RANDY WEST

Randy West is one of the more versatile performers in television voice-over and audience warm-up work today. He has recently been entrusted with the announcing and warm-up duties on televisions longest-running and most successful game show, the venerable “The Price Is Right”. The network and syndicated versions of "Weakest Link" are also recent additions to a workload that has made Randy's a familiar face at Hollywood production facilities. He can be heard announcing game shows, talk shows and award shows, narrating reality programs, as well as voicing commercials, sales presentations and promos.

Flip around the channels on a weeknight and you might hear Randy announcing the long-running TV game show "Supermarket Sweep" on PAX-TV. Although very different in style, Randy's is also the voice of the highly rated series "Hollywood and Crime" on CourtTV. And perhaps you've heard him announcing Nickelodeon's "Kids' Choice Awards", "Hollywood Showdown", or new episodes of Chuck Barris' classic "All New 3's a Crowd" starring Alan Thicke. Both have been staples on Sony's Game Show Network.

And if you hear audiences laughing and applauding as you continue to channel-surf, there's a fair chance they're being encouraged by Randy West's in-studio antics. Audience members have enjoyed his warm-ups at the taping of hundreds of television episodes, including prime time network shows. His is also the voice on a number of late-night infomercials, and Randy's recent commercial credits include spots for Nissan, Mattel, Ore-Ida, Mitsubishi, AT&T/Verizon, and Nestles.

While thoroughly contemporary, Randy's classic show business sensibilities are apparent in all of his work. One pundit said that Randy must have been "vaccinated at birth with a phonograph needle!" From Chapter President of WABC's Cousin Bruce Morrow fan club as a kid, to audience regular at TV game show tapings in New York during high school, Randy's fascination with broadcasting was encouraged by veteran radio personality "Symphony Sid" Torin and television announcer Johnny Olson. However the distraction they nurtured continued to be a constant source of frustration to Randy's parents, as well as to most radio program directors within a ninety mile radius of his New York home. One programmer finally succumbed; at age 17, West's driver's license was quickly followed by his FCC license. Once behind the microphone, Randy rarely looked back. As such, his Bachelor of Arts degree took three more long years.

From on-air work at suburban New York City and upstate New York stations, to Program Director at WHVW-Poughkeepsie and WFIF-New Haven, Randy trekked West in 1979 to join radio legend and friend Joey Reynolds. Together, they were heard on a nationally syndicated radio comedy series while Randy also worked in artist management and record promotion for Wayne Newton, Manhattan Transfer, Peaches and Herb, and other successful acts.

His radio experience soon brought Randy work as Director of Affiliate Relations for Jim Hampton and Ken Draper at The Creative Factor. Around-the-clock production and affiliate sales calls following the death of John Lennon yielded a critically acclaimed 3-hour tribute program that shipped to major market radio stations worldwide for immediate play. The company expanded, and Randy was soon contributing his voice and production skills to daily features, weekly shows and special programs that were broadcast on hundreds of radio stations of all formats via the CBS radio network and by direct syndication.

Still in his 20s, Randy was pitching a weekly countdown show to Hollywood based KWST (K-WEST 106) when he learned that a format change at the station was imminent. Seizing the opportunity for advancement, and jumping at the lure of two salaries, in 1983 Randy was hired as Production Director and air personality at L.A.'s new KMGG (MAGIC 106) while still splicing and selling for The Creative Factor. The bank guards at Sunset Boulevard's Bank of America and Wells Fargo branches looked suspiciously at his many walks each day up and down the boulevard between the two jobs! Then, KMGG's sale was the impetus to pursue another early passion.

Johnny Olson's early influence on Randy was reinforced when their paths crossed several times again at CBS Television City. After having won as a contestant on no less than nine nationally broadcast TV game shows through the early 1980s, he went on to perform in countless game show "pilots" as contestant, announcer, and ultimately host. Under Olson's mentoring, Randy finally dedicated himself to breaking into that protected bastion of game show announcing and audience warm-up that had fascinated him since his adolescence. In the lean years of that lofty pursuit, Randy made condo payments "playin' hits and doin' bits" on southern California's KCAQ, KWNK, KKUR, KHTY and KGMX. Randy also contributed comedy material to WTJM-New York, KIIS-FM-Los Angeles, and KLUC-Las Vegas. In 1986 and 1987 he hosted the nightly "All About Love" talk show on KIEV-Los Angeles.

Finally, TV! Randy first announced "Hour Magazine" and "The Chuck Woolery Show", and began the 1990s as the voice of the annual "Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards" and "Big Help" specials, as well as game shows "Trivial Pursuit", "Boggle", "Jumble", "Shuffle", "Wild Animal Games", and "Family Challenge". West says, "It's a kick working with the greats... Wink Martindale, Dick Clark, Fran Drescher, even Rosie O'Donnell! I loved working the game show "Twenty One" from NBC studio 1 for its history, but the NICK specials are the most memorable because of their venues, from the Santa Monica Pier to the Pantages Theater. At the 2000 'Kids' Choice Awards' I did warm-up for 16,000 kids from the stage of the magnificent Hollywood Bowl!"

Following a string of small speaking parts on several TV sit-coms and four years working on the CBS hit "The Nanny", Randy's interests led him to theater. He performed in the local cabaret revue "Bonkers and Bananas", as well as on stages coast-to-coast as Pooh-Bah in the 1998 national touring company of Gilbert and Sullivan's classic musical "The Mikado". "Every night another city... each performance was wonderful simply because we were thrilled to finally get off the bus! Singing to packed houses as large as 2500 and sharing the stage with some incredible professionals was a tremendous learning experience. And it was a ton of fun."

Randy is a member of Pacific Pioneer Broadcasters, and is active in "Members on the Move" and other committees of SAG and AFTRA. Randy is an avid collector of vintage broadcasting microphones, and is particularly sentimental over having recently acquired the personal archives and memorabilia of his early mentor, the late Johnny Olson, from John's surviving family. Randy has said that there is a “cosmic symmetry” from Johnny having been his teacher, to his being entrusted with Johnny’s most prized personal possessions, to his standing at Johnny Olson’s original podium as the announcer of CBS-TV’s “The Price Is Right”.

Randy continues in TV voice work and audience warm-up on game, talk and award programs through the prominent agents Don Pitts and Fred Westbrook. He is represented by Sutton, Barth and Vennari for commercials, promos, trailers and industrials. Randy is featured in the new editions of "The Encyclopedia of TV Game Shows" and "Los Angeles Radio People". Following an evening of leading "Simon Says" for a group of 1,000 software programmers on a golf course in Palm Desert, Randy West entered the new century with a new foray into hosting and entertaining at corporate conventions.

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