Nearest to the actual price of the car, without going over., <33333333333333 That's fanastic, Bob. Options

[HakunaMatata]

(CBS) The end of Bob Barker's 35-year run as host of "The Price Is Right" is imminent.

The 82-year-old took time to look back in a conversation with The Early Show national correspondent Hattie Kauffman.

"It's been a lot of fun," Barker told her. " … And it's tough leaving this show, because it has been a hit from day one. We've had 35 years never worrying about ratings, always right up on top."

Would it have enjoyed that success without him?

"My agent says no," Barker laughed.

Energy, enthusiasm and spontaneity have kept the show fresh through the years, Kauffman observed, adding that Barker's warmth and winning smile have made him "the most popular game show host in history."

Kauffman said Barker "makes it look effortless, but you might be surprised to learn how hard he works."

She mentioned to Barker that, "People see only what they see on television. They don't realize that, during commercial breaks, you're not … resting. You're often out … keeping the crowd warmed up and not letting them fall asleep, and energizing the room."

"I do that for a selfish reason," Barker admitted. "I get them up and I stay with them because I don't want them to start sagging, and then when we start the next segment, I have to get them up again."

It all adds up to "wild" audiences and contestants, Barker said. He's been kissed and lifted off his feet countless times over the years by joyous contestants.

On a serious note, Kauffman remarked, "Soon, there'll be a morning when (you) wake up and you won't have to get ready and come in" to the studio.

"That's exactly what worries me," Barker responded. But, "I want to leave while I'm still wanted. I don't want someone to come and say, 'Don't you think it's about time you leave?' "

On the show, Kauffman pointed out, Barker loves to prolong the moment of truth when revealing whether the price is right. The truth is, he doesn't know what things cost.

"If I knew the prices," Barker explained, "then it would be cruel to do that (prolong the time before correct prices are shown). … But I don't know the prices, and so I can tease them, because I don't know whether they've won or lost."

Barker's 35-year stay is, Kauffman said, a success story no one could have predicted.

"One of our producers left the show," Barker remembered, "and he said with a smile, 'This may last another couple of years, but it'll be eight years at the most!' "

-http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/05/16/...in2812618.shtml

[*Duchess_of_Dork*]

I love Bob Barker. His scene in Happy Gilmore still makes me chuckle.

I used to watch this show all the time when my grandmother was alive. I have such fond memories of that. Of course, the whole grandma-homemade waffles that used to accompany watching The Price is Right makes the memory even more pleasant.