Before hosting Family Feud, Steve Harvey slept in his car for three years
In the late 1980s a struggling comic named Steve Harvey went three years without a home, sleeping in his car between gigs and washing at gas stations and public pools. Decades later he hosts America's longest-running version of Family Feud, runs a morning radio show and owns an entertainment company bearing his name.
He was born in Welch, West Virginia, in 1957, the youngest of five children of a coal miner, and fought a severe childhood stutter. In sixth grade he wrote that he wanted to be on television; his teacher called it smart-aleck behaviour, but his father took it seriously. Harvey studied advertising at Kent State but left without a degree after two years, a decision he later said he regretted, and worked as a boxer, autoworker, insurance salesman, carpet cleaner and mail carrier.
His first stand-up set came in October 1985 at a Cleveland comedy club. A finalist spot in a national comedy search in 1990 led to hosting Showtime at the Apollo, and from 1996 to 2002 he starred in The Steve Harvey Show on The WB. The Kings of Comedy tour, alongside Cedric the Entertainer, D.L. Hughley and Bernie Mac, became the highest-grossing comedy tour in history, taking $18 million in its first year, and Spike Lee turned it into a film.
Writing turned into another business. His 2009 relationship book Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man spent 64 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list and inspired a 2012 film. He took over Family Feud in September 2010, and ratings improved. After 27 years he retired from stand-up in 2012 with a final show in Las Vegas.
Not every moment went smoothly. Hosting Miss Universe in 2015, he crowned the wrong contestant, Miss Colombia, before correcting himself minutes later and naming Miss Philippines, then apologised to both. In 2017 he folded his ventures into Steve Harvey Global, which holds international Family Feud rights, including an African edition. His awards now include seven Daytime Emmys.
Source: Steve Harvey
