COSTA MESA, Calif., Nov. 30 (UPI) -- Televangelist Paul Crouch, who founded Trinity Broadcasting Network in California, died Saturday, the network said. He was 79.
The church said Crouch had "heart and related health issues" that landed him in a Dallas-area hospital while in Texas last month, the Los Angeles Times reported. He later returned to California for further treatment.
Crouch, the son of a Missouri missionary, went from managing the movie and television unit of the Assemblies of God in the early 1960s to buying his own television stations, cable channels and satellites to form what has been called the most-watched religious network in the United States.
Crouch and his wife Jan anchored the network's flagship program, "Praise the Lord," the Times said.
The newspaper noted Crouch, who preached a gospel of prosperity, was criticized in some quarters for his lavish lifestyle, which included mansions, jets and expense-account meals.
