| Ken Ober | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Name: | Kenneth Olberding |
| Born: | July 3, 1957 |
| Died: | November 15, 2009 |
| Place of death: | Santa Monica, California |
| Occupation: | game show host, comedian, actor |
| Years active: | 1988-2007 |
| Known for: | hosting MTV's Remote Control |
Ken Ober (born July 3, 1957 died November 15, 2009) was a game show host, comedian and actor.
Early Life and Career[]
Born Kenneth Olberding in Brookline, Massachusetts, he was raised in Hartford, Connecticut. Ober hosted four game shows in his career. He received his break after appearing as a contestant on Star Search in 1984. He was most widely known for his role on the MTV game show Remote Control, for which he hosted for three seasons, spanning from 1987 to 1990, then in additional reruns for an additional two years. The show helped launched the careers of Adam Sandler, Denis Leary, Kari Wuhrer and Colin Quinn. Ober was known among the 90s and 00s audiences for hosting jobs on Make Me Laugh, Smush and the ESPN game show Perfect Match.
While hosting Remote Control, he did a commercial for Jenga.
In 1995, Ober hosted a Los Angeles talk radio show with former Brady Bunch star Susan Olsen. The show was known as Ober and Olsen, aired on 97.1 KLSX. (Olsen had previously appeared on a episode of Remote Control that featured Brady Bunch cast members competing against each other.) That same year, Ober starred in the Blues Travelers song Hook. He also had a smaller role in the same band's music videos for Run-Around and The Mountains Win Again.
In 2002, Ober served as supervising producer for the Comedy Central show Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn, (in which it was a reunion of sorts) Quinn was the announcer for Remote Control. Ober was even a guest on one episode.
He served as executive producer for the 2006-10 CBS sitcom The New Adventures of Old Christine.
He was an original member of the Theta Mu chapter of the Phi Kappa Alpha International Fraternity at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. He graduated in 1980.
Death[]
Ober died at his home in Santa Monica on November 15, 2009, at the age of 52. According to friends, Ober felt ill and was complaining of headaches, chronic chest pains, and flu-like symptoms the previous afternoon and did not meet them later as planned.[1][2]
After an autopsy, it was confirmed by the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner that Ober died of natural causes, chiefly ischemic heart disease, also known as atherosclerotic coronary artery disease.
Shows Hosted[]
- Remote Control (1987-1990)
- Pindemonium (1992, unsold pilots)
- Perfect Match (1994)
- Make Me Laugh! (1997)
- Smush (2001-2002)
Show appeared[]
- Star Search (as a contestant in 1984)