Few people had more impact on the TV landscape than Bob Barker. Turn on a TV on a weekday morning in America between 1972 and 2007, and you were likely to see Barker’s smiling face at least once, presiding over The Price Is Right and all its big wins, big losses, and, of course, big calls to spay and neuter your pets. Barker’s death today, at the age of 99, has, unsurprisingly, seen a wave of tributes emerge from the numerous people who worked with and watched him over the years—including, notably, a man he once handed out a famous cinematic ass-kicking to.
We’re speaking, of course, of Adam Sandler, whose Happy Gilmore saw Barker play with his smiling TV persona, brawling with Sandler’s character during a celebrity golf tournament. Writing on Instagram about Barker today, Sandler said, “The man. The myth. The best. Such a sweet funny guy to hang out with. Loved talking to him. Loved laughing with him. Loved him kicking the crap out of me. He will be missed by everyone I know! Heartbreaking day. Love to Bob always and his family! Thanks for all you gave us!” (Sandler’s long-time collaborator Rob Schneider also chimed in, writing that, “One of the nicest things I ever heard in showbusiness was Bob Barker saying, ‘I moved to Hollywood to be an actor and the only person who ever let me do it was Adam Sandler!’”)
Meanwhile, Drew Carey—who took over Barker’s position as Price Is Right host in 2007—issued his own statement of tribute to his predecessor today. “Very sad day for the Price Is Right family, and animal lovers all over the world,” Carey wrote on Twitter. “There hasn’t been a day on set that I didn’t think of Bob Barker and thank him. I will carry his memory in my heart forever. #RIPBobBarker We love you.”
Twitter has also filled up today with people sharing memorable moments from Barker’s tenure on the Price Is Right—including that time he (mostly) exhibited the patience of a saint as a contestant repeatedly failed to grasp the rules of one of the show’s games, a reminder that the man could keep a smile on his face even as he was pretty clearly being driven to madness.
