Ken Ober of MTV’s 80′s Remote Control Dead at Age 52

Sad news from the MTV world of days gone by … Ken Ober, the host of the 1980’s game show “Remote Control” has passed away at the age of 52. The cause of death was not immediately known.

Lee Kernis, a manager at Brillstein Entertainment Partners who represented Mr. Ober for more than 20 years, said that Mr. Ober was found dead on Sunday. He said that Mr. Ober was last heard from on Saturday night, when he spoke to a friend and complained of a headache and flu-like symptoms. Mr. Ober told the friend that he was going to take something and would see a doctor as soon as possible.

Mr. Ober, who was born in Brookline, Mass. and raised in Hartford, Conn., grew up idolizing game show hosts like Bob Barker and Bob Eubanks, and went on to host four game shows of his own, including a revived version of “Make Me Laugh” in 1997. But his breakthrough came a decade earlier when Mr. Ober, a contestant on the televised talent show “Star Search,” became the host of the MTV series “Remote Control” in 1987.

One last blast from Remote Control Past Ken Ober from 1989

Who didn’t watch Remote Control in the 80’s?

I admit it, I watched this spoof game show all the time, back when MTV was actually worth watching. Remember when they used to actually play videos and be funny? CNN said of Ken Ober and his cult hit game show, “that MTV game show “Remote Control” was among the network’s first forays into non-music programming, has died at age 52. Might I add, one of the few forays that was successful.

Rest in Peace Ken Ober.