Jaye P. Morgan, singer and actress banned from “Gong Show” for flashing her breasts, dies at 94
Jaye P. Morgan, singer and actress banned from “Gong Show” for flashing her breasts, dies at 94
Kathleen PerriconeThu, August 27, 2026 at 7:57 PM UTC
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Jaye P. Morgan on ‘The Gong Show’ in the late 1970sCredit: NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via GettyKey Points -
Jaye P. Morgan, a singer, actress, and regular game show panelist in the 1970s, has died at the age of 94.
Morgan’s career began in 1953 with a Top 40 recording of “Life Is Just a Bowl of Cherries.”
Known for her crude jokes on The Gong Show, she was fired in 1978 after flashing her breasts during a live segment.
Jaye P. Morgan, a singer, actress, and regular game show panelist in the 1970s best known for The Gong Show, died on Monday at the age of 94.
Born Mary Morgan, she earned her nickname “Jaye P.,” after banker J. P. Morgan, when she served as class treasurer in high school.
Morgan began her singing career in 1953 with the Top 40 hit “Life Is Just a Bowl of Cherries,” followed by “That’s All I Want From You,” which reached No. 3 on the Billboard charts in 1954. Two years later, she hosted her own variety show, The Jaye P. Morgan Show, and performed with her equally talented brothers: Charlie, Bob, Dick, and Duke Morgan.
Jaye P. Morgan on ‘The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson’ in 1970Credit: Frank Carroll/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty
In the 1960s, the singer focused on acting and guest-starred on The Joey Bishop Show, General Electric Theater hosted by Ronald Reagan, NBC medical drama The Eleventh Hour, and My Three Sons starring Fred MacMurray.
Morgan also appeared as herself on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson at least 30 times between 1963 and 1975 as well as The Merv Griffin Show and The Mike Douglas Show.
Morgan’s memorable run as a game show panelist began with the 1970 pilot episode of The Honeymoon Game (later known as The Joker’s Wild). Over the years, she regularly popped up on Match Game, Rhyme and Reason, Break the Bank, Hollywood Connection, The Dating Game, and Celebrity Cooks.
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But it was her run on The Gong Show, beginning in 1976, that really put Morgan on the map. Known for her crude jokes and zany antics, the personality was ultimately “gonged” off the show in 1978 when she flashed her breasts during a live segment. NBC banned her from ever stepping foot on the lot again.
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Despite how it ended, Morgan described her two-year run on the show as “great” in 1981. “Everybody got to have a good time. And we got to gong a whole lot of people… We’d laugh ourselves sick. The audience was like a rock audience. They were always on their feet screaming, stomping on the bleachers, making noise.”
In 2003, Morgan appeared as herself in George Clooney’s directorial debut, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, a semi-autobiographical film about Gong Show creator Chuck Barris.
Morgan also appeared as herself on The Muppet Show in 1978. Kermit and Miss Piggy remembered her in a joint statement posted on Instagram following news of her death.
“Working with the great Jaye P. Morgan on The Muppet Show was a joy,” they wrote. “She was an explosive performer who worked her magic on our stage, and we’re so glad to have known her. We’ll miss you, Jaye.”
on Entertainment Weekly
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
