Every New Year's Eve, there was an update of the 2 digits in the title to reflect the coming of the new year (e.g. from
Match Game 76 to
Match Game 77, and so on). Show creator Mark Goodson originated the idea for a new hit game show from
Match Game 7X. The "Super Match" round of
Match Game 7X featured a contestant choosing panelist Richard Dawson virtually every time, trying to match the correct response to an audience survey. The segment became such a huge hit with audiences the survey, Richard Dawson and The
Family Feud went on the air @ 1:30 PM EDT, Monday afternoon, July 12, 1976 on ABC Daytime. Dawson did double duty on
Match Game 7X and The
Feud until leaving the
Match Game 7X panel altogether in summer 1978. It has been rumored that the addition of a new feature, The Star Wheel, apparently "muscled in" on him.
Then, in 1977, the roof caved in. CBS made the fatal decision to move
Match Game 77 to the morning @ 10 AM (EDT), where it served as a follow up for the hour-long
The Price Is Right. The resulting declining ratings prompted CBS to return
Match Game 77 to the afternoon, but the damage was irreparable. After finishing 6 years and 1,445 shows on CBS on April 20, 1979 (with 10 leftovers still in the can; it was replaced by the Burt Sugarman-produced game
Whew! the following Monday), the show transferred to daily syndication that very fall as simply
Match Game (without, alas and alack, the tried-and-true 2-digit year designation in the title), where it remained until September 1982.
JULY 3, 1978
From Television City In Hollywood, It's Everybody's Game Of Strategy, Knowledge And Fun! It's The New Tic Tac Dough!Jack Barry and Dan Enright revived the old
Tic Tac Dough program (NBC, July 30, 1956-October 23, 1959), coming on the heels of
The Joker's Wild's runaway success in firstrun syndication, renaming it—with stunning originality—
The New Tic Tac Dough. It premiered @ 9:30 a.m. (EDT) on CBS Daytime (replacing the ill-fated
Pass The Buck), hosted by erstwhile
Gambit emcee Wink Martindale.
There were several instances on CBS'
Tic Tac Dough which differentiated it from its impending syndicated version:
- For the front game, the game board consisted of six categories with a black background and three with an orange background. The black-backgrounded categories were regular category questions; whereas the orange-backgrounded categories were jump-in questions. The categories only shuffled before the game started and after both the "X" and "O" player have had a turn at the board. When the categories shuffled, so did the colors as to which ones were regular categories and which ones were jump-in categories(because of the "jump-in's", this is why the podiums at the beginning of the syndicated run had signaling buttons despite the fact that they were never used).
- In the event of a tie game, a jump-in question decided the winner.
- For the bonus round there were four X's, four O's (both are $150 for each one found), and the dragon on the board. Finding The Tic Tac Toe on the board wins a prize package along with the money.
- Contestants retired after surpassing/reaching the CBS $25,000 limit.
- The Dragon had flashing red eyes and a yellow background.
Wink's first words on the premiere were:
"Welcome to our brand-new series, The New Tic Tac Dough
! I gotta be honest with you; I think this is probably the best television game I have ever come across! I must admit I'm a little prejudiced, but I hope you agree with me. Thank you for being with us!"The first contestants on
The New Tic Tac Dough were Ruth Fried and Dan Thomas, with Fried emerging victorious as the first champion crowned--unfortunately, the first box she picked in the first bonus game was that nasty ol' Dragon! (She would finally win her next bonus round, though.)
The New Tic Tac Dough, unfortunately, endured only a 2-month, 45-episode run in CBS Daytime, only to be unceremoniously pushed aside on September 1, 1978 to make room for more
All In The Family repeats. But it would be 2 weeks later when it would defect to firstrun syndication and finally find a niche with viewers ("The New" remained in the title until sometime in the 1979-80 season). Wink emceed
Dough for 7 seasons until leaving the show in 1985 to host a game show he created called
Headline Chasers (which bombed after one season), and, from a nationwide search, the people at Barry & Enright selected Jim Caldwell (who finished a stint co-hosting New York City's
P.M. Magazine) to take over hosting duties for the final season. Not only for the next season did the show get a new host, but a new set as well!
The New Tic Tac Dough Is A Jack Barry And Dan Enright Production! Stay Tuned For The Price Is Right, Next Over Most Of These CBS Stations!(Source of info:
The Unofficial Tic Tac Dough Supersite)
And the final word in the Subject title is supposed to be "
Week," mind you.
