Game Shows on Christmas Day

[trainman]

I'd say it depends on what your definition of "special" is.

On one hand, they're in the regular time slot and have regular contestants and regular game play, so one could make the argument that they're regular episodes.

On the other hand, they have special set decorations and/or special prizes and/or special puzzles and/or whatever other special happenings they can come up with within the regular framework, so one could make the argument that they're special episodes.

So I think you and your family are both right.  Now make up and watch some special regular Christmas game shows together.

[clemon79]

[quote name=\'gameshowguy2000\' date=\'Dec 7 2003, 09:55 PM\'] My family says that those episodes airing during on Christmas Day are just regular episodes. They keep telling me, "They're taped. They were just slated/scheduled to air on Christmas Day."

I say that they're special episodes.
 [/quote]
 Good Lord, what difference does it make?

[gameshowguy2000]

[quote name=\'zachhoran\' date=\'Dec 6 2003, 07:48 PM\'] [quote name=\'ChuckNet\' date=\'Dec 6 2003, 07:14 PM\'] Both daytime Dawson and Combs FF did Christmas eps...during the latter era, Ray would usually bring his family onstage at the end, and during the first year, he actually dressed as Santa for one ep during that wk.

Chuck Donegan (The Illustrious "Chuckie Baby") [/quote]
The first three or four Combs Syndie seasons had Xmas episodes IIRC. The last two Combs Syndie seasons and Dawson 1994-95 did not have Xmas episodes(though 1994-95 did have a Halloween show). I suspect the current Feud run will be in reruns at Xmastime. [/quote]
 I doubt that happened last year. I went to the Stormseeker.com Daytime page, and in the days that passed, they managed to put up a summary of that day's episode, Floyds vs. Ragusas.

In that episode the $550+ champ Floyds were dethroned by the Ragusas, who'd beat them 426-70, and in Fast Money, would win only $735.

[zachhoran]

[quote name=\'gameshowguy2000\' date=\'Dec 7 2003, 11:55 PM\'] In addition, the board read MERRY across, and XMAS up and down. There is a clip of a Christmas PYL opening at gscentral.net, including a picture of it in the PYL Photo Gallery.


On another note, somewhat related, my family and I keep fighting over whether or not game shows airing on Christmas are considered special or regular.

My family says that those episodes airing during on Christmas Day are just regular episodes. They keep telling me, "They're taped. They were just slated/scheduled to air on Christmas Day."

I say that they're special episodes.

Who's right and who's wrong? [/quote]
 They had some garland on the contestant/host island in Xmas 1985 on PYL, which was not the case the first two years.

The only syndie shows these days that haved Xmas-themed episodes on Xmas week are WOF and J!. Jeopardy!'s concession to Xmastime will be a few Xmas themed categories on a board where the category names are Xmas related. Squares, MIllionaire, and Pyramid I think are in reruns, Feud might not be in reruns, but there won't be an Xmas themed episode that week. Squares is scheduled to be in reruns from 12/15-1/2, but perhaps this week will pay homage to Xmas(as Squares has paid homage to Xmas a couple times in recent years). TPIR usually does a week of Xmas shows, but in some cases they only did one new Xmas show or showed all reruns at that time.

The first syndicated game shows to pay homage to Xmas on Xmas week were IIRC Davidson Squares and Rafferty Card Sharks in 1986. Before the mid 80s, many syndie game shows were bicycled, meaning shows could air one week in one city and another week in another city, and shows were taped not knowing when they would air.

[aaron sica]

I know that the Eubanks CS featured kids playing near Christmas time, and I'm damn near positive that Davidson Squares did too; did Rafferty CS have kids playing at Christmas too?

[zachhoran]

[quote name=\'aaron sica\' date=\'Dec 8 2003, 11:07 AM\'] I know that the Eubanks CS featured kids playing near Christmas time, and I'm damn near positive that Davidson Squares did too; did Rafferty CS have kids playing at Christmas too? [/quote]
 Eubanks CS had Kids Weeks in the SUmmers, around Eastertime(1988 anyway), and at Xmastime. Davidson Squares had a kids week in 1988(John Davidson Jr. hosted all or part of the week IIRC). Rafferty CS advertised a kids week, and was searching for players for it, but had not yet aired it by Jan 2 1987, which is when I last saw the show(WPVI Channel 6 in Philly axed Rafferty CS at that point to make room for Oprah between 4-5PM, they moved previous season J! reruns back to 11AM at that point). If they had a kids week on Rafferty's show, it aired after XMas.

[Ian Wallis]

He wears a Christmas red robe that he wears in the opening on this Xmas 1985 episode, which has not been seen since its original broadcast. USA ran the 1983 Xmas shows c. 1992, and GSN aired the XMas 1984 shows this past Summer(first time aired since their original broadcasts)

USA did air the 1984 Christmas shows.  There were USA copies in the trade curcuit until GSN aired them this past summer.  I just hope GSN eventally gets to Christmas 1985 - I remember that show well from its original broadcast and it would certainly be a keeper if it ever comes around again!

[gameshowguy2000]

The Bergeron Squares did a Kids Week in 2001, during the Christmas holidays. I remember that.

And, the Perry CS also did Christmas shows, but the 12 Games episode aired 3 days before Christmas. On all of its Christmas episodes, G2-T2 was dressed as Santa Claus. There was a Christmas tree under the show's logo, and the set was decorated.

Eubanks CS did air a show on Christmas Day, and GSN aired that. Like the Perry counterpart, there were decorations, but no Christmas tree, I think. Both the front game and Money Cards boards had candy canes, very appropriate indeed.

In addition, if anyone's noticed on the Xmas PYL shows, there are Caroling Whammies. They'd pop up before commercial breaks, and even at the end of the show. They're pretty funny, I'll tell you!

BTW, USA aired only the 1983 Christmas show? Did it air the 1984 and 1985 shows as well? (I heard about GSN airing the 1984 Christmas show over the summer, but never saw it)

And, if I recall correctly, the last time TPIR aired on Christmas Day was in 1996. That episode would be repeated in 1997 and 1998, and then after that, they'd use a rerun episode for Xmas.

[Ian Wallis]

In addition, if anyone's noticed on the Xmas PYL shows, there are Caroling Whammies. They'd pop up before commercial breaks, and even at the end of the show. They're pretty funny, I'll tell you!

BTW, USA aired only the 1983 Christmas show? Did it air the 1984 and 1985 shows as well? (I heard about GSN airing the 1984 Christmas show over the summer, but never saw it)

That's one reason why I enjoyed watching the show at Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas - you had seasonal whammies!

USA aired the 1983 Christmas show in December 1992.  They aired the 1984 Christmas show in mid 1994.  The 1985 Christmas show hasn't been seen since its original broadcast.  

I wonder if part of the reason USA never ran that is because it was about that time that Peter started announcing the show's upcoming time change.  If networks think viewers would get confused seeing addresses to write to for tickets and such, maybe they figured they'd confuse viewers if they aired shows announcing a time change.  Just a guess...

[zachhoran]

[quote name=\'Ian Wallis\' date=\'Dec 9 2003, 09:13 AM\']

I wonder if part of the reason USA never ran that is because it was about that time that Peter started announcing the show's upcoming time change.  If networks think viewers would get confused seeing addresses to write to for tickets and such, maybe they figured they'd confuse viewers if they aired shows announcing a time change.  Just a guess... [/quote]
 That may be true, but USA aired reruns of Scrabble from 1989 where Chuck mentioned their time change from 12:30PM EST to 10AM EST. The change from 11:30AM EST to 12:30PM EST in 1987 was announced by CHarlie Tuna when they went to commercial breaks.

[KrisW73]

I have to add I remember seeing a syndie TJW from ~1980 but I can't remember is the set was decorated...

[SRIV94]

[quote name=\'Ian Wallis\' date=\'Dec 9 2003, 08:13 AM\'] I wonder if part of the reason USA never ran that is because it was about that time that Peter started announcing the show's upcoming time change.  If networks think viewers would get confused seeing addresses to write to for tickets and such, maybe they figured they'd confuse viewers if they aired shows announcing a time change.  Just a guess... [/quote]
 Even as GSN tries to avoid showing segments that billboarded a time change, there were moments when such promotional announcements came through.  I do recall Allen Ludden's reminder on P+ that they'd be on one half-hour earlier, "starting next week," got through on GSN (I think that was the Bill Cullen/Mary Tyler Moore week, if I'm not mistaken).  Also, time changes/promotional announcements from GONG weren't necessarily snipped on GSN (unless they were showing a Firestone episode in which the references were deleted).  I'm glad they kept them in--there was one episode from April 1978 where Chuckie promos CS and HR (between the audience clapping with him and his occasional inability to clearly read what's on the cue cards, it was one of the funnier moments of that day's episode).

Since those shows stuck around for awhile on GSN in their then-current time slots, I guess networks needn't have worried about viewer confusion.

Ladies and gentlemen, you have just read my 200th post.  Copies of the other 199 can be obtained by writing Farkle Press, Farkle, North Dakota.  

Doug -- celebrating 200 posts (and shooting for 201)

[WorldClassRob]

Didn't The Joker's Wild air on Christmas Day too?  I know there was an episode or two in which Santas and Scrooges were used instead of Jokers and Devils in the second bonus round during their CBS days.

[uncamark]

[quote name=\'KrisW73\' date=\'Dec 9 2003, 12:31 PM\']I have to add I remember seeing a syndie TJW from ~1980 but I can't remember is the set was decorated...[/quote]
You may be right, but even a show that ran in sequence like "TJW" strove to avoid date references, since the tapes were bicycled to stations over a six-week period similar to talk shows (the largest markets getting them first).  And whenever a new station picked up a B&E show, they had to start at least with the beginning of the current season (or the last season if they were paying less money).  Under those circumstances, shows couldn't be dated (and WFLD in Chicago didn't run summer reruns of  "TJW" in 1978 or "TTD" in 1979 *or* 1980 because their runs began at times other than September--January 1978 for "TJW," March or April 1979 for "TTD."  In fact WFLD had the advantage of running Thom McKee's reign of terror uninterrupted by summer reruns (and was only a few weeks behind the rest of the major markets when McKee finally went down).

[SRIV94]

[quote name=\'uncamark\' date=\'Dec 9 2003, 01:27 PM\']In fact WFLD had the advantage of running Thom McKee's reign of terror uninterrupted by summer reruns (and was only a few weeks behind the rest of the major markets when McKee finally went down).[/quote]
That's right.  I was vacationing in St. Louis during the summer of 1980 (I believe it was the week Trebek sat in for Woolery on WoF) and remember seeing an airing of the TTD Seniors Tournament (Miss Bobbie Tremaine demonstrating her ability to tap-dance, which she had done on GONG four years earlier) as part of the rerun package.  When WFLD ran the last episode of the 1979-80 season later that fall and Wink had announced the reruns were forthcoming, I was kinda looking forward to seeing that episode again.  Alas, it was not to be, as WFLD ran the 1980-81 season premiere the following Monday (or whenever it was).  It was the CHICAGO SUN-TIMES that had run the "spoiler" article about McKee's impending loss (which didn't stop me from watching anyway).

I did get to see the clip of Tremaine again during that 1987 syndicated "GameShow Biz" special (I'm a sucker for tap-dancers).

Doug -- soon to celebrate 300. . . (nah, I won't go there--yet)