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
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Hollywood Squares (1965)
Hollywood Squares (1985)
The Honeymoon Game
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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
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Riddlers
Run For The Money
Says Who?
Scrabble (1990)
Second Guessers
Second Honeymoon
Sharaize
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Shopping Spree
Show Me
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$64,000 Question (2000)
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Split Decision
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Talking Pictures (1976)
Tell It to Groucho
Temptation (1981)
$10,000 Sweep
Three of a Kind
Tic Tac Dough
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Top Secret
Twenty One (1982)
Twenty Questions
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Up and Over
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We've Got Your Number
What Do You Want?
What's On Your Mind
Wheel of Fortune
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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
Chain Letter
Producer: Hatos-Hall
Host: Dennis James
Taping Info: December 4, 1964
Made it to Air: Not this version. It eventually made the air in 1966 at the 11 AM slot on NBC, replacing the soap Morning Star on July 4 but replaced on October 17 by The Pat Boone Show. The format of the airing show was actually closer to a different Hatos-Hall pilot Three of a Kind than this one.
Availability: It is in the UCLA collection.
In early 1964 Hatos-Hall tried the pilot Three of a Kind, which involved a team of players trying to keep a list going. A light-hearted affair, this pilot did not sell to NBC. So, after some retooling, it was brought back with a new title (Chain Letter), and a new host (Dennis James) and pretty much a different format on how the list kept going.
In the first round, four contestants try to name things that fit a category one at a time for a period of four minutes for five dollars per correct answer. In the second round, four contestants try to name things that fit a category one at a time for a period of four minutes for five dollars per correct answer. In the third round, four contestants try to name things that fit a category one at a time for a period of four minutes for five dollars per correct answer. In the fourth round, four contestants try to name things that fit a category one at a time for a period of four minutes for five dollars per correct answer. In the fifth round, four contestants try to name things that fit a category one at a time for a period of four minutes for five dollars per correct answer.
The "winning" player for the round was also given a bonus of varying amounts from $25 to $100 per round for having the most correct responses in a round. However, getting knocked out of a round was not as simple as just giving a wrong answer or a repeating answer. Sometimes you were allowed to re-guess, sometimes you weren't, all on the apparent whim of Mr. James. The only thing that clearly knocked you out was taking too much time. Categories on this episode were "household objects", "supermarket objects", "clothing", "last names in history" and "things too big to fit into a barrel", nice defined lists that of course involved no judging. There was no bonus game.
This show gave dull a bad name. And this was meant to be a prime time show, since Dennis James referred to "see you next week on Chain Letter." The judging needed to be stricter, the host less stiff (the more I see of Dennis James' 60s work I'm trying to figure out how he got job after job), the categories needed to be more narrowly defined, the rounds shorter and some variety to the games needed to be added. Other than that, it was just fine.
This pilot has been viewed 10515 times since October 6, 2008 and was last modified on Dec 12, 2009 14:46 ET
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