The Game Show Forum > The Big Board
Bad fits for established hosts/announcers
PYLdude:
Going back to Rich Fields vs. Jim Thornton: I found it interesting that Rich seemed to outshine Jim on TPIR (in my opinion; I thought he was decent enough), yet when the two were auditioning for Wheel it was polar opposites; Jim was the star while Rich just couldn’t get it together.
Whatever happened to Paul Boland, anyway? I remember his tryout being rather loud.
The Ol' Guy:
Here's a vote FOR Bill on Blockbusters. IMO, he hit the perfect pace. Bill's folksy banter and deliberate pacing in question reading gave you dashes of suspense broken up with a quip. If it were a speed game, it could be a bit overwhelming. I'd call it Bill's last hurrah, because I'm with those who felt he was a poor choice for JOKER, and even Pyramid, where the host should get out of the way and let let the teams generate the excitement.
JasonA1:
--- Quote from: The Ol' Guy on June 03, 2025, 03:26:05 PM ---Here's a vote FOR Bill on Blockbusters. IMO, he hit the perfect pace. Bill's folksy banter and deliberate pacing in question reading gave you dashes of suspense broken up with a quip. If it were a speed game, it could be a bit overwhelming. I'd call it Bill's last hurrah, because I'm with those who felt he was a poor choice for JOKER, and even Pyramid, where the host should get out of the way and let let the teams generate the excitement.
--- End quote ---
Agreed re: Blockbusters. Bill's humor was what made my dad watch the series in its entirety -- multiple times -- when GSN was running it. I stumbled across it on Buzzr the other day, and my wife had a similar reaction.
And I also slightly agree with Pyramid. He wasn't a BAD fit, but I can't un-hear all the off-mic, during-round comments. ("Good!" "One more!")
--- Quote from: PYLdude on June 03, 2025, 02:18:27 PM ---I found it interesting that Rich seemed to outshine Jim on TPIR (in my opinion; I thought he was decent enough), yet when the two were auditioning for Wheel it was polar opposites; Jim was the star while Rich just couldn’t get it together.
--- End quote ---
I never heard any of Rich's in-studio episodes of Wheel, just the ones where he was overdubbing Charlie. I'd be curious if he was better or otherwise different when in person. I could also see any sort of note on toning down his TPIR enthusiasm having a chilling effect.
-Jason
Dbacksfan12:
--- Quote from: JasonA1 on June 03, 2025, 04:13:21 PM ---
--- Quote from: The Ol' Guy on June 03, 2025, 03:26:05 PM ---Here's a vote FOR Bill on Blockbusters. IMO, he hit the perfect pace. Bill's folksy banter and deliberate pacing in question reading gave you dashes of suspense broken up with a quip. If it were a speed game, it could be a bit overwhelming. I'd call it Bill's last hurrah, because I'm with those who felt he was a poor choice for JOKER, and even Pyramid, where the host should get out of the way and let let the teams generate the excitement.
--- End quote ---
Agreed re: Blockbusters. Bill's humor was what made my dad watch the series in its entirety -- multiple times -- when GSN was running it. I stumbled across it on Buzzr the other day, and my wife had a similar reaction.
--- End quote ---
I had a friend with an inverse reaction to your dad's. His comment was to the effect of: "Why doesn't the old [dude] just shut up?"
I thought Jim Perry did it better on $ale where he had one quip going into the break.
Neumms:
I love Uncle Bill on Blockbusters. Without much Eye Guess or Three on a Match extant, it’s my favorite show with him. With one game playing out pretty much the same as the next, Bill brought life to it. The set was perfectly designed for him, too.
If contestants didn’t like his reading speed, they certainly won a lot.
Navigation
[0] Message Index
[#] Next page
[*] Previous page
Go to full version