Spotlight on: Robin Leach - Champagne Wishes & Caviar Dreams

Name at birth: Robin Douglas Leach

Born: August 29, 1941 in Harrow, Middlesex, England

Married: one marriage, unknown, but has 3 children

Died: August 24, 2018 (stroke) Age 77

Relationship: For short time in 2002 with Joan Severance, model and actress

Occupation: Entertainment reporter. Since 2001, works at Las Vegas Sun, daily column Robin Leach's Vegas Deluxe

Best known for: Creating 1981 TV show "Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous" and for coining the phrase "Champagne wishes and caviar dreams"

Residence: Las Vegas, Nevada

I can remember hearing Robin Leach's voice at the start of every show announcing "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous" with champagne wishes and caviar dreams.

Each program took us behind closed doors into the palatial homes of famous people. Some guests were rich and famous movie stars, and some guests were famous just because they were rich.

During his interviews, he often seemed as fascinated as his viewers. What a great job to have!

As you will read, he has had primo jobs over the years and in 2014, he proves that he still has the best job ever.

From exotic locals of the French Riviera to the homes of movie stars in Hollywood California, Robin Leach had unprecedented access to stars and royalty alike.

He was invited into the palatial homes of the rich and famous, to their fantastic parties and to their hidden hideaways which was sure to get a mention in his column, or in a guest spot on Entertainment Tonight.

His most memorable interviews were captured on film for his TV program "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous" which was a very popular series for over 12 years. I've included a few videos of the show to bring back some memories.

The popular series has recently been revamped with Nick Cannon as host. It went into production in the fall of 2013 and is expected to debut sometime in 2014. Nick Cannon is host of America's Got Talent and married to Mariah Carey.

"Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous" enjoys quite a following on Pinterest with boards dedicated to the homes and lifestyles of the rich and famous.

Robin's culinary tastes were varied far and wide, as is evidenced in his fluctuating weight over the years. However, between collecting recipes from the stars and his own celebrated kitchen, it enabled him to write several cookbooks full of recipes of those who would share them with him. His cookbooks are more than just cookbooks as he takes you into homes for intimate parties as well as private soirees.

You can view all books by Robin Leach at this link.

A signed copy of his 1992 cookbook is on ebay.

In the fall of 1963, while working as entertainment reporter for the Daily Mail in London, England, Robin Leach turned down an assignment to go to Liverpool to cover a new band named The Beatles who had a hit record called "Please Please Me." Their manager, Brian Epstein, was looking for press coverage and on advice of his editor, Robin declined the assignment. He was disappointed, but later got to meet them when they appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show in February 1964.

On November 23, 1963, with $135 in his pocket, Robin left his job at the Daily Mail and sailed to the United States aboard the Queen Mary, docking in Manhattan Harbor. His first residence was a rundown hotel that he paid the princely sum of $27 a week for a dormitory bed and a communal bathroom at the end of a corridor. He had no job, no prospects and no contacts.

Within two days he got a job selling shoes at a New York department store where he worked until he was hired by the New York Daily News as a reporter. He worked six months there, but was fired for supporting the union's causes.

He went on to work for Rupert Murdoch's tabloid, The Star, as their showbiz editor for the next ten years. Rupert Murdoch tried and failed several times to develop a TV program centered around show business and celebrities. Robin was lucky enough to appear on ABC (in Los Angeles and in New York) as a guest reporter, and was finally hired by CNN as their first showbiz reporter on "People Tonight." He covered the Academy Awards for CNN, their first reporter on the Red Carpet.

In 1967, he started Go Magazine which showcased the Top 40 list in music.

In 1981, he partnered with Jack Haley Jr. and Al Masini to develop a show centered around show business named "Entertainment Tonight" which launched its pilot on September 14, 1981 and is still enjoying a long run as a syndicated entertainment program.

Al Masini helped him develop "Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous," "Runaway," and many other programs for television through to 2001.

After nearly twenty years, Robin saw he needed a change from globetrotting, so he partnered with TV executive Reese Schonfeld and helped to start The Food Network, which is extremely successful and is responsible for launching the careers of many celebrity chefs.

In 2001, Robin saw a chance to leave television development and move on, while still feeding his interest in show business. Since shortly after the 9/11 attacks, Robin calls Las Vegas home. He began two daily columns with the Las Vegas Sun, one called Luxe Life and another Vegas DeLuxe, which still allows him to keep his finger on the pulse of show business and dishing with the stars. He is responsible for helping to bring celebrated chefs to Las Vegas, namely to the Venetian Hotel and for encouraging his chef friends to open restaurants, like Emeril Lagassi's New Orleans Fish House who is at the MGM Grand Hotel.

Robin's biography states he has three children, although there is no mention of a wife, marriage date or divorce. In 2002, Robin had a much publicized relationship with Joan Severance, model and actress best known for playing Mel Profit's sister in the series Wiseguy in the 1987 and on The Love Boat: The Next Wave in 1999. Today in 2014, she has a dedicated website and her latest work is on a series on Showtime, The Masters of Sex.

Robin's newest venture is his own YouTube Channel featuring the Las Vegas strip, celebrities and of course, food! Honestly, it seems this man never sleeps!

One look at his recently uploaded videos will show you that Robin Leach still has the same presence he has always had. He may have aged and put on a little weight, but his merriment shows in his eyes. This man loves his life in Las Vegas and he loves what he does for a living.

He said in an interview celebrating his 50 years in journalism, "I honestly feel all the late nights and around-the-clock hours ... keep me young."

By residing in Las Vegas, he also is close to his two favorite charities: Keep Memory Alive and Opportunity Village.

Despite his job of traveling to far off places to interview celebrities, Robin still enjoys vacationing in all the rich and famous places that we can only dream about. In the summer of 2013, he toured under the Tuscan sun in Italy, with a short stopover on the East Coast to visit his family and then back to the rigors of reporting on the happenings in Las Vegas.

As of this writing in 2014, he lives quite comfortably in Las Vegas, working for the Las Vegas Sun where his hourly tweets are a treasure trove of name dropping.

You can follow him here on Twitter.

This article is just the highlights and is by no means intended to be all inclusive. I hope you enjoyed this peek into the life of Robin Leach.

Sadly, Robin Leach passed away in Las Vegas on August 24, 2018 after suffering a stroke.

Rachael O'Halloran. March 28, 2014.

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