James David Weinroth (born April 20, 1968), known professionally as J.D. Roth, is an American actor,

television producer A television producer is a person who oversees one or more aspects of a television show, television program. Some producers take more of an executive role, in that they conceive new programs and pitch them to the television networks, but upon acce ...

and

television presenter A television presenter (or television host, some become a "television personality") is a person who introduces or hosts television show, television programs, often serving as a mediator for the program and the audience. It is common for people ...

. Roth's hosting jobs include

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

's fall 2008 series '' Opportunity Knocks'', the

Fox Foxes are small-to-medium-sized omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull; upright, triangular ears; a pointed, slightly upturned snout; and a long, bushy tail ("brush"). Twelve species ...

adult reality game series ''

Unan1mous ''Unan1mous'' is an American reality television program that premiered on the Fox Network on March 22, 2006, and ran for one season. The host of the series was J. D. Roth. Concept Nine strangers are locked in a bunker and told they cannot le ...

'', the children's reality series ''

Endurance Endurance (also related to sufferance, forbearance, resilience, constitution, fortitude, persistence, tenacity, steadfastness, perseverance, stamina, and hardiness) is the ability of an organism to exert itself and remain active for a ...

'' on NBC and the

Discovery Kids Discovery Kids, stylized as discovery k!ds, is a brand name owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Starting as a television block within Discovery Channel, the brand expanded as a separate television channel in October 1996. Discovery Kids on NBC was ...

Channel, and the children's game series ''

Fun House A funhouse or fun house is an attraction found in amusement parks and funfair midways, equipped with various devices designed to surprise, challenge, or amuse visitors. Unlike thrill rides or dark rides, fun houses are participatory attractions ...

'', which aired on Fox and in syndication. He is also one of the narrators for the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

reality series ''

The Biggest Loser ''The Biggest Loser'' is a reality television format which started with the American TV show ''The Biggest Loser (American TV series), The Biggest Loser'' in 2004. The show centers on overweight and Obesity, obese contestants attempting to lose ...

''. Roth was the

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

of 3Ball Productions, a television production company based in

Manhattan Beach, California Manhattan Beach is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, United States, on the Coastal California, Pacific coast south of El Segundo, California, El Segundo, west of Hawthorne, California, Hawthorne and Redondo Beach, and north ...

. 3Ball Productions was sold to Dutch group

Eyeworks Warner Bros. International Television Production Netherlands (WBITVP Netherlands), formerly known as Eyeworks, is an Amsterdam-based international television production company founded by Reinout Oerlemans, Robert van den Bogaard and Ronald van W ...

in 2006 and was renamed to Eyeworks USA.February 11, 2014 eyeworks.com, Retrieved on July 2, 2014

Personal life

Roth and his wife, Christine, are parents of two children,

Cooper Cooper, Cooper's, Coopers and similar may refer to: * Cooper (profession), a maker of wooden casks and other staved vessels Arts and entertainment * Cooper (producers), an alias of Dutch producers Klubbheads * "Cooper", a song by Roxette from ...

and Duncan.

Early life

Roth was born and raised in

Cherry Hill, New Jersey Cherry Hill is a Township (New Jersey), township within Camden County, New Jersey, Camden County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As a suburb of Philadelphia, the township is part of the South Jersey and Delaware Valley regions. Cherry Hill ...

. He first acquired an interest in acting when he was ten, and has been working on

commercials A television advertisement (also called a commercial, spot, break, advert, or ad) is a span of television programming produced and paid for by an organization. It conveys a message promoting, and aiming to market, a product, service or idea. ...

and being in front of and behind the camera ever since. In a 1996 interview, he said that he worked 22 commercials in his first year of acting. At age 11, he booked himself an audition for a children's show at a

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

nightclub, winning a spot along with others including future stars

Sarah Jessica Parker Sarah Jessica Parker (born March 25, 1965) is an American actress and television producer. In a career spanning over five decades, she has performed across several productions of both Sarah Jessica Parker filmography, screen and stage. List o ...

Rick Schroder Richard Bartlett Schroder (born April 13, 1970) is an American actor and filmmaker. As a child actor billed as Ricky Schroder he debuted in the film '' The Champ'' (1979), for which he became the youngest Golden Globe award recipient, and went o ...

, and

Ricki Lake Ricki Pamela Lake (born September 21, 1968) is an American television host and actress. She is known for her lead role as Tracy Turnblad in the 1988 film '' Hairspray'', for which she received a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for ...

. He was one of the hosts of the kids' news magazine version of ''

Wonderama ''Wonderama'' is a children's television program that originally aired on the Metromedia-owned stations from 1955 to 1977. The show was revived from 1980 to 1987, and again in 2016. Hosts * Al Hodge (as Captain Video 1955–1956) * Jon Gna ...

'', which aired from 1980 to 1987. After being a finalist on ''

Star Search ''Star Search'' (later known as ''Ed McMahon's Star Search'') is an American television show that was produced by T.P.E./ Rysher Entertainment from 1983 to 1995, hosted by Ed McMahon, and created by Al Masini. A relaunch was produced by 29 ...

'', he made numerous guest appearances on ''

Charles in Charge ''Charles in Charge'' is an American sitcom television series that premiered on October 3, 1984, on CBS. The series was a production of Al Burton Productions and Scholastic Productions in association with Universal Television and starred Sco ...

'', ''

As the World Turns ''As the World Turns'' (often abbreviated as ''ATWT'') is an American television soap opera that aired on CBS for 54 years from April 2, 1956, to September 17, 2010. Irna Phillips created ''As the World Turns'' as a sister show to her other so ...

'', ''

The Equalizer ''The Equalizer'' is an American vigilante action thriller multimedia franchise initially co-created by Michael Sloan and Richard Lindheim. It originated with a CBS television series from 1985 to 1989 starring Edward Woodward. The concept ...

'', and ''

Tales from the Darkside ''Tales from the Darkside'' is an American horror anthology television series created by George A. Romero. A pilot episode was first broadcast on October 29, 1983. The series was picked up for syndication, and the first season premiered on S ...

'' as Seymour Strand in the episode Seymourlama in 1986 (series 4, episode 8). After graduating from

Cherry Hill High School East Cherry Hill High School East (also known as Cherry Hill East or CHE) is a four-year comprehensive public high school serving students in ninth through twelfth grades in Cherry Hill, in Camden County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating ...

in 1986, and before producing reality television, Roth's first television exposure was hosting the kids'

game show A game show (or gameshow) is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment where contestants compete in a game for rewards. The shows are typically directed by a game show host, host, who explains the rules of the program as well as commentating a ...

'', which was one of the most popular children's shows in the U.S. at the time. At age 19, he became the youngest person to host a game show. During its three-year run, he also traveled across the country hosting a live version for children. In 1987, he auditioned for the part of

Wesley Crusher Wesley Crusher is a fictional character in the ''Star Trek'' franchise. He appears regularly in the first four seasons of the television series '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' (''TNG''), and sporadically in its next three seasons. He also a ...

in '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'', but lost to

Wil Wheaton Richard William "Wil" Wheaton III (born July 29, 1972) is an American actor and writer. He portrayed Wesley Crusher on the television series ''Star Trek: The Next Generation'', Gordie Lachance in the film ''Stand by Me (film), Stand by Me'', ...

. He was a panelist in the Davidson version of ''

Hollywood Squares ''Hollywood Squares'' (originally ''The Hollywood Squares'', later stylized as ''H2: Hollywood Squares'') is an American game show in which two contestants compete in a game of tic-tac-toe to win cash and prizes. The show originally aired as a ...

''.

Television productions

In 1991, after his ''Fun House'' stint, he went on to host the magazine

video game A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device) to generate visual fe ...

series ''

GamePro TV ''GamePro TV'' was a syndicated weekly video game television show that ran from 1991 through 1992. The show was a low-budget partner to ''GamePro'' magazine. History First-run syndication version Hosted by J. D. Roth (and, initially, co-host ...

''. The following year, he started his own production company, Slam Dunk Productions. He initially produced and hosted the short-lived children's game show '' Double Up'' on

. He emceed several other game shows, including the first season of '' Masters of the Maze'' for The Family Channel, and two of the six seasons of '' Zooventure'', a children's game show taped at the

San Diego Zoo The San Diego Zoo is a zoo in San Diego, California, United States, located in Balboa Park (San Diego), Balboa Park. It began with a collection of animals left over from the 1915 Panama–California Exposition that were brought together by its ...

and aired on

Animal Planet Animal Planet (stylized in all lowercase since 2018) is an American multinational pay television channel focusing on the animal kingdom owned by the Warner Bros. Discovery Networks unit of Warner Bros. Discovery. First established on June 1 ...

. ''Zooventure'' aired in seven countries. Roth also produced a game show version of the

word game Word games are spoken, board, card or video games often designed to test ability with language or to explore its properties. Word games are generally used as a source of entertainment, but can additionally serve an educational purpose. Young ...

Mad Libs ''Mad Libs'' is a word game created by Leonard Stern and Roger Price. It consists of one player prompting others for a list of words to substitute for blanks in a story before reading aloud. The game is frequently played as a party game or a ...

'' for the

Disney Channel Disney Channel is an American pay television television channel, channel that serves as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney Entertainment business segment of the Walt Disney Company ...

with veteran

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

personality

Dick Clark Richard Wagstaff Clark (November 30, 1929April 18, 2012) was an American television and radio personality and television producer who hosted ''American Bandstand'' from 1956 to 1989. He also hosted five incarnations of the Pyramid (game show), ...

, who worked with Roth behind-the-scenes. He remarked that children would sometimes write in asking what grade he was in because of his youthful voice. In 1996, he took on the titular role of ''

The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest ''The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest'' (also known as ''Jonny Quest: The Real Adventures'') is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Cartoons and broadcast on Cartoon Network from August 26, 1996, to April 16, 1997. ...

'', having been a childhood fan of the classic series. He found the show educational, a quality he admired whose absence he criticized in other shows billed as such. While hosting ''Zooventure'', he hosted his first adult game show, ''Sex Wars'', in syndication.

''Moolah Beach''

In 2001, he formed 3Ball Productions, along with Todd A. Nelson. Roth produced and hosted his first children's

reality show Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring ordinary people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 1990s ...

, '' Moolah Beach'', as a 30-minute weekly show for

as part of its

Fox Kids Fox Kids (originally known as Fox Children's Network and later as the Fox Kids Network; stylized in all caps) was an American children's programming block and branding for a slate of international children's television channels. Originally a j ...

lineup. It was later shown on

ABC Family American cable television, cable and satellite television network Freeform (TV channel), Freeform was originally launched as the CBN Satellite Service on April 29, 1977, and has gone through four different owners and six different name changes dur ...

as an extended 60-minute show in the summer/fall of 2001 for 13 episodes. After ABC chose not to continue the series, Roth took the show concept to

and

as ''

''.

''Endurance''

A spinoff titled ''

'' began on

and

in 2002. Renewed in 2007 for a sixth season, ''Endurance'' has been much more successful. Roth, who serves as creator, host, and executive producer of this show, which was nominated in 2006 for two

Daytime Emmy Award The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York-based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NA ...

s for Outstanding Performer in a Children's Series. In 2007, ''Endurance'' was nominated for a Daytime Emmy as Outstanding Children's Series. The show ran for six seasons.

Other productions

From 1995 to 1997, Roth co-hosted The

's ''

Walt Disney World Inside Out ''Walt Disney World Inside Out'' is an American television show that aired on the Disney Channel from 1994 to 1997. Initially airing monthly, it later became a weekly program, and featured footage of attractions at Walt Disney World in Orlando, ...

'' along with

Brianne Leary Brianne Banigan Leary (born July 28, 1957 is an American actress best known for her role in the NBC series ''CHiPs'' as Officer Sindy Cahill in season two. She appeared on multiple television shows such as ''The Love Boat,''and ''Buck Rogers in ...

and

George Foreman George Edward Foreman (January 10, 1949 – March 21, 2025) was an American professional boxer, businessman, minister, and author. In boxing, he competed between 1967 and 1997, and was nicknamed "Big George". He was a two-time world heavyweig ...

. While not working on ''

'', Roth serves as

narrator Narration is the use of a written or spoken commentary to convey a story to an audience. Narration is conveyed by a narrator: a specific person, or unspecified literary voice, developed by the creator of the story to deliver information to the ...

weight loss Weight loss, in the context of medicine, health, or physical fitness, refers to a reduction of the total body mass, by a mean loss of fluid, body fat (adipose tissue), or lean mass (namely bone mineral deposits, muscle, tendon, and other conn ...

, ''

'' (with

Caroline Rhea Caroline Gilchrist Rhea (; born April 13, 1964) is a Canadian actress and stand-up comedian, who is best known for her role as Hilda Spellman in the ABC series ''Sabrina the Teenage Witch'', and for voicing Linda Flynn-Fletcher in the Disney Ch ...

and, later,

Alison Sweeney Alison Ann Sweeney (born September 19, 1976) is an American actress, reality show host, director and author. Sweeney is best known for her portrayal of Samantha "Sami" Brady on the NBC soap opera ''Days of Our Lives'', a role she played under c ...

), which he also co-created and produces. He also produces

s ''

Breaking Bonaduce ''Breaking Bonaduce'' is an American reality television series that aired on VH1, focusing on former child-actor Danny Bonaduce, and how his (then-) increasingly unstable lifestyle impacted his then-wife, Gretchen, and their two children. The s ...

'', with

Danny Bonaduce Dante Daniel Bonaduce (; born August 13, 1959) is an American retired radio personality, actor, television personality and professional wrestler. Bonaduce is the son of veteran TV writer and producer Joseph Bonaduce ('' The Dick Van Dyke Show'' ...

VH1 VH1 (originally an initialism for Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network that launched on January 1, 1985, and is currently owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global's networks division based in New Y ...

and ''

Beauty and the Geek ''Beauty and the Geek'' is a reality television franchise that first aired in the United States. The show follows groups of "Beauties" (people — almost always women — who rely on their attractiveness and outgoing personalities but typicall ...

'' on the

CW Network The CW Network, LLC (commonly referred to as The CW or simply CW) is an American commercial broadcast television network which is controlled by Nexstar Media Group through a 75% ownership interest. The network's name is derived from the first ...

, alongside

Ashton Kutcher Christopher Ashton Kutcher (; born February 7, 1978) is an American actor, producer and entrepreneur. His accolades include a People's Choice Award and fifteen Teen Choice Awards, in addition to a nomination for a Screen Actors Guild Award. K ...

. On September 23, 2008, ABC premiered '' Opportunity Knocks'', which received low ratings, especially in the 18-34 demographic, and was canceled after three episodes. ABC subsequently scheduled the remaining six completed episodes for broadcast, beginning on May 26, 2009. Roth's 3Ball Productions has partnered with Milestone Entertainment to produce the

California Lottery The California State Lottery is the state lottery of California, which began in October 1985 after voters authorized it in Proposition 37, the California State Lottery Act of 1984. It offers a range of games including number draws, scratchcards ...

's new game show, '' Make Me a Millionaire'', which premiered on January 17, 2009,"Commission Advisory, Videos of the Commission Meeting"
of December 3, 2008, Agenda Item 7E, California State Lottery. for an initial four-year run,"3 Ball takes chance on lottery game show"
''The Hollywood Reporter'', January 7, 2009. but was canceled due to poor ratings; the last program was on July 3, 2010. He hosted and co-created ''

'', which premiered March 22, 2006. Though the show did well in the ratings, possible high production costs kept it from getting a second season. In September 2006, the Dutch company Eyeworks Group announced that it had acquired a 50-percent ownership of 3Ball Productions. He also produced the ABC game show '' Downfall'', which aired in the summer of 2010. Hosted by wrestler

Chris Jericho Christopher Keith Irvine (born November 9, 1970), better known by the ring name Chris Jericho, is an American-Canadian professional wrestler, rock musician, and actor. As a wrestler, he has been signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) , where he ...

, the show featured contestants answering trivia questions to stop valuable prizes from falling from the roof of a Los Angeles building. Beginning in 2011, Roth served as producer for the

Spike Spike, spikes, or spiking may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Books * ''The Spike'' (novel), a novel by Arnaud de Borchgrave * ''The Spike'' (Broderick book), a nonfiction book by Damien Broderick * ''The Spike'', a starship in Peter ...

reality show ''

Bar Rescue ''Bar Rescue'' is an American reality television series that airs on Paramount Network (formerly Spike during the first five seasons). It stars Jon Taffer, a long-time food and beverage industry consultant specializing in nightclubs, bars and p ...

''. As of August 2024, the show has aired nine seasons.

References

External links

*
3Ball Productions
– official website
Eyeworks Group
– official website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roth, J. D. 1968 births Living people Actors from Cherry Hill, New Jersey American game show hosts American male television actors American male voice actors Cherry Hill High School East alumni Male actors from New Jersey Television producers from New Jersey