Museum of Television and Radio (Los Angeles)

[Justin30519]

Has anyone been to the Paley Center (Museum of Television and Radio) in Los Angeles? I will be visiting in the summer. I have searched their catalog for rare game shows. Below is the list I found. Does anyone know of any rare shows I may have missed in my search? Thank you.

Celebrity Sweepstakes - several episodes (not pilot or 10/1/76)
   T:48957 (Andy Warhol)
   B:02132 (May 20, 1976)
   B:03006 (October 29, 1975)   
High Rollers #258 (June 11, 1975)...T:52479
Jackpot B:03095 (December 1, 1974)
Moneymaze - from Andy Warhol collection...T:52511

Knockout (March 15, 1978) - may be duplicate of what's on YouTube
To Say the Least (March 15, 1978) - may be duplicate of what's on YouTube

Justin

[DoorNumberFour]

- Jeopardy test episode from 1964
- At least one episode of Concentration (NBC) in color
- 1950s Tic Tac Dough test episode
- The Neighbors (Warhol collection)
- Wheel Of Fortune 1976 (NBC All Star Dream Machine Championship)

In addition, I think there’s an episode of The Magnificent Marble Machine available for viewing by appointment.

[Adam Nedeff]

An hour-long episode of "Hollywood Squares" from 1975.
"Tic Tac Dough" pilot from 1956, and it's a complete disaster. You can almost see smoke coming out of Jack Barry's ears as it goes on.
At least one episode of "Gambit" that's not in circulation.
A 1954 "Name That Tune" hosted by Bill Cullen.
The "To Say the Least" episode is one that's not out there, FYI.

[RMF]

I used to visit the NYC branch all the time when I was resident in or engaging in research in that city.

Some programs they have that aren't in circulation and that are of interest:

-A viewable episode (and others that can't be seen) of a version of Information Please that isn't in any standard reference
-Several episodes of the NBC run of Let's Make A Deal, including one from the primetime run
-A Break The Bank episode from 1949
-An episode of Pantomime Quiz that, from context clues, seems to predate the network runs of that program
-An episode of On The Spot, for those curious to see a local game show from the mid-1980s
-Sample episodes of several short-run 1950s game shows, including Anyone Can Win and Ask Me Another

And, to add to a previous post: they hold two color episodes of Concentration, including one that is (if I remember correctly) the last episode from their last Tournament of Champions.

[SuperMatch93]

Isn't the Wheel of Fortune episode you mentioned currently on YouTube? Unless it's another one from that same tournament.

[Bryce L.]

Isn't the Wheel of Fortune episode you mentioned currently on YouTube? Unless it's another one from that same tournament.

If the contestants on it are Rick Mandl, Patti Butler, and Richard Hooper, then yes, it's already circulating.

[BrandonFG]

Isn't the Wheel of Fortune episode you mentioned currently on YouTube? Unless it's another one from that same tournament.

If the contestants on it are Rick Mandl, Patti Butler, and Richard Hooper, then yes, it's already circulating.

I don’t remember contestants names, but I am 99% certain it’s the same episode. I distinctly remember the Mercedes convertible being offered.

[nowhammies10]

Isn't the Wheel of Fortune episode you mentioned currently on YouTube? Unless it's another one from that same tournament.

If the contestants on it are Rick Mandl, Patti Butler, and Richard Hooper, then yes, it's already circulating.

I don’t remember contestants names, but I am 99% certain it’s the same episode. I distinctly remember the Mercedes convertible being offered.

Saw it at Paley NYC over the summer.  It's the one that's circulating.

[Matt Ottinger]

-A viewable episode (and others that can't be seen) of a version of Information Please that isn't in any standard reference

There's been an entire book written about Information Please, so this is probably not something that's completely lost to history.  In all likelihood, it's one of the 18 short films shot between 1939 and 1942 that were made to play ahead of features in a movie theater.  The actual TV show, which probably ended up airing even fewer episodes, came more than a decade later.

[RMF]

-A viewable episode (and others that can't be seen) of a version of Information Please that isn't in any standard reference

There's been an entire book written about Information Please, so this is probably not something that's completely lost to history.  In all likelihood, it's one of the 18 short films shot between 1939 and 1942 that were made to play ahead of features in a movie theater.  The actual TV show, which probably ended up airing even fewer episodes, came more than a decade later.

Not likely- what I saw had a 1951 copyright date, seemed to be at full-episode length, did not have credits for RKO or Pathe, opened differently than the RKO short I have seen, had only three panelists, and featured no participation from Clifton Fadiman. Based on these details, I strongly doubt it could be one of those shorts.

If it is of interest, here is my report from when I viewed it

[Matt Ottinger]

Not likely- what I saw had a 1951 copyright date, seemed to be at full-episode length, did not have credits for RKO or Pathe, opened differently than the RKO short I have seen, had only three panelists, and featured no participation from Clifton Fadiman. Based on these details, I strongly doubt it could be one of those shorts.

If it is of interest, here is my report from when I viewed it

Along with my lengthy reply at the time.  Sorry I didn't remember that earlier conversation.

[Dbacksfan12]

This seems like a mere smattering of episodes.  Wouldn't he be better off at the UCLA archives?

[SamJ93]

I was under the impression that the UCLA archive is only open to qualified researchers.

[Matt Ottinger]

I was under the impression that the UCLA archive is only open to qualified researchers.

The desk at UCLA is staffed by students who couldn't care less whether you're "qualified" or not.  An enormous difference, however, is that you have to contact UCLA in advance with your choices AND make an appointment, so that they can pull the videos and have them ready for you when you arrive.  At Paley, you just access the videos from your terminal.

[RMF]

I was under the impression that the UCLA archive is only open to qualified researchers.

The desk at UCLA is staffed by students who couldn't care less whether you're "qualified" or not.  An enormous difference, however, is that you have to contact UCLA in advance with your choices AND make an appointment, so that they can pull the videos and have them ready for you when you arrive.  At Paley, you just access the videos from your terminal.

In addition, many of their holdings either 1) can't be viewed at all (like the off-air daytime recordings they have from 1971 and 1973, which they lack playback equipment for), 2) can only be viewed with the approval of the archivist (and, given that they aren't well-financed, I doubt this approval is given much), or 3) requires them to be given notice a month or so in advance (the materials labelled "research copy" in the online catalog).

If you can do it, do it (I enjoyed it the one time I was able to engage in research there)- but I second Matt in terms of needing to be ready well in advance of your visit.