HIS AMAZING Life Story

THE BELOVED HOLLYWOOD SQUARES HOST NEVER EXPECTED TO FIND SUCCESS ON A GAME SHOW

- Louise A. Barile

Peter Marshall, the longtime host of Hollywood Squares, enjoyed his first taste of professional show business as a teenager. “I got my first job, singing with the Bob Chester Band out of Detroit when I was 15,” he told Closer in 2022. “I was on the road, making $50 a week and happy as a clam.”

Peter, who was born Ralph Pierre LaCock, admitted he had a lucky life. His mother, who had worked as a costume designer, started Peter and his sister in dance classes at age 5. “My sister, Joanne Dru, became a very big star,” he said. During WWII, Peter honed his announcing skills on an Army radio station.

Adopting the stage name Peter Marshall, he returned to civilian life and became half of the comedy act Noonan and Marshall, which appeared on TV and in films. Peter also found success on Broadway and in London’s West End in productions of Bye Bye Birdie,