Ripcord on DVD
Price is Right DVD Game “Suicide
Little Rascals on DVD
1950's Saturday Morning Shows Lancelot Link Secret Chimp on DVD “Suicide
TV Shows on DVD
Commercials on DVD
TV Show ReviewsTV on DVD Reviews
Christmas DVDs
TV DVDs & TV Books


Game Shows 1974

60's Game Shows for Kids

Match Game's Brett Somers

Monty Hall Interview

Goodson and Todman

Groucho, Grandma & Me

Jack Narz

1970's Game Shows:

Match Game

The Price Is Right

The New Treasure Hunt

Let's Make A Deal

Hollywood Squares

Jeopardy

1950's Game Shows:

Penny To A Million

Homerun Derby

Jukebox Jury

You Bet Your Life

What's My Line / Kay Kyser's Kollege of Musical Knowledge

Queen for a Day

A catalog of all
the classic TV
shows on DVD

 

Everything you're looking for is here:

Search Now:  


Real Player
You need RealPlayer 5.0 or higher to view these video clips.
 

TV Game Shows of the 50s
by Billy Ingram

At various times in television history, game shows have been popular daytime AND prime-time fare. Here's a review of some of the more unusual programs from the first golden era of TV game shows.

You Bet Your Life was broadcast on radio beginning in 1947, initially moving to television in 1950 as the radio show with cameras. On the program, contestants had the potential to win $10,000, $5,000, or $2,000 in a bonus round at the end of the show.

People tuned in to You Bet Your Life to watch legendary movie comedian Groucho Marx grill the contestants, the game itself was almost inconsequential. George Finneman played the straight man and kept the game on track.

One famous feature of every episode was the 'duck' that would come down from the ceiling at the beginning to reveal the secret word. Groucho would greet each contestant with the phrase, "Say the secret word and win a hundred dollars".

Groucho's quick wit made for some of the funniest moments in television history, with much of the humor coming from the suggestive comments Groucho directed at the many gorgeous (often well-endowed) women that frequented the show.

One exchange from 1955, unearthed by film archivist Jeff Vilencia, is considered the most famous moment of the show. Legend has it that a woman on the show described how she gave birth to 17 children. One of the daughters explained: "My Daddy loves children", to which Groucho replied, "I like cigars, but I take them out of my mouth every once in a while!" In a TVparty exclusive, here is what actually aired.

Groucho DeSoto'You Bet Your Life' was almost canceled before it began. The show's original sponsor (DeSoto Automobiles) assumed when they signed Groucho that he would do the series in his familiar black frock coat and painted-on mustache from his movie roles. When Groucho refused, the sponsors tried to pull the plug, but discovered that there was no clause in the comedian's contract requiring him to wear a frock coat. "If I can't be funny on television without funny clothes and makeup, to hell with it." was Groucho's attitude. The program ran for 11 years.

 

TimeLife.com


Please consider a donation
so we can continue this work!

 

Amazon Prime - unlimited streaming
of your fave TV shows and movies!
Get your FREE 30 Day Trial!

PR4 & PR5 Pages for Advertising

 



Local Kid Shows / Movie Stars on TV / Saturday Morning Shows / Video Vault / TV Goodbyes / Fabulous Fifties / Unseen Scenes / Game Shows / Requested Forgotten TV Shows / The Super Sixties / More Modern TV Shows / The New * * Shows / 1980's Wrestling / TV Blog

TVparty is Classic TV on the internet!
Classic TV on the Internet!

TV's Embarrassing Moments / Action Shows of the Sixties / TVparty Mysteries and Scandals / Variety Shows of the 1970s / The Eighties / The Laugh Track / 1970's Hit Shows / Response to TVparty / Search the Site / Add Your Comments
Classic TV Commercials / 1950's TV / 1960's TV / Punk Book / / 1970's TV / Groucho vs William F Buckley / / TV Games / Honey Boo Boo / Lucy Shows / Classic Cars / John Wayne / Gene Roddenberry / Rockford Files / Sea Hunt / Superman on DVD / Toy Gun Ads / Flip Wilson Show / Big Blue Marble / Monty Hall / Carrascolendas / Mr. Dressup / Major Mudd / Chief Halftown / Baby Daphne / Sheriff John / Winchell & Mahoney / Fireball X-L5 / Mr. Wizard / Captain Noah / Thanksgiving Day Specials / Disney's First Christmas Special / Saturday Morning Cartoons / The Magic Garden / Amahl & the Night Visitors / Holiday Toy Commercials / Lucy & Desi's Last Christmas Show / Joey Heatherton / Fat Albert / The Virginian / Bewitched / Death of John Wayne / 1974 Saturday Mornings / Chuck McCann / Rudolph Collectables / Shrimpenstein / Local Popeye Shows / New Treasure Hunt / 1966 ABC TV Shows / 1967 TV Shows / 1968 TV Shows / Ric Flair, Dusty Rhodes & Baby Doll / Fridays / TV Moms / Red Skelton / Star Wars / KISS / Lancelot Link / Saturday Morning Cartoons / The Magic Garden / Wonder Woman / Classic Comic Books / Andy Griffith / Cher / TV Shows on DVD / Outtakes & Bloopers / 1967 TV Shows / Romper Room / ABC Movie of the Week / The Goldbergs / Daws Butler Commercials / Saturday Morning Commercials / Captain Kangaroo / Chicago Local Kiddie Shows / Boston Local TV / Philly Local TV / NYC Local Kid Shows / Amos 'n' Andy / Electric Company / Bette Davis / Judy Garland / Christmas Specials / Redd Foxx / Good Times / Sitcom Houses / What's Happening! / Winky Dink & You / Sonny & Cher / Smothers Brothers / Commercial Icons of the 1960s / Soupy Sales / TV Terrorists / Irwin Allen / The Untouchables / Carol Burnett Show / Batman TV Show / Green Hornet / Today Show History / Our Gang / Doris Day Show / 1970's Commercials For Women / Bill Cosby in the 1970s / The Golddiggers / Lola Falana / 1970s TV Shows / David Bowie on TV / Hudson Brothers / Jackie Gleason / Hollywood Squares / Match Game / Bob Keeshan / Gumby / The Flip Wilson Show / Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour / The Bobby Darin Show / The Richard Pryor Show / George Burns / Lucy's Lost Christmas Special / Classic Christmas Toy Commercials / Cricket On The Hearth / 1950's Holiday Shows / Amahl and the Night Visitors / A Christmas Carol on TV / The Yule Log / Celebrity Commercials / Rudolph / Movie Posters & More! 

Bewitched on DVD “Carol Flip Wilson Show on DVD   Lancelot Link Secret Chimp DVDs  Playboy After Dark DVD Carol Burnett Show on DVD
Classic TV DVD Reviews TVparty Top Ten   TV Shows on Blu-Ray Your Requests
Classic Shows on DVD Christmas Shows on DVD TV Specials on DVD Kid Shows on DVD


Save money!