The Game Show Forum
The Game Show Forum => The Big Board => Topic started by: AH3RD on September 20, 2004, 06:01:35 PM
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Naw...best make that "22 Years Ago Today..."!
SEPTEMBER 20, 1982
CBS Television honored the daytime premieres of 2 Great Game Shows: The $25,000 Pyramid and Child's Play!
The $25,000 Pyramid, a new edition of the game show created by Bob Stewart and hosted by Dick Clark, returned to CBS-TV @ 10:00am EDT (after an 8-year absence!), with Constance McCashin and Robert Mandan as the guests for the premiere week, and episodes now videotaped at CBS Television City Studio #33, situated @ 7800 Beverly Boulevard in Los Angeles, CA.
The origin of the series eminated on Monday, January 26, 1981, an almost-full 6 months after the demise of The $20,000 Pyramid on ABC; on that date, a brand new syndicated version, The $50,000 Pyramid, distributed by Chicago-based CPM, Inc., made its debut throughout the country. This was the Pyramid which introduced the "round-robin style tournament" format of the series, something which would also be employed for the $100,000 version (more on that later). The unfortunately short 5-month life of $50,000 Pyramid that resulted can be attributed to a great many factors, but the most obvious are the couple of elements which made it old-hat: the set, which was a hackneyed reworking of the old $20,000 set, and the omnipresent theme, Ken Aldin's "Tuning Up," which had been the main theme of Pyramid for some 8 years and by this time sounded as if it were a scratchy record played on AM radio. Therefore, when it was decided to revive Pyramid for network TV, a few alterations were made: Spice up the musical theme! Revamp the set! Move the show to new digs! But keep Dick Clark as host!!! This new format was workable, and so it was that The $25,000 Pyramid went on to thrill new viewers as well as its old fans.
Almost 2 months later, on Monday, November 8, 1982, the show became The New $25,000 Pyramid to avoid confusion with the same-titled 1974-79 Bill Cullen syndie primetime version; the "New" was removed from the title effective the January 28, 1985 episode (#608). That same year, the success of the CBS Daytime version yielded a daily nighttime version, The $100,000 Pyramid (syndicated originally by 20th Century-Fox Television), which debuted on on various stations Monday, September 9, 1985 with debut guests Vicki Lawrence and Brian Mitchell.
Contd...
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After 6 years, The $25,000 Pyramid aired for the 1,404th and final time on CBS Daytime television on Friday, July 1, 1988. 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-Hasley 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!
Rumor had 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 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 calling it quits after 3 years and 545 shows on Friday, September 2, 1988, thus bringing down the curtain on the Pyramid chapter for the 1980s.
Child's Play, which premiered on CBS directly after @ 10:30am EDT, was a neat Mark Goodson-created game kid's/adult's game played similarly to Pyramid, hosted, ironically, by former Pyramid emcee Bill Cullen! Two contestents, one a champion, face off. In Round 1, three definitions are played, each with a maximum of three children (who were recorded on videotape that was being shown onscreen to the contestents) giving each definition. The first person to guess is the challenger or the player who didn't correctly guess in the final round. Each correct answer is one point.
Contd...
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Then, a "Fast Play" round is played with a kid giving a definition, and a player buzzing in to guess; correct answers are worth 2 points. The player with the most points when time runs out wins the game and $500. The maximum time a player can stay on the game is 5 days straight.
Through its one-season run on CBS Daytime (September 20, 1982-September 16, 1983), Child's Play had two different endgames, with the switch being made in Spring 1983: in the "Triple Play" end round (September 1982-May 1983?) the contestent has to guess six definations, they pick one of three definations written by some of the children who appeared earlier on in the show. If incorrect, they pick a definition for the same word by another child. Getting 6 correct definitions in 45 seconds wins $5,000, if not they win $100 per correctly guessed definition. In the "Turnabout" end round (May?-September 1983), an inverted version of its predecessor, the champion has to convey words to five children on stage who had previously appeared on the program in the frontgame definitions. Getting 7 right answers is worth $5,000, if not, $100 per word.
Child's Play was the first ever Mark Goodson Production without Bill Todman (who, sadly, was 3 years dead at the time; fellow CBS games The Price Is Right and TattleTales and other G-T games would follow suit in changed names). Also, it was Bill Cullen's final game show for Goodson after 30 years emceeing games for the company (as well as his next assignment following his 1980-82 stint on rival NBC's Blockbusters).
(Sources Of Info: The "Pyramid" Game Show's Years In New York City (http://\"http://www.fortunecity.com/lavendar/westbridge/448/padronarticle.htm\"); The Child's Play Page [inactive])
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Child's Play had two different endgames, with the switch being made in Spring 1983: in the "Triple Play" end round (September 1982-May 1983?)
Very good review. From watching GSN reruns a few years ago, I'm pretty sure the second bonus game started at almost exactly the half-way mark in the show's run, which would put it in a late February-early March time frame.
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Aaron didn't do a review of Take my Word for It or So You Think You Got Troubles, the two syndicated classic also debuting this week or last in 1982.
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"Child's Play" became a viewing habit for me for a while on CBS. I think it suffered from having a set that was too dark, though that may have been due to the demands of the video monitor. Probably the only game show announced by CNN's Fred Saxon. Jeff Cohen, Breckin Meyer and Tara Reid went on to do movies.
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So while hosting Child's Play, Bill Cullen was hosting a show positioned on CBS both before and after a show that he had hosted in an earlier incarnation.
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[quote name=\'Jimmy Owen\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 09:54 AM\'] "Child's Play" became a viewing habit for me for a while on CBS. I think it suffered from having a set that was too dark, though that may have been due to the demands of the video monitor. [/quote]
Interesting you should mention that. One of the treasures I now have in my Cullen Collection is a set of dozens upon dozens of color Child's Play slides. I'm having a slight problem getting them scanned, though, because my pretty simple, automatic home scanner keeps recognizing them as negatives rather than color images, probably because the dominant background is so dark. I'm working around it, but it's tedious.
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[quote name=\'zachhoran\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 08:53 AM\'] Aaron didn't do a review of Take my Word for It or So You Think You Got Troubles, the two syndicated classic also debuting this week or last in 1982. [/quote]
He also didn't do a review of Soap World, a Jack Barry/Dan Enright production which used the theme to Break The Bank. Likewise, he didn't do a review of The New Odd Couple which co-starred Demond Wilson, who was in a cubicle for some episodes of The Hollywood Squares.
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[quote name=\'Don Howard\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 10:04 AM\'] So while hosting Child's Play, Bill Cullen was hosting a show positioned on CBS both before and after a show that he had hosted in an earlier incarnation. [/quote]
To me, it always seemed odd to see Bill on a CBS show. The shows I primarily remember him in were all on NBC (Blockbusters, Chain Reaction, Hot Potato)..Even the syndicated $25,000 Pyramid aired on an NBC station here (WGAL-8)....
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[quote name=\'zachhoran\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 08:53 AM\'] Aaron didn't do a review of Take my Word for It or So You Think You Got Troubles, the two syndicated classic also debuting this week or last in 1982. [/quote]
Classics? What are you smoking?
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[quote name=\'aaron sica\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 09:18 AM\'] To me, it always seemed odd to see Bill on a CBS show. The shows I primarily remember him in were all on NBC (Blockbusters, Chain Reaction, Hot Potato)..Even the syndicated $25,000 Pyramid aired on an NBC station here (WGAL-8).... [/quote]
Not unprecedented, though. He did do PASS THE BUCK for the Tiffany Network (insert gratuitous joke about their news operation here). This is just one example--a detailed listing of other examples is not necessary (subtlety is my forte ;-) ).
Doug
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[quote name=\'Don Howard\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 09:10 AM\'] [quote name=\'zachhoran\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 08:53 AM\'] Aaron didn't do a review of Take my Word for It or So You Think You Got Troubles, the two syndicated classic also debuting this week or last in 1982. [/quote]
He also didn't do a review of Soap World, a Jack Barry/Dan Enright production which used the theme to Break The Bank. Likewise, he didn't do a review of The New Odd Couple which co-starred Demond Wilson, who was in a cubicle for some episodes of The Hollywood Squares. [/quote]
Soap World was syndied by King World, shortly before they began syndicating a nighttime version of a fledgling NBC daytime game show :)
The New OC co-starred John Schuck, whose game show appearances included $10K, $20K, Cullen $25K, Clark $25K, and Davidson $100K Pyramid, 70s and 80s Crosswits, Password Plus, and Marshall and Davidson Squares.
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[quote name=\'tvwxman\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 09:19 AM\'] [quote name=\'zachhoran\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 08:53 AM\'] Aaron didn't do a review of Take my Word for It or So You Think You Got Troubles, the two syndicated classic also debuting this week or last in 1982. [/quote]
Classics? What are you smoking? [/quote]
Sarcasm, that's what I'm smoking :)
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[quote name=\'zachhoran\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 09:30 AM\'] The New OC co-starred John Schuck [/quote]
John Schuck also co-starred on McMillan & Wife starring Rock Hudson, who died in 1985, the same year as the premiere of Headline Chasers.
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[quote name=\'Don Howard\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 09:32 AM\'] [quote name=\'zachhoran\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 09:30 AM\'] The New OC co-starred John Schuck [/quote]
John Schuck also co-starred on McMillan & Wife starring Rock Hudson, who died in 1985, the same year as the premiere of Headline Chasers. [/quote]
I think Dickie Dawson did a guest shot on McMillan and Wife, no? He made references to it on both MG and Feud.
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[quote name=\'zachhoran\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 10:37 AM\'] I think Dickie Dawson did a guest shot on McMillan and Wife, no? He made references to it on both MG and Feud. [/quote]
In other words, Don, sarcasm is lost on Zach.
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[quote name=\'SRIV94\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 10:26 AM\'] Not unprecedented, though. He did do PASS THE BUCK for the Tiffany Network (insert gratuitous joke about their news operation here). This is just one example--a detailed listing of other examples is not necessary (subtlety is my forte ;-) ).
Doug [/quote]
He also, of course, did TPiR on ABC, and Blankety Blanks on ABC, and PtB as you mentioned, on CBS. I was less than a year old when BB aired, and about 3 1/2 when PtB aired (although I have seen it on GSN in the past).
I dunno, for me, Bill's just so many on NBC, I just tend to think of him as an "NBC guy"...
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Oh, heck, you could have guessed THIS was coming. By date, and color-coded by network:
http://userdata.acd.net/ottinger/Cullen/timeline.htm (http://\"http://userdata.acd.net/ottinger/Cullen/timeline.htm\")
Aaron's hunch is right. Even going back over the history of his career, Bill hosted more shows for NBC than for any other network. Add that to the five years he was WNBC's morning radio man in the late fifties, and it's safe to say that Bill was more commonly associated with NBC than any other network. Never exclusively, though, even when he was doing things for NBC Sports.
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[quote name=\'zachhoran\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 09:30 AM\'] The New OC co-starred John Schuck [/quote]
John Schuck also starred on Holmes & Yoyo, a sitcom on which periodic guest appearances were made by Larry Hovis, producer and regular panelist on The Liars' Club.
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QUOTE (SRIV94 @ Sep 21 2004, 09:26 AM)
This is just one example--a detailed listing of other examples is not necessary (subtlety is my forte ;-) ).
QUOTE (Matt Ottinger @ Sep 21 2004, 10:20 AM)
Oh, heck, you could have guessed THIS was coming. By date, and color-coded by network:
Well put together. Of course, I was thinking of someone else when I was trying not to be subtle. Nice job in any case.
Doug
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[quote name=\'zachhoran\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 09:30 AM\'] The New OC co-starred John Schuck [/quote]
John Schuck starred as Herman Munster on The New Munsters. Also in the cast as Grandpa was Howard Morton, a fairly regular celebrity player on The $25,000 Pyramid during his days on One Day At A Time and Gimme A Break.
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[quote name=\'Don Howard\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 03:51 PM\'] [quote name=\'zachhoran\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 09:30 AM\'] The New OC co-starred John Schuck [/quote]
John Schuck starred as Herman Munster on The New Munsters. Also in the cast as Grandpa was Howard Morton, a fairly regular celebrity player on The $25,000 Pyramid during his days on One Day At A Time and Gimme A Break. [/quote]
Who did Howard Morton play on "One Day at a Time"? I remember him on "Gimme a Break"...
ObGameShows: Valerie Bertinelli was a celebrity player on "$20,000 Pyramid".
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Stay with me now--he played Mackenzie Phillips' boyfriend's father (the very notable episode where Julie runs away).
JULIE: Either I run my life, or I don't come back.
ANN: OK, Julie. (Large pause) Don't come back.
<Audience at Metromedia Square applauds>
G-d, I loved that show. :)
Doug
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[quote name=\'SRIV94\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 03:35 PM\'] Stay with me now--he played Mackenzie Phillips' boyfriend's father (the very notable episode where Julie runs away).
[/quote]
Yes, that was a four-parter to open the season. In that arc, the boyfriend was played by William Kirby Cullen. When called by his nickname, his name is Bill Cullen.
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[quote name=\'Don Howard\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 03:47 PM\'] Yes, that was a four-parter to open the season. In that arc, the boyfriend was played by William Kirby Cullen. When called by his nickname, his name is Bill Cullen. [/quote]
Probably had to go by that because of union restrictions. For those uninitiated, if you join AFTRA (or SAG, for that matter) and someone already had the name you wanted to be known by you needed to modify it in some way (like adding a middle initial, adding a middle name, going formal on your first name, going casual on your first name, even changing the name entirely, et al).
I was lucky--no one in AFTRA had *my* name. :)
Doug
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John Schuck also starred on Holmes & Yoyo, a sitcom on which periodic guest appearances were made by Larry Hovis, producer and regular panelist on The Liars' Club.
"Holmes & Yoyo" ---yes, that was on right before "Mr T & Tina" (anybody remember that?) in 1976. Pat Morita starred in "Mr T & Tina", and he guested on "Tattletales" around the time of his show's debut.
Probably had to go by that because of union restrictions. For those uninitiated, if you join AFTRA (or SAG, for that matter) and someone already had the name you wanted to be known by you needed to modify it in some way (like adding a middle initial, adding a middle name, going formal on your first name, going casual on your first name, even changing the name entirely, et al).
That's correct, and one of the best examples that come to mind is singer/actress Vanessa Williams. There's also another actress known as Vanessa Williams who starred for a while in "Melrose Place". I'm pretty sure it's the former who now goes by Vanessa L. Williams. She guested on "Super Password" several times in the '80s.
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[quote name=\'SRIV94\' date=\'Sep 21 2004, 04:35 PM\'] Stay with me now--he played Mackenzie Phillips' boyfriend's father (the very notable episode where Julie runs away).
JULIE: Either I run my life, or I don't come back.
ANN: OK, Julie. (Large pause) Don't come back.
<Audience at Metromedia Square applauds>
G-d, I loved that show. :)
Doug [/quote]
Oh, OK - I remember that little storyline now, but don't remember Howard Morton playing him.
If/when the show comes out on DVD (which, at the rate TV shows are flying onto discs, hopefully soon!), I'll check it out.
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[quote name=\'Ian Wallis\' date=\'Sep 22 2004, 08:29 AM\']
That's correct, and one of the best examples that come to mind is singer/actress Vanessa Williams. I'm pretty sure it's the former who now goes by Vanessa L. Williams. She guested on "Super Password" several times in the '80s. [/quote]
And she did Hot Potato in their first all-celeb week, Miss Americas vs. All American Sportsmen, during her Miss A. reign.
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[quote name=\'Ian Wallis\' date=\'Sep 22 2004, 08:29 AM\'] "Holmes & Yoyo" ---yes, that was on right before "Mr T & Tina" (anybody remember that?) in 1976. [/quote]
Also in the cast of Mr T. And Tina was a bearded Ted Lange, a few months removed from his co-starring role on That's My Mama and a year away from his decade-long stint on The Love Boat. Ted, along with Vicki Lawrence, was one of the celebrity players for the final week of Body Language.
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[quote name=\'Don Howard\' date=\'Sep 22 2004, 08:58 AM\'] Ted Lange, along with Vicki Lawrence, was one of the celebrity players for the final week of Body Language. [/quote]
Vicki was on the first and last weeks of BL. Not many celebs can make the claim that they appeared on the first and last weeks of a celeb game show, can they?
Ted did a couple weeks of MG daily Syndie(including a guest stint when Fred Grandy was on the panel), and Celeb Millionaire during a Classic TV Week.
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[quote name=\'zachhoran\' date=\'Sep 22 2004, 09:01 AM\'] Vicki was on the first and last weeks of BL. Not many celebs can make the claim that they appeared on the first and last weeks of a celeb game show, can they?
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The closest I can think of might be Jamie Farr. He did the off-air week of GONG hosted by Barbour, which were written in the books as episodes 1-5, and did the second on-air week when Barris took over the hosting chores. He was also on the panel for the final NBC daytime week as well. David Schwartz (yes, I did talk to him a few times upon my initial getting of GSN in 1998--I SWARE ;-) ) once told me that the first Barris episode was logged as episode 6, which is where GSN had started its run.
Checking Dixon Hayes' site, Rose Marie did do the first episode of HSq (and we all know she was on the last NBC daytime episode as well). I don't recall if she did the 1981 syndie finale or not, but even so, isn't that pretty much a separate series anyway?
Doug
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[quote name=\'zachhoran\' date=\'Sep 22 2004, 09:01 AM\'] Not many celebs can make the claim that they appeared on the first and last weeks of a celeb game show, can they?
[/quote]
Was Nipsey Russell on both the first and last episodes of Rhyme And Reason?
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[quote name=\'aaron sica\' date=\'Sep 22 2004, 09:57 AM\'] If/when [One Day at a Time] comes out on DVD (which, at the rate TV shows are flying onto discs, hopefully soon!), I'll check it out. [/quote]
According to this item from TVShowsOnDVD.com (http://\"http://tvshowsondvd.com/newsitem.cfm?NewsID=2182\"), season 1 is "coming soon". So far, the only full-season box sets I have are the first seasons of Survivor, The Dukes of Hazzard, and The Apprentice, but if/when I start getting disposable income again, hopefully that will change.
ObGS: Pat Harrington did the circuit as well, including the final week of Blackout.
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[quote name=\'GS Warehouse\' date=\'Sep 22 2004, 10:42 AM\'] ObGS: Pat Harrington did the circuit as well, including the final week of Blackout. [/quote]
Pat Harrington did a number of spots for WJKW-TV 8 in Cleveland for the Hot Car theft prevention system in his One Day At A Time character of Dwayne Schneider.
ObTopic: At the time, TV-8 was Cleveland's CBS affiliate, which carried The $25,000 Pyramid and Child's Play.
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[quote name=\'Ian Wallis\' date=\'Sep 22 2004, 09:29 AM\']
Probably had to go by that because of union restrictions. For those uninitiated, if you join AFTRA (or SAG, for that matter) and someone already had the name you wanted to be known by you needed to modify it in some way (like adding a middle initial, adding a middle name, going formal on your first name, going casual on your first name, even changing the name entirely, et al).
That's correct, and one of the best examples that come to mind is singer/actress Vanessa Williams. There's also another actress known as Vanessa Williams who starred for a while in "Melrose Place". I'm pretty sure it's the former who now goes by Vanessa L. Williams. She guested on "Super Password" several times in the '80s. [/quote]
At one point it looked like there was going to be a compromise worked out between the two Vanessas, especially back when the defrocked Miss America thought she was going to concentrate more on a singing career. But as her star has risen and confusion has become greater, the singer ultimately had to start using the "L." in her name. Technically, since she was first, the Melrose Place actress doesn't have to use her initial, but to avoid confusion in her own career, she often goes by "Vanessa A."
An actor having three names once seemed pretentious (sorry, CNR!) but more and more often, young people with three names has become the norm because of these issues. I always remember a few years ago when the soap and character actor Michael Fox passed away that the otherwise brief tribute articles made a point of saying that he's the reason the younger, much more famous actor had to use the middle initial "J."
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One other one (dammit, well two) I can think of would be Ed Burns and Edd "Kookie" Byrnes, and of course Mark Walberg/Wahlberg. Thus the L. for Walberg.
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[quote name=\'Matt Ottinger\' date=\'Sep 22 2004, 01:03 PM\'] I always remember a few years ago when the soap and character actor Michael Fox passed away that the otherwise brief tribute articles made a point of saying that he's the reason the younger, much more famous actor had to use the middle initial "J." [/quote]
In one of those tributes, it was mentioned that Michael J. Fox told Johnny Carson on The Tonight Show that he doesn't have a middle initial, but he did indeed add the "J" because of the actor Michael Fox, who finally got a regular acting role on The Bold And The Beautiful during the final years of his life.
When Johnny told Michael J. that he'd never heard of Michael Fox, Michael J. coughed up this laugher, "He's one of those guys who played the mad scientist's assistant in movies about mummies" to which Michael Fox replied in an interview with either TV Guide or Soap Opera Digest, "I never played a role in a mummy film, but if offered the part, I would have taken it". Classy comeback from a great man.
ObGameShows: Cast members of The Bold And The Beautiful have played on The $25,000 Pyramid and Family Feud.
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Slight correction to the otherwise excellent "Pyramid" summary: There were 550 episodes of the 1985-1988 "$100,000 Pyramid," not 545.
Brendan