Monty Hall Biography Home | add famous canadian | edit person

Monty Hall was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.  He attended the University of Manitoba, where he performed in all college musical and dramatic productions and served as emcee of Canadian Army shows during the war, and was elected President of the Student Body. 

After earning his Bachelor of Science degree, he moved to Toronto where he resumed his career as actor, singer, emcee and sportscaster.

In 1955, he went to New York to do a five-year run of NBC's Monitor. In 1960, he became emcee of CBS's Video Village which brought him to Hollywood. It was in Hollywood while doing Video Village that his packaging career commenced as he sold his first production, Your First Impression, to the National Broadcasting Company.

Monty teamed with writer-producer Stefan Hatos in 1963 to create Let's Make a Deal which ran until August 1986.

Their next production, Split Second, starring Tom Kennedy, aired on ABC in the 1970's.  Monty took the helm as emcee for a syndicated version of the popular quiz show in 1986. In 1990 Monty returned to do Let's Make A Deal for another cycle.

Monty has headlined the Sahara Hotel in Las Vegas and starred in his own variety show specials at the ABC network; and on August 24, 1973, he was honored by having his star placed in the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Monty's life away from television has been as important as that on the stage. He has traveled the United States, Canada and Europe extensively, speaking and performing for countless charities. He is currently on the boards of many organizations, including many hospitals and diseases. His charitable and philanthropic activities have brought him over 500 awards. In April 1975 he was elected President of Variety Clubs International, the world's largest children's charity; in 1977 he became Chairman of the Board, and in 1981 was honored with the lifetime title of International Chairman. In 1983 he received the prestigious Variety Clubs International Humanitarian Award.

On May 1988 the Government of Canada bestowed on him the highest award that Canada can offer - the prestigious Order of Canada - for his humanitarian works in Canada and other nations of the world.

He has received three honorary doctorates from the University of Manitoba, Haifa University and Hahnemann Medical College in Philadelphia. He has the children's wings named for him at Hahnemann Hospital, UCLA Medical Center, Mount Sinai in Toronto and Johns Hopkins in Baltimore.

Monty is married to Marilyn, a writer-producer and winner of an Emmy Award as Co-Executive Producer of Do You Remember Love, a drama concerning Alzheimer's disease. The Halls have three children - Joanna Gleason, a Tony-award winning Broadway actress; Richard, an Emmy-award winning television producer; and Sharon, who is a television director/writer – and five grandchildren.