Joe Farago

Joseph Michael Patrick Farago (January 28, 1948 – March 23, 2025) was an American actor, stuntman and television personality. In 1985, he replaced Gene Rayburn as the host of the game show Break the Bank, having previously appeared as a celebrity guest three times during the show's first two weeks. He hosted more than 160 episodes.

Farago appeared as a spokesman for shows including the "GT Xpress", "Xpress Redi Set Go", and the "GT Xpress 101" countertop grills. He also advertised the "True Sleeper" foam mattress topper, T-Fal cookware and The Bissell Big Green Clean machine among others. He hosted 35 infomercials seen in more than 70 countries around the world.

He was also the host of the 1990-91 HBO comedy show Night Rap with guests including Timothy Leary, Ed Koch, G. Gordon Liddy and Mel Brooks. He briefly appeared on Seinfeld in the episode "The Parking Garage".

In 2001, after the September 11 attacks, Farago became a firefighter. He was part of a Type II federal incident management team deploying to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005. He taught FEMA/DHS public information officer and incident command courses to first responders and emergency management personnel across the country.

Farago died in Florida on March 23, 2025, at the age of 77.^[1][2]

• Joe Farago at IMDb