[quote name=\'tvrandywest\' date=\'Mar 29 2004, 08:19 AM\'] [quote name=\'chris319\' date=\'Mar 29 2004, 05:26 AM\'] Sorry to dwell on such a sad subject, but why did Jay Stewart part ways with Sale of the Century? [/quote]
Because of the respect our members have for Jay and his work, I trust that we'll be able to keep this information in its proper perspective. And as Mike Wallace and millions of other Americans can attest to, clinical depression is a debilitating disease.
Jay suffered from chronic depression towards the end of his life. Like many others in that battle, he took to drinking heavily. The producers at "Sale" were generous in trying to accommodate Jay as his condition deteriorated, and they would pre-record almost all of his material for the week's shows first thing in the morning. (Fans will want to know that towards the end of his tenure on the show the only line he delivered live was the reveal of the fame game board when a contestant picked one of the nine squares - the logistics of pre-taping nine possibilities and accessing the correct one for playback in real time was too complex. Jay had nine 5x8 file cards in an open top box and would immediately pull and read the correct one as the contestant made their choice).
Jay did remain on set for the full day of taping to perform the warm-up responsibilities. I visited and stayed for only 2 episodes as I was horrified by what I saw. Jay was clearly under the influence, there was little life in his eyes, and while he tried to exude the efferevescent personality we remember, it was hollow and his face resembled that of a sad clown's. Indeed, much of what he said was mumbled and slurred, and at one point he almost tripped and fell down the audience steps at NBC studio 3.
Jay was ultimately released from the show and one of the nicest and most generous gentlemen in Hollywood, voice agent Don Pitts gave Jay a job, an office and a desk at the talent agency then known as Joseph, Helfond and Rix (now Kazarian, Spencer and Associates). Jay was to sign game show host and announcer talent and market them to producers, many of whom he knew.
While he secured some work for Harry Stevens with his former employer Barry-Enright on "Pictionary", and booked a commercial for Gene Wood, most of Jay's four months as an agent was not very productive. Jay's phone log and notes from between May 23rd and September 14th (I remember this as 1989) show that he had active dialogue with just about everybody in the game show world including well known names from the networks, production companies, distributors, the casting community and AFTRA.
Jay also spoke with and/or actively represented a few performers, myself included among Don Bleu, Joe Farago, John Cramer, Fred Holiday, and Pat Finn. It was a treat to sit with Jay as he recounted his career highlights, educated me at great length about performing on game shows, and as we strategized for future work. From the best I could tell Jay had stopped drinking, but the profound depression from which he was suffering was clearly apparent.
I was with Jay on a memorable Friday afternoon. At 5 PM he wrapped our conversation saying that he had to pick up his car from the service department at Casa De Cadillac before they closed at 6PM, and that he would call me on Monday. I was beyond shocked on that Sunday afternoon when I heard that Jay had committed suicide at his home.
A generous man, a terrible end.
Randy
tvrandywest.com [/quote]
How terribly sad.
