Cross-Wits: could it work today?

[uncamark]

[quote name=\'Dsmith\' date=\'Jul 7 2004, 12:45 AM\'][quote name=\'PeterMarshallFan\' date=\'Jul 6 2004, 12:00 PM\'] Topic is self descriptive. Do you think Cross-Wits could work today? Who would host? Would there be gameplay changes? [/quote]
No, I don't think the game would work today. Crossword puzzles mainly skew the over 54 crowd; demographics would be bad; and the show really wasn't that interesting.[/quote]
This is a case where the two different versions of the show went in totally different directions.

The original was on in the mid-70s, where "Squares" and "MG" were the hot shows.  This version of "CW" had an influence from "Squares" by giving the celebs scripted joke answers.  Even if most of them were lame, the joke answers, along with the tendency of the clues to be more tongue-in-cheek and Jack Clark's tendency not to take things too seriously made it more of a comedy show (and on many days Clark carried the show more than you'd think).

For the revival, it was decided to play the game more straightforward--the clues were less jokey and the celebs weren't fed joke answers.  Considering that Jerry Payne, the show's creator, was involved with this version all throughout indicates that this may've been how he envisioned the show.  However, all of that combined with the mummified presence of David Sparks (who was and is a seemingly nice guy, just a stiff host) made the revival less entertaining.

If they revived the show, it would have to be played more for comedy in the material and perhaps with fed answers--but they'd have to find someone as loose, witty and easy-going as Jack Clark--and I don't know who's out there who could fit the bill.

[sshuffield70]

Sparks was a better PM Magazine host than he was game show host.....

Then again, he did have a very comptent co-host.......uh......Leeza whatshername?

[davemackey]

[quote name=\'Dsmith\' date=\'Jul 7 2004, 01:45 AM\'] [quote name=\'PeterMarshallFan\' date=\'Jul 6 2004, 12:00 PM\'] Topic is self descriptive. Do you think Cross-Wits could work today? Who would host? Would there be gameplay changes? [/quote]
No, I don't think the game would work today. Crossword puzzles mainly skew the over 54 crowd; demographics would be bad; and the show really wasn't that interesting. [/quote]
 I'd like to see the research that says that crosswords skew old. (I didn't know crosswords even SKEWED.... I thought you just did them, and that was that.)

How old is Trip Payne anyway?

[mystery7]

[quote name=\'sshuffield70\' date=\'Jul 7 2004, 02:40 PM\'] Sparks was a better PM Magazine host than he was game show host.....

Then again, he did have a very comptent co-host.......uh......Leeza whatshername? [/quote]
 David Sparks apparently took some hosting lessons from fellow PM Mag alumnus Jim Caldwell. The two together, nice though they might be, couldn't host any game half as well put together as the highly underrated Jack Clark. I wasn't old enough to see Jack's version of Cross-Wits, but I do remember Sparks's. There was great potential there.

Shuffield: Oh, Leeza Gibbons? Who told viewers to "fax us your video" for her talk show? Yeah, whatever happened to her?

[rmfromfla]

From Noreen Wald's book "Contestant" in Chapter 13: "Crosswits with
                                                                                     Dimwits:


   "The host was David Sparks.  A megamisnomer.  After watching the first taping.
 which was interrupted six times, mostly by the emcee's mistakes and the
 celebrities' serious gaffes, I wondered what would these folks have done in the
 days of live TV.  This was the sixteenth "Crosswits" show to be taped.  Were
 the fifteen already in the can as bad?  More important, were they ever going
 to get any better?
    Sparks was a serious dud.  His repartee ranged from inane to deadly, a man
 without oars in a sinking rowboat.  As the third show began, I was still waiting
 to be selected and almost hoping I wouldn't be.  In addition to the celebs
 figuratively falling flat on their fannies, the backdrop set literally fell on a  contestant, causing a possible concussion and mass confusion.  Once again,
 we had a lengthy interruption while the stagehands dragged out staple guns
 and glue, and the contestant took two aspirin."

   And as she described later, the only thing the show had going for it was
 the announcer, Michelle Roth.

[sshuffield70]

[quote name=\'mystery7\' date=\'Jul 7 2004, 02:16 PM\'] [quote name=\'sshuffield70\' date=\'Jul 7 2004, 02:40 PM\'] Sparks was a better PM Magazine host than he was game show host.....

Then again, he did have a very comptent co-host.......uh......Leeza whatshername? [/quote]
David Sparks apparently took some hosting lessons from fellow PM Mag alumnus Jim Caldwell. The two together, nice though they might be, couldn't host any game half as well put together as the highly underrated Jack Clark. I wasn't old enough to see Jack's version of Cross-Wits, but I do remember Sparks's. There was great potential there.

Shuffield: Oh, Leeza Gibbons? Who told viewers to "fax us your video" for her talk show? Yeah, whatever happened to her? [/quote]
 Coincidentally, Leeza was on today's Pyramid rerun and helped someone win $25,000.

(P. S.:  I didn't know that in advance.)

[mystery7]

[quote name=\'davemackey\' date=\'Jul 7 2004, 03:10 PM\'] No, I don't think the game would work today. Crossword puzzles mainly skew the over 54 crowd; demographics would be bad; and the show really wasn't that interesting. [/QUOTE]
I'd like to see the research that says that crosswords skew old. (I didn't know crosswords even SKEWED.... I thought you just did them, and that was that.)

How old is Trip Payne anyway? [/quote]
 Wow! Extra points for you knowing who Trip Payne is. He's about in his mid 30s now, and he still cranks out as good a puzzle as when he was a regular at Games Magazine in the '80s.

Will Shortz, the New York Times corssword editor, is working hard to make crosswords hipper. Three of his regular contributors are barely in their 20s.

[zachhoran]

[quote name=\'mystery7\' date=\'Jul 7 2004, 08:45 PM\']

How old is Trip Payne anyway? [/QUOTE]
Wow! Extra points for you knowing who Trip Payne is. He's about in his mid 30s now, and he still cranks out as good a puzzle as when he was a regular at Games Magazine in the '80s.

 [/quote]
 Trip Payne is known also for being one of the first contestants on Millionaire in August 1999.

[mystery7]

And there's a spinoff post on the Big Board where I go into just a little more detail on Trip and his ilk.

[Skynet74]

[quote name=\'Jimmy Owen\' date=\'Jul 7 2004, 11:14 AM\']
That is an interesting viewer demographic. Under 12 and over 54. I'm sure a good number of kids were forced to watch game shows back then while staying at grandma's house. [/quote]
 
 Hmmmm....... well how about the kids like me who wern't forced, but actually tuned them in at home because I liked them!



John

[sshuffield70]

[quote name=\'Skynet74\' date=\'Jul 8 2004, 12:47 AM\'] [quote name=\'Jimmy Owen\' date=\'Jul 7 2004, 11:14 AM\']
That is an interesting viewer demographic. Under 12 and over 54. I'm sure a good number of kids were forced to watch game shows back then while staying at grandma's house. [/quote]

 Hmmmm....... well how about the kids like me who wern't forced, but actually tuned them in at home because I liked them!



John [/quote]
 Yeah, but advertisers have never understood that concept, John.

[Jimmy Owen]

Some modifications to the show would have to be made to make it work with today's audience.  Start out with eight young, attractive people and an eight word puzzle.  Each team member would be responsible for one word.  If a word is not guessed or guessed incorrectly, it is passed.  At the end of the round, the players have to vote off a person on the team for whatever reason.  There are other wrinkles (let me rephrase that, don't want to skew old), there are other rules that would potentially bring players back in the game, but I won't bore you with the details.  Lather, rinse, repeat until there is only one Cross-Wit left who wins the big money.

[jbrocato]

[quote name=\'Jimmy Owen\' date=\'Jul 8 2004, 09:20 AM\'] Some modifications to the show would have to be made to make it work with today's audience.  Start out with eight young, attractive people and an eight word puzzle.  Each team member would be responsible for one word.  If a word is not guessed or guessed incorrectly, it is passed.  At the end of the round, the players have to vote off a person on the team for whatever reason.  There are other wrinkles (let me rephrase that, don't want to skew old), there are other rules that would potentially bring players back in the game, but I won't bore you with the details.  Lather, rinse, repeat until there is only one Cross-Wit left who wins the big money. [/quote]
 Sadly, I suspect the crossword clues would probably be PG-rated given today's TV mentality.

John Brocato