Chuck Woolery, Host of ‘Love Connection,’ Dies at 83

Chuck Woolery, who was the affable host of “Love Connection,” “Wheel of Fortune” and other television game shows and who later criticized liberal values and the Democratic Party as the co-host of a popular right-wing podcast, died on Saturday at his home in Horseshoe Bay, Texas. He was 83.

His death was confirmed by Mark Young, the co-host of his podcast, “Blunt Force Truth.” He did not specify the cause.

In the late 1970s, Mr. Woolery was the inaugural host of “Wheel of Fortune,” now one of the longest-running game shows on television. And in the early 1980s, he was tapped to host “Love Connection,” a dating show that helped to make him a household name.

On a stage flush with red and pink cutout hearts, Mr. Woolery maneuvered with an easy charm through interactions with contestants that could be both endearing and irreverent.

At times he could be a coaxing Cupid; at others, a referee as contestants traded barbs over who was complaining or who had skipped out on dinner.

“I felt more like the audience,” Mr. Woolery said in a 2020 interview with the journalist Adam Wurtzel. “What would the audience ask? What would the audience feel?”