Wally George

Infobox actor
name = Wally George
imagesize =
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birthdate = 1931-12-04
location =
deathdate = 2003-10-07 (aged 71)
birthname = George Walter Pearch
othername =
baconnum =
notable role = Host of "Hot Seat"

George Walter Pearch, known as Wally George (4 December 1931 – 7 October 2003) was an American conservative radio and television commentator. Calling himself the "Father of Combat TV," George gained national fame as the host of the television talk show "Hot Seat", originally a local show produced for KDOC Channel 56, a UHF station then located in Anaheim, California.

George was famous for his combative, almost farcical interview style and shocking antics. For example, he often brought strippers onto his show to denounce them for being "bimbos"; when the strippers would (almost inevitably) begin to strip, George, with obviously feigned outrage, would wait until the very last moment to have them escorted out by security while his fans chanted: "Sick! Sick! Sick!" George also advertised "gentlemen's clubs" on his show and, in his later years, made many staged appearances at them around Southern California.

Wally gave out the phone number to get tickets to the "Hot Seat" by working up his studio with a cheer of his phone number. The number was 714-999-5000, and Wally would yell out 4 or 5 times: 999! and the audience would countered 4 or 5 times with '5000!'

In 1983, self-proclaimed pacifist Blase Bonpane overturned the host's desk onto George and stomped out of the studio. Clips played on national news and George made references to the incident long afterward, saying that similar incidents which later took place on other shows (notably those hosted by Geraldo Rivera and Jerry Springer) were "copycat combat".

Born in Oakland, California, George's father was a shipping company owner, and his mother had been a vaudeville performer. His trademark appearance included gray slacks, navy blue blazer, white dress shirt, and an American Flag tie. Many of his critics insisted his hair was actually a wig; he had a particularly vicious, ongoing feud with Howard Stern, who famously called George a "wig wearing hump". George was a longtime Garden Grove, California resident, often seen around town running errands.

At one point, Wally George hosted controversial Los Angeles-area Baptist preacher Robert L. Hymers, but since the two of them disagreed on nearly nothing, the encounter degenerated into potty language on both sides, and barely contained giggles by both George and Hymers, as they desperately tried to find something to disagree on and insult each other about.

Following years of declining health, George died of pneumonia at Fountain Valley Hospital on 2003-10-07. His memorial service was held at the Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove, California with the evangelist Robert H. Schuller presiding over the service, which had over 100 mourners. He was interred at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Hollywood Hills, California.

For over fifteen years prior to his death, George had been estranged from his actress daughter Rebecca De Mornay. He also had another daughter, Holly, with whom he was very close, and Debra, who resided on Guam.

Trivia

*He was a staunch supporter of Ronald Reagan and always touted the Reagan Revolution, even after Reagan left the White House.
*He appeared in a few motion picture films, mostly as himself, including "Repossessed", "Grunt! The Wrestling Movie", "Club Fed", and "".
*He released a four track 12" (30 cm) EP entitled "Wal-ly! Wal-ly!" on Rhino Records in 1984.
*He was the subject of a "The E! True Hollywood Story" documentary in 2000.
*For many years, a framed portrait of John Wayne graced the "Hot Seat" set.
*George was a contributor to a TV Roller Derby program known as Rollergames in 1990, on the show, George provided halftime 'studio analysis'. He also appears in the Nintendo Entertainment System game of the same name.
*When The Offspring appeared on his show in 1989, he broke a copy of their first album and ripped apart the cover because he took offense to the track "Kill the President".
*He appeared on People's Court after being sued by an attorney who specialized in representing accused pedophiles. The lawyer claimed he should have been paid because the contract stated, "I agree that the only compensation shall be my appearance on television." The lawyer said that Black's Law Dictionary defined "consideration" as "a promise to pay." Judge Wapner told the lawyer never to cite Black's Law Dictionary to a judge, because that is a resource only first year law students use to learn basic legal terms. He dismissed the case.Fact|date=November 2007

External links

*imdb name|id=0313640|name=Wally George
*Find A Grave|id=7957128

Persondata
NAME = Pearch, George Walter
ALTERNATIVE NAMES = Wally George
SHORT DESCRIPTION = Television commentator
DATE OF BIRTH = December 4, 1931
PLACE OF BIRTH =
DATE OF DEATH = October 7, 2003
PLACE OF DEATH = Fountain Valley, California, United States