His
television credits began in the 1970s, as a regular performer on
The ABC Comedy Hour, where he once did a split screen impression of
John Lennon on one side and
Paul McCartney on the other, and the
Dean Martin roasts. He had several voice credits on cartoons, as well as appearances on nationally broadcast children's programs. Travelena made many guest appearances on
game shows and dramatic programs in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. In the mid-1980s he hosted the game show
Anything for Money (1984–85), a game where contestants attempted to guess how much money it would take an ordinary, unsuspecting person to participate in a silly stunt. In 1978, Travalena portrayed Top-40 DJ "Mad Man" Mancuso in
The Buddy Holly Story, starring
Gary Busey in the title role. Among his guest appearances on game shows, he was on
Password Plus, hosted by
Tom Kennedy, with
Dallas star and
The Huggabug Club star
Audrey Landers, as well as
Super Password and
Body Language, hosted by Tom Kennedy and
Bert Convy, and appeared on
Match Game and
Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour several times. In 1982, Travalena played Bogey Orangutan (in his
Humphrey Bogart voice) from
Shirt Tales. He also voiced Dreamy Smurf on
The Smurfs. In 1989, Travelena played
Elvis Presley and Mr. Gibbel of the Chippie Chipmunks group in a comedy sketch as part of
The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!. For the
Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade later that year, he portrayed the
Joker. He guest starred in the series premiere of the short-lived 1991 sitcom
Good Sports with
Ryan O'Neal and
Farrah Fawcett. After an actor impersonated
Michael Jackson during the 1992 MTV Video Music Awards to accept the Best Alternative Music Video award on behalf of
Nirvana, presenter
Dana Carvey bemusedly joked, "Fred Travalena does an amazing Michael Jackson!" In 1993, Travalena hosted the game show
Baby Races, which aired on the
Family Channel for 26 episodes from September 12, 1993 to March 6, 1994. Between 1998 and 2000, he voiced
Julius Caesar (with a voice that was an impression of
Frank Sinatra),
William Clark,
Marc Antony (both with an impression of
Dean Martin), President
Gerald Ford and many others on the
Kids' WB's animated series
Histeria!. He appeared at casino theaters in
Las Vegas,
Reno, and
Atlantic City, as well as performing arts theaters, cruise ships, and private "in-concert" performances. He took part in a
U.S.O. tour to entertain troops overseas, and was honored in 2004 by Club Italia with a Merit Achievement Award for his contributions to society. Also in 2004, he appeared on
Bananas Comedy. On February 3, 2005, he received a star on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7018 Hollywood Blvd. ==Death==