Bernard King (television)

Bernard King (March 1934 – 20 December 2002) was an Australian stage actor and television personality.

His role as the ascerbic judge of Australian television daytime talent shows "Pot of Gold" and "New Faces" was when he first gained national notoriety with his brutally honest judgements that rarely spared the feelings of the contestants. He would frequently give a contentant very low scores, such as two out of ten, and would at times simply give them zero.

He was also Australia's first homegrown celebrity chef. At his peak in 1982 he had become an industry, earning five million dollars from lucrative sponsorship deals, licensing arrangements, a signature range of herbs and spices and wide-ranging media commitments.Fact|date=June 2007. During the late 1990s he made public appearances in shopping centres, television programs and other public locations to host cooking demonstrations. These appearances were made alongside two well built and scantily clad male assistants dubbed "The Bernardettes".

Personal life

King was gay and had many lovers.cite web
last = Cameron
first = Eoin
authorlink = Eoin Cameron
title = Bernard King, the five million dollar a year man
publisher = Australian Broadcasting Corporation
date = 2004-04-05
url = http://www.abc.net.au/perth/stories/s1081143.htm
accessdate =2008-01-24 ] His biographer, Stephanie Clifford-Smith, says "Fidelity wasn't top of his list". His partner of thirteen years was Alan Marshall. One of his best known platonic friendships was with song and dance man Sammy Davis Junior.Fact|date=January 2008

In later years, King struggled with his finances. He died penniless in the garden of a Gold Coast house where he was living rent-free in exchange for gardening duties.

References

*Reflist
*Stephanie Clifford-Smith, "A Marvellous Party: The Life of Bernard King", Random House, Milson's Point, Australia 2004