Bob Barker

His father, Byron John Barker, a power-line foreman, died in 1929 from complications after falling off a pole.

In 1931, when he was only age 7, Barker moved with his mother to the Rosebud Indian Reservation in Mission, South Dakota.

Graduated from Springfield Central High School in Springfield, Missouri, in 1941.

Enlisted in the United States Navy on November 24, 1942. Was assigned the service number 7033834 and became a naval aviation cadet on June 10, 1943. Was commissioned an ensign on December 6, 1944 and served on active duty until November 24, 1945. Was awarded the American Campaign Medal and World War II Victory Medal. Served as a Flight Officer in the U.S. Naval Reserve. Remained on the rolls of the Naval Reserve until December 7, 1960, when he was discharged from service as a lieutenant junior grade.

Graduated from Drury College, in Springfield, Missouri, with a degree in political science, in 1949, with honors.

Not only is it the highest-rated daytime game show, it's also the longest-running game show in TV history, surpassing the prime-time hit What's My Line? (1950), which ran for 18 years.

He made his debut in 1956 on national television as the host of the popular The New Truth and Consequences (1950). Ralph Edwards, the show's originator, had sold the show to NBC as a daytime strip, but he had not chosen a host. He auditioned other hosts in Hollywood and New York for weeks, but when he heard "The Bob Barker Show" on his car radio, he knew he had found the man for the job. Proving that Edwards had chosen him wisely, Barker hosted "Truth or Consequences" for an unbelievable 18 years, and he and Edwards remain close friends to this day.

They drink a toast at lunch every December 21st to celebrate the day in 1956 when Edwards notified him that he was going to become the host of "Truth or Consequences". Barker has been twice named in the Guinness Book of World Records as television's "Most Durable Performer," at 3,524 shows, and "Most Generous Host in Television history" for awarding $55 million in prizes on his various shows. During the ensuing years the $55-million figure has increased to more than $200 million. He has won 11 Emmys as a Game Show Host, more than any other performer, and 2 more as Executive Producer of "The Price is Right".

From 1967 to 1988, Barker was the long-time host of Miss USA Beauty Pageant.

For 35 years Bob Barker had been the host of The Price Is Right (1972) game show.

The first game show that he produced was "Lucky Pair". It ran on local Southern California television and was the first game show hosted by Richard Dawson. Dawson would later become host of Family Feud (1976), which was also produced by Mark Goodson, who produced Barker's The Price Is Right (1972).

He also served the show's executive producer since 1987.

In 1994, he was sued for sexual harassment by one of the models on The Price Is Right (1972).

In 1996 he made his motion picture debut in Universal Pictures' Happy Gilmore (1996), in which he played himself with Adam Sandler.

His real acting debut, however, came when he was asked to play Mel Harris' father in NBC's Something So Right (1996).

Another honor came when one of the most historic sites in the history of television, Stage 33 at CBS Television City in Los Angeles, was re-dedicated as the Bob Barker Studio in ceremonies following the taping of the 5,000th episode of "The Price is Right", on March 11, 1998. Barker is the first performer to whom CBS has ever dedicated a stage. Barker was born in Darrington, WA, and spent most of his youth on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota, where his mother was a schoolteacher. His family eventually moved to Springfield, Missouri, where he attended high school and Drury College on a basketball scholarship. World War II interrupted his studies and he joined the US Navy, becoming a fighter pilot, but the war ended before he was assigned to a seagoing squadron. Following his discharge Barker returned to Drury and took a job at a local radio station to help finance his studies. It was there he discovered that what he did best was to host audience participation shows. After graduating summa cum laude with a degree in economics, he went to work for a radio station in Palm Beach, Florida. A year later he moved to Los Angeles, and within a week he was the host of his own radio program, "The Bob Barker Show".

Named the most popular game show host of all time in a national poll, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award for Daytime Television in 1999. Although he has graced our television screen for more than four decades, his career continues at full circle.

He also was given the Lifetime Achievement Award in 1999, for a total of 14, and won 2 additional awards, for a total of 16 Emmys. He has also received the coveted Carbon Mike Award of the Pioneer of Broadcasters.

Broke the record set by Johnny Carson for hosting the same network TV show continuously, with 29 years, 7 months, 22 days as host of The Price Is Right (1972). (26 April 2002).

Was inducted into the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Hall of Fame in May 2004 by Dick Askin, Chairman & CEO of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Askin is also President & CEO of Tribune Entertainment Company.

Nine days after his birthday, and until Edwards' death in 2005, he would have luncheon with Ralph Edwards, every December 21 of each year, at 12:05 P.M.

He announced his retirement as host of The Price Is Right (1972) effective in June, 2007. He later announced the date would be June 15th. (31 October 2006).

Inducted into the Hall of Famous Missourians in 2007.

On September 26, 2008, Springfield, MO named a street behind Drury University in honor of him. This street is called Bob Barker Boulevard.

Has a ship named after him that is owned and operated by the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, whose donation of $5 million to the society facilitated the purchase of the ship. It first started operating for the group in late 2009/early 2010 in its campaign against whaling by Japanese fisheries.