Game Show Fans 50 Greatest - 2016

[chargeradiocom]

Coming out of lurking mode... Being a reader of the forum since around 2009, I hoped to get in on this, but I wasn't sure if my low post count would disqualify me. But Scott said it didn't matter if you were a lurker or a regular poster, as long as you're a game show fan, your vote was welcome. So, thanks Scott, both for undertaking this project, and for letting us lurkers contribute!

I tried to base my definition of "greatest" on a combination of factors--quality (both of the game and production), impact/influence (both on game shows and pop culture as a whole), longevity, and "fun factor" (including play-along ability, and simply how fun I felt the show was to watch). I took the approach of tiering my selections. I thought my top 20 or so were pretty solid, but after that it became a bit more of a crapshoot. In the end, though, I actually ended up with about a dozen extra shows that I wanted to include but simply didn't have spots for.

I suspect that my list turned out to be pretty in line with the consensus, although there may be a couple of oddballs (though I think they're defensible).

Looking forward to sharing and seeing everyone's lists and thoughts.

[Jimmy Owen]

The only thing that compromises the results is the "one show covers all versions" rule.  Harvey Feud is not the same show as Louie Feud or Dawson Feud.  Drew is not Barker or Cullen (or James, Kennedy or Davidson).  Each variation should be able to be tallied.

[TLEberle]

The only thing that compromises the results is the "one show covers all versions" rule.  Harvey Feud is not the same show as Louie Feud or Dawson Feud.  Drew is not Barker or Cullen (or James, Kennedy or Davidson).  Each variation should be able to be tallied.

Excellent. I look forward to your post that invites people to submit their lists to you and the results we get. Thanks for volunteering.

[PYLdude]

The only way the argument works is for The Price Is Right and even that's pushing it.

Family Feud still has the same basic game structure it always did. The only notable change was the addition of the Bullseye round and that's what, three/four total seasons out of 30+ across three entire series?

[Jimmy Owen]

The only way the argument works is for The Price Is Right and even that's pushing it.

Family Feud still has the same basic game structure it always did. The only notable change was the addition of the Bullseye round and that's what, three/four total seasons out of 30+ across three entire series?

For Feud, I only will sit down and watch Dawson, Combs and Harvey.  I'd like to be able to vote for Harvey Feud and Dawson Feud.  Whether you prefer Fleming J! or Trebek J! can be based on your age.  I grew up with Fleming, so I like that one better.

[PYLdude]

The only way the argument works is for The Price Is Right and even that's pushing it.

Family Feud still has the same basic game structure it always did. The only notable change was the addition of the Bullseye round and that's what, three/four total seasons out of 30+ across three entire series?

For Feud, I only will sit down and watch Dawson, Combs and Harvey.  I'd like to be able to vote for Harvey Feud and Dawson Feud.  Whether you prefer Fleming J! or Trebek J! can be based on your age.  I grew up with Fleming, so I like that one better.

And that makes them different how? You still didn't answer that.

[TLEberle]

He won't. Just move on.

[Matt Ottinger]

The only thing that compromises the results is the "one show covers all versions" rule.  Harvey Feud is not the same show as Louie Feud or Dawson Feud.  Drew is not Barker or Cullen (or James, Kennedy or Davidson).  Each variation should be able to be tallied.

So you'd have about twenty different versions of Price, a dozen or more of Feud, and I can't even begin to count how many TTTT.  Hell, you'd have at least five different versions of Concentration.  And why stop with the hosts?  Would thirty-minute Barker TPIR be different than 60-minute ones?  Blankety Blanks changed its scoring system halfway through its ten-week run.  Two different versions?

You either haven't thought this out, or Chris has been right about you all these years.

[TLEberle]

Gimme a B!

[BrandonFG]

The only thing that compromises the results is the "one show covers all versions" rule.  Harvey Feud is not the same show as Louie Feud or Dawson Feud.  Drew is not Barker or Cullen (or James, Kennedy or Davidson).  Each variation should be able to be tallied.

In that case, the GSN marathon should've shown an episode of Dawson and Combs's Feud, ranking them separately, and ditto for every show that had more than one host. Feud has had six different hosts (seven if you count Al Roker*); it would be ridiculous to displace six or seven other potentially deserving shows so that every tenure gets a potential ranking.

Like Chris said, even with the changes over the years, it's still people filling in the blanks of a national survey. TPiR is still four people bidding on the price of an item...it's just the show added chrome over the years. The host doesn't matter if the format remains intact.

Harvey Feud isn't my cup of tea, but to not include it with every other version of the last 40 years makes no sense.

*/Okay, eight if you wanna include Sammy Davis, Jr.

[Jimmy Owen]

The only thing that compromises the results is the "one show covers all versions" rule.  Harvey Feud is not the same show as Louie Feud or Dawson Feud.  Drew is not Barker or Cullen (or James, Kennedy or Davidson).  Each variation should be able to be tallied.

So you'd have about twenty different versions of Price, a dozen or more of Feud, and I can't even begin to count how many TTTT.  Hell, you'd have at least five different versions of Concentration.  And why stop with the hosts?  Would thirty-minute Barker TPIR be different than 60-minute ones?  Blankety Blanks changed its scoring system halfway through its ten-week run.  Two different versions?

You either haven't thought this out, or Chris has been right about you all these years.

I guess the question is where would a Karn Feud rank when compared to Dawson Feud.  I'd guess Dawson would rank higher.  I liked the faster pace of PAS plus the music and set changes.  It's almost as if it was a different show.  Would Shoot For the Stars be considered a different show than Double Talk?  Looking forward to the results.

[Unrealtor]

The only thing that compromises the results is the "one show covers all versions" rule.  Harvey Feud is not the same show as Louie Feud or Dawson Feud.  Drew is not Barker or Cullen (or James, Kennedy or Davidson).  Each variation should be able to be tallied.

So you'd have about twenty different versions of Price, a dozen or more of Feud, and I can't even begin to count how many TTTT.  Hell, you'd have at least five different versions of Concentration.  And why stop with the hosts?  Would thirty-minute Barker TPIR be different than 60-minute ones?  Blankety Blanks changed its scoring system halfway through its ten-week run.  Two different versions?

I pretty much end up coming down on the side of doing multiple versions of a show being impossible for this reason, unless whoever takes on the job of compiling the votes also makes a million judgement calls about what does and doesn't merit separating. Not splitting variations is somewhat arbitrary, but it's arbitrary in a way that doesn't create duplication in anyone's mind. Just about any consistent way of drawing lines has a counterexample of a show where it doesn't make sense to split it up that way, and even the inconsistent ones are debatable.

Yes, there are eras/versions of many beloved shows that probably don't deserve to have the same lofty perch in the game show pantheon as their counterparts, but it would be insanity any other way.

[JasonA1]

I considered every show at what I perceived to be its best. When the music magazines rank the best artists, they aren't counting new material released decades after the glory years by the last surviving members against the rest of their catalog.

-Jason

[gamed121683]

Question: In the list from '06, we also got a quick peek inside the 50 that just missed the cut (#'s 51-100). Will this 10th anniversary edition follow suit?

[TLEberle]

Asked and answered. There will be peeks, though I don't know that you can say #100 "just missed the cut."