Bob Barker is one of the influential personalities in television. He is famous for his unique appearance. Today, we will discover Bob Barker net worth, early life, and career.
Who is Bob Barker?
Bob Barker was an American media personality and animal rights advocate. He gained worldwide recognition by hosting CBS Network’s popular game show, The Price Is Right. This show was the longest-running game show in North American television history.
Besides these, Bob also hosted many other popular television shows and series. He started to support animal activism and rights for animals.
Bob supports several animal rights groups, like United Activists for Animal Rights, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, and the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society.
Short Bio of Bob Barker
Full Name | Robert William Barker |
Birthdate | December 12, 1923 |
Birthplace | Darrington, Washington, U.S. |
Died | August 26, 2023 (aged 99) |
Death Place | Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
Nationality | American, Rosebud Sioux Tribe |
Height | 6’ 1” (1.85 m) |
Profession | Media personality, game show host, animal rights advocate |
Social Media | None |
Net Worth | $70 million |
Bob Barker Net Worth
Bob Barker left 70 million U.S. dollars before his death. Being a successful and popular television host is the main reason behind this massive net worth. He hosted several long-running TV programs. He also starred in many television shows and series. Bob’s various career activities significantly impacted his net worth.
Early Life
Bob Barker was born in Darrington, Washington. His mother, Matilda Valandra, was a schoolteacher; his father, Byron John Barker, was the foreman on the electrical high line through the state of Washington.
Bob attended the grade school on the Rosebud Reservation, where his mother was a teacher, and later, he started high school in Missouri.
There, he met his future wife, Dorothy Jo Gideon. Bob joined the high school basketball team and completed many matches against several decorated teams. Because of his incredible performance, Bob received an athletic basketball scholarship.
After completing high school, Bob enrolled at Drury College (now Drury University) in Springfield, Missouri, on his athletic scholarship. During university, he became a member of the Epsilon Beta chapter of the Sigma Nu fraternity at Drury.
During World War II, Bob joined the United States Navy Reserve. He was trained as a fighter pilot but did not serve in combat.
On January 12, 1945, he leave from the military. After the war, he returned to his college and finished his education by graduating summa cum laude with a degree in economics.
Before graduation, Bob started pursuing a Broadcasting career. He interviewed on various Radio channels and finally got his first job at KTTS-FM Radio in Springfield.
Sources Behind Bob Barker Net Worth
Early Career
While attending college, Bob was appointed at KTTS-FM Radio in Springfield. He continued this post until his graduation.
Later, he moved to Lake Worth Beach, Florida, and joined as a news editor at WWPG 1340 AM in Palm Beach (now WPBR in Lantana).
In 1950, Bob moved to California to find more influential opportunities. There, he was given his own radio show titled The Bob Barker Show.
This show runs continuously for six years. Those early works introduced him to the entertainment industry and allowed him to accumulate much wealth from the beginning of his career.
90s Filmography
Bob made his television debut in NBC Network’s Western television series Bonanza. He appeared in the episode of “Denver McKee” in 1960.
Later, in 1975, he became a regular cast member of Goodson and Todman’s television game show Tattletales. It was Bob’s first game show. He continued this show for an entire season.
In the meantime, Bob also appeared as a regular cast member in the television panel game show Match Game. He completed a total of 7 seasons of this show.
In 1978, Bob made his hosting career debut. He became the main host of an American popular cooking contest called The Pillsbury Bake-Off. This show went viral worldwide. Bob continued with the show for two years.
At the beginning of the 80s, Bob was an enormous success. He became the co-host for CBS Network’s competition show, Rose Parade. He continued this show for a couple of years.
Bob made a cameo appearance on CBS’s popular television sitcom The Nanny in 1994.
Besides television, Bob made his film debut in Dennis Dugan’s sports comedy film Happy Gilmore (1996). In this film, Bob appeared as himself. The film went viral worldwide and hit the box office with $38.8 million. Bob earned massive recognition from this film.
20s Filmography
In the 20th century, Bob got many invitations from several famous worldwide television programs because of his previous successful records.
For this reason, Bob got a cameo appearance invitation at the beginning of 2000. He appeared in William J. Bell’s television soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful.
On September 7, 2009, Bob became a guest host in the professional wrestling WWE’s weekly event Raw (called “The Price is Raw”) in Rosemont, Illinois.
In the following year, he became a guest co-host on The Huckabee Show, a daily TV talk show hosted by the 44th Governor of Arkansas, Mike Huckabee. Bob appeared on the July 29th episode.
Bob also appeared in a commercial for State Farm Insurance’s “Magic Jingle” campaign in December 2010. He also appeared in a TV advertisement where he endorsed David Jolly, a candidate for the 2014 Florida’s 13th congressional district special election.
On October 2, 2015, Bob provided voice work for the “Sanctuary!” episode of the hit animated series SpongeBob SquarePants.
Bob received a high payment for his every appearance in those filmographies, which became the main source of his net worth.
Talk Shows and Interviews
As Bob became a highly influential personality and his fame spread worldwide, he got many invitations from popular television talk shows.
For this purpose, he appeared on various shows, such as Larry King Live, The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, The Arsenio Hall Show, and so on. Bob was paid a good amount for appearing on those shows.
Awards
Bob Barker won 23 awards and was nominated for 30 times. The most significant of those 23 winning awards are as follows.
- Outstanding Game/Audience Participation Show
- Outstanding Game Show Host
- Star on the Walk of Fame
- Lifetime Achievement Award
- MTV Movie Award
Personal Life
Bob Barker was married to Dorothy Jo Gideon in 1945. Dorothy died from lung cancer at age 57 in 1981. Together they had no children.
Death
Bob Barker was suffering from a neurodegenerative disease called Alzheimer’s disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens.
For this reason, Bob became very sick at the beginning of August 2023. Later, he died on August 26, 2023, in Los Angeles at the age of 99.
FAQs
How much is Bob Barker net worth?
Bob Barker left 70 million U.S. dollars before his death.
What happened to Bob Barker’s money?
Bob Barker’s wealth is split between 40 different animal rights and military charities.
Who inherited Bob Barker’s wealth?
Animal rights charities and military foundations inherited Bob Barker’s wealth.
Does Bob Barker have any children?
No, Bob Barker had no children.
Final Thoughts
Bob Barker net worth taught us that nothing goes with you in the grave. He applied his top skills to achieve a successful career as well as a lavish financial status.