headline Chasers and Bumper Stumpers to life. He remained active in the industry into the 2010s, hosting Debt on Lifetime and Instant Recall on GSN.

He even returned to radio in 2012, hosting The 100 Greatest Christmas Hits of All Time, and lent his voice to The History of Rock ‘n’ Roll in 2021.

Martindale’s unique blend of warmth, wit, and showmanship helped shape American game shows into what they are today.

“I love working with contestants, interacting with the audience and, to a degree, watching lives change,” he once said. “Winning a lot of cash can cause that to happen.”

He’s survived by his wife of 49 years, Sandy; daughters Lisa, Madelyn, and Laura; and several grandchildren. His son, Wink Jr., preceded him in death. His children are from his first marriage, which ended in divorce in 1972.

Wink Martindale leaves behind a legacy of laughter, charm, and timeless moments that made game shows a beloved part of American culture.