Elder Gays: What's The Scoop On Merv Griffin? Any Stories... Wasn't He Closeted? Thank You!

Heard third hand rumors that he was a grabby harasser and threatened to have men blacklisted if they resisted. But as a frau I loved his show, recently bought a DVD set of some of his 1970s shows. I loved his charm and his enthusiasm, and it's fun to watch extensive interviews with stars and celebrities.

Did my life lesson escape you people all together ? Jesus !

Made a fortune with his JeOpARdY jingle.

Merv The Perv was a big queen. I knew someone who worked for his game shows and was known as being a big time gay. His beard Eva Gabor made him look even more gay than he was.

Had friends that worked for him.

When asked years ago about his wealth compared to Trump, he scoffed.

Trump was a fraud and practically broke, he said.

He certainly was a perv. He was really inappropriate to me in the locker room of a tennis club. I was about 16 too.

Without him, would there be a milquetoast Ryan Seacrest?

He interrupted his guests all the time. Oprah would too. It was annoying.

I read the book Merv Griffin Life in the Closet.....it barely mentions Seacrest....probably to avoid lawsuits.....but if you like OLD HOLLYWOOD there is some stuff there...

Is that Deney Terrio r2?

R4

Zsa Zsa mentioned to mutual friends about how absurd her sister & Merv looked together, that no one with any sense would buy their 'romance'. Eva was happy with the arrangement & told Zsa Zsa to butt out.

I think that's Denny - I remember he was on the Howard Stern show and, after noticing his hairy hands, Howard asked, "Denny, were you born or were you trapped?" Lol

The boyfriend of a friend of mine worked very closely with him for many years. I only heard good things about Merv. I heard from those friends that YES, Tom Cruise is gay, Clooney, Seacrest... Which they knew via Merv. Never any gossip about Merv himself, though.

What a surprise R13! Auntie queeny of the highest order, short, fat, hungry and thirsty in more ways than one. He was so annoying. He had a son too.

Merv would ask celebrity guests to share personal stories, share personal experiences, talk about on-set observations; when the guests' stories were especially revealing, he would have a standard reply: "Oooooooh, that's fascinating/interesting/amazing!" Whatever the adjective of the moment was, it was always prefaced by, "Oooooooh!"

We were teenagers watching after-school TV; our favorite was "The Merv Griffin Show." It got to the point where we knew the moment he would dramatize the guests' stories with his special exclamation; we would turn to each other and say, "Ooooooh!" along with him, and then burst into laugher.

I have no clue about the Merv and Ryan Seacrest Story... can someone share??

Merv perved on Denny Terrio and his dirty dance-fever underpants. Merv himself said he was quatre sexual -- he'd do anything for a quarter.

The Seacrest story is v graphic and involves coprophilia, pls DM me

Please DM me? What does that mean...

Ryan so handsome...

Rhymes with perv for a reason

Grab 'em by the boypussy.

Have heard from people who worked very closely with him for years: A really nice guy. Too nice actually - would fly his staff down to Mexico for the weekend on a whim, just to do it, and put himself in potentially precarious situations, though never purposely. He was just a fun guy who liked to have a good time. This was a fabulous interview from 2002. He was a great host, but a wonderful guest too.

You are the anti-Trump.

Sadly, he never touched me inappropriately.

The Final Jeopardy "Think" song was originally composed by Griffin under the title "A Time for Tony", as a lullaby for his son. Sorry, this is the only "scoop" I have on Merv.

He would put his palm under his chin, with his arm resting on the arm of the sofa, and say to the guest, "Ooohhh. Tell me about your gall bladder operation. Mmmmm."

Saw him once in person, in 1982 when he was the grand marshal of the Portland Rose Parade. It was raining, as usual, and my friend had an enormous umbrella, with fancy Asian artwork on it. It was about 10 feet in diameter and there were 6 or 7 of us gay guys under it. As Merv passed by on his little float, my friend spun the umbrella and moved it up and down. Merv noticed us, smiled really big, pointed at us then gave a parade wave fitting of a parade queen. At that moment all of us lost any doubt that he was one of us.

I attended one of his talk shows in LA (right out of high school in the 70s--yeah, I'm old). . Bob Hope and Richard Pryor were his guests. I remember that Bob Hope was not funny at all, somewhat aloof and cold; I wasn't impressed with him at all. Richard Pryor was new upcoming comedian and he gave a hilarious monologue. When the cameras were off during the commercial break, Hope and Merv were talking among themselves, completely ignoring Pryor. Pryor didn't seem to mind, he was talking to himself, making goofy comments, making everyone laugh. That guy was funny all the time and this before he became famous.

Inside info - Back in the day - Mevrv's Florida home was the place for drunk-fest bisexual orgies with his best friends nearby, Burt Reynolds and Ed Mcmahon in attendance. Merv liked to watch. Ed had the biggest dick. Burt took his trick upstairs. All that happened when your secret could be kept safe.

We'll be right back.

Had him--sloppy bottom. And BOSSY. "There, no, just a little, up, up, too far up, down, slowwww, too slow..."

Merv kept a bungalow at the Beverly Hills Hotel for his tricks, and liked them barely legal.

His son is obnoxious, IG name is Richer and Famous or something equally obnoxious.

We'll be right back.

In all his photos he has his tongue jammed up against the inside of his lower teeth. Anticipation?

"Burt took his trick upstairs."

That was rather selfish of him. Why didn't he do his trick downstairs, so that everyone could enjoy it?

Syan Reacrest was his boy.

EdMcMahon? Wow.

What about Doc Severinsen?

Merv with Rickles and Mr. T

Damn Seacrest was actually a little hottie.

Wheel Of

I can't find a clip, but I do remember that Larry King interviewed Merv's ex-wife, Julann, the week Merv died. They were married for 18 years and divorced in the 70s. She said "I know he loved me," a couple of times, which to me implied a bearding relationship.

[quote]Had him--sloppy bottom. And BOSSY. "There, no, just a little, up, up, too far up, down, slowwww, too slow..."

[italic]Ooooooooooh![/italic]

𝒁𝒔𝒂 𝒁𝒔𝒂 𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒖𝒕𝒖𝒂𝒍 𝒇𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒔 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒂𝒃𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓 & 𝑴𝒆𝒓𝒗 𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒌𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓, 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒏𝒐 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒔𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒃𝒖𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 '𝒓𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆'.

Said the woman who wound up marrying this guy:

Dahlink, he vaz ze best, or at least ze last!!!

Who wrote that bio on him after he died that implied that he was a side piece for some Golden Age Hollywood actor??? Was any of that true?

We'll be right back.

Julann and Merv genuinely loved each other as friends and stayed close after they divorced. She's an interesting person in her own right—before she met Merv, she launched a comedy career in the '50s completely by accident, and she came up with the idea for [italic]Jeopardy![/italic]

We'll be right back.

How rich was Merv and how much money did he make and who did he leave his estate to? That's all I really care about. Thanks!

Merv makes a cameo appearance in the biography of Montgomery Clift I read a while back. I can't remember exactly how he figured in the life of Clift but I'll pull the book out and read the passage again to confirm it. Seems he was part of a little gay group that hung together back in the 50's. I don't think he was well liked by Monty for some reason.

I'll be right back!

In the meantime, there was a very salacious story being passed around concerning a meeting between Merv and River Phoenix, of all people, that implied that Merv had some fun with River behind closed doors. I have no idea where the story originated, but I read it a couple of times on different sites.

Back in the early '80s the up-and-coming model Rene Russo was a guest on the show. Gorgeous. Also making. A"Guest" appearance was his son Tony.

While Tony and Rene were sitting on the set sofa, talking with Merv, Merv asked Rene to go on a date with his stupid-ass son! Awkward! Rene was great; she just smiled and said, "I don't think so." (Like, that ain't happening.). She didn't even once look in Tony's direction.

This thread should be banned in Boston.

Of course he was gay.

And he basically gave Ryan Seacrest his career.

Who knows what Ryan Seacrest gave him in return.

We'll be right back.

I think there were rumors about him giving David Soul his career. He apparently had him on a lot, including a bunch of times as some masked singer. I recall some rumors there similar to Seacrest.

God damn R54, if anyone ever wondered what a deal with the devil looks like, that picture captures it perfectly.

And who wouldn't want to play with Seacrest ? Tens of thousands of us, that's who !

He was an altar boy and often referred to his Catholicism. I think he married because that's what most gay men of his era did. Hi probably did love his wife, in his own way.

Did Merv Griffin actually have a fat ass? The SCTV videos portray him as being big-butted.

Well, now I know why I didn't have a bigger career.

He started out as a big band singer (as did another daytime host of note, Mike Douglas.) I think he was truly appreciative of his success.

The SCTV parody of him was hilarious

I remember reading about him and River, too but I don't remember the details

[quote]The SCTV parody of him was hilarious

LOL

Thanks for all the information. Anymore scoop

How did Ryan meet Merv?

How did Ryan meet Merv?

Well then, how did Merv meet Ryan?

He had a lovely pair of coconuts.

he was a fucking closet QUEEN

Griffin's father was a banker and Griffin worked for a while in banking and finance, that is where he gained his financial acumen. At one time, he was listed in the Forbes 400 with a fortune of least $250 million. Johnny Carson, who was friend as well as a rival, said Griffin would rather be an entertainer than a billionaire.

A story about Robert Reed.

R70, what a hoot! He was very good and a little bizarre. In retrospect, one can perhaps see some queeniness, but that whole music hall tradition had that. See Olivier as Archie Rice in The Entertainer. Also, maybe the play The Nance?

That's why I was so conflicted when I came out to my otherwise super-cool, hip, liberal mom in 1978. She more than once described Merv Griffin as "Queer as a three dollar bill."

And I would glare at her and think to myself "So am I, mom, so am I."

Gaaaaaaaay

And nobody has mentioned Darwin Porter! He wrote volumes about Merv! Particularly Charlton Heston!

I would come home after school and would watch his show because my mom liked to watch him. Merv always had the same old guests: Charo, Monty Hall, Eva Gabor, etc. But he would have Fred Williamson on a lot. Merv would act like a schoolgirl around this guy. I thought it was odd the way he acted as I had no clue about sexual orientation. A year later,, I read a story in a tabloid claiming the wife of a tv talkshow host left him because he was hanging around a handsome black actor a lot and had him stashed in his secret love nest. It sounded a lot like Merv Griffin.

Fred was mighty fine. Remember him in Junie Moon, as the boyfriend of Robert Moore? On the beach in his swim trunks.

.Merv great in Steve Martin film as elevator killer

How much more in there to say about chubby Merv?

Cliff notes- Minor singer, talk show host, game show inventor who made big money when he sold out, closeted queen who squired the nice Gabor around town. Dead.

[quote] Monty Hall

Really?

READ

I always loved the "Merv, I'm not ready" line from Deney Terrio's lawsuit.

I heard Carl Reiner on a podcast not long ago mention that he had lunch recently with Julann and she had told him that Merv never gave her any financial stake in Jeopardy. Carl thought it was a low-class thing to do.

R83 that article was a whole bunch of fluff about nothing. Bland as plain yogurt to pick up an easy pay check for writing it.

So are we actually saying Ed McMahon was gay or bi?

And just HOW BIG was McMahon's dick? Damn! Who would've ever thought (about Ed McMahon in a sexual way)?

Also: how big is David Soul's dick, and what was the story about him and Merv?

Ed McMahon has never been sexual and never will be. Repulsive looking old man. He reminds me of the pedophile in Boogie Nights. The clothes in the above pics are creeping me out.

Seeing that clip justifies my secret revulsion to David Letterman from day 1

Are there any good YouTube clips of Merv and Arthur talking to each other on the show?

Darling, Eb was the only homo I'd associate with

Merv was also a film actor; he co-starred with Kathryn Grayson in the 1950's.

I want to hear about Heston.

His skinny dipping in POTA confirmed my gayness.

Also thought he had a fabulous but not overbuilt body the kind of body that athletic men had back then in I believe that Julius Caesar movie which I believe has cut out all the male nudity ever since it was first put out on video.

They overdid it with Hamm in Madmen. A man like him would not have had such a soft body. Look at topless pictures of Hudson and Rod Taylor.

More about Griffin and Williamson please. I was really pissed at Playgirl for not showing it all. He did show butt in a couple of movies. Too bad he didn't emulate Jim Brown enough.

Is it true the Merv was quite the shit if he felt crossed in any way?

Didn't he and Eva have a falling out causing the end of their friendship over a money matter?

She jipped him at poker

The pairing of Merv and Ava was more mixed up than Hungarian goulash.

Bea Arthur had no use for him.

[quote]Who knows what Ryan Seacrest gave him in return.

Hopefully nothing that needs prescription pills to treat.

r54 Ryan Seacrest tiny head - Merv Griffin huge head - freakish.

McMahan’s dick can never be big enough to overcome the creep factor.

I want to hear more about Burt Reynolds at that party, or at any other tiime!

R62, Merv was quite handsome in that clip. Around that time I think he was living with Roddy McDowall who was also closeted.

I can't imagine a single solitary gay man who ever lived whose first crush was Merv Griffin.

[quote]McMahan’s dick can never be big enough to overcome the creep factor.

You are correct, sir. Ha-Ha!