Posted a few goodies on YouTube

[ITSBRY]

The video quality isn't great and the audio is a couple of seconds behind in places, but they're still watchable.

Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4taTazzmfUY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haGdFyuIb7E

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QM7Anr9zjCo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wS3ZmDjrDbs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uv0rZStCkaQ

[TLEberle]

[quote name=\'ITSBRY\' post=\'141663\' date=\'Dec 28 2006, 07:41 PM\']
The video quality isn't great and the audio is a couple of seconds behind in places, but they're still watchable.

Enjoy! [/quote]Thanks for that. The High Rollers stuff is a treat, since that was the version I grew up on. And I had completely forgotten how inept John was at explaining stuff. Even the opening failed to build any sort of excitement. Oy.

[Robert Hutchinson]

The best part about John's explanation in those clips, to me, was that even when he didn't botch it, it was painfully obvious that rote memorization was all that was getting him through safely.

[TLEberle]

[quote name=\'Robert Hutchinson\' post=\'141671\' date=\'Dec 28 2006, 11:31 PM\']The best part about John's explanation in those clips, to me, was that even when he didn't botch it, it was painfully obvious that rote memorization was all that was getting him through safely.[/quote]Good, it wasn't just me, then. Reading cue cards is all fine and good, but wow that was the most forced-sounding read I think I'd ever heard. I wouldn't be surprised if he skipped a line or three in there. Perhaps I give more credit to Clark because he had several years of practice, but what's hard about "Your first trip to the Winner's Circle is worth $10,000, twice in the same show is worth a possible $25,000, and the three people who get to the top the fastest come back for $100,000?"

I must be missing something here, because I just can't see what John Davidson brings to the table in terms of hosting such a good show.

[Don Howard]

[quote name=\'TLEberle\' post=\'141672\' date=\'Dec 29 2006, 02:37 AM\']
Perhaps I give more credit to Clark because he had several years of practice[/quote]
Judging from the L.A. shows of The $10,000 Pyramid we were treated to on Game Show Network a few years ago, he had it nailed down much sooner than that.

[tvmitch]

A nice treat, thanks! Makes me want to hook up my iSight camera to throw some quick clips up there without hassle...

[ITSBRY]

[quote name=\'mitchgroff\' post=\'141687\' date=\'Dec 29 2006, 10:44 AM\']
A nice treat, thanks! Makes me want to hook up my iSight camera to throw some quick clips up there without hassle...
[/quote]

That's pretty much what I did...the quality isn't great, but it's better than I expected. Davidson Pyramid is really the only rarity in my collection, so I would like to preserve them digitally at some point. This was just a quick experiment with the video recorder on my digital camera.

It's actually YouTube that messed up the audio when it converted the clips. The files themselves are fine when I view them locally. YouTube also cut off about 2 seconds of each clip at the end. The one where John fumbles his way through the winner's circle rules explanation ends perfectly...."we're giving away $100,000....and....that's the name of the show!". The dude could read off the cards well enough but was in trouble when he had to think for himself, that's for sure.

[rigsby]

Thanks for posting that.  I like how WISH dissolved from their logo directly into the opening.  It's a refreshing change from the usual couple of seconds of dark screen after the ID we usually get on our channels around here.

[quote name=\'TLEberle\' post=\'141672\' date=\'Dec 29 2006, 02:37 AM\']
I must be missing something here, because I just can't see what John Davidson brings to the table in terms of hosting such a good show.
[/quote]

Availability?

[clemon79]

[quote name=\'mitchgroff\' post=\'141687\' date=\'Dec 29 2006, 07:44 AM\']
A nice treat, thanks! Makes me want to hook up my iSight camera to throw some quick clips up there without hassle...
[/quote]
Please don't. Despite what some seem to think, the quality (particularly the sound quality) is horrendous. That's just a trend I don't want to see spreading.

[Jimmy Owen]

One thing about John Davidson that gets lost among our membership.  He's very good looking and women like him.  Since women are the target audience for game shows, that's really all that matters.

[opimus]

[quote name=\'Jimmy Owen\' post=\'141699\' date=\'Dec 29 2006, 02:55 PM\']
One thing about John Davidson that gets lost among our membership.  He's very good looking and women like him.  Since women are the target audience for game shows, that's really all that matters.
[/quote]
Is the Trebek and Ruta Lee version floating around anywhere?

[BrandonFG]

[quote name=\'opimus\' post=\'141702\' date=\'Dec 29 2006, 03:20 PM\']
[quote name=\'Jimmy Owen\' post=\'141699\' date=\'Dec 29 2006, 02:55 PM\']
One thing about John Davidson that gets lost among our membership.  He's very good looking and women like him.  Since women are the target audience for game shows, that's really all that matters.
[/quote]
Is the Trebek and Ruta Lee version floating around anywhere?
[/quote]
I think you're quoting the wrong post, but there is an episode or two, at the Museum of TV and Television Radio. I know there's some Trebek eps. around the traders, but don't know if any have Ruta.

[clemon79]

[quote name=\'fostergray82\' post=\'141703\' date=\'Dec 29 2006, 12:28 PM\']
I think you're quoting the wrong post, but there is an episode or two, at the Museum of TV and Television Radio. I know there's some Trebek eps. around the traders, but don't know if any have Ruta.
[/quote]
Of the (admittedly limited) number of clips I have seen, all of them seem to be from the clear-a-column-and-scoop-the-prizes format, and I'm pretty sure Ruta's entire run was from the prize-or-a-part-thereof-under-each-number format.

[Scrabbleship]

[quote name=\'TLEberle\' post=\'141672\' date=\'Dec 29 2006, 02:37 AM\']
I must be missing something here, because I just can't see what John Davidson brings to the table in terms of hosting such a good show.
[/quote]

The probability that he was the best person the Stewarts could settle on when they were trying to find a host and that he had just come off of the circus that his version of Squares was and in comparision to that Pyramid was arguably a walk in the park. If you were in the shoes of either Bob or Sande Stewart 16 years ago, would have you chosen differently?

It also didn't help that in its experimentation this version tried to fix some things that weren't broken (i.e. Double Trouble, Gamble for a Grand, the open). Out of all the versions of Pyramid, Donnymid included, IMO Davidson's felt like it was the most irksome.

[BrandonFG]

[quote name=\'Scrabbleship\' post=\'141710\' date=\'Dec 29 2006, 04:10 PM\']
The probability that he was the best person the Stewarts could settle on when they were trying to find a host and that he had just come off of the circus that his version of Squares was and in comparision to that Pyramid was arguably a walk in the park. If you were in the shoes of either Bob or Sande Stewart 16 years ago, would have you chosen differently?
[/quote]
I almost asked why wasn't Clark tapped for this version...then I remembered he was still on "The Challengers". I'm guessing the Stewarts wanted to use a host that had a recent history, considering Squares had only been off a year or two (then there's the USA reruns).

I'd love to know who he auditioned against.