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Author Topic: This Week's Game Show TV Milestone  (Read 2253 times)

AH3RD

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This Week's Game Show TV Milestone
« on: April 11, 2004, 07:13:58 PM »
APRIL 12, 1976

Break The Bank
, a Jack Barry-Dan Enright-produced game show featuring 9 celebrities hosted by Tom Kennedy and announced by Johnny Jacobs (and had a format which combined the elements of The Hollywood Squares and Match Game 76!), premiered  @ 2:30 p.m. Eastern/1:30 p.m. Central on the ABC afternoon daytime schedule. It was Barry-Enright’s next big network daytime hit following the 1972-75 CBS game The Joker’s Wild, and was the second of three separate game shows to air on TV bearing the same title: the first being a 1948-56 game shown on all 3 networks emceed by Bud Collyer and Bert Parks, and the third a 1985-86 syndicated venture distributed by Kline and Friends Inc., hosted by Gene Rayburn and Don Fargo.

These nine celebrities were guests during the game’s debut week: Abe Vigoda, Alice Ghostley, Jo Ann Plufg, Dick Gautier, Jan Murray, Lynda Carter, Liz Torres, Robert Hegyes, and Marjoe Gortner. Although there were no regular panelists, Jan Murray and Liz Torres were the most frequent celebrities on the show.

The game board had various denominations of money in groups of three, with  money bags scattered in different places. Three $100 boxes touched each other along one of the sides, three $200 boxes each touched each other, and three $300 boxes also touched each other. 5 money bags were scattered all over, with a wild box, which can be located anywhere and when uncovered be used for any value. The remaining boxes had no value, as they are blank, but don’t touch each other along any of the sides. A contestant could win if he/she got three of the same boxes; getting three money bags would enable the contestant to (natch!) break the bank, which is worth $5,000. For every question used, a true answer is given by one celebrity and a false one by another (borrowing a bit from The Hollywood Squares). A home game was manufactured by Milton Bradley in 1976.

Break The Bank was surprisingly very popular with viewers, cleanly and firmly becoming the second highest-rated network daytime game show, sandwiched between CBS’s Match Game '76 and The $20,000 Pyramid, another ratings monster on ABC. Apparently, it debuted at a rather terrible time, a time when networks extended soap operas one hour. ABC in particular needed extra time to accommodate the expanding time given to One Life To Live and General Hospital from 30 minutes to 45 minutes, with an extra half-hour still needed. Break The Bank had about as much chance of survival as an ice cube in an oven. Despite its magnificent following and boisterous ratings, it criminally lasted no further than 15 weeks; it aired on ABC for the 75th and last time on July 23, 1976, a rare (and undeserving) calamity for an otherwise outstanding game show. Its final slew of celebrity guests were Soupy Sales, Elke Sommer, Donny Most, Lonnie Shorr, Jan Murray, Joyce Bulifant, Jaye P. Morgan, Bill Cullen, and Jo Anne Worley.

Distressed but undaunted, Barry-Enright tried again, and Break The Bank was syndicated that very fall as a once-a-week show, debuting September 18, 1976, hosted by co-creator Jack Barry (his next hosting gig following TJW). Though not as successful as its ABC Daytime predecessor, it did manage to last a bit longer; airing this time for one full season.  After this, Jack Barry went on to emcee a more successful syndicated revival: that of his previous hit The Joker’s Wild. (Trivia Footnote: Hal Hidey's theme music for Break The Bank, performed by Stu Levin, would also be used on The Joker’s Wild Million-Dollar Charity Tournament which aired in November of 1980!)

(Source of info: History Of Break The Bank)
« Last Edit: April 11, 2004, 07:17:31 PM by AH3RD »
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1978-Jeopardy

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« Reply #1 on: April 11, 2004, 08:02:36 PM »
About how many episodes of the syndie version were made?
« Last Edit: April 11, 2004, 08:02:57 PM by 1978-Jeopardy »

zachhoran

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« Reply #2 on: April 11, 2004, 08:05:27 PM »
[quote name=\'1978-Jeopardy\' date=\'Apr 11 2004, 07:02 PM\'] About how many episodes of the syndie version were made? [/quote]
 39

Jimmy Owen

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« Reply #3 on: April 11, 2004, 09:03:01 PM »
I liked BTB as well, but the ratings history is a little misleading because, if going by the ratings summary in the EOTVGS, the period covered was Oct 75 to April 76.  There couldn't have been more than three weeks of BTB shows in that time span whereas the other game shows spanned the entire seven months. Of course, soap ratings aren't included so it's possible the soaps had higher ratings. If the ratings were that strong, it makes one wonder why Barry didn't rush the show into a strip in syndication.
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aaron sica

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« Reply #4 on: April 11, 2004, 10:21:18 PM »
[quote name=\'AH3RD\' date=\'Apr 11 2004, 07:13 PM\']

Break The Bank was surprisingly very popular with viewers, cleanly and firmly becoming the second highest-rated network daytime game show, sandwiched between CBS’s Match Game '76 and The $20,000 Pyramid, another ratings monster on ABC.
 [/quote]
 It was not sandwiched directly, however; $20,000 Pyramid was on at 2:00 p.m. in 1976, but MG76 aired at 3:30 p.m.  by this time (it had aired at 3:00 in 1975, however).

GSWitch

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« Reply #5 on: April 11, 2004, 10:26:45 PM »
Also on the Kennedy version...

1).  The bank started @ $5,000 & grew $500 per game not won.  Later it would be $250 per game.

2).  Later in the game, contestants could win boxes if the opponent was wrong (exception; if it gave the player the win.  That player would have to earn it him/herself.).

3).  Only the Kennedy version had a returning champion.

The theme was also heard on a short lived B-E show called SoapWorld.

DON FARGO???  Didn't you mean JOE FARAGO!
« Last Edit: April 11, 2004, 10:27:35 PM by GSWitch »

Brandon Brooks

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« Reply #6 on: April 11, 2004, 11:08:38 PM »
[quote name=\'aaron sica\' date=\'Apr 11 2004, 09:21 PM\'] [quote name=\'AH3RD\' date=\'Apr 11 2004, 07:13 PM\']

Break The Bank was surprisingly very popular with viewers, cleanly and firmly becoming the second highest-rated network daytime game show, sandwiched between CBS’s Match Game '76 and The $20,000 Pyramid, another ratings monster on ABC.
 [/quote]
It was not sandwiched directly, however; $20,000 Pyramid was on at 2:00 p.m. in 1976, but MG76 aired at 3:30 p.m.  by this time (it had aired at 3:00 in 1975, however). [/quote]
 Sandwiched in ratings.

Brandon Brooks

BrandonFG

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« Reply #7 on: April 11, 2004, 11:09:54 PM »
[quote name=\'GSWitch\' date=\'Apr 11 2004, 09:26 PM\'] Also on the Kennedy version...

1).  The bank started @ $5,000 & grew $500 per game not won.  Later it would be $250 per game.

2).  Later in the game, contestants could win boxes if the opponent was wrong (exception; if it gave the player the win.  That player would have to earn it him/herself.).

3).  Only the Kennedy version had a returning champion.

The theme was also heard on a short lived B-E show called SoapWorld.

DON FARGO???  Didn't you mean JOE FARAGO! [/quote]
 Not to mention TJW's Million Dollar Tournament in 1980.
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Don Howard

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« Reply #8 on: April 12, 2004, 01:59:24 PM »
I'm almost moved to tears--a credit in the secondary title section. What a nice 28th anniversary of Break The Bank surprise. I believe I'll light a candle at 2:30pm in the program's memory. And then burn a photograph of Fred Silverman with the flame. Great show, pulse-pounding music, dramatic announcing....for me a perfect package.

bulldog_06

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« Reply #9 on: April 12, 2004, 05:34:49 PM »
The host of the '80s version was Joe Farago not Don Fargo.

That Don Guy

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« Reply #10 on: April 12, 2004, 11:48:58 PM »
[quote name=\'GSWitch\' date=\'Apr 11 2004, 09:26 PM\'] Also on the Kennedy version...

1).  The bank started @ $5,000 & grew $500 per game not won.  Later it would be $250 per game.

2).  Later in the game, contestants could win boxes if the opponent was wrong (exception; if it gave the player the win.  That player would have to earn it him/herself.).

3).  Only the Kennedy version had a returning champion.
 [/quote]
Also:

There were no questions for money bags; the player could keep the money bag (and lose their turn to their opponent), or give it back and keep playing.  (At least one contestant broke the bank by selecting a previously-found-but-returned money bag.)  Note that two money bags and the wild card also broke the bank.

Getting a question right meant that player made the next choice as well; if a game (on the Kennedy version) ended without the second player having the opportunity to select a square, the player remained for the next game.  (However, if the second player did have one opportunity, but happened to select a blank, the contestant left the show.)

-- Don

Ian Wallis

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This Week's Game Show TV Milestone
« Reply #11 on: April 13, 2004, 09:06:00 AM »
Quote
I'm almost moved to tears--a credit in the secondary title section. What a nice 28th anniversary of Break The Bank surprise. I believe I'll light a candle at 2:30pm in the program's memory. And then burn a photograph of Fred Silverman with the flame. Great show, pulse-pounding music, dramatic announcing....for me a perfect package.


I'll join you!  I also thought '76 "Break the Bank" was a great show, and that's why I was rather upset when GSN took it off once G-T returned in April 1998.  I was hoping in all that time that they'd find a spot on the regular schedule for it - but they never did.

It's too bad - they ran through "Go" about three times, but couldn't give "Break the Bank" even one complete run-through.  Oh well...I guess we should be happy they gave us six weeks - I guess we'll probably never get any more.
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ChuckNet

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« Reply #12 on: April 13, 2004, 02:00:41 PM »
Quote
I'll join you! I also thought '76 "Break the Bank" was a great show, and that's why I was rather upset when GSN took it off once G-T returned in April 1998. I was hoping in all that time that they'd find a spot on the regular schedule for it - but they never did.

Yeah, pity...I also thought it was great and enjoyed what GSN did air of Kennedy's version, not to mention the 5 eps of Barry's version that they surprised us with.

ChucK Donegan (The Illustrious "Chuckie Baby")