Tic Tac Dough

[DoorNumberFour]

Out of every run of Tic Tac Dough, I have to say I like Jim Caldwell's set the best. I'm a fan of pastel colors, and the doors behind the contestants look great. Also, the board and its classic background fit in well with the rest of the then-new set, in a strange way.

Thoughts?

[clemon79]

[quote name=\'DoorNumberFour\' post=\'239668\' date=\'Apr 17 2010, 11:32 PM\']Thoughts?[/quote]
Keep your posts on topic and the personal attacks out of them, Mr. Lemon.

[Post edited by moderator]

[whewfan]

I would agree that the Caldwell set was far more colorful. I think the original TTD set was one of the last of the "earth tone" sets and it stayed that way through the entire time Wink hosted. The set needed an update eventually. The only thing I thought was awkward was that the host no longer had an entrance, other than to walk out to the front of the stage. I also thought the hot pink and gray TTD logo behind Jim was a little too distracting for my tastes. I liked both sets, but when I saw the revitalized set of the Caldwell version, it did make it more compelling for me to watch at the time.

One of the problems with the Caldwell version was that Jim wasn't quite as smooth a host as Wink, although IMO he was FAR better and more entertaining to watch than Patrick Wayne several years later. Another possible problem is that in some markets, Headline Chasers aired alongside TTD. I know, at the time, I wondered why Wink was hosting a game that IMO didn't have an interesting enough format, and the casual viewer might also wonder what Wink is doing on a different show and not on TTD.

[wdm1219inpenna]

Being an old school guy, kind of "stuck in the 70s/80s" as my wife puts it, I always preferred Wink's set.  It seemed brighter and more homey.  Caldwell's set seemed too dark, almost menacing somehow to me.  I e-mailed Wink Martindale last year, and he responded in kind, and it was not just a quick reply either, he really wrote a nice reply back.  I wish I had asked him if his biggest regret was moving on from Tic Tac Dough to Headline Chasers.  I remember watching HC a few times and liking it ok.  I suspect had Wink stayed with Tic Tac Dough, it might have had a slightly longer run than it did, and that atrocious 1990 edition might never have come to pass.  Hard to believe Patrick Wayne's version was 20 years ago, boggles my mind.

[dazztardly]

Wink's set, to me was a trademark of what contributed to the success of the series.

From my understanding, that set was falling apart. Wear and tear from a set construction originally designed to stay assembled. Same reason Joker was rebuilt.

[Johnissoevil]

[quote name=\'wdm1219inpenna\' post=\'239678\' date=\'Apr 18 2010, 01:03 PM\']Being an old school guy, kind of "stuck in the 70s/80s" as my wife puts it, I always preferred Wink's set.  It seemed brighter and more homey.  Caldwell's set seemed too dark, almost menacing somehow to me.  I e-mailed Wink Martindale last year, and he responded in kind, and it was not just a quick reply either, he really wrote a nice reply back.  I wish I had asked him if his biggest regret was moving on from Tic Tac Dough to Headline Chasers.  I remember watching HC a few times and liking it ok.  I suspect had Wink stayed with Tic Tac Dough, it might have had a slightly longer run than it did, and that atrocious 1990 edition might never have come to pass.  Hard to believe Patrick Wayne's version was 20 years ago, boggles my mind.[/quote]

Gotta keep in mind, even when Wink was in his last years of hosting, TTD's ratings were dropping anyhow, right along with Joker.  So I don't know if even Wink would've been able to make a difference for the show's fate in 1986.

[TLEberle]

[quote name=\'dazztardly\' post=\'239683\' date=\'Apr 18 2010, 12:14 PM\']Wink's set, to me was a trademark of what contributed to the success of the series.[/quote] I liked the original beige set, but just don't understand how this could be.

From my understanding, that set was falling apart. Wear and tear from a set construction originally designed to stay assembled. Same reason Joker was rebuilt.

This does make sense. I'm not terribly crazy about pastels in set design (that pink/purple buzzer? who came up with that?) and think the set went from too bland and overcompensated.

[Vahan_Nisanian]

[quote name=\'Johnissoevil\' post=\'239689\' date=\'Apr 18 2010, 04:49 PM\'][quote name=\'wdm1219inpenna\' post=\'239678\' date=\'Apr 18 2010, 01:03 PM\']Being an old school guy, kind of "stuck in the 70s/80s" as my wife puts it, I always preferred Wink's set.  It seemed brighter and more homey.  Caldwell's set seemed too dark, almost menacing somehow to me.  I e-mailed Wink Martindale last year, and he responded in kind, and it was not just a quick reply either, he really wrote a nice reply back.  I wish I had asked him if his biggest regret was moving on from Tic Tac Dough to Headline Chasers.  I remember watching HC a few times and liking it ok.  I suspect had Wink stayed with Tic Tac Dough, it might have had a slightly longer run than it did, and that atrocious 1990 edition might never have come to pass.  Hard to believe Patrick Wayne's version was 20 years ago, boggles my mind.[/quote]

Gotta keep in mind, even when Wink was in his last years of hosting, TTD's ratings were dropping anyhow, right along with Joker.  So I don't know if even Wink would've been able to make a difference for the show's fate in 1986.
[/quote]

Two reasons: Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy!.

[Johnissoevil]

[quote name=\'gameshowlover87\' post=\'239703\' date=\'Apr 18 2010, 09:45 PM\']Two reasons: Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy!.[/quote]

Kinda makes it ironic, TTD and TJW being wiped out by what would be their future sister shows under Sony 10 years later.

[dazztardly]

[quote name=\'TLEberle\' post=\'239702\' date=\'Apr 18 2010, 08:34 PM\'][quote name=\'dazztardly\' post=\'239683\' date=\'Apr 18 2010, 12:14 PM\']Wink's set, to me was a trademark of what contributed to the success of the series.[/quote] I liked the original beige set, but just don't understand how this could be.

From my understanding, that set was falling apart. Wear and tear from a set construction originally designed to stay assembled. Same reason Joker was rebuilt.

This does make sense. I'm not terribly crazy about pastels in set design (that pink/purple buzzer? who came up with that?) and think the set went from too bland and overcompensated.
[/quote]

Dennis Roof was responsible for the updated set design. Well it was the 80s after all. Pastels were everywhere.

[chris319]

I've never seen a Dennis Roof design that I liked, starting with the Password puzzle board.

[BrandonFG]

[quote name=\'dazztardly\' post=\'239734\' date=\'Apr 19 2010, 04:17 PM\']Dennis Roof was responsible for the updated set design. Well it was the 80s after all. Pastels were everywhere.[/quote]
Which is interesting to me, seeing as how John C. Mula probably handled 95% of Barry-Enright's art direction, including TJW's neon set in the early-80s. Wonder why he wasn't tapped to make the set more contemporary?

I think the updated set would've looked better with a different color scheme...going from the tan and wood-grain paneling with the huge bulbs everywhere, to Miami Vice pastels seemed odd. Maybe if they had stuck with the tan...

Something just hit me...the backdrop used for the gameboard and when the contestant doors open looks a LOT like the backdrop used for the Squares portion of the MG-HS Hour. I believe Dennis did that set too, so I'm now wondering how much inspiration that was for what he did a little more than a year later?

[dazztardly]

[quote name=\'fostergray82\' post=\'239738\' date=\'Apr 19 2010, 04:45 PM\'][quote name=\'dazztardly\' post=\'239734\' date=\'Apr 19 2010, 04:17 PM\']Dennis Roof was responsible for the updated set design. Well it was the 80s after all. Pastels were everywhere.[/quote]
Which is interesting to me, seeing as how John C. Mula probably handled 95% of Barry-Enright's art direction, including TJW's neon set in the early-80s. Wonder why he wasn't tapped to make the set more contemporary?

I think the updated set would've looked better with a different color scheme...going from the tan and wood-grain paneling with the huge bulbs everywhere, to Miami Vice pastels seemed odd. Maybe if they had stuck with the tan...

Something just hit me...the backdrop used for the gameboard and when the contestant doors open looks a LOT like the backdrop used for the Squares portion of the MG-HS Hour. I believe Dennis did that set too, so I'm now wondering how much inspiration that was for what he did a little more than a year later?
[/quote]

Mula left to go work on a Kline and Friends show. It probably would have been too awkward for him to work for two rivals.

[Adam Nedeff]

[quote name=\'chris319\' post=\'239737\' date=\'Apr 19 2010, 04:44 PM\']I've never seen a Dennis Roof design that I liked, starting with the Password puzzle board.[/quote]
Did he design both of them? Because the blue one looked pretty cool. That first one WAS pretty awful, though.

[BrandonFG]

[quote name=\'chris319\' post=\'239737\' date=\'Apr 19 2010, 04:44 PM\']I've never seen a Dennis Roof design that I liked, starting with the Password puzzle board.[/quote]
I actually did like his Card Sharks set from '86. Then again, I've always been partial to that version, having grown up watching it...

Mula left to go work on a Kline and Friends show. It probably would have been too awkward for him to work for two rivals.

Would that have been Rayburn/Farago's Break the Bank? That was at the back of my mind.