Average LMaD episode (from any era) offered what?...the figures in parentheses are current estimates
-living room/dinette or kitchen set (about $2,500-4,000)
-various smaller appliances like a washer-dryer ($1,000)
-computer (could get a decent laptop for about $750)
-cash (maybe $10,000 at the most per episode)
-a car ($15,000-20,000)
Then maybe the Big Deal, which was often the very same car and other stuff, so let's say the Big Deal is along the lines of the average second Showcase ($30,000?)
So, about $40,000+ per ep. minimum, which is about $200K a week...let's make it $250K (sit down, Lesko!). Again, add crew and what not (including folks to move the backdrops/curtains around), and by my math, still about a $500K budget (so right on par with a new Pyramid, and still significantly lower than even a half-hour soap.
Oh, and the large art card "billboards" for Dairy Queen or Big Boy? How difficult is it to do the same thing on a video wall?
Now, you look at two games that would cost a minimum half-mil per week, then yes, Dating Game would look like a more viable companion show, all things considered (the reduced, if not, free trips provided).