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Born in San Mateo in 1925, he lived on El Dorado Street. The son of a nationally ranked tennis player, he attended San Mateo High School and graduated in 1942.
When he was five, his father lost his job, as did so many others during those lean years. To get by, the family moved in with his grandmother, who lived near Coyote Point.
His father’s misfortune motivated him to succeed, so at a young age, he sold magazines and Christmas wreaths door to door.
His grandmother had a piano, and he learned to play it while living there. This set him on a musical course.
While at the College of San Mateo in 1943, he organized an entertainment assembly that featured an exotic dancer. It was well received by the audience, however the wife of the president of CSM was less than enthusiastic.
Shortly thereafter, he left CSM.
He bumped around for a bit until he finally landed a singing job at KFRC radio in San Francisco.
In addition to being a singer, he was also a band leader.
However, he hit the big time by becoming a highly successful talk show host and the creator of two popular game shows.
Had enough? Ok, it is time to lift the curtain on this mystery guest.
He created two shows: Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy. His talk show, which aired from 1962 until 1986, was simply called “The Merv Griffin Show.”
In 2006, Griffin returned to San Mateo High School, where they honored their most famous student by naming part of the school after him—Merv Griffin Quad.
On Aug. 12 of the following year, Merv signed off for the last time at age 82.
Everything else is just history.
