Start Of A Disturbing Trend

[Ian Wallis]

I gotta tell ya - "Blank Check" was a very intriguing battle of wits (it wasn't really ESP, truth to tell), especially when the checkwriter was trying to outguess the challenger on the fourth number (thousands digit) on the check. Do you go low, or high?

I gotta agree.  Maybe these shows weren't up to today's "Jeopardy" or "Millionaire" standards, but to my young eyes they were fascinating when they were originally on and I'd like to see more of them.  It was a thrill to see the third episode of the actual series that just hit the trading curcuit.  I seem to vaguely remember the rules changing later in the run (I think Curt alludes to this on his page), and I'd certainly like to know how - I can't remember and can't figure out how they did.

[uncamark]

And it must be pointed out that it was game show lover Lin Bolen who made the call to expand "Another World" to an hour, thereby setting in motion the expansion of more soaps to an hour and effectively shunting game shows to the morning hours, since conventional wisdom was that soaps didn't work in the morning.

And it also has to be remembered that this was about the time the other networks joined ABC in paying more attention to demographics--and then, as now, game shows skewed ancient, with an influx of little kids during the summer months when they were off from school.

[ChuckNet]

And it must be pointed out that it was game show lover Lin Bolen who made the call to expand "Another World" to an hour, thereby setting in motion the expansion of more soaps to an hour and effectively shunting game shows to the morning hours, since conventional wisdom was that soaps didn't work in the morning.

Too bad NBC didn't consider that before they canned Blockbusters and Battlestars so Texas could be moved to 11 AM...if that show couldn't compete w/one of TV's top soaps (General Hopsital, which it orig. aired opposite), why would it be able to compete w/one of TV's top game shows?

Chuck Donegan (The Illustrious "Chuckie Baby")

[Ian Wallis]

However, Give-N-Take was dumped to make way for reruns of All In The Family.

Yes, and it was on this date 30 years ago (12/1/75) that "All in the Family" joined CBS's daytime lineup at 3 p.m., forcing "Match Game" and "Tattletales" back to their original 3:30 and 4 p.m. slots.  Although "Showoffs" would air it's last episode before the end of the year, these were pretty well the last moves in a wild and interesting year for game shows.