Who Is Svengoolie, And Why Is He Worth So Much Money? (2024)

Fans of horror and sci-fi have had the good fortune of being entertained by a plethora of hosts. Thanks to the work of people like Vampira, Elvira, the Mystery Science Theater 3000 (MST3k) team, Rifftrax, and several others, the genre endures. Thanks to this list of professional fans, audiences across generations have been entertained and introduced to horror titles that might have otherwise gone unnoticed.

Related: How 'Elvira: Mistress Of The Dark' Earned Her $3 million

One thing all of these above-mentioned horror icons have in common is that they all got their start on local television. One other such host who deserves credit for bringing classic and B-horror films to a wider audience this way is Richard Koz, who is known by his character name, Svengoolie, which is also the name of his show. Thanks to his dedication to the genre, the national syndication of his program out of his home town (Chicago), and the antics of his rubber chicken pal Kerwyn, Svengoolie has endured for almost 40 years. But many outside of the midwest might not know about his hilarious endeavors because Koz is not as well known as Elvira or MST3k, but the host still has a solid fanbase who have followed him from his earliest episodes to today.

9 Richard Koz Started In Radio

Koz got his start in radio, as many television hosts do. After finishing school at Northeastern University, Koz found himself working in television. In high school, he started to develop a love of film, especially the classic Universal horror monsters like Frankenstein, The Wolfman, and his favorite The Creature From The Black Lagoon. It was also in high school his career in broadcasting began with a student-run DJ gig for WMTH-FM.

8 Richard Koz Isn’t The First To Play Svengoolie

Koz is actually the second generation of the Svengoolie name. The first Svengoolie was played by Jerry G Bishop, another Chicago disc jockey and mentor to Koz. Bishop did his version of Svengoolie from 1970-1973. The original show, titled Screaming Yellow Theater, featured Bishop's character as a hippie-haired horror host hiding behind sunglasses and a cheesy Transylvanian accent. While his rendition of Svengoolie was a little different from Koz’s, both are considered pieces of Chicago history.

Related: How Joel Hodgson Saved His Show 'Mystery Science Theater 3000'

7 Richard Koz Started His Show In 1979

After Bishop retired from Svengoolie in 1973, Koz saw an opportunity to do his own show and pay homage to his mentor. In 1979, with permission from Bishop, Koz aired the first episode of Son Of Svengoolie, a sequel to Bishop’s original character where Svengoolie’s son, dressed in a top hat and a painted-on devil beard, would resume the show and feature jokes and songs in between commercial breaks. Koz’s show was a little more ambitious, as it had more props, more jokes, and a few puppet sidekicks like Kerwyn the chicken and Sven’s talking coffin. Son Of Svengoolie won multiple local Emmys before being canceled.

6 Richard Koz Rebooted The Show In 1995

Son of Svengoolie aired until 1986, then Koz took a bit of a hiatus after the show was canceled by the network. That was until 1995, when it came time for him to reintroduce the show. This time, however, Bishop advised Koz that it was time to drop the “Son of” from his name and that he should take ownership of the Svengoolie brand. Koz gratefully obliged, and thus the Svengoolie that audiences know and love today was born.

5 'Svengoolie' Got Picked Up By Me-TV

Eventually, Svengoolie began to develop a cult following outside of Chicago as the show would reach audiences in Indianapolis, Minneapolis, and several other parts of the upper midwest. Eventually ME-TV, which specializes in broadcasting classic television shows, signed Svengoolie onto their network, and thus, Svengoolie is now a nationally syndicated show.

4 Richard Koz Tours The Convention Circuit

Although the COVID-19 pandemic was a major setback for Koz, one thing that helped him gain national celebrity and made him a success was his appearances at comic book and sci-fi conventions. At these conventions, he is not only meeting with fans and signing autographs, he also gets the good fortune to interview celebrities and stars of his favorite films.

3 Richard Koz Has Some Celebrity Fans, From Mark Ruffalo To Gilbert Godfried

Thanks to his interviews at conventions, we know that Svengoolie has quite an impressive fanbase. Stars like Mark Ruffalo and Gilbert Godfried have made appearances on his show and shown proper gratitude. Also, Koz is a huge wrestling fan and several wrestlers, like the now-retired Mike Foley, have made appearances with Chicago’s favorite horror guru.

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2 Richard Koz Has A 'Svengoolie' Merch Store

Thanks to signing with ME-TV, Koz was given an ample avenue to merchandise the Svengoolie name with minimal overhead. Every episode of Svengoolie, (Saturdays at 8pm on ME-TV) features at least one ad for his now-famous glow in the dark shirts, and a segment of his show is dedicated to sending shout-outs to fans who send in pictures of themselves with his shirt on at major historical landmarks or famous horror museums and film shooting locations. Svengoolie merchandise also includes hats, mugs, and bobbleheads.

1 Richard Koz Is A Chicago Icon, Worth $1 Million

All in all, what makes Svengoolie so popular and so endearing to his fans is his humble roots and approach to television. While Me-TV has been good for his career, it is not as lucrative of a deal as what people like Elvira or MST3k have found for themselves. However, in addition to his humble beginnings on local Chicago television, fans seem to appreciate this low-key approach. Svengoolie is one of Me-TVs most-watched shows, and technically it is their first original program. While not living in luxury, his net worth is estimated to be around $1 million, a modest yet comfortable amount.

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