Linkletter was born as Arthur Jack Linkletter in San Francisco. He was the oldest of Lois and Art Linkletter's five children. He was said to have been inspired to enter show business by his father's show House Party. As a boy, Mr. Linkletter inspired one of his father's most famous "House Party" routines: interviewing young children. Linkletter was an English major at the University of Southern California in 1958 when he began hosting the NBC-TV prime-time summer replacement quiz showHaggis Baggis.
Career
At 15, Linkletter began doing an interview show for CBS Radio, which was soon followed by an hourlong program featuring records and stunts called "Teen Time." Linkletter hosted seven television shows throughout his career, including Haggis Baggis, Hootenanny, On the Go and Here's Hollywood. He also hosted a number of events and pageants, including the Miss Universe pageant, events for the World's Fair and many parades. On February 23, 1961, Linkletter and his father, Art, appeared together in "The Bible Man," one of the final episodes of Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre, which aired for five seasons on CBS. In the story line, the father, the Reverend Albert Pierce, is a traveling evangelist who is estranged from his grown son, Jimmy, because he had tried to avoid telling Jimmy of the real circumstances of his mother's death. The son accused his father of causing the mother's death by burning down her house. However, she was already dead before the fire because a paramour had beaten her to death. The episode ends in a reconciliation of father and son. "The Bible Man" was Jack Linkletter's only regular acting appearance. When on television, he otherwise played himself. Linkletter was president of Linkletter Enterprises, developer and operator of commercial and industrial real estate and manager of diversified family investments. He also operated the Link Fund, a private fund investing in equity and debt instruments. Linkletter served as the International President of Young Presidents' Organization and national director of the 4-H Clubs.
