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Match Game 1990-91 thoughts
wdm1219inpenna:
--- Quote from: TimK2003 on February 14, 2025, 08:15:17 PM ---^^ Was it really just Gene's age that cost him the MG'90 gig, or might it have been possibly his performance(s) on MGHS and his brief time on Break The Bank that played a part of it as well?
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I would have answered sooner but I was busy bending myself back into shape again :D
I think Gene was every bit as good on MG/HS Hour as his other version of Match Game but I agree, his Break The Bank hosting was pretty sub-par for Gene, but then it seemed to be a sub-par game too.
Otm Shank:
--- Quote from: TLEberle on February 14, 2025, 07:47:16 PM ---Really? You're bent out of shape because the multiplier was 20x and not 21x and that the winner is pushing an arrow instead of grabbing a peg?
OK then.
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Well, I read it that the only quibble was a few minor points, compared with the other offering of the decade. And to be fair, spinning that pointer was a little weird and the follow-shot of the last half-revolution was an unusual choice.
If we are quibbling (because it is what we do here), the neon and strobes were a little overdone. It may have been my TV at the time, but the neon glow would "smear" a little.
I did like the Match-Up as a new wrinkle to solve the "do not write" problem posed by early round matching in the 70s. It didn't get rid of all the goofy responses, but in general it promoted earnest attempts to match without having celebrities sit out most of the episode. I thought the writing was done well, and they generally had good celebrities (recognizing they often had to sacrifice Seat 6 to ABC Daytime promotion). I was in my first year of college, and I was able to run home to catch it every day, so some of the nostalgia is taking me back to a certain era.
BrandonFG:
--- Quote from: wdm1219inpenna on February 14, 2025, 06:51:50 PM ---I know Brett Somers was on at least one week of episodes and that Charles was on a bit more frequently as a celebrity player. I also know that Gene Rayburn had been in line to get the gig until I think it was Entertainment Tonight made mention of Gene's age at the time due to a Happy Birthday announcement and that ultimately cost him getting the job in favor of a younger host in Ross Schaefer (who I felt did a really great job as host by the way!).
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Was this ever confirmed or is it game show urban legend, kinda like Alex being drunk on the High Rollers finale? Gene wasn't only a few years older than Barker and TPiR didn't seem to suffer.
--- Quote ---On the other hand I would like to think that Gene would have said to Brett and Charles "It's a paycheck! You would be dingbats to turn down being on the show!". I was wondering what you all think about these notions and if perhaps anybody may have some inside info about what I discussed here.
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Never really thought about it until now but I doubt Gene would've had bad blood over Brett or CNR doing a few weeks. I'm sure he realized the two were just as synonymous with the show as he was.
Sodboy13:
I was 11-12 when this version was on, so it was the first version of Match Game I had regular exposure to (though I did get to see some MGHS as a tyke.) Watching it as an adult with too much knowledge about how shows are made and built, I've formed some opinions:
- The game structure is better than MG '7x.
- The comedy is better and more consistent than MGHS.
- Ross is a better host than Gene was at any point during the 1980s.
- The editing is done really well to fit in the whole game without making the show feel chopped or rushed, as happened a lot during syndie MG.
- Not my money, but glad they figured out they could afford to up the stakes a little from the original for Super Match, even if the front game now gave a decent handful of money to the winner.
- My one structural critique: Once they figured out how to block the game as Round 1/Match-Up/Round 2 + Final Match-Up/Super Match, that second segment was just so short. Make the first go-round for :45 at $50, and make the second for :30 at $100. Doing that, you balance out the blocks a little better, and you still have the last round of the game worth the most money, but it's no longer weighted so heavily that it feels like it outweighs everything before it.
JasonA1:
--- Quote from: Sodboy13 on February 14, 2025, 09:29:11 PM ---- My one structural critique: Once they figured out how to block the game as Round 1/Match-Up/Round 2 + Final Match-Up/Super Match, that second segment was just so short. Make the first go-round for :45 at $50, and make the second for :30 at $100.
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Before I get into the rest, can I ask why it's a detriment to you as a viewer to have one segment disproportionately short? Maybe I'm missing something.
-Jason
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