Facts about Bert Parks
Bert Parks died at 77 years old
Born: December 30, 1914
Died: February 2, 1992 (lung cancer)
Birthplace: Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Best known as: Longtime host of the Miss America pageant
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Bert Parks Biography
Name at birth: Bert Jacobson
Bert Parks was the longtime Master of Ceremonies for the annual Miss America beauty pageant, and the guy who sang the theme song "There She Is" at the end of the festivities. Parks got his start as a radio announcer in New York when he was still a teenager. From the 1940s through the 1960s he was the host of several daytime and prime-time TV game shows, including Stop the Music and Masquerade Party. He hosted the Miss America telecast from 1955 until 1980, when he was unceremoniously dumped and replaced by television actor Ron Ely (who was himself replaced in 1982).
Extra credit
Late-night talk show host Johnny Carson was so upset over the firing of Parks as the Miss America host that he launched an unsuccessful campaign to get him re-hired.