I'm totally floored right now. Like, I just found out that Rich Jeffries, an old-school game show announcer, died today. He was 73, which is a good run, I guess, but it's still so sad. It just feels… weird. I'm sitting here, trying to get through my senior year at Hudson High—you know, home of the Cobras, rocking the red and gold—and then I get this news. It’s a total reality check, honestly.
I know most of the people I go to school with probably have no clue who he even is. They’re all about prom, what college they're going to, and just counting down the days until graduation. I’m right there with them, don’t get me wrong. I’m so ready to be done with senior year, with all the drama and the crazy deadlines. But for me, this is different. It’s like a little piece of my world just got a lot quieter.
It's hard to explain to people who don't get it, but because of my hydrocephalus and all the stuff that comes with having a VP shunt and being on the spectrum, I've always been super into things that were a little outside the mainstream. Old game shows were my thing. They were like this whole other world I could escape to, and Rich Jeffries was everywhere in that world. He wasn’t a huge star like Johnny Olson or Gene Wood, but he was one of those reliable, go-to guys who just made everything sound legit.
I remember watching him on Password Plus. He filled in for Gene Wood a couple of times, I think for three weeks in January of '81 and then again that spring. His voice was just so clean and professional, but still had that game show flair. He could be on The Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour, then you’d hear him on The Price Is Right as a fill-in. It was like he was part of the crew, even if he wasn't the main guy.
And don’t even get me started on Super Password. He was the first announcer on that show. I always thought that was so cool. He only did it for the first nine weeks before Gene Wood took over, but I've seen those early episodes. His voice was just perfect for it, building up the tension and the excitement. It’s a shame he wasn’t on it for longer, but those first few weeks are a legit piece of game show history. He even filled in for Bob Hilton on Blockbusters for the last two weeks of its run in ’82. He was just that guy who was always there when they needed him.
It’s just so crazy to think about all of this while I'm also dealing with my own life. Like, I’m supposed to be freaking out about my final exams and trying to figure out what to do after I graduate. I’ve been working on my senior project forever, and I just want to finish strong. The whole senior-itis thing is a real struggle. I just want to be done with high school. It's been a long road, especially with all the doctor appointments and stuff. Sometimes I just feel like I'm trying to get to the end of the semester without falling apart.
And then this news hits me. It's like a reminder that even though my life feels like it's going at a million miles an hour, things are still ending. Rich Jeffries was born in '38, which is legit forever ago. He was a voice that I’ve heard so many times, and now that voice is gone. It's just so sad and unexpected.
Maybe I'm being super dramatic, but for me, this is a big deal. It’s a connection to a whole other time and place that has always made sense to me. A place where a voice could make you feel excited about a contestant winning a car, or just about playing a game. He was a part of that.
I think I'm gonna go and watch some more clips of him. Maybe it'll help me feel a little better, or maybe it'll just make me feel more nostalgic. Either way, it's a better use of my time than doing this stupid English paper right now. Rest in peace, Rich Jeffries. Thanks for all the memories and for being a part of the soundtrack of my life. You were a legend.
