The Bill Cullen Story

[Don Howard]

I've seen listed in some places that Bill Cullen was the host of 23 game shows.
In other places, it says 24. In still others, it says 26.
Not counting fill-in duty on To Tell The Truth or Password Plus or anyplace else where he was a sub and not counting pilots that didn't make it to air, how many game shows was Bill hired to be the actual permanent bona fide host for which did run on network or syndicated television?
There's no need to list them all (someone will anyway), I'm just lookin' for an actual official number.

[Robert Hutchinson]

I'm looking at the list on Matt O.'s page, and you've got a show that was only recently found to have even existed, a show or two that isn't "really" a game show, a show that probably wasn't hosted by Bill, and so on and so forth.

I don't think you can pick a number that everyone will agree on.

[Jimmy Owen]

I don't know if a line should be drawn between fill in and permanent.  He was the permanent host of IGAS '76 which lasted, what, 5 shows, yet he hosted P+ and TTTT for more episodes than that.  HDYLYE I might put under the pilot designation but for the possibility that it aired more than once.  I will say 23 is the generally accepted figure.

[Matt Ottinger]

Well, if you don't count Password Plus or TTTT, I only get 22 shows that fit Don's conditions.  Even one of those (Act It Out) was probably local to NYC.  

I'd personally never heard that 23 was the "official" number, but chances are wherever that number came from, they were probably counting at LEAST Password Plus, and they were probably counting others but NOT counting some that I located later.  Professor Yes 'n' No doesn't show up in too many reference books, for example.