PYL and/or Whammy: Your views

[vtown7]

..."hamsters apparatuses".
I burst out laughing when I saw that.

I do what I can

Cheers,

Ryan

[Steve_Bier]

It would have been interesting to see someone whammy out in round one. I've always had this mental picture of the contestant with his feet up on the podium in front of him, reclining and reading a magazine, while Peter goes on with the rest of the game.

I'd love to know what would have happened if a contestant landed on "Pick a Corner"....with one of the corners being a whammy....and was brain-dead enough to pick the whammy.

[Ian Wallis]

I like PYL because underneath all the silliness, there is one heck of an exciting, high-stakes game behind it.

I think that's one of the reasons I like the "classic" PYL - BECAUSE of the silliness.  In today's world (OK, and yesterday's), sometimes we're all too serious with everything going on (and maybe we should be), but it's nice to be able to escape all that and laugh for a little while - and PYL was usually able to do that.  As other people have mentioned, most of the time it was very exciting as well - because you just didn't know what was going to happen, or who was going to win until that final spin was taken.

[Dbacksfan12]

[quote name=\'Steve_Bier\' date=\'Dec 12 2003, 08:50 AM\'] It would have been interesting to see someone whammy out in round one. I've always had this mental picture of the contestant with his feet up on the podium in front of him, reclining and reading a magazine, while Peter goes on with the rest of the game.

I'd love to know what would have happened if a contestant landed on "Pick a Corner"....with one of the corners being a whammy....and was brain-dead enough to pick the whammy. [/quote]
People wonder why I think PYL is directed towards children and the lower IQ-bracket.
He would be credited with a whammy.

[tommycharles]

[quote name=\'uncamark\' date=\'Dec 11 2003, 12:44 PM\']
As for B&E, there is nothing wrong with the formats of their shows that can't be improved by better, more challenging question writing, better end games and a less kitschy feel.  ("TJW" became a better show in the end simply for having Bill Cullen around--even if Cullen wasn't at his peak, Cullen off-peak is better than a lot of hosts at their peak.) [/quote]
 What did Cullen do differently than Barry that made you prefer him?

[SRIV94]

[quote name=\'Steve_Bier\' date=\'Dec 12 2003, 07:50 AM\'] It would have been interesting to see someone whammy out in round one. I've always had this mental picture of the contestant with his feet up on the podium in front of him, reclining and reading a magazine, while Peter goes on with the rest of the game.

I'd love to know what would have happened if a contestant landed on "Pick a Corner"....with one of the corners being a whammy....and was brain-dead enough to pick the whammy. [/quote]
 Uh, he'd lose all his money.

Seriously though, there is a situation where picking a Whammy on purpose isn't necessarily a bad move.  Consider this:

Let's flash back to August 14, 2003

Some people disagreed, and made great arguments for doing so.  Others agreed.  Your mileage may vary.

Doug

[ITSBRY]

That's what I love about this board...at ATGS, even bringing up the name of PYL would cause everyone to immediately grab their flame retardent suits!  Here, we can actually discuss it intelligently.

I don't know...PYL gets a bad wrap IMO.  Yes, I'm a late 20s who remembers the show fondly from childhood, but I don't think that's why the show appeals to so many.  PYL had all of the elements of a fun game show.  An easy game, lots of unnecessary glitz, a great set, a great host and a great theme song.  It was just damned exciting to watch and it was one of the first shows that really used technology as the "draw" for the game.

It is not brain surgery, but there are very few game shows that are.  HR and TJW are considered classics among most of us and these games were also mostly based on luck.  They might have had some trivia element, but the ?'s were very elementary in nature...not tough stuff.  Speed and luck were the predominate factors...especially in HR.

PYL is just...entertaining.  It was a concept that worked for whatever reason and I'll take it for that.  Flaws in the game or not, people watched and continue to watch...that defines a success in my opinion.  

To be honest, I think Whammy! is the rare occurence where pretty major changes to the format actually improved upon the original concept.  The only issues I have with Whammy! are just a few minor points with the execution...most of which can be attributed to the inherent cheesy nature of a cable game show.  I'd love to see Fremantle take Whammy! into syndication and do it up right.

ITSBRY
itsbry@juno.com

[uncamark]

[quote name=\'tommycharles\' date=\'Dec 12 2003, 11:01 AM\'][quote name=\'uncamark\' date=\'Dec 11 2003, 12:44 PM\']
As for B&E, there is nothing wrong with the formats of their shows that can't be improved by better, more challenging question writing, better end games and a less kitschy feel.  ("TJW" became a better show in the end simply for having Bill Cullen around--even if Cullen wasn't at his peak, Cullen off-peak is better than a lot of hosts at their peak.) [/quote]
What did Cullen do differently than Barry that made you prefer him?[/quote]
The fact that he was being Bill Cullen.  With the possible exception of "How Do You Like Your Eggs?" (and only because I've haven't had the misfortune of actually seeing it), his presence on the set alone always made a show even marginally watchable.

[Dbacksfan12]

[quote name=\'uncamark\' date=\'Dec 12 2003, 12:18 PM\'] [quote name=\'tommycharles\' date=\'Dec 12 2003, 11:01 AM\'][quote name=\'uncamark\' date=\'Dec 11 2003, 12:44 PM\']
As for B&E, there is nothing wrong with the formats of their shows that can't be improved by better, more challenging question writing, better end games and a less kitschy feel.  ("TJW" became a better show in the end simply for having Bill Cullen around--even if Cullen wasn't at his peak, Cullen off-peak is better than a lot of hosts at their peak.) [/quote]
What did Cullen do differently than Barry that made you prefer him?[/quote]
The fact that he was being Bill Cullen.  With the possible exception of "How Do You Like Your Eggs?" (and only because I've haven't had the misfortune of actually seeing it), his presence on the set alone always made a show even marginally watchable. [/quote]
 Here's where I disagree.

His work on "The Joker's Wild" slowed down the proceedings from a drag to a crawl.  While he seemed sharp on Hot Potato, something seemed to have happened in between then and his start on Joker.

IMO, the job should have gone to Jim Peck.

[ChuckNet]

His work on "The Joker's Wild" slowed down the proceedings from a drag to a crawl. While he seemed sharp on Hot Potato, something seemed to have happened in between then and his start on Joker.

I agree...the problem, IMO, was that Bill didn't realize TJW's not a show that leaves room for joking around, and even during his first season when still had the audience game, he knew he had to keep the game moving to some degree...when they dumped the audience game for the following season, he just saw it as an invitation to do more interaction and joking w/the contestants, as anyone who saw the Cullen eps from that season on GSN can tell you.

IMO, the job should have gone to Jim Peck.

No argument there...supposedly, as per Peck, syndicator Colbert wanted someone w/name value, though that wouldn't explain how little-known (outside LA, anyway) Jim Caldwell got the job on TTD just a season later.

Chuck Donegan (The Illustrious "Chuckie Baby")

[zachhoran]

[quote name=\'ChuckNet\' date=\'Dec 13 2003, 09:09 PM\']

IMO, the job should have gone to Jim Peck.

No argument there...supposedly, as per Peck, syndicator Colbert wanted someone w/name value, though that wouldn't explain how little-known (outside LA, anyway) Jim Caldwell got the job on TTD just a season later.
 [/quote]
 Didn't Caldwell formerly host the NYC version of Evening(PM) Magazine?

[BrandonFG]

[quote name=\'zachhoran\' date=\'Dec 13 2003, 09:12 PM\'] [quote name=\'ChuckNet\' date=\'Dec 13 2003, 09:09 PM\']

IMO, the job should have gone to Jim Peck.

No argument there...supposedly, as per Peck, syndicator Colbert wanted someone w/name value, though that wouldn't explain how little-known (outside LA, anyway) Jim Caldwell got the job on TTD just a season later.
 [/quote]
Didn't Caldwell formerly host the NYC version of Evening(PM) Magazine? [/quote]
Even so, Peck still had a couple of national game shows under his belt, albeit none lasted beyond one year, so the decision to go with Jim C. is still kinda interesting.

[Dbacksfan12]

[quote name=\'fostergray82\' date=\'Dec 13 2003, 10:19 PM\'] [quote name=\'zachhoran\' date=\'Dec 13 2003, 09:12 PM\'] [quote name=\'ChuckNet\' date=\'Dec 13 2003, 09:09 PM\']

IMO, the job should have gone to Jim Peck.

No argument there...supposedly, as per Peck, syndicator Colbert wanted someone w/name value, though that wouldn't explain how little-known (outside LA, anyway) Jim Caldwell got the job on TTD just a season later.
 [/quote]
Didn't Caldwell formerly host the NYC version of Evening(PM) Magazine? [/quote]
Even so, Peck still had a couple of national game shows under his belt, albeit none lasted beyond one year, so the decision to go with Jim is still kinda interesting. [/quote]
Also, Jim was seen nationally on Good Morning America when David Hartman was on vacation.  What I am unsure of is when he had his stint on Divorce Court, and whether this had any bearing on it.

[zachhoran]

[quote name=\'Dsmith\' date=\'Dec 15 2003, 01:55 PM\']
Also, Jim was seen nationally on Good Morning American when David Hartman was on vacation.  What I am unsure of is when he had his stint on Divorce Court, and whether this had any bearing on it. [/quote]
 His Divorce Court gig started in Fall 1984, which is when Bill Cullen took over on TJW. The DC gig starting that Fall would probably have make Peck ineligible to do TJW. Peck did stand in for a week or two of the 1985-86 TJW season. Peck's DC gig ran through 1987 or 1988.

[gameshowguy2000]

Speaking of Peck and his role on the Original DC, who was he, the stenographer/interviewer, or the bailiff or the judge?