Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous

Background:

"In Britain, we do not admire people that have a Rolls-Royce. There are many philosophical differences and that explains why America is the land of the free. In England, we laugh when people have a Rolls-Royce. There is a tendency of many Brits to think ill of those who have money. Here it is something to be admired and something that we want to achieve." Robin Leach

English host, writer and executive producer Robin Leach garnered recognition in America as the host of the show “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous” (1984-1995), which earned him an Emmy nomination. In the show, which featured extravagant lifestyles of wealthy entertainers, athletes and business moguls, Leach was widely remembered for ending each episode with his signature phrase “champagne wishes and caviar dreams.” Other successful TV programs on Leach's resume include “Runaway with the Rich and Famous” and “Fame, Fortune and Romance.”

Leach, who is referred to in the song "Juicy" by Christopher "Notorious B.I.G." Wallace and in the song "Glamorous" by Fergie and Ludacris, is a father of three. He currently resides in Las Vegas.

"I love women and I am single. But I am also slightly overweight, slightly balding... (laughs). I have dated beauty queens before I was ever on TV. My attitude was to always ask the prettiest girl out. Chances are that 9 times out of 10 you will get rebuffed, but the funny thing is that most guys did not invite out the prettiest girl in the room. They were afraid that everyone wanted her, but the key was that [the good looking ones] were more available than the homely girls. You have to pay attention to a lady and court her in the traditional sense. If you are going to get into a hot, heavy romance as a result of an evening out, does it hurt to open the door? Men do not pay attention to these things. If they did, their success rate would increase." Robin Leach

Robin Douglas

Childhood and Family:

In London, England, UK, Robin Douglas Leach was born on August 29, 1941. He now has three grown-up children and currently resides in Las Vegas.

Champagne Wishes and Caviar Dreams

Career:

Entering journalism at age 14 when he edited a school magazine called “The Gayton Times,” Robin Leach worked as a news reporter for “The Harrow Observer” at age 15 and then for the prestigious “Daily Mail,” where he had the distinction of being Britain's youngest page one reporter at age 18.

When he turned 21, Leach crossed the Atlantic and settled down in New York City where he made a living as a shoe salesman at a department store while looking for journalism work. Afterwards, he found jobs as a writer for a number of publications, including “New York Daily News,” “People,” and “Ladies Home Journal.”

Leach went on to co-create the rock magazine “GO” and subsequently served as the show business editor for “The Star,” Rupert Murdoch's inaugural magazine in the United States. He joined Cable News Network's “People Tonight” and worked as a reporter for “Entertainment Tonight” by 1980.

Leach also helped to start “Good Morning Australia” as well as the “Food Network.” Additionally, he was a guest at World Wrestling Entertainment's “WrestleMania IV,” where he read the rules for the championship tournaments.

In 1984, Leach became the host of the show "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous," which earned him an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Informational Special. In the show, which featured extravagant lifestyles of wealthy entertainers, athletes, and business moguls, Leach always ended each episode with his signature phrase “champagne wishes and caviar dreams.” He was joined by Shari Belafonte in 1994 and the show was renamed "Lifestyles with Robin Leach and Shari Belafonte." The show continued to run until 1995, but ironically, it was never shown on any network television in his home country of England.

“I was one of the people that started ‘Entertainment Tonight’ three years earlier. When I was at ET, it became obvious when we went to people's house that we should spend more time talking about their belongings, houses and the like, and not their goals. So showing pictures of blonde babes in a Jacuzzi was more important than doing 'Shakespeare in the Park.'” Robin Leach (on how “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous” came to be)

During his lengthy stint on “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous,” Leach executive produced the shows "The Start of Something Big" (1985) and "Runaway with the Rich and Famous" (1987). He also hosted the TV series "Fame, Fortune and Romance" (1986-1987).

Meanwhile, Leach guest starred on the animated spoof talk show “Space Ghost Coast to Coast,” as a villain named Zoltran, and on Showtime's Emmy-nominated documentary series "Penn & Teller: Bullshit!” He was briefly involved with KVTE-LP in an attempt to launch an all-Vegas television network and was a contestant on the U.S. version of the U.K. reality television show “I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here,” where he was the first eliminated by the public. He also appeared on the TV commercial for Courtyard By Marriott hotels.

Leach also made cameo appearances in the movies "Troop Beverly Hills" (1989), an independent adventure/comedy directed by Jeff Kanew, and "She-Devil" (1989), the second adaptation of the novel "The Life and Loves of a She-Devil" by British writer Fay Weldon starring Meryl Streep and Roseanne Barr and directed by Susan Seidelman. TV viewers could catch Leach as himself on ABC's prime-time soap opera "Hotel," ABC's award-winning drama "thirtysomething" and ABC's sitcom "Boy Meets World."

Recently, in 2007, Leach hosted the VH1 reality show “The Surreal Life: Fame Games,” a spin-off of the VH1 show "The Surreal Life," and appeared on the Howard Stern Sirius Radio program.

Awards:
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