Robin Leach, who gave television audiences a look at “champagne wishes and caviar dreams” as the host of “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous” has passed away in Las Vegas at 76 years old. He had been hospitalized in November since suffering a stroke, and was put in hospice care on Aug. 20. The brash showman first came to the U.S. from England in 1963 after serving as an 18-year-old editor at London’s Daily Mail — and claimed he had to start all over again as a shoe salesman after arriving in America. But Robin was soon covering the U.S. entertainment scene, and signed on to help create “Entertainment Tonight” in 1981, and then worked with producer Al Masini to launch “Lifestyles” in 1984…
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Robin went on to a jet-setting existence that made him an equal to the stars he covered, flying up to 250,000 miles a year to keep up with celebrities. He also made tabloid headlines himself at the height of his affair — with the divorced father-of-three getting embroiled in his own palimony scandal. Judith Ledford sued the host for breach of contract after the couple split in February 1991.
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Photo credit: Getty Images
Robin's run on "Lifestyles' would run through 1995 — and h'd go on to be parodied on everything from "Saturday Night Live" to rap songs by Ice Cube, Fergie, and other artists. After "Lifestyles" went off the air, Robin continued to be in demand as an on-air personality. He'd joined the Las Vegas Review-Journal in 2016 as an entertainment columnist, proudly boasting that he was ready to "work as many hours as necessary."
Robin went on to a jet-setting existence that made him an equal to the stars he covered, flying up to 250,000 miles a year to keep up with celebrities. He also made tabloid headlines himself at the height of his affair — with the divorced father-of-three getting embroiled in his own palimony scandal. Judith Ledford sued the host for breach of contract after the couple split in February 1991.
Photo credit: Getty Images
Robin's run on "Lifestyles' would run through 1995 — and h'd go on to be parodied on everything from "Saturday Night Live" to rap songs by Ice Cube, Fergie, and other artists. After "Lifestyles" went off the air, Robin continued to be in demand as an on-air personality. He'd joined the Las Vegas Review-Journal in 2016 as an entertainment columnist, proudly boasting that he was ready to "work as many hours as necessary."
Photo credit: Getty Images
