Gary Collins Biography

Fast Facts

• Enrolled in Santa Monica City College before enlisting in the Army
• The master of ceremonies at the Miss America pageant for many years, he married Mary Ann Mobley, a former Miss America
• Died of natural causes at Biloxi Regional Medical Center
• Originally spent his effort trying to become a lead in a prime-time series, but none of the shows he starred in ever took off
• Performed at the year-round repertory theatre Barter Theatre in Abingdon, Va․, early in his career
• During his time in the army, he became an announcer and disc jockey for Armed Forces Radio
• Quote: "It seems that the viewing public and producers of those programs have tapped into this insatiable desire for stranger formats, stronger issues, stronger confrontations, a stronger examination of subject matter and reality subject matter․"
• Quote: "I don't think all television has to be on that hard edge․․․ That's basically not a part of my character․"
• Made his mark as a host of talk shows and the Miss America Pageant
• One of the most notably moments on his talk show "Hour Magazine" was when he spent a week speaking with Nancy Reagan about drug abuse in 1984