Sunday Snippet: Bob Barker

“I think that age as a number is not nearly as important as health. You can be in poor health and be pretty miserable at 40 or 50. If you`re in good health, you can enjoy things into your 80s.”

He may have had some questionable indiscretions with some co-workers, but Bob Barker is widely regarded as one of the best and most adored talk show hosts of all time. He held that little microphone for decades and he will forever be remembered for his work on The Price is Right.

I grew up watching a lot of that game show and I loved every minute of it. Even though my grandma spoke very little English, she loved Price is Right too. She particularly liked the wheel and that’s why she referred to the show as “one hundred.” She didn’t really understand some of the pricing games, but the glitz and glamor of the show was appealing. I can appreciate that.

In the quote above, Bob Barker reminds us that age is nothing but a number. A person well into their senior years can be much healthier and more active than his or her younger counterparts.

This is related to a conversation I had with Ed Lau during Dot Com Pho yesterday. Ed said that, even if science permitted it, he’s not sure if he would want to live to be 100 years old, because he doesn’t want to be old and feeble. I reminded him that there are many older folks who lead very active and satisfying lifestyles. Just because you’re older doesn’t mean you should give up on life.

The passing of the torch to Drew Carey was a bit of an awkward one and The Price is Right just doesn’t feel the same without good ol’ Bob at the helm. Drew still tells us to spay and neuter our pets, but it’s just not the same.

Thanks for all the priceless memories, Mr. Barker. I wonder what Bob is doing these days anyway. You know, aside from trying to “free” the single elephant from Edmonton’s Valley Zoo.