I'm right there with you, madeyoulaugh.

RIP Peter Tomarkan.

I loved the show, too. I'm not afraid to admit it.

I absolutely LOVED that show. And Peter...well he made a great host.

It's like a little part of my childhood went down with that plane.

"died yesterday of natural causes brought on by a plane plunging into the ocean"

That was funny.

ah, myl--you got me nostalgia trippin'. i too used to fake sick to stay home for the veritable cornucopia of excellent daytime television--hogan's heroes, perry mason, love american style, 64,000 pyramid, and, of course, press your luck.

the best was when i could put together a streak of absences (thank you, strep throat!) and watch a repeat winner be transformed by whammy-anxiety from mild-mannered reserve into full-on bug-eyed, twitching, bwa-ha-ha-ing madness. those little animated whammy skits were the best, too.

RIP, pete. i will forever remember the glaring contrast of your porcelain veneers against your cancer-tan.

Hell, I still watch Press Your Luck on GSN...

I used to watch this show all of the time w/my grandma...she loved it so much that she taped it and we'd fast-forward through the commercials and get to the "big bucks, big bucks, no whammies!!!" I, of course, always wanted ppl to get a whammy just so I could see what silly guy would come out.

Great show. RIP Peter - you rocked the gameshow circuit in your day!!!

LOL so do I susanarosa!!

Any reminiscing of daytime TV classics from our Gen-X childhood must give props to Match Game, Tic Tac Dough (Wink Martindale was the man!), Love Connection, and of course syndicated reruns such as That Girl and Brady Bunch?

Livemusicjunkie (#7), I thought PYL pre-dated the VCR? How long was this show on the air anyway?

So glad someone in the blog world is paying respect to this guy. Loved the show & he was funny so my condolenses goes to the family.

One of my favorite Tomarken 'gasms is when someone would Whammy he would say sarcastically, "Oh so sorrrry".

The contestants would shoot him daggers after he got that off. Loved it.

This is a devastating loss. I'm tearing up over those screen shots you posted. No more whammies, Peter Tamarkan, no more whammies...

JasonR/#10 - nope, VCRs have actually been around since the late 70s. PYL was on in the early 80s, I believe 1983.

My parents were pretty behind the times. I couldn't talk them into a VCR until 1985.

RIP Mr. No Whammy

You're not alone, I loved PYL growing up as a kid. Peter Tomarken we'll miss you. You put a whammy on my heart... I don't know what that means though... but you get the point.

Yeah Press Your Luck was totally aweosme. Those Whammy dudes were KICK ASS, especially when they would breakdance all over your money when you lost it. I too, used to fake illness to stay home and watch it. What wonderful childhood memories old Peter and PYL hold for me. I hate it when peope die.

Um and totally off the subject-am I insane or what? Where the smeg is the LOST update? Wasn't the "Claire gets her memory back" episode AFTER the Sayid torturing Dorthy Gale's uncle Henry???????????????

I hate it when PEOPLE die, too.

Wasn't there a movie planned starring Bill Murry over the PYL guy?

Why don't I remember this scandal at all? I loved PYL.....

Interesting article....
http://www.rotten.com/library/conspiracy/press-your-luck/

Loved the show. Also still use "no whammies, STOP" whenever possible.

"Big bucks, no whammies" is still part of my vocabulary. I was a total PYL fan.

Rest in Peace...no whammies in the sky.

I read on MSNBC that he and his wife were on a volunteer flight to pick up a hospital transport patient when their plane crashed.

#25

Yes, and according to MSNBC, the plane was his and he was the pilot. It just really sucks.

I loved this show when I was. By the way the show had to be on in the late 80's early 90s, it could of just been old ones I don't think we got cable until then. I used to love when the whammies came out and sang. I used to watch PYL and Scrabble all the time when I was little.

I loved the show when I was little. I can type.

That GSN special was awesome. I died laughing at the dude on screen left when he got his whammy....aaah whammy memories. Can you believe that in 1984 the guy who won the money was only 35 years old, whereas Tomarken was already 42?

Anyway, Tomarken seemed like a genuinely good guy who wasnt embarassed at all about his PYL pass. He died doing volunteer work....which is a testament to his character. I salute you, Peter Tomarken. Thanks for the memories.

Hey! How about "No WHAMMIES, STOP!" to all posters who MUST corekt there speling with additional posts. Man, that has to be one of my BIGGEST pet peves. Fellow commentators, TVGasm was kind enough to create a "Preview" button for you to proofread your posts. Quit cluttering up the comments pages with your adroit spelling corrections. I am pretty sure we all can read typo and we are all already convinced how smart any of us here are.

Blah! I *know* this is not the place topost this. Sorry Peter T fans, but neither is this the place to continually post lame 1 line comments to tell us that you meant "you're" instead of "your"!!!!

I am off my meds.

Do all the recent MYL posts mean that MYL is back as a TVGasm irregular?

Judging by subgenre's post #30, he/she did not use the preview button to check for typos either... :)

busybee - um.. that was the point!

And although adverse to those who use a whole new post to SPELL CORRECTLY, subgenre is apparently fine with using a WHOLE NEW LINE for another thought, which could have been written in the original post....

I have to pee.

See?? Just like that!

Who among us does not fondly remember the cartoon whammies coming to take some poor slob's money in a creative way? I for one always rooted for the little red guys.

subgenre,

The conflict of interest which was my primary reason for leaving, no longer exists. That said, youll be seeing more of me...which depending on your POV is a good thing or bad.

MYL

MYL - Welcome Home, baby!

And to anyone upset by my previous post (#30), I am back on my meds. All is well in the world again. Or at least till the 'script runs out.

subgenre (she)

OOOH MYL is back!! That is the best news I've heard all week!

It's so nice to have you back where you belong. (sung to the tune of Hello Dolly)