Legendary game show host and radio personality Wink Martindale passed away on Tuesday, April 15, at the age of 91. He died at Eisenhower Health in Rancho Mirage, California, after a year-long battle with lymphoma, per the Associated Press. 

Born Winston Conrad Martindale on December 4, 1933, in Jackson, Tennessee, he began his broadcasting career at 17 as a radio DJ. Wink said he received his nickname from a childhood friend.

“When I was a kid in Jackson, Tennessee, one of my playmates, Jimmy McCord, couldn’t say ‘Winston,’ which is my given name. He had a speech impediment, and it came out sounding like ‘Winky.’ So Winston turned into Winky, and then I got into the business and Wink it was! It served me well,” he told ABC in 2014.

His early career included a television interview in 1956 with a young Elvis Presley. This was a defining moment as the two celebrities became lifelong friends.

“Very few people knew that he gave away literally millions and millions of dollars to charitable organizations not only in this country but all over the world,” Martindale told Fox News Digital in 2019. 

“He was a great giver. If he was your friend, he was your friend until the day you died. I mean, he would always be your friend and do anything for you that you needed him to do. He was that kind of a person.”

Martindale’s wife Sandra said Presley is the reason she and Wink married. She dated The King on and off before he married Priscilla in 1967.  

“When [Martindale] said [Presley] was from Tennessee, I said, ‘He must be a nice guy,’ because I loved the state. I loved all the guys. I loved everything in the state of Tennessee because Elvis was such a wonderful part of my life,” Sandra said, per The Hollywood Reporter. 

Martindale’s television career took off in the 1960s, leading to his role as host of NBC’s “What’s This Song?” He gained national prominence with game shows like “Gambit” and “Tic-Tac-Dough.” Martindale hosted more than 20 game shows over the course of his career, including “High Rollers,” “Debt,” and “Headline Chasers.”

Beyond television, Martindale achieved musical success with his 1959 spoken-word hit “Deck of Cards,” which reached No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100. The game show host was also a frequent contributor to charitable causes, including St. Jude Children’s Hospital.

Martindale is survived by his wife of 49 years, Sandra; his daughters Lisa, Lyn, and Laura; his sister Geraldine; and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his son, Wink Jr. 

His enduring charm and warmth made him a beloved figure in American entertainment.