As Dick Clark thanked everyone in the show's fading minutes, Bill Cullen commended him for being a great all-around host. Clark finally says to end the show, "...and we'll see you again soon!" and gathered the entire production crew on-stage, including a rare appearance by Pyramid creator/producer/executive producer Bob Stewart, as the long credits crawl superimposed over them. Effective the following Monday (June 30), The $20,000 Pyramid was replaced with Family Feud.
JULY 1, 1988
The $25,000 Pyramid aired for the 1,404th and final time on CBS Daytime television. By this time, the show had renewed the format of the opening montage of past winners, one which had been long a staple on Pyramid during the '70s. The final 2 celebrity guests were Robin Riker-Halsey and Charlie Siebert. And, sadly, neither of the civilian contestants reached the top of The Pyramid in this final telecast!
This was actually the second cancellation of The $25,000 Pyramid. When CBS first dropped it on New Year's Eve, 1987 (with guests Anne Marie Johnson and Robert Hegyes), after 5 years and 1,339 shows, its replacement, the Bob Goen-hosted Jay Wolpert Production Blackout, left much to be desired. So, by popular demand, The $25,000 Pyramid returned to CBS after 13 weeks, thus making it the only game show in TV history to be replaced by another game and then in return replace that same game!
Dick Clark’s farewell speech:
“You know, they say all good things must come to pass, and I’m afraid that’s exactly what’s gonna happen today; we’ve just had the last CBS telecast of The $25,000 Pyramid. It gives us a chance to thank our wonderful CBS crew—they’ve been teriffic over the years—and to all of my friends at Bob Stewart Productions—they make the job real easy—and for all of us, we’d like to thank you for making us a part of your day for the past several years on The $25,000 Pyramid. For now, Dick Clark. [salutes] So long!”
Rumor has it that CBS revived The $25,000 Pyramid as only filler while Mark Goodson Productions' revival of Family Feud starring Ray Combs was being groomed for its premiere, which occurred the following Monday, replacing Pyramid. This was the second time in daytime TV history that The Feud has replaced the timeslot of a cancelled Pyramid; the first happened in June 1980, after The $20,000 Pyramid completed a 7-year run on ABC.
The nighttime $100,000 Pyramid stayed humming in syndication for 2 months until September 2, 1988, thus lowering the curtain on the Pyramid chapter for the 1980s.
JULY 2, 1973
Match Game 73, an update of the old 1962-69 NBC Daytime favorite The Match Game from the deranged minds of Mark Goodson and Bill Todman with, as host Gene Rayburn described, "more action, more money, and, as you can see, more celebrities," debuted at 3:30 (EDT), on CBS Television, sandwiched in between The Price Is Right and The Secret Storm (having been bumped a full week from its intended debut date, June 25, 1973, by ongoing network coverage of The Watergate Scandals). The celebrities on the panel of the first week of MG73 were Michael Landon, Vicki Lawrence, Jack Klugman, Jo Ann Pflug, Richard Dawson, and Anita Gillette; the series' other 2 regulars, Brett Somers and Charles Nelson Reilly, would not be included until the third week. The first two contestants were Stanley Viltz and Joan Roselle, with Viltz emerging victorious. The show's imminent success prompted the launch of a weekly syndicated primetime edition, Match Game PM, in September of 1975.
Every New Year's Eve, there was an update of the 2 digits in the title to reflect the coming of the new year (e.g. from Match Game 76 to Match Game 77, and so on). Show creator Mark Goodson originated the idea for a new hit game show from Match Game 7X. The "Super Match" round of Match Game 7X featured a contestant choosing panelist Richard Dawson virtually every time, trying to match the correct response to an audience survey. The segment became such a huge hit with audiences the survey, Richard Dawson and The Family Feud went on the air @ 1:30 PM EDT, Monday afternoon, July 12, 1976 on ABC Daytime. Dawson did double duty on Match Game 7X and The Feud until leaving the Match Game 7X panel altogether in 1978.
Then, in 1977, the roof caved in. CBS made the fatal decision to move Match Game 77 to the morning @ 10 AM (EDT), where it served as a follow up for the hour-long The Price Is Right. The resulting declining ratings prompted CBS to return Match Game 77 to the afternoon, but the damage was irreparable. After Match Game 79 finished 6 years and 1,445 shows on CBS on April 20, 1979 (with 10 leftovers still in the can; it was replaced by the Burt Sugarman-produced game Whew! the following Monday), the show transferred to daily syndication that very fall as simply Match Game (without, alas and alack, the tried-and-true 2-digit year designation in the title), where it remained until September 1982.
