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What's My Line? 75th Anniversary

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Matt Ottinger:

--- Quote from: Eric Paddon on February 11, 2025, 12:37:34 PM ---
--- Quote from: Matt Ottinger on February 11, 2025, 11:58:10 AM ---I don't know if we've talked about this, but there's also a newspaper interview with Garry from a couple years later which says that he purchased (for $1000) the rights to What's My Line?, but that the deal wouldn't take effect until 1970.
--- End quote ---

Is that the reason why Goodson could never do another revival of WML after the syndicated run ended in 1975?
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I do not claim to understand the ins and outs of who owned what when.  If that date is right, and if nothing changed, Garry's deal would have taken effect during the third season of the syndicated show.  Gil Fates in his 1978 book says something about the rights finally ending up in the hands of a conglomerate.  Maybe Garry sold out, taking a big return on his $1000 gamble and stepping away.

Adam Nedeff:

--- Quote from: Matt Ottinger on February 11, 2025, 03:45:05 PM ---I do not claim to understand the ins and outs of who owned what when.  If that date is right, and if nothing changed, Garry's deal would have taken effect during the third season of the syndicated show.  Gil Fates in his 1978 book says something about the rights finally ending up in the hands of a conglomerate.  Maybe Garry sold out, taking a big return on his $1000 gamble and stepping away.

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Garry's investment and acquisition of the show wasn't really a gamble on his part. Ira Skutch touches on this in his autobiography, and I just dug it out to refresh my memory...When G-T sold the rights to What's My Line? and I've Got a Secret to CBS, they did so because of some incentive in tax laws regarding capital gains. The IRS reviewed the business deal and made some sort of ruling that neither G/T nor CBS would be subject to the tax benefits unless there was a third party involved in the deal, so Garry Moore got lassoed in and was made the third party so that everybody would make a nice chunk of money from the transaction. That's as much detail as Ira offers, so no follow-up questions, please.

calliaume:

--- Quote from: chris319 on February 10, 2025, 10:48:23 PM ---How can one obtain a copy of Paul Alter's book proposal?

What was Paul's grievance against Barker?

Was 1963 the year CBS took over ownership of WML?

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I was shown the proposal in 2003 or thereabouts, because people at the publishing house where I worked knew I was a game show fan. (It was not St. Martin's Press; it was a much smaller house out here in Chicagoland.) Had to give the proposal back after I read it, which is SOP. It wasn't much more than an outline -- I don't think there was even a sample chapter.

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