I was a massive game show junkie as a kid. They were the greatest babysitter youngling Dutch could have. And I soaked in every one of them.
Match Game.
Password.
[insert monetary amount] Pyramid.
Tic Tac Dough.
Jokers Wild.
Card Sharks.
Press Your Luck (I still toss out “No Whammies!” to this day in random conversations)
Family Feud (Richard Dawson managed to excel at respectable flirting, he was so awesome!)
Sale of The Century… Classic Concentration…The Price is Right… Let’s Make a Deal… Name That Tune… Win Lose or Draw… Hollywood Squares…
The list goes on.
…nah, never mind.
I think for me as a kid, it was like Sports Lite, where the outcome was always a surprise.
But mainly, to my pea-sized nerdbrain at that time, I felt it was educational, and it totally fed my need to know trivia. Like, somehow knowing that the price of a bottle of ketchup was way less than what the doofus college kid guessed on The Price Is Right made me worldly as a 4 year old. But it did! I was able to learn who all the celebrities were that would guest star on those shows in the 70’s and be able to name drop someone like Charles Nelson Reilly, Paul Lynde, or Lamb Chop in conversations with my older relatives and feel I was actually a part of the conversation instead of just listening.
Of course, the mack-daddy (or daddy-mack, depending on your viewpoint) of all game shows was Jeopardy! Rapid-fire trivia questions about every topic you could possibly imagine????
‘Nom-nom-nom’ went YoungDutch’s brain every weeknight. My relatives were obsessed with the show as well, so holiday gatherings would see 10 or so of us crammed into the living room of my grandma’s, all shouting the answers. Ahhh, memories of times gone by…
They were the only ones who knew the right answer.
Running concurrent with this insatiable desire to fill my head with as many random and probably useless facts as humanly possible was my growing obsession with music. A whole new world of encyclopedic knowledge was opening. I remember dropping a Mott the Hoople reference once when I was like 12 (around 1986) in a conversation with some adults, and the look of utter astonishment and fascination I got from a couple of the adults was all the validation I needed to know that THIS was how to get respect from adults. The things we view as priorities as a kid…
By the late 90s I was working my first job out of college, so most all of the daytime game shows became Sick Day Only viewing. One day though, while watching VH1, they advertised for a new game show, and I couldn’t believe my ears:
Rock and Roll Jeopardy.
No way.
No. Way. Jeopardy! with nothing but music questions??!! I was practically salivating I was so excited at the prospect. It was the only time a game show became Must Watch TV for me, where I’d videotape it if I wasn’t going to be able to watch its initial viewing.
tnocs.com contributing AUTHOR dutchg8r
You’d be forgiven if if you don’t recall it at all, it only lasted a couple of years. Largely due to the fact the host, Jeff Probst, got a chance to host some other two-bit show, the 21st century’s answer to game shows, some reality thing called Survivor.
But for the brief moment VH1 aired Rock and Roll Jeopardy, I was in hog heaven. No lie – I could probably count on 1 hand the number of questions/answers I missed during the course of the show’s run. I was like – this is MY show! I’d totally run the board; how do I get on this thing??!! ARAGH!!! I was quite heartbroken when they stopped airing new episodes.
Nowadays game shows are too glitzy and showy; they treat every one like a prime time event, and it just loses the intimacy I felt watching them as a kid. All those hosts were old friends to me; it was some warped version of the Cheers bar for BabyDutch. Somewhere to just hang for a bit.
The new Name That Tune? Shazam? Couldn’t hold my interest. Nope, pretty sure Rock & Roll Jeopardy will forever retain its status as my favorite game show ever.
Unless you count MXC – Most Extreme Elimination Challenge, which was just re-airing Japan’s Takeshi’s Castle with moronic American overdubs from ‘Vic Romano’ and ‘Kenny Blankenship’. Now THAT was a thing of beauty….!!!
Enjoy. You’ve earned it. – mt58
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Totally agree! Never got to see Rock ‘n’ Roll Jeopardy, but classic Jeopardy (and Family Feud, Wheel of Fortune, Celebrity Squares, The Price Is Right) was indeed something like the US version of a cram school for me.
Not only are game shows absurdly theatrical these days, they’re typically far easier. Treating each new question as if it were a significant plot development in a grand drama doesn’t allow for the rapid fire competition that was the norm before TV producers decided we were insipid. Watching them makes me feel a little dumber than I was before.
I do like the premise of Name That Tune, though. That’s one where I wonder how well I would do. My recognition of a song when I know it tends to be rapid-fire (as in 1-2 seconds on Heardle). But at 40 I’m finally failing to keep up with the most popular tunes, with a few exceptions. Plus, contestants don’t rely on the sounds of the actual recordings when they guess, they hear a band’s recreation of the tune–or sometimes just some piano notes (at least in this current version). Even watching the show I have some trouble naming some songs that I do know. I can’t imagine having to do it in front of video cameras and a huge audience.
You summed it up perfectly about game shows these days Phylum – every question is [cue music]… an EVENT, and they present it in such a condescending way. You’re absolutely right – I totally feel dumber after I watch one of these prime time shows. Mainly because they sucked me in [shakes fist]
I’m older than you Dutch but I am in your tribe! I was totally into game shows when I was a kid – original Jeopardy with Don Fleming, original Match Game (I remember seeing Yankee players at least once, pretty cool even though I’m a Red Sox fan), You Don’t Say with Tom Kennedy and Concentration with Hugh Downs were my favorites. I laughed at the “Sick Day Only” reference – my fascination with game shows started when I was home sick for almost an entire month with Measles, Chicken Pox and Mumps, back-to-back-to back. I’m surprised I wasn’t held back. Later, Remote Control was must see (m)TV for me! Never saw R&R Jeopardy, I think I had moved on to VH1 by then. Great post – brings back a lot of fun memories.
I couldn’t really include Remote Control on my list, because I only saw MTV on holidays at relatives houses so my viewings of RC were few and far between, much to my dismay because it was so great. I think it was off the air by the time my family finally got cable in late 1991.
Yep, that illness lineup of yours sucks blue whale – those 3 concurrent?! Blek. I thought my pneumonia/strep throat/pink eye triple play when I was 9 was sucky, at least I had them all at once!
On the rare occasions I call in sick, my boss always asks how The Price Is Right was.
MXC! It’s so stupid it’s hilarious. Every episode had a contestant with the last name Babaganoush, and every one had crazy jobs descriptions, most of which aren’t suitable for posting here. Man, all my maturity goes out the window when I watch it.
Ha! That’s right, the super-sized Babaganoush family, lol. A coworker reminded me about Guy LaDoosh recently, which was probably not a good thing since one of our managers’ name is Guy, so of course now that’s all I think about…!
Ever notice how 90% of the Takeshi’s Castle episodes were overcast and looked like it was drizzly and miserable? I don’t remember every seeing a sunny episode!
I’ve never seen an actual episode of Jeopardy. I was pretty sure its never been shown here but a little research shows there were three separate goes at launching it in the UK in the 80s and 90s. Safe to say its impact was negligible then. I have though seen clips of it on numerous films and sitcoms, more times than I can remember. So many times that if I was asked to name an American game show then Jeopardy would be my first answer. As an outsider it feels like Jeopardy is a go to staple for other shows to inject some comedic / dramatic licence.
Rock & Roll Jeopardy sounds right up my street though. We definitely didn’t get that version.
You may not have Jeopardy but you have 8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown which is worth its weight in carrots.
Impressed that you know 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown. Word and number play along with top class comedy. Great that it provides exposure for a lot of up and coming comedians as well as having a real family feel – as in having a strong bond between the regulars and being welcoming to newcomers, definitely not safe family viewing. Devastating that Sean Lock passed away last year. Played the grumpy older guy to a tee but constantly inventive and off the wall in the props he brought in as mascots.
I think that this is my favorite UK game show.
Reason number 6382 to love the British.
https://youtu.be/ZH-cXBhkl-E
Cripes mt, for the first minute or so I thought that was real (can you blame me though? The Brits are famous for games with inexplicable rules… cricket, for one). Now I’m gonna go down the Mitchell and Webb rabbit hole…
I have ALL DAY to explain the LAWS of cricket to you (they aren’t “rules”), but I’m afraid I’d have to take all day to PLAY cricket.
(I learned the game from my best friend while I lived in Syria, and wound up playing for about 18 years, including a year that I lived in Australia…and that’s about ALL I did!)
My son turned me on to 8OOTCDC shortly after Lock died. I had seen the headlines about how great a loss it was but had no idea who he was. Once I saw a few episodes, I understood. His “There’s a challenging wank” comment had me in tear laughing.
R&RJ was so much fun. It’s #2 on my list of VH1 shows that “I can’t believe this was cancelled.”
I’m now inspired to write up an article about #1.
Ooh, the mystery! What could mt’s #1 be??
BTW, I totally watched Supermarket Sweep as well. Yelled at the morons who didn’t run to the ham hock section first in the final sweep, I mean, duh, have you not watched this show??? GO FOR THE 20 POUND HAM PACKAGES!
Much obliged for my year supply of Rice a Roni as well. 😄
Hmm, no copy of the TNOCS home game though…
O ye of little faith, friend Aaron…
Ack! The pie pieces are in upside down!!
That’s probably like ‘which way to to put TP on the roll – over or under?’
Do you put your Tnocs Pursuit pieces in opening-up or opening-down??
Love the graphic btw.
♥
Opening down for me (that way you can clearly see that there’s a wedge in there)… although I suppose it’s easier to get them back out if the opening is up?
I dunno dude, I remember watching a German version of Jeopardy while staying in Norway, so the German show had Norwegian subtitles. Pretty sure you’d be able to find some version of Jeopardy on your side of the pond if you wanted, lol!
(That particular episode I watched in Norway? I actually was able to answer a question with my rudimentary HS German knowledge, totally stunning the couple my friend and I were staying with. “Who was Beethoven?” You betcha I still remember that!)
I am totally obsessed with Only Connect. I think it may be the hardest game show of all time. (And twice as hard for non-Brit. We don’t exactly have a great recall for 19th Century Prime Ministers.)
If you think you’re a trivia master (and side note – any LLamas here?) I highly recommend you watch a few episodes. And definitely give it a couple of episodes – the first time I watched I literally said “This is Numberwang!” But with a few episodes under my belt, I could understand the idea and the rules pretty well.
I still only get 2-3 questions out of the main rounds correct in any given show.
https://www.youtube.com/c/wheelsongenius
Only Connect may be the most difficult quiz show. I forget the host’s name, but she’s a little nuts. Entertaining, but nuts.
Victoria Mitchell. Married to David Mitchell of Mitchell and Webb.
C’mon big bucks, big bucks!
No whammies, no whammies!
STOP!!!
(womp-womp)
I was also sucked into the game show glitz when I was a kid. Just imagine what I could achieve if I didn’t have terabytes of game show memories clogging my brain…
Jeopardy! was the king. I had an autographed picture of Alex Trebek. I was glued to that show for years, even tried out for it a few times. That’s a whole ‘nother story.
In retrospect, Match Game was the best. Randy AF and at least once an episode laugh out loud funny. Charles Nelson Reilly indeed!
The Game Show Network plays reruns of Match Game ’75 and various other years. I find myself having to forgive the subtle sexism of the time every now and then, but most of the jokes hold up even all these years later.
Like I mentioned back at the ‘gum when Betty White passed, she was The Game Show Queen for me; that’s what I knew her from. Started watching Golden Girls from Day One solely because I knew how funny she was. I mean, she did them ALL! But everyone definitely seemed to have the most fun on Match Game – it was always happy hour for them!
The Match Game taught BabyDutch all about the greatness of the Double Entendre before I probably learned how to tie my shoes. All I knew was these particular jokes got the biggest laugh from everyone on the panel and in the audience, so that became priority #1, to figure out why they were apparently so much funnier than a joke that made sense to me.
Years ago, during a professional development session that I needed to clock hours (rather than actual information, of course), I created lists (and lists) of various TV genres.
Game shows was an obvious one. I’m not sure my list has changed.
HOWEVER…
If this counts as a game show (it probably shouldn’t, but there were teams competing) Have I Got News For You would rank Top 2. When I lived in Syria friends of mine would get VCR tapes from their home countries, and we’d watch them religiously. I was inundated with British programs, and learned about Friends in Damascus as well.
Nice to see lots of love here for British game shows – though technically I’d say HIGNFY is a panel show but I’ll let you off. Its still going now, don’t know if you still manage to get it. Still with Ian and Paul as the regulars, Ian not ageing quite so well but the same cutting sarcasm and sense of morality while Paul goes off on flights of fancy. And Paul still wins nearly every week.
Just a shame that its credited with paving the way for Boris Johnson to become PM. He seemed so inept and laughable the couple of times he guest presented, little did we know he was softening us up for his entry into politics.
I knew about HIGNFY, but rarely got the chance to watch it. But when Comedy Central started showing the original Whose Line Is It Anyway in the 90s, with the unflappable Clive Anderson, I was totally obsessed with it.
Josie Lawrence is a brilliant goddess. That is all.
Oh. Oh!! There’s a debate –
Is it the Gene Rayburn skinny mic,
ORRRRR
Is it the Bob Barker skinny mic??!!
Well, if I consider reality shows as the modern day game shows, absolutely The Amazing Race counts. I’m with you – it’s such a perfect show, vicarious travel, experience new cultures, epic meltdowns (“My cow is broken!”), and the opportunity to still scream at the TV “Read the ENTIRE Clue, people!” 22 years later.
The problem I have with Steve Harvey era Family Feud is something dutch mentioned: the questions are dumbed down compared to the classic Dawson days (not to mention the judges allow way too many “sorta-kinda-close” answers), and nearly every one seems to gravitate toward sex in some way… I’m all for a good double-entendre, but it seems like they’re just trying to force moments that get a reaction out of Harvey.
I’m fully onboard with your ideas to fix the new Match Game though…
For you – what it’s like to be on The Amazing Race, the one reality show where my handsome brother and I have considered contesting*: https://www.avclub.com/what-s-it-like-to-be-a-contestant-on-the-amazing-race-1798242351
*Although…I have somewhere a copy of the tape I sent in to be on The Mole.
One thing that always drew me to game shows as a kid was a catchy theme song. Those earworms would play in a loop in my head even more than whatever I was hearing on the radio at the time.
My favorite had to be the Tic-Tac-Dough theme song. I always watched hoping they’d stop game play for the day a minute or so early, so I could hear the extended version while the credits slowly unspooled on the screen.
https://youtu.be/fK7sH8jJ4eE
That guy in the green and white hat?
He made it all the way to Number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1959.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gmp3TF1DFZ8
Great piece, dutchg8r. (Read it at lunch but couldn’t comment till now.) Like you, I grew up with game shows too. Was in the audience for “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” (Meredith version) but didn’t pass the test to become a contestant. I’ve applied for the current version of Pyramid, but I think I’m too old to be considered based on the age range of the contestants I’ve seen. My grandparents, siblings and I would spend summer midafternoons watching “Family Feud” and “Match Game” (along with shows that didn’t last, like “Rhyme and Reason” with Bob Eubanks and Nipsey Russell). Thanks for bringing back those memories!
I know I posted this on the mothership before, but here it is in its proper context:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfvicHvtoQo
I remember when you did!
Thanks, Archie, for including it here.
“the mothership” – absolutely perfect. I didn’t know how to differentiate in my writing; now I do.
Ctrl-F – POINTLESS…no results? That needs to be fixed pronto!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t63CFSH7AMk&list=PLsOaxTXxk1anjuZ1D1tdkT5Q29M2WxggZ