Ken Ober, Original Host of 'Remote Control,' Dead at 52

Ken Ober, best known as the original host of MTV's 'Remote Control,' passed away in his Los Angeles home on Sunday.

He was 52 years old.

Ober's death was confirmed by his talent agent Mark Measures. According to Measures, "The last person to have spoken to him was on Saturday morning. No foul play is suspected, no suicide, it looks like natural causes, just no one knows the exact cause yet." It had been reported that Ober had been complaining of flu-like symptoms.Ken Ober, best known as the original host of MTV's 'Remote Control,' passed away in his Los Angeles home on Sunday.

He was 52 years old.

Ober's death was confirmed by his talent agent Mark Measures. According to Measures, Ober was last heard from "on Saturday morning. No foul play is suspected, no suicide; it looks like natural causes, just no one knows the exact cause yet." It has been reported that Ober had been complaining of flu-like symptoms in the days leading up to his death.

Ober was host of 'Remote Control' from 1987 to 1989. On the show -- known as MTV's first non-music-related original program -- contestants were asked to choose "channels" and answer questions based on popular TV reruns, all while strapped into armchair recliners. Before landing the job as host, Ober performed as a stand-up comedian (and, in fact, was a winner of 'Star Search' as a stand-up); 'Remote Control' helped launch the careers of several popular comics, including Colin Quinn, Adam Sandler and Denis Leary.

After Ober left 'Remote Control' to pursue his acting career, he appeared as host on other game shows, including 'Make Me Laugh,' 'Smush' and 'Perfect Match' on ESPN. He also held radio hosting duties in 1995 as part of the Los Angeles talk radio show 'Ober and Olsen' alongside Susan Olsen of 'Brady Bunch' fame.

More recently Ober worked as a producer on such shows including 'Tough Crowd With Colin Quinn,' 'Mind of Mencia' and 'The New Adventures of Old Christine.'

Ober was not married and is survived by his parents, a step-mother and brother.