Author Topic: GS Hosts On The Silver Screen... (Read 5917 times)

TimK2003 · « **on:** February 09, 2006, 08:47:30 PM »

How many movies out there had game show hosts with predominent roles, and what were they?

Keep in mind I am looking for hosts who were not in cameo roles or bit parts (i.e. Art Fleming in "Airplane!", Bob Barker in "Happy Gilmore", etc...) but rather hosts who were main characters or who had notable billing in a movie (i.e. their name included on a movie poster, etc...)

A few to start with:

JAN MURRAY (Treasure Hunt): "A Man Called Dagger" 1960's, "Which Way To The Front" (w/ Jerry Lewis) 1970s.

DICK CLARK (Pyramid): "Don't Knock The Rock" 1950s

CHUCK BARRIS (The Gong Show): "The Gong Show Movie" 1970s

Others??

clemon79 · « **Reply #1 on:** February 09, 2006, 08:56:54 PM »

Dawson in Running Man comes immediately to mind.

(I _hate_ these threads.)

calliaume · « **Reply #2 on:** February 09, 2006, 08:58:32 PM »

Bob Clayton in The Bellboy? I haven't seen the movie, but I believe it's more than a cameo.

Robert Hutchinson · « **Reply #3 on:** February 09, 2006, 09:11:23 PM »

Patrick Wayne did some movies, ya know . . .

clemon79 · « **Reply #4 on:** February 09, 2006, 09:15:25 PM »

[quote name=\'Robert Hutchinson\' date=\'Feb 9 2006, 06:11 PM\']Patrick Wayne did some movies, ya know . . .

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He said "game show hosts", not "talentless hacks".

Matt Ottinger · « **Reply #5 on:** February 09, 2006, 10:01:20 PM »

[quote name=\'clemon79\' date=\'Feb 9 2006, 09:56 PM\'](I _hate_ these threads.)[/quote]
Agreed. The biggest of several problems is that there are all sorts of actors who have hosted game shows, so where do you draw the line and say, "Well, he's more of an actor than a host"?

Glancing at the EOTVGS, the "A"s alone would include Don Ameche, Robert Alda, Don Adams, Willie Aames, Steve Allen, Fred Allen...well, you get the idea.

Don Howard · « **Reply #6 on:** February 09, 2006, 11:08:20 PM »

Peter Marshall in.......oh, what was it called? Some film with a bunch of people most of whom are dead now.

Fedya · « **Reply #7 on:** February 09, 2006, 11:26:26 PM »

[quote name=\'Don Howard\' date=\'Feb 9 2006, 11:08 PM\']Peter Marshall in.......oh, what was it called? Some film with a bunch of people most of whom are dead now.

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A Man Called Peter? ;-)

The Ol' Guy · « **Reply #8 on:** February 09, 2006, 11:52:21 PM »

Bert Convy in Rog Corman's A Bucket Of Blood - he ended up "well cast". At least he wasn't a bust...
Carl Reiner - Ocean's 11 & 12
Warren Hull did many movies and a batch of serials, including playing The Green Hornet and a rival to The Shadow, The Spider.
Steve Allen in The Benny Goodman Story
Arlene Francis - The Thrill of It All
Soupy Sales (Junior Almost Anything Goes) in Birds Do It
Ben Alexander in the movie version of Dragnet (1954)
Bert Parks - a small part in The Freshman
Merv Griffin - Phantom of the Rue Morgue
Ernie Kovacs - Operation Mad Ball
Arte Johnson - The President's Analyst
Art Linkletter & Vincent Price together in Champagne for Caesar
Basil Rathbone in the great Sherlock Holmes series..
and Groucho Marx did a few...
Leave it to an ol' guy to remember old movies...
and I'm sure there are many more.

tjhornikel · « **Reply #9 on:** February 09, 2006, 11:52:29 PM »

Let us not forget that powerful performance Bert Convy gave us in the dramatic hit "THE CANNONBALL RUN" in 1981...the crew went onto bigger things, like a Kline & Friends Production. ;^)

Tim mentioned cameo roles. Has anyone seen "THE CHINA SYNDROME" with Michael Douglas? Jack Lemon watches a tv show throughout the movie. That show happens to be "THE MAGNIFICENT MARBLE MACHINE." Perhaps the golden money ball causes the meltdown.

Jimmy Owen · « **Reply #10 on:** February 10, 2006, 12:39:35 AM »

There are many, but two I liked: Bobby Van in "Lost Horizon" and Larry Blyden in "On a Clear Day...."

Robair · « **Reply #11 on:** February 10, 2006, 07:05:23 AM »

We're forgetting the one film Bert Convy was most ashamed of..."RACQUET"!!! Bert as a studly tennis pro! What'd it make, like $20,000 in the nabes? Yikes...

Ian Wallis · « **Reply #12 on:** February 10, 2006, 09:08:41 AM »

Bert Convy was also in "Semi-Tough" in 1977, with good friend Burt Reynolds, with whom he would produce a couple of game shows in the late '80s...

mclemore63 · « **Reply #13 on:** February 10, 2006, 07:02:56 PM »

[quote name=\'TimK2003\' date=\'Feb 9 2006, 08:47 PM\']How many movies out there had game show hosts with predominent roles, and what were they?

Keep in mind I am looking for hosts who were not in cameo roles or bit parts (i.e. Art Fleming in "Airplane!", Bob Barker in "Happy Gilmore", etc...) but rather hosts who were main characters or who had notable billing in a movie (i.e. their name included on a movie poster, etc...)

A few to start with:

JAN MURRAY (Treasure Hunt): "A Man Called Dagger" 1960's, "Which Way To The Front" (w/ Jerry Lewis) 1970s.

DICK CLARK (Pyramid): "Don't Knock The Rock" 1950s

CHUCK BARRIS (The Gong Show): "The Gong Show Movie" 1970s

Others??

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Let's not forget Greg Kinnear (College Mad House) in "As Good As It Gets",for which he got an Oscar nomination.

Travis D. McLemore,Jr.

"I think I'm in a deli...I'm on a roll!"
Mr. Baggy Pants,"Remote Control"

Jimmy Owen · « **Reply #14 on:** February 10, 2006, 07:29:38 PM »

Within a few years of his game show misstep, Jackie Gleason was giving some of his best movie performances in "The Hustler," "Gigot" and "Requiem for a Heavyweight." Probably one of the most versatile actors of all time, adept at comedy and drama, who became the roles he played from Ralph Kramden to Buford T. Justice.