‘Price Is Right’ Announcer Rod Roddy Beat Alcoholism & Bankruptcy Before Game Show
What To Know
- Rod Roddy, beloved announcer of The Price Is Right for 17 years, overcame alcoholism and bankruptcy before joining the show.
- His struggles with drinking and financial hardship early in his career ultimately led him to become more careful with money and committed to personal growth.
- Roddy joined The Price Is Right in 1986, worked until his death in 2003, and was succeeded by several announcers as the show continued under new hosts.
The Price Is Right announcer Rod Roddy was a beloved presence on the game show for 17 years. What many fans might not realize is that he overcame alcoholism and bankruptcy before joining TPIR, according to fellow announcer Randy West.
On the February 9 episode of the Nostalgia Tonight with Joe Sibilia podcast, West — who filled in for Roddy as an announcer from 2003 to 2004 as his health declined — discussed the personal hurdles Roddy faced before helming The Price Is Right alongside Bob Barker.
“He was more enlightened as a human being, I think, as a result of having gone through all of this negativity,” West explained. “Working in the radio business when he got in, in his 20s, was a very secure, underpaid position until you got into a reasonable market. So he was living hand to mouth at the beginning. He did very well in radio, but he was also drinking quite a bit, so that was a challenge to him.”
Roddy’s drinking, West noted, led to “run-ins with the police” and played a part in financial problems.
“He had gone through bankruptcy. He was not always the most careful with money, which later all of these things informed him in his quest to be the best person he could be,” West shared. “He had given up drinking a long time, I mean, years before he did Price and never went back because he understood what he learned from that.”
Ultimately, West said that Roddy became “very careful” with money and was able to get his life back on track.
On February 17, 1986, Roddy joined The Price Is Right as its regular announcer alongside Barker after Johnny Olson’s death. Roddy worked on the game show until his death at 66 in October 2003, following a battle with colon cancer.
Rich Fields took over announcing duties after a string of guest announcers, followed by George Gray in 2011.
Meanwhile, Barker hosted the game show from 1972 until his retirement in 2007; he died at 99 in 2023. Drew Carey took over for Barker in 2007 and remains the host.
The Price Is Right, Weekdays, 11a/10c, CBS, stream next day on Paramount+