Peter Funt | |
|---|---|
 Funt in 2019 | |
| Born | 1947 New York City, US |
| Occupation(s) | TV host, public speaker, journalist |
| Spouse | Amy Suzanne Meltzer |
| Children | Stephanie Funt, Danny Funt |
Peter Funt (born 1947) [1] is an American actor, host, and producer for the hit TV show Candid Camera . He worked for Denver radio station KHOW, the ABC Radio Network, The New York Times and various other media organizations. He is a University of Denver graduate.
Peter Funt grew up in New York, where he worked summers on the set of his father Allen Funt's show, Candid Camera. [2] He graduated from the University of Denver, earning his Bachelor of Arts in mass communications and journalism. During his time at the university he worked on the newspaper, The Clarion, as well as the radio station, KVDU. While a student, he interviewed Martin Luther King Jr. on his radio show in 1967. [3]
After he graduated he worked at the Denver radio station KHOW and at the ABC Radio Network in New York. [4] In 1970, he won the Silurian's Award for that year's best news reporting based upon Funt's coverage on ABC News of racial disturbances in Asbury Park, New Jersey.[ citation needed ] Afterwards he got a job as an arts and leisure writer for The New York Times . During his earlier career, he also authored a book titled Gotcha! on the lost art of practical joking and was the editor and publisher of the television magazine On Cable. [5]
Candid Camera first aired in 1948 and was created by Peter Funt's father, Allen. [2] Peter first appeared on Candid Camera at age 3, posing as a shoeshine boy who charged ten dollars per shoe. He joined the show professionally in 1987 when he became a co-host with his father. During this time the show was being broadcast on the CBS television network. In 1993, Allen Funt had a serious stroke, from which he never fully recovered. This required Peter to host the show full-time. [3] Later in 1996, he hosted and was the executive producer of the Candid Camera 50th anniversary special. [6] The show returned in 1996 for the revamped version of Candid Camera. In 1997, Peter co-hosted the show with Suzanne Somers. In 2001, the show moved to the PAX network and Peter then co-hosted the show with Dina Eastwood until 2004, and began another revival of the show in 2014 with Mayim Bialik. During his time on the show Peter was a producer, host and acted on the show. He also produced and hosted over 200 episodes.
In 2001, Philip Zelnick, a Laughlin/Bullhead International Airport passenger [7] claimed that he was injured during one of the sequences on the show. Funt posed as an airport security guard and had passengers go through a fake x-ray machine. During the skit, Zelnick received a bruise on his thigh when getting off a conveyor belt. Zelnick sued Funt and the show and won the case, but when Funt appealed, the matter was settled out of court. The Mojave County Airport Authority settled during the trial and paid Zelnick $95,000. PAX TV also gave him $7,500 out of court. [7]
Following his work with Candid Camera, Funt has written frequent op-eds for many nationally recognized news outlets including The New York Times, USA Today , as well as The Wall Street Journal . [8] In these articles he offered observations and opinions about television and film. His essay about the evolution of television was later included in The Story of American Business, which was published in 2009 by the Harvard Business Press. He also has a weekly column distributed by the Cagle Syndicate. [9]
In addition to developing new "Candid Camera" shows, Funt performs a live tribute stage show, "Candid Camera's Lol Tour," in theaters across the U.S.
Funt will frequently use clips from his time on Candid Camera to give a visual to the point he is trying to convey. He used both his speaking ability and his clips in publishing two business training videos, entitled "Too Close to the Customer" and "Expect the Unexpected".[ citation needed ] Both of these are still marketed frequently throughout the business community. His current presentation to business groups is called "The Candid You".
In addition to his publishing career, Funt is also the founder of the Monterey County Young Journalists program in California. The program offers hands-on training for high school students to help pursue their journalism goals. He has also inaugurated the Courtroom Journalism in Monterey County, as well as a statewide event for the Constitutional Right Foundation in Los Angeles.[ citation needed ]
Funt has followed in his father's footsteps by taking over as President of the Laughter Therapy Foundation. Started in 1982 by Allen Funt, the foundation uses the immense comedic library of Candid Camera to send special tapes to terminally ill people throughout the country.[ citation needed ]
In 1986, Peter Funt married Amy Suzanne Meltzer. He has two children. He currently[ when? ] lives in central California. [10]
Candid Camera is an American hidden camera reality television series, with versions of the show appeared on television from 1948 until 2014. Originally created and produced by Allen Funt, it often featured practical jokes, and initially began on radio as The Candid Microphone on June 28, 1947.
Allen Albert Funt was an American television producer, director, writer and television personality, best known as the creator and host of Candid Camera from the 1940s to 1980s, as either a regular television show or a television series of specials. Its most notable run was from 1960 to 1967 on CBS.
Harry Smith is a retired American television journalist who has worked for NBC News, MSNBC, and CNBC as a senior correspondent. He hosted the CBS News morning programs, The Early Show and its predecessor, CBS This Morning, for seventeen years. In July 2011, Smith left CBS News to become a correspondent for NBC News and the newsmagazine Rock Center with Brian Williams. He also served as an anchor for MSNBC, conducting daytime live coverage of breaking news and events since first appearing in November 2015.
What Do You Say to a Naked Lady? is a 1970 American hidden-camera style reality film directed by Candid Camera creator Allen Funt. In the film, Funt secretly records people's reactions to unexpected encounters with nudity or sexuality in unusual situations.
Vincent John "Vin" Di Bona is an American television producer of the television shows MacGyver, Entertainment Tonight, America's Funniest Home Videos and Dancing with the Stars. He runs an eponymous production company called Vin Di Bona Productions. In 2010, Di Bona launched a second business, FishBowl Worldwide Media, an independent production company developing properties for film, television, digital platforms and brands.
Irwin "Sonny" Fox was an American television host and broadcaster who was the host of the children's television program, Wonderama. Through his career, he had hosted other children's educational and entertainment shows including Let's Take a Trip,Just for Fun and On Your Mark, in addition to family shows including The $64,000 show. Fox was also a producer of movies including And Baby Makes Six, Mysterious Two and Brontë. He served as the chairman of Populations Communication International, a non profit advocating for a change in attitudes toward family planning.
Homer Durward Kirby, was an American television host and announcer. He is best remembered for The Garry Moore Show in the 1950s and Candid Camera, which he co-hosted with Allen Funt from 1961 through 1966.
Ken Loronzo Hamblin II, the self-titled Black Avenger, was host of the Ken Hamblin Show, which was syndicated nationally on Entertainment Radio Networks. His show peaked in the 1990s, but he left the air, without warning, in July 2003 due to a contractual dispute with his syndicator, the American Views Radio Network. Hamblin, based in Denver, Colorado, is the author of the books Pick a Better Country: An Unassuming Colored Guy Speaks His Mind about America and Plain Talk and Common Sense from the Black Avenger.
The Garry Moore Show is the name for several separate American variety series on the CBS television network in the 1950s and 1960s. Hosted by experienced radio performer Garry Moore, the series helped launch the careers of many comedic talents, such as Dorothy Loudon, Don Adams, George Gobel, Carol Burnett, Don Knotts, Lee Goodman, James Kirkwood, Jr., Lily Tomlin, and Jonathan Winters. The Garry Moore Show garnered a number of Emmy nominations and wins.
Funt may refer to:
KDHT is a commercial FM radio station in Denver, Colorado. KDHT broadcasts a top 40 format branded as "Hits 95.7", and is owned by iHeartMedia. The station has studios and offices on South Monaco Street in the Denver Tech Center, while the transmitter site is atop Lookout Mountain in Golden.
KHOW is a commercial radio station licensed to Denver, Colorado, and serving the Denver metropolitan area. The station is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. KHOW is one of three iHeart-owned stations in Denver with a news/talk radio format. Co-owned KOA has mostly local shows, KDFD carries nationally syndicated programs, while KHOW airs a mix of local and syndicated hosts. Studios and offices are on South Monaco Street in Denver.
Peter Boyles is a radio talk show personality. He had a long-running morning drive-time show in Denver, Colorado on 630 KHOW, until May 2013. Boyles began his radio career as a traffic reporter in the early 1970s, later becoming a disk jockey. He has worked at Denver radio stations KNUS KAAT, KLAK, KWBZ, KYBG, and KOA. He retired in April 2022 from his morning program on AM 710 KNUS but returned to the station in September 2022 as host of a three-hour Saturday morning program.
KDFD is a commercial radio station licensed to Thornton, Colorado, and serving the Denver-Boulder metropolitan area. Owned by iHeartMedia, it broadcasts a conservative talk radio format. Its studios and offices are in Southeast Denver, while the transmitter site is off Colorado Boulevard in Brighton. Weekdays begin with This Morning, America's First News with Gordon Deal followed by Glenn Beck, Clay Travis & Buck Sexton, Sean Hannity, Jesse Kelly, Dave Ramsey and Coast to Coast AM with George Noory. Most hours begin with Fox News Radio.
Ken Roberts was an American radio and television announcer known for his work during the Golden Age of Radio and for his work announcing the daytime television soap operas The Secret Storm, Texas and Love of Life, each for a two-decade span.
Peter W. Klein is a journalist, documentary filmmaker, professor, and media leader. He was the founder of the Global Reporting Centre, a non-profit organization dedicated to innovating how global investigative journalism is funded, produced and finds audiences. A hallmark of the centre is collaboration, as well as experimentation with new forms of reporting, including empowerment journalism.
Richard Rosner is an American television producer best known for creating the television show CHiPs. Rosner later developed a portable satellite television in partnership with DirecTV.
Totally Hidden Video is an American hidden-camera television show and game show that aired from 1989 to 1992. It was one of the early shows in the history of the Fox television network and held the highest viewing share for any Fox program at one point. It was produced by Quantum Media and Fox.
Money Talks is a 1972 American documentary film directed by Allen Funt. The film was released on August 30, 1972, by United Artists.
The Candid Microphone is an American radio program that was broadcast on ABC from June 28, 1947, until September 23, 1948, and on CBS from June 6, 1950, until August 29, 1950. It was adapted for television as Candid Camera. It used "secretly recorded conversations of all kinds of people as they react in real life to all kinds of situations." The New York Times described the show as "what amounts to a huge practical joke".
Over lunch the other day, it was our good fortune to talk with Peter Funt, 16-year-old son of Allen Funt, the man with the Candid Camera . Peter goes back to his classes at Croton-on-Hudson High School outside of this week, but when we saw him, he was finishing a summer of people-watching as a production aide to his father.
The following references are sorted in alphabetical order.
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