Bobby Rivers Dies: Tributes Pour In for Food Network & VH1 Host

Martin Holmes
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Bobby Rivers
TV Guide / Courtesy Everett Collection

Bobby Rivers, an entertainment journalist and radio/television personality best known for hosting the Top 5 show on the Food Network, has died. He was 70.

The news of Rivers’ passing was first reported by WISN 12, an ABC affiliate in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where Rivers served “as the city’s first Black film critic on television” when he joined the station in 1979.

According to Deadline, Rivers’ sister, Betsy Rivers, confirmed her brother died on Tuesday, December 26, writing in a Facebook post, “Bobby passed away last night and is no longer in any pain.” A cause of death was not given.

A graduate of Marquette University in Wisconsin, Rivers made his first TV appearance as a high school student on a 1970 syndicated classic film trivia game show. He later worked in Milwaukee radio before transitioning to TV as part of the WISN broadcast team, beginning as a film critic and eventually moving up to a co-host and associate producer of his own daily syndicated show.

Bobby Rivers

TV Guide / Courtesy Everett Collection

In 1987, he was hired as a VJ for the cable television network VH1, which ultimately led to his own show on the channel, Watch Bobby Rivers, a celebrity talk show where he interviewed guests such as Paul McCartney, Meryl Streep, Liza Minnelli, Jodie Foster, Michael Caine, Mel Gibson, and many more.

Rivers moved on to WNBC TV’s Weekend Today in New York and WNYW-TV’s Good Day New York as a lifestyles and entertainment reporter in 1992 before becoming entertainment editor on ABC’s Lifetime Live in 2000, where he also appeared on-camera.

Following the cancelation of Lifetime Live, Rivers joined the Food Network as host of Top 5 in 2002 and remained with the show until it ended in 2004.

From 2006 to 2008, he served as a film critic and entertainment reporter on Whoopi Goldberg‘s national weekday morning show for Premiere Radio, Wake Up with Whoopi.

He also has on-screen credits on two episodes of The Sopranos, where he played a news anchor, a 1989 episode of The Equalizer, and a recurring role as Professor Robert Haige on In The Know, a satirical round-table news segment on The Onion News Network video podcast.

Tributes poured in for Rivers following the announcement of his passing, including from his friend and co-worker, Goldberg.

 

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“All hail this pioneer Bobby Rivers… He brought SO much to the table. R I P Bobby,” The View co-host wrote on Instagram.

“Rest in peace Bobby. You were such a wonderful supportive intelligent insightful man. You will be missed,” Sex and the City actor Mario Cantone posted on X.

Violent Femmes drummer Victor DeLorenzo added, “Thinking about my friend Bobby Rivers who got in trouble for having the Fems on his TV show in Milwaukee. A wonderful man who needed to return to broadcasting …Much Love to his family and friends.”

Check out more tributes below.

Top 5

Bobby Rivers




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