''Sense and Nonsense'' is an American
game show
A game show is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment (radio, television, internet, stage or other) where contestants compete for a reward. These programs can either be participatory or Let's Play, demonstrative and are typically directed b ...
hosted by Bob Kennedy which ran on
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
TV station
WABD
WABD (97.5 FM) is an American radio station licensed to serve the community of Mobile, Alabama. The station, established in 1973 as WABB-FM, is owned and operated by Cumulus Media. Its studios are on Dauphin Street in Midtown Mobile, and its ...
from 1951 to 1954. The show consisted of two three-child teams using their five senses to complete challenges and earn money, with the high-scoring team returning on the next show.
Sponsored by
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlanta ...
(specifically "Coke in-a-bottle"), and with a somewhat-unorthodox Monday-Wednesday-Friday airing schedule, ''Sense'' has since gained something of a "cult following" among fans of early television. While only shown on WABD, it is often considered a
DuMont Television Network
The DuMont Television Network (also known as the DuMont Network, DuMont Television, simply DuMont/Du Mont, or (incorrectly) Dumont ) was one of America's pioneer commercial television networks, rivaling NBC and CBS for the distinction of being ...
program due to not only being on the network's flagship affiliate, but having several production "quirks" typical of many DuMont programs.
Gallery
Image:DuMont WABD Show 1954.JPG, Kennedy with the team captains (the display showing $120 denotes the returning champions).
Image:DuMont WABD Show 1954 2.JPG, The hostess introducing the other two members of the returning team.
Episode status
Only one episode is known to exist, from February 19, 1954 (one commercial mentions the upcoming weekend and celebrating
George Washington
George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...
's birthday with Coke in-a-bottle, showing a boy and girl doing so in Colonial attire and powdered wigs). Among other things, the episode is notable for a young
Leonard Frey
Leonard Frey (September 4, 1938 – August 24, 1988) was an American actor. Frey received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the 1971 musical film ''Fiddler on the Roof''. He made his stage debut in an Of ...
playing on the challenging team.
This episode is held by the
UCLA Film and Television Archive
The UCLA Film & Television Archive is a visual arts organization focused on the preservation, study, and appreciation of film and television, based at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).
Also a nonprofit exhibition venue, the archiv ...
, but can be purchased on DVD through various public-domain retailers and is available for viewing on the
Internet Archive
The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...
.
See also
*
List of programs broadcast by the DuMont Television Network
This is a list of programs broadcast by the DuMont Television Network, which operated in the United States from 1942 to 1956. All regularly scheduled programs which were aired on the DuMont network are listed below, regardless of whether they orig ...
*
List of surviving DuMont Television Network broadcasts
The DuMont Television Network was launched in 1946 and ceased broadcasting in 1956. Allen DuMont, who created the network, preserved most of what it produced in kinescope format. By 1958, however, much of the library had been destroyed to recover ...
External links
''Sense and Nonsense''at the
Internet Archive
The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sense And Nonsense
1951 American television series debuts
1954 American television series endings
1950s American children's television series
1950s American children's game shows
Local game shows in the United States
Black-and-white American television shows
American English-language television shows
DuMont Television Network original programming
Local television programming in the United States
Lost television shows