Wink Martindale, the television and radio host best known for Gambit and Tic-Tac-Dough, died April 15, 2025, at age 91 at Eisenhower Health in Rancho Mirage, California. The Associated Press reported the death through his publicist, Brian Mayes, and said Martindale had been battling lymphoma for about a year. CBS News’s first report of the death, also on April 15, said no cause had been given at that time, so the lymphoma detail rests on AP’s later account.
The name behind the nickname
Martindale was born Winston Conrad Martindale. According to the Strong National Museum of Play’s National Archives of Game Show History, a neighborhood boy struggled to pronounce “Winston” and produced “Winkie” instead. Martindale embraced the name, and it was later shortened to “Wink.” AP notes that he wrote in his 2000 memoir that the question he was asked most often was whether Wink was his real name. The short answer is that it was a childhood mispronunciation that stuck.
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Gambit: blackjack on the air
Gambit was built around blackjack, a card game most viewers already knew, which gave the show an immediate frame. AP reports that it debuted in September 1972 and was off the air by December 1976. Martindale hosted it throughout that run.
Martindale later credited the show’s structure with a lesson he carried into later work. In his memoir, as AP quotes it, he wrote that “From the day it hit the air, ‘Gambit’ spelled winner, and it taught me a basic tenant of any truly successful game show: KISS! Keep It Simple Stupid.” The spelling of “tenant” appears as written in the memoir.
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AP also describes Gambit‘s decline as following the debut of Wheel of Fortune in 1975. AP presents this as a sequence of events rather than a demonstrated cause, and the same caution applies here: the timing is documented, but the reasons for the cancellation are not spelled out in the reporting.
Tic-Tac-Dough: X’s, O’s and a long streak
Martindale returned to the air with Tic-Tac-Dough, which ran on CBS from 1978 to 1985. AP describes it as the classic X’s-and-O’s game, and that simple board is the format most viewers still associate with his name.
The show’s most cited moment came when Navy Lt. Thom McKee built an 88-game winning streak while Martindale presided. AP reports that McKee earned more than $300,000 in cash and prizes, including eight cars, three sailboats and 16 vacation trips, and characterizes the winnings as a record at the time. The reporting does not give a year for the streak, so readers should treat the figure as a 1978–1985 CBS-era event rather than a dated one.
Martindale also recalled a larger total. In his memoir, as AP relays it, he said producer Dan Enright told him the shows had handed out over $7 million in cash and prizes. That is Martindale’s account of what Enright said, not an audited total, and no independent accounting of the figure appears in the reporting.
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Comparing the two shows
| Axis | Gambit | Tic-Tac-Dough |
|---|---|---|
| Format | Based on blackjack (AP) | X’s-and-O’s board game (AP) |
| Reported run | September 1972 debut; off the air by December 1976 (AP) | 1978–1985 (AP and CBS) |
| Broadcaster | Not stated in the cited AP account | CBS (AP and CBS) |
| Notable context | AP ties its decline to the 1975 debut of Wheel of Fortune | Home of the 88-game streak by Navy Lt. Thom McKee (AP) |
The two shows differ mainly in mechanics. Gambit asked contestants to play a familiar casino game against the clock of the show, while Tic-Tac-Dough was a short, repeatable contest that could run for many weeks.
A career beyond the two headline shows
Martindale’s work was not limited to these two programs. AP and CBS both identify High Rollers among his other television hosting, and AP reports his own estimate that he hosted nearly two dozen game shows. That number is his estimate, not a verified count.
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Radio and early television
CBS says his professional career began when he was 17. The Strong museum’s account details early radio and television work in Tennessee and Memphis, which places the start of his broadcasting in the South before his national game-show years.
The 74-year career
CBS News, citing Nashville Publicity Group, reported that the group confirmed his death and described a 74-year career in radio and television. That figure is the publicist’s own length-of-career claim. It was not independently calculated by the reporters.
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His own recollections
Martindale discussed his career at length in Winking at Life, a 2000 memoir that AP quotes for its anecdotes about Gambit, Tic-Tac-Dough, working with contestants and his radio years. He also spoke to the Television Academy Foundation in 2018. CBS reports that he said there, “I enjoy finding out what makes people tick.” The Strong museum also refers to a 2023 oral history.
When fans asked when he would retire, the museum account records his answer: “From what?”
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How the death was reported
AP’s report rests on a phone interview with Mayes from Nashville, in which the publicist said: “He was doing pretty well up until a couple weeks ago.” AP’s later account added the lymphoma detail. The Strong museum independently records the April 15, 2025 date and the age of 91. Readers who see different claims about the cause of death in early coverage should weigh AP’s later, more detailed report, while noting the attribution.
Further reading
For Martindale’s own account, Winking at Life (2000) is the primary source for his memories of both shows and his radio career. Confirm current availability of a suitable edition before purchasing.
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- Associated Press, April 2025 obituary reporting, for the death details, the McKee streak and the memoir quotations.
- Strong National Museum of Play, National Archives of Game Show History, for the birth name and early career.
- CBS News, April 15, 2025 report, for the 1978–1985 dates and the 74-year career figure.
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