Gene Rayburn was an American radio and television personality who amused TV audiences for over two decades as the host of the popular American television game show ‘Match Game’. He started out as a promising actor, who, according to critics, got sidetracked at the beginning of his acting career, and hence, chose to become a disc jockey. He was also a popular radio show host and co-hosted ‘Anything Goes’, the morning drive time radio show, with Dee Finch. His success as a disc jockey gave him the opportunity to sign a contract with NBC, which made Rayburn the first announcer on ‘The Tonight Show.’ He continued with the show for six years, delivering comic weather reports and acting in sketches with comedians like Louis Nye and Buddy Hackett. A game show specialist, he also hosted ABC's ‘The Name's the Same,’ and NBC's ‘Make the Connection,’ ‘Dough-Re-Mi’ and ‘Play Your Hunch.’ He also acted in theaters, and some of his popular roles were in ‘Bye Bye Birdie’ and ‘La Cage Aux Folles’. On television, he acted in live dramas like ‘Kraft Theatre’ and ‘Robert Montgomery Presents.’ A recipient of the lifetime achievement award from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, he had been nominated for several Daytime Emmy awards.