BY WALTER OPINDE 

On this day 16^th June, 1975, Adam Wade became the first African-American to host a television game show, with the premiere of Musical Chairs. He starred in the production Guys and Dolls in 1978, and hosted the talk show Mid-Morning Los Angeles. On TV, he was seen in the soaps “The Guiding Light” and “Search for Tomorrow.” Wade was also a familiar character in the popular black-oriented sitcoms such as “Sanford & Son,” “The Jeffersons,” “What’s Happening,” and “Good Times.” His handsome face lit up the room and allowed his natural mannerism to take over the scene.

Adam Wade, born Patrick Henry Wade, 17^th March, 1935, is in American singer, drummer, and television actor who is famous for his stint as the host of the 1975 CBS game show Musical Chairs, which made him the first African-American game show host. Wade worked for a time as a Lab Assistant with Dr. Jonas Salk on the polio research team. He wanted to pursue a recording career and signed with Coed Records by late 1959. He had his first major hit with a song called “Ruby” in early 1960, a cover of the hit movie song of 1953.

By the beginning of the 1960s, Wade was already famous, with a vocal styling similar to that of Johnny Mathis. In 1961, three of Adam’s recordings: “The Writing on the Wall” (#5), “Take Good Care of Her” (#7), and “As If I Didn’t Know” (#10) made it to the Top Ten in the Billboard Hot 100 chart. He released the following albums in the United Kingdom: Adam and Evening, HMV CLP 1451, Adam Wade One Is a Lonely Number, mono Columbia 33SX1501, stereo Columbia SCX3474, both in 1961/62. He also released an EP in 1960, And Then Came Adam, HMV 7EG 8620. By June 1961, his song “Take Good Care of Her” reached number #38 in the UK Singles Chart.

Towards the late 1970s and early 1980s, Adam began to concentrate on acting, thereby appearing in several of the Blaxploitation movies, including Gordon’s War. He briefly returned to recording, producing a self-titled album on the Kirschner record label. This was a venture into a more soulful singing genre. It met with moderate success and is still a favorite with his loyal fans. His latest theatrical appearance was with the 2008 touring company of the play The Color Purple. Wade and his wife have a music production firm, Songbird, whose headquarters are in New Jersey.

Read more of the story via: http://www.newyorker.com/culture/sarah-larson/the-human-comedy-of-adam-wade