ABC Carnival '74
Across the Board
Baloney
Bamboozle
Be What You Want
Beat The Genius
Beat The Odds (1962)
Beat The Odds (1975)
Bedtime Stories
The Better Sex
The Big Money
The Big Payoff
Big Spenders
Blank Check
Body Language
Body Talk
The Buck Stops Here
Bullseye
Call My Bluff
Card Sharks (1996)
Casino
Caught in the Act
Celebrity Billiards
Celebrity Doubletalk
Celebrity Secrets
Celebrity Sweepstakes
Chain Letter (1964)
The Challengers (1974)
Change Partners
Child's Play
The Choice Is Yours
Combination Lock (1996)
Comedy Club
Concentration (1985)
The Confidence Game
Cop Out
Countdown (1974)
Countdown (1990)
The Couples Race
Crossword
Decisions, Decisions
Dollar a Second
Duel in the Daytime
The Fashion Show
Fast Friends
$50,000 a Minute
Finish Line (1975)
Finish Line (1990)
Get Rich Quick
Going, Going, Gone!
Head of the Class
High Rollers
Hollywood Squares (1965)
Hollywood Squares (1985)
The Honeymoon Game
Hot Numbers
Hot Potato
House to House
How Do You Like Your Eggs?
Jackpot (1984)
Jeopardy (1977)
Jokers Wild
Jumble
Key Witness
Keynotes (1986)
King of the Hill
Let's Make a Deal (1963)
Let's Make a Deal (1990)
The Love Experts
M'ama Non M'ama
Match Game (1962)
Match Game (1973)
Match Game (1990)
Match Game (1996)
MatchGame (2008)
Mindreaders
Missing Links
Monday Night QB
Money Words
Money in the Blank
Moneymaze
Monopoly (1987)
Nothing But the Truth
Now You See It (1986)
Oddball
100%
PDQ
Party Line
People On TV
Play For Keeps
Play Your Hunch
The Plot Thickens
Pot O' Gold
Pressure Point
The Price Is Right (1972)
Pyramid (1996)
Pyramid (1997)
A Question of Scruples
Quick as a Flash
Razzle Dazzle
Riddlers
Run For The Money
Says Who?
Scrabble (1990)
Second Guessers
Second Honeymoon
Sharaize
Shoot for the Stars
Shoot the Works
Shopping Spree
Show Me
Showoffs
Simon Says
$64,000 Question (2000)
Smart Alecks
Smart Money
Spellbinders
Spin-Off
Split Decision
Star Cluster
Star Play
Strictly Confidential
TKO
Talking Pictures (1968)
Talking Pictures (1976)
Tell It to Groucho
Temptation (1981)
$10,000 Sweep
Three of a Kind
Tic Tac Dough
Tie-Up
Top Secret
Twenty One (1982)
Twenty Questions
Twisters
Up and Over
The Waiting Game
We've Got Your Number
What Do You Want?
What's On Your Mind
Wheel of Fortune
Whew!
Whodunit
Whose Baby
Wipeout
Word Grabbers
Write Your Own Ticket
You Bet Your Life (1988)
You Bet Your Life (1991)
You're Putting Me On
Show a Random Pilot
Show Unreviewed Pilots
Bob Stewart Flow Chart
Celebrity Sweepstakes
Producer: Ralph Andrews Productions
Host: Jim McKrell
Announcer: Bill Armstrong
Celebrities: Lucy Arnaz, Dean Jones, John Astin, Patti Duke-Astin, Jane Withers, Ted Knight
Taping Info: Late 1973/Early 1974, probably in Los Angeles, CA
Made it to Air: Yes, replacing All-Star Baffle on April 1, 1974 on NBC and lasting until October 1, 1976, when it was replaced by Stumpers. It also aired in once-a-week syndication for the 1974-75 and 1976-77 seasons.
Availability: Trading circuit.
Super-sized celebrity shows were all the rage in the mid-1970s, with the nine on Hollywood Squares, six on Match Game and Tattletales plus four more on Baffle. So what's wrong with throwing together another show? So, Ralph Andrews, who had a long-running hit with You Don't Say, put together this show for NBC that was picked up in 1974.
Jim McKrell, whose only previous hosting experience was the Chuck Barris snore-fest The Game Game, got the hosting duties. On the pilot, there were three contestants, which was pared down to two when the series hit the air. The celebrities would be asked a general knowledge question while the audience guessed via a push button control which of the six celebrities would be get the question correctly. Based on the votes of the 252 audience members, odds were set on each celebrity. A contestant would then bet $2, $5 or $10 on the celebrity of his or her choosing. If the celebrity was right, the player's bank was increased by the odds multiplied by the bet. If the celebrity was wrong, the player's bank was decreased only by the bet, and the next contestant would then place a bet on one of the five remaining celebrities.
This play continued for about ten questions, at which the players' money banks could go up dramatically if they picked a lucky longshot (after a few questions, usually one celebrity would be at least 30-1). After the ten-or-so questions, the "home stretch" round allowed players to bet more on a second celebrity if their choice of first celebrity was correct. In this round, an incorrect question did not go to the next player. One question was given for each player.
The final round was the "all-or-nothing" round. Players picked a person and one of two bets � either all or nothing. If the player picked a celebrity who guessed correctly and bet it all, it would be a substantial windfall. If a player had won on three consecutive days, he or she won a car and was retired.
Besides going to two contestants, there were other differences in the pilot as opposed to the real show. On the real show, you could bet $100 on the favorite as long as you had $100 to play with. The tote board was different as well, with just a straight number count rather than the staggered lines of the pilot.
I liked this show when it aired when I was 5, and I think I would watch if it aired today. The pilot resembles how the show actually worked, including the gag answers given by the celebrities before the real ones a la Hollywood Squares and the usual indigence of the one celebrity who was a constant double digit-to-one shot. It is widely believed that this show is gone, but I would have to think that at least the masters for the syndicated version are around somewhere.
 Here come the celebrities. Watch out! |
 Dean Jones |
 Ted Knight |
 Jane Withers |
 Luci Arnaz |
 John Astin |
 Patti Duke |
 Host Jim McKrell |
 Here are the contestants. Notice the racing motif. |
 The audience makes their pick. |
 And the odds are posted. Josephine the Plumber, er, Jane Withers is your longshot at 18-1. |
 Let's see how the celebrities are doing. Luci Arnaz isn't doing so hot, but if you pick a longshot at the right time... |
This pilot has been viewed 17276 times since October 6, 2008 and was last modified on Dec 12, 2009 14:46 ET
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