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Bill Rafferty

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Bill Rafferty
Promotional Photo
Born
William Rafferty

(1944-06-17)June 17, 1944
DiedAugust 11, 2012(2012-08-11) (aged 68)
Other namesBill Raftery
Occupation(s)Comedian, game show host
Years active1977–2012
TelevisionLaugh In (1977-78)
Real People (1979-84)
Every Second Counts (1984-85)
Card Sharks (1986-87; nighttime)
Blockbusters (1987)
Spouse
Regina Miletic
(m. 1968⁠–⁠2012)
(his death)
Children3

William Rafferty (June 17, 1944 – August 11, 2012) was an American comedian and impressionist who hosted the game shows Every Second Counts (1984–1985, syndicated), Card Sharks (1986–87, syndication), and Blockbusters (1987, NBC).

Early life

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Rafferty was born in Queens, New York. He was the fourth and youngest child of Henry Rafferty, Sr., and Martha (Degnan) Rafferty.

Career

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Before his career in television, Rafferty was a military policeman in the United States Army. He was also a butcher in Bolinas, California.

His first national TV exposure was as a co-host on the NBC reality series Real People, which ran from 1979 to 1984. Originally, he was one of the five in-studio co-hosts before becoming a field correspondent ("roving reporter"), though he still made occasional studio appearances.

Rafferty also made guest appearances on episodes of Laugh-In in the late 1970s version of the show. Rafferty was the host of a television show on Retirement Living TV, called Retired and Wired, which debuted in October 2007.[1]

Personal life

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Rafferty married Regina Miletic on May 25, 1968, in Queens, New York. Together they had three children. Rafferty died from congestive heart failure on the morning of August 11, 2012.[2]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Notes
1994 Above the Rim Self Documentary
1997 Mad City Bill Gottsegen
2010 The Prankster Presenter

Television

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Year Title Role Notes
1977 The Great American Laugh-Off Self Television special
1977–1978 Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In Regular Performer 6 episodes
1980 Mating and Dating in the '80s Self (Host) Television film
1981 Texas Himself Episode #1.240
1987 Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer Dean Bridges Episode: "Green Lipstick"
1998, 1999 Nash Bridges Eliot Brighton / Kenneth 2 episodes

References

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  1. ^ "Home". www.rl.tv. Archived from the original on 2009-03-01. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
  2. ^ Buzzerblog on Twitter. Accessed 11 August 2012.
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