The Game Show Forum
The Game Show Forum => The Big Board => Topic started by: TimK2003 on March 18, 2017, 02:30:45 PM
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Got into a coversation with a fellow game-show fan and the question came up as to what longer running game shows (at least 1 year) whose gameplay and format remained the same thought the entire run. This is defined as shows which:
1) Did not have any special celebrity, charity and/or theme weeks.
2) Did not have any special player tournaments or second chance weeks (unless they were brought back due to an error in gameplay)
<edited> Eliminated the 3rd clause of rule changes
We were hard pressed to come up with shows which fit the requirements. The New Treasure Hunt was one. Let's see how you fare?
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Depends on how you define the third element. And what's a special tournament? Lots of shows have had a Tournament of Champions.
Most game shows will do special weeks to raise interest, and most of them will tweak the format for one reason or another.
I think at the you start with the weekly version of What's My Line? and go from there.
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I imagine quite a few 50s and 60s shows fit the criteria, esp. from the Goodson-Todman crew. Probably anything in the few years after the scandals.
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The closest that I could think of was Match Game '7X. They never did any theme weeks, tournaments or second chance weeks. The only asterisk is that third element when the Star Wheel was introduced. Besides that, everything stayed the same with the exception of the set look, which was not part of the question.
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What about the '60s / '70s Newlywed Game? Did they ever do a Bring Back Teh Losers week? I think they did on New Newlywed, but I'm talking the original white-picket-fence version.
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The James/Barker version of Price went for 8 years.
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What about the '60s / '70s Newlywed Game? Did they ever do a Bring Back Teh Losers week? I think they did on New Newlywed, but I'm talking the original white-picket-fence version.
Yes. The 1974 finale GSN aired was an alumni show, with couples who were previously on the show playing for charity.
There's also an episode from the '60s preserved in black & white where Bob reads a letter from an older couple who wanted to play, and responds that they'd try older couples on a future week.
-Jason
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We were also thinking Tom Kennedy's Split Second. Neither of us could recall any tournaments or special weeks there.
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LMAD from the 60s, maybe?
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I think this is really just an impossible question to answer, because somebody could make a case against just about any remotely long-running show based on how you define "major" in clause three. The big three G-T panel shows were pretty much the same from beginning to end, but if you wanted to disqualify them, you could find a way to do so.
Also, I fail to understand how a show that just for fun had an occasional diversion from the norm becomes disqualified. I understand changing to a celebrity format (Hot Potato, Password All-Stars) as being grounds for dismissal, but a "special" week followed by a return to the traditional format doesn't strike me as such a big deal.
Otherwise, your purest answer is probably going to be something that ran thirteen weeks.
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I maintain that the third clause is an unnecessary fillip. Quiz Kids Challenge passes the first, second and third clauses, ran sixteen weeks and nobody cares because it was bland as bland could be.
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I think this is really just an impossible question to answer, because somebody could make a case against just about any remotely long-running show based on how you define "major" in clause three. The big three G-T panel shows were pretty much the same from beginning to end, but if you wanted to disqualify them, you could find a way to do so.
Also, I fail to understand how a show that just for fun had an occasional diversion from the norm becomes disqualified. I understand changing to a celebrity format (Hot Potato, Password All-Stars) as being grounds for dismissal, but a "special" week followed by a return to the traditional format doesn't strike me as such a big deal.
That's how the whole conversation started when we were discussing Ray Combs Family Feud's waning years when there were more non-civilian "specials" than normal civilian shows.
The 3rd requirement was included because we wanted to find the shows which stayed true the entire length of their series, and there were a handful of shows which fit the bill -- not as many as we thought when we threw out some names, like primetime TTTT adding the audience (5th) vote late in the run.
I will amend the original post to eliminate rule changes to open up the field a bit more but to keep the first 2 requirements in -- I still see that as ways to boosting/saving the ratings. Let's see how that works...
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The problem is that the second clause is still vague. By that, Jeopardy falls out (though I'd say that the stay til you lose is a much bigger tweak). Supermarket Sweep was on forever and it was always about chucking things into a grocery cart--nobody cares about Mother-Daughter Week or Sweep of Champions/Second Chance Week because the entire product is entertaining.
As it pertains to Family Feud, the thing is that after you're on the air six years doing the same thing five days a week and probably flagging ratings those in charge will come up with something to perk people's interest--there can't be a game show that has only had ratings that grow with no coasting or nose-dives.
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As it pertains to Family Feud, the thing is that after you're on the air six years doing the same thing five days a week and probably flagging ratings those in charge will come up with something to perk people's interest--there can't be a game show that has only had ratings that grow with no coasting or nose-dives.
The most minor "tweak" that I can think of concerning Family Feud is one that I believe started when the show became "Family Feud Challenge" in 1992, and even now I watch the Harvey version so little I don't know what it is now. The "tweak" concerns when, after three strikes, the other family tries to pick off one of the remaining answers. IIRC, at that point, if the other family was able to steal, they'd get the points with that answer too. I don't believe that was the case before the show became FFC.
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I think it came with Bullseye along with single-double-triple-triple to speed it up.
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I think Face the Music qualifies based on the 2 requirements. It ran for a year and a half and never had a theme week or any tournaments of any kind. The game play never changed during the entire run of the series.
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The game play never changed during the entire run of the series.
And neither were the burned-out light bulbs.
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Front Page Challenge went pretty much unchanged, format-wise, during its 38-year run (1957-95). But they did sometimes leave their Toronto base to tape shows in other Canadian cities.
Would the original Gambit qualify as relatively unchanged from start to finish?
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We were also thinking Tom Kennedy's Split Second. Neither of us could recall any tournaments or special weeks there.
There was a tournament of champions in early January 1974.
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With Gambit, the only thing I can think of would be special prizes in the bonus round. The Vegas version had a singles week, but I think the CBS version qualifies.
How about Celebrity Sweepstakes?
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How about Celebrity Sweepstakes?
The big change was going from written answers to spoken answers, but they also added the "exacta" bonus during the run. In one such designated question an episode, each player made a side bet on how many stars would get the correct answer. Picking the right number won you a prize package worth thousands. Not sure offhand if that was nighttime exclusive or not.
-Jason
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How about Celebrity Sweepstakes?
The big change was going from written answers to spoken answers, but they also added the "exacta" bonus during the run. In one such designated question an episode, each player made a side bet on how many stars would get the correct answer. Picking the right number won you a prize package worth thousands. Not sure offhand if that was nighttime exclusive or not.
-Jason
Also going from three to two contestants.
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For some reason I thought the three contestants were only in the pilot...carry on.
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We were also thinking Tom Kennedy's Split Second. Neither of us could recall any tournaments or special weeks there.
There was a tournament of champions in early January 1974.
Yes this is true. I was sent an autographed script of a best of game show special that Monty Hall hosted for ABC back in 1975. I'll have to go home and look, but I believe it was called "The Greatest American Game Show" or something along those lines. But I do remember reading from the script that Split Second had an Invitational Tournament in 1974 and Joan Diaz was the winner of that tournament and made an appearance on the special. I believe it was the same Joan Diaz who was a big winner during the first few weeks of the 1983-1984 season of Tic Tac Dough.
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Got into a coversation with a fellow game-show fan and the question came up as to what longer running game shows (at least 1 year) whose gameplay and format remained the same thought the entire run. This is defined as shows which:
1) Did not have any special celebrity, charity and/or theme weeks.
2) Did not have any special player tournaments or second chance weeks (unless they were brought back due to an error in gameplay)
<edited> Eliminated the 3rd clause of rule changes
We were hard pressed to come up with shows which fit the requirements. The New Treasure Hunt was one. Let's see how you fare?
Bill Cullen's Blockbusters, which is a pity because I always thought it would be cool to see John Hatten take on the McCarthys.
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Got into a coversation with a fellow game-show fan and the question came up as to what longer running game shows (at least 1 year) whose gameplay and format remained the same thought the entire run. This is defined as shows which:
1) Did not have any special celebrity, charity and/or theme weeks.
2) Did not have any special player tournaments or second chance weeks (unless they were brought back due to an error in gameplay)
<edited> Eliminated the 3rd clause of rule changes
We were hard pressed to come up with shows which fit the requirements. The New Treasure Hunt was one. Let's see how you fare?
Bill Cullen's Blockbusters, which is a pity because I always thought it would be cool to see John Hatten take on the McCarthys.
Wouldn't Blockbusters not fit because of players who won 10 games were later brought back when the cap was raised to 20 games, a second chance of sorts?
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Got into a coversation with a fellow game-show fan and the question came up as to what longer running game shows (at least 1 year) whose gameplay and format remained the same thought the entire run. This is defined as shows which:
1) Did not have any special celebrity, charity and/or theme weeks.
2) Did not have any special player tournaments or second chance weeks (unless they were brought back due to an error in gameplay)
<edited> Eliminated the 3rd clause of rule changes
We were hard pressed to come up with shows which fit the requirements. The New Treasure Hunt was one. Let's see how you fare?
Bill Cullen's Blockbusters, which is a pity because I always thought it would be cool to see John Hatten take on the McCarthys.
Wouldn't Blockbusters not fit because of players who won 10 games were later brought back when the cap was raised to 20 games, a second chance of sorts?
Blockbusters also had the double bonus round format in the beginning that was eliminated shortly thereafter.
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Why was Gold Rush changed to Gold Run, I wonder.
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Why was Gold Rush changed to Gold Run, I wonder.
According to "Quizmaster: The Life and Times of Bill Cullen" (written by our own Adam Nedeff), the name was changed because Goodson-Todman learned that the term "Gold Rush" was copyrighted.
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Blockbusters also had the double bonus round format in the beginning that was eliminated shortly thereafter.
I wonder if the contestants liked that more or less than what they changed it to, because I thought it was OK to allow more people to win some money, but I also get that you don't want to rock the boat and deviate from best-of-three that people understand.
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Got into a coversation with a fellow game-show fan and the question came up as to what longer running game shows (at least 1 year) whose gameplay and format remained the same thought the entire run. This is defined as shows which:
1) Did not have any special celebrity, charity and/or theme weeks.
2) Did not have any special player tournaments or second chance weeks (unless they were brought back due to an error in gameplay)
<edited> Eliminated the 3rd clause of rule changes
We were hard pressed to come up with shows which fit the requirements. The New Treasure Hunt was one. Let's see how you fare?
Bill Cullen's Blockbusters, which is a pity because I always thought it would be cool to see John Hatten take on the McCarthys.
Wouldn't Blockbusters not fit because of players who won 10 games were later brought back when the cap was raised to 20 games, a second chance of sorts?
It wasn't done as an event, such as in the description above, but I admit that Dbacksfan12 is right about changing the bonus from 2500x2 to 5000x1.
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It wasn't done as an event, such as in the description above, but I admit that Dbacksfan12 is right about changing the bonus from 2500x2 to 5000x1.
2500/5000 to 5000*1
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It wasn't done as an event, such as in the description above, but I admit that Dbacksfan12 is right about changing the bonus from 2500x2 to 5000x1.
2500/5000 to 5000*1
Wasn't the overall match limit less as well back then?
ETA: and also no money given for a game win?
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Yes, so the limit was still sixty grand.
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What about the '60s / '70s Newlywed Game? Did they ever do a Bring Back Teh Losers week? I think they did on New Newlywed, but I'm talking the original white-picket-fence version.
Didn't the ABC version have episodes with expectant mothers? Does that count?
With Gambit, the only thing I can think of would be special prizes in the bonus round. The Vegas version had a singles week, but I think the CBS version qualifies.
How about Celebrity Sweepstakes?
Gambit had an annual event (early Februarys, I think) where the first couple to get a 2-card 21 in the bonus round won $10,000 (at first, it was $200/week for a year). I vaguely remember that, the third year they did this, it lasted into the Washington's Birthday holiday, and Wink mentioned that in the first two years, it had been won in the first week both times.
Celebrity Sweepstakes had a Christmas Day special one year with Pat Boone playing against Flip Wilson. No, I am not confusing this with the other show (Wheel?) where they played each other, and, IIRC, for the same charities - the American Cancer Society (Flip) and the Boy Scouts of America (Pat). It was the first time they had the spot lights inside of the numbers, presumably to make it easier for people with black and white TVs to see what numbers were lit up when they revealed who had the correct answer to a question. I even remember the final question - "Who sang, 'Christmas, Christmas time is here; time for toys and time for cheer'?" (answer: Alvin and the Chipmunks) - and also that it replaced another All or Nothing question that had been scratched, although I have a feeling it was scratched because both contestants chose somebody who got it wrong.
There was also the "Shamrock Sweepstakes" involving six winners from NBC's six game shows at the time (CS, Wheel, High Rollers, and I think Hollywood Squares, Jackpot, and Jeopardy), and a week of celebrities (mainly from NBC soaps, although Chuck Woolery and Susan Stafford played on the last day) playing for home viewers with a grand prize of $75,000.
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There was also the "Shamrock Sweepstakes" involving six winners from NBC's six game shows at the time (CS, Wheel, High Rollers, and I think Hollywood Squares, Jackpot, and Jeopardy)
Wrong-a-mundo! The original J! was a thing of the past by that time. It was actually Blank Check that was the 6th show on NBC's line-up.
And back to our thread, how about the original Queen For A Day? They pretty much had the same set-up right up to the end.
Cordially,
Tammy
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Celebrity Sweepstakes had a Christmas Day special one year with Pat Boone playing against Flip Wilson. [...] It was the first time they had the spot lights inside of the numbers, presumably to make it easier for people with black and white TVs to see what numbers were lit up when they revealed who had the correct answer to a question.
Based on the few available clips outside the pilot and NBC finale, I'm pretty sure this was 1975.
There was also the "Shamrock Sweepstakes" involving six winners from NBC's six game shows at the time [...] and a week of celebrities (mainly from NBC soaps, although Chuck Woolery and Susan Stafford played on the last day) playing for home viewers with a grand prize of $75,000.
Both of these were definitely in '75 - March 17 and November 3-7, respectively, the latter as part of NBC's Daytime Gigantic Game Gala (which also had Wheel and Squares expand to an hour).