![Bobby Van 1975](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/81/Bobby_Van_1975.jpg)
''Showoffs'' is an American television
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 ...
which ran on
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
from June 30 to December 26, 1975.
Bobby Van
Robert Jack Stein (December 6, 1928 – July 31, 1980), known by his legalized stage name Bobby Van, was a Musician, musical actor and dancer, best known for his career on Broadway theatre, Broadway, in films and television from the 1950s throu ...
was host, with
Gene Wood
Eugene Edward Wood (October 20, 1925 – May 21, 2004) was an American television personality, known primarily for his work as an announcer on various game shows. From the 1950s to the 1990s, he announced many game shows, primarily Mark Goodson ...
as announcer. The
Mark Goodson
Mark Leo Goodson (January 14, 1915 – December 18, 1992) was an American television producer who specialized in game shows, most frequently with his business partner Bill Todman, with whom he created Goodson-Todman Productions.
Early life and e ...
-
Bill Todman
William Selden Todman (July 31, 1916 – July 29, 1979) was an American television producer and personality born in New York City. He produced many of television's longest-running shows with business partner Mark Goodson, with whom he created ...
production involved two teams competing in a game of
charades
Charades (, ). is a parlor game, parlor or party game, party word game, word guessing game. Originally, the game was a dramatic form of literary charades: a single person would act out each syllable of a word or phrase in order, followed by the w ...
.
Gameplay
Two teams of three players competed. The teams were composed of two celebrity guests and one civilian contestant. One team wore red sweaters and the other blue over their street clothes.
Because the team colors were indistinguishable on monochrome-only television sets (which were still somewhat common in 1975), the words "REDS" and "BLUES" were later printed on the front of each team member's sweater for the benefit of home viewers.
Format #1
One team was isolated while two members of the other team acted out a series of words to their partner for sixty seconds. The actors could alternate in acting, and the guessing partner could pass on a word if he or she got stuck, but he or she could do that only once per turn. When time ran out, the isolated team returned to the stage, and acted out the same words as the first team. The team that guessed the most words in their own minute won the round, and the first team to win two rounds won the game.
If a round ended in a tie, a tiebreaker round was played in which both teams had 30 seconds to act out three words. The team doing that in the fastest time won.
Format #2
Towards the end of the show's run, the method to win the game had changed. In this format, a team had to correctly convey and guess seven words or more to win the game.
Extra rounds were played if the goal had not been reached by the end of a full round, and the tiebreaker was cut to two words in 30 seconds.
Either way, the contestant on the winning team won a $1,000 prize package plus a chance to play the Payoff Round.
Payoff Round
Format #1
All four celebrities alternated turns acting out a series of words for the winning contestant to guess during the next 60 seconds during the first round, with each correct answer worth $1. When time ran out, one celebrity chosen by the contestant had 30 seconds to act out three words during the second round.
Each word added a zero to the winning player's round one winnings. Guessing one word correctly was worth 10 times the money, two words 100 times, and all three 1,000 times the money earned in the first phase. As much as $10,000 could be won in this format.
Format #2
About the time when the front game changed, the bonus round was also revised. Now the winning contestant acted out a maximum of three words to one of his or her two celebrity partners. He or she acted out the first two words for 10 seconds each with those words worth $1,000 each.
The contestant could choose to stop after either of the two were guessed or risk his or her earnings to that point and continue. On the third and final word (usually more difficult than the first two), the contestant acted it out for 15 seconds and if the celebrity partner guessed it, the contestant won $3,000 more, for a total of $5,000.
If at any point the celebrity partners failed to guess a word correctly when time ran out, the contestant lost half of his or money earned up to that point and the game ended.
Regardless of either format, the champion switched teams and competed against the next contestant, unless he or she was beaten or had accumulated at least $20,000 in total winnings.
Sounds
The sound effects used on ''Showoffs'' would later be employed on Goodson-Todman's ''
Family Feud
''Family Feud'' is an American television game show created by Mark Goodson. It features two families who compete to name the most popular answers to survey questions in order to win cash and prizes.
The show has had three separate runs, the ...
'' – the bell which sounded whenever a teammate guessed the word correctly became the clang for revealing answers. The dings for winning a game also were later heard on the show. The time's-up buzzer was later used as the ''strike'' buzzer.
Additionally, when a player lost the bonus round, the "Losing Horns" fanfare from ''
The Price is Right
''The Price Is Right'' is a television game show franchise created by Bob Stewart, originally produced by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman; currently it is produced and owned by Fremantle. The franchise centers on television game shows, but also inc ...
'' was played.
Broadcast history
Pilot
On May 24, 1975,
Larry Blyden
Ivan Lawrence Blieden (June 23, 1925 – June 6, 1975), known as Larry Blyden, was an American actor, stage producer and director, and game show host. He made his Broadway stage debut in 1948 and went on to appear in numerous productions on ...
hosted a couple pilots for ''Showoffs''.
Elaine Joyce
Elaine Joyce (born Elaine Joyce Pinchot) is an American actress.
Early life and education
Elaine Joyce Pinchot was born in Cleveland, Ohio, of Hungarian ancestry, the daughter of Iliclina (née Nagy) and Frank Pinchot.
Career
She made her fil ...
,
Ron Masak
Ronald Alan Masak (July 1, 1936 – October 20, 2022) was an American actor. He began working as a stage performer, and mostly was involved in theater until transitioning to film and television becoming a familiar character actor. From 1988 to 19 ...
,
Linda Kaye Henning
Linda Kaye Henning is an American actress and singer most notable for starring in the 1960s sitcom ''Petticoat Junction''.
Career
Henning began to focus on acting in her late teens. Her career began in 1953. Her earliest acting roles include ' ...
, and
Dick Gautier
Richard Gautier (October 30, 1931 – January 13, 2017) was an American actor, comedian, singer, and caricaturist. He was known for his television roles as Hymie the Robot in the television series ''Get Smart'', and Robin Hood in the TV comedy s ...
were the celebrities, and the format was the one used in the first half of the series' run.
Shortly after the pilots finished taping, Blyden went on a short vacation to
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...
. While driving to
Tan-Tan
Tan-Tan ( ar, طانطان, ber, ⵟⴰⵏⵟⴰⵏ) is a city in Tan-Tan Province in the region of Guelmim-Oued Noun in southwestern Morocco. It is a desert town with a population (2014 census) of 73,209. It is the largest city in the provinc ...
, his rental car went off the road and overturned, knocking him unconscious. Doctors in an
Agadir
Agadir ( ar, أݣادير, ʾagādīr; shi, ⴰⴳⴰⴷⵉⵔ) is a major city in Morocco, on the shore of the Atlantic Ocean near the foot of the Atlas Mountains, just north of the point where the Souss River flows into the ocean, and south ...
hospital were unable to contact Blyden's family for several days as Blyden had been carrying no identification.
Blyden died on June 6, just twenty-four days before the series was to premiere. Bobby Van replaced him as host when the series premiered.
Series
Goodson-Todman had very little time to react to Blyden's death (the first tapings for the series were only a few days away) and substituted Van into the hosting role. This last-minute change may have deterred potential viewers, although Van had proven himself quite popular as a panelist on Goodson-Todman's ''
Match Game
''Match Game'' is an American television panel game show that premiered on NBC in 1962 and has been revived several times over the course of the last six decades. The game features contestants trying to match answers given by celebrity panelist ...
'' and ''
Tattletales
''Tattletales'' is an American game show produced by Goodson-Todman Productions in association with Fremantle. The program had two runs on the CBS daytime schedule between February 1974 and June 1984. It was hosted by Bert Convy, with several a ...
''. Promos that had been made prior to Blyden's death (using clips from one of the pilots, as was common with soon-to-debut games) had to be edited to remove his voice and face.
''Showoffs'' debuted on June 30, 1975 at 12:00 Noon (11:00 AM Central), replacing ''
Password
A password, sometimes called a passcode (for example in Apple devices), is secret data, typically a string of characters, usually used to confirm a user's identity. Traditionally, passwords were expected to be memorized, but the large number of ...
'' and inheriting its predecessor's ratings problems. Despite facing the much-hyped but popularly-and-critically-panned ''
Magnificent Marble Machine'' on
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
, ''Showoffs'' could not make any sort of dent in
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
's hit daytime drama ''
The Young and the Restless
''The Young and the Restless'' (often abbreviated as ''Y&R'') is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. The show is set in fictional Genoa City (not the real-life similarly-named Genoa City, Wi ...
'', which had become a top-ten show by that point.
The game finished its six-month run on the day after
Christmas
Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus, Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by country, around t ...
and bowed out in favor of the ailing ''
Let's Make a Deal
''Let's Make a Deal'' (also known as ''LMAD'') is an American television musical comedy variety-game show that originated in the United States in 1963 and has since been produced in many countries throughout the world. The program was created an ...
'', which left its 1:30 PM (12:30 Central) slot after over 11 years on two different networks; the ABC version would be canceled six months later. A scheduling shuffle involving ''
Rhyme and Reason'' made way for
Regis Philbin
Regis Francis Xavier Philbin (; August 25, 1931 – July 25, 2020)Archived aGhostarchiveand thWayback Machine was an American television presenter, talk show host, game show host, comedian, actor, and singer. Once called "the hardest working ma ...
's first shot as a game show host, ''
The Neighbors''.
Revival
''Showoffs'' was later revived on
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
from 1984 to 1986 under the title ''
Body Language
Body language is a type of communication in which physical behaviors, as opposed to words, are used to express or convey information. Such behavior includes facial expressions, body posture, gestures, eye movement, touch and the use of space. Th ...
'' with
Tom Kennedy Thomas or Tom Kennedy may refer to:
Politics
*Thomas Kennedy (Scottish judge) (1673–1754), joint Solicitor General for Scotland 1709–14, Lord Advocate 1714, Member of Parliament for Ayr Burghs 1720–21
* Thomas Kennedy, 9th Earl of Cassilis ...
as host.
Johnny Olson
John Leonard Olson (May 22, 1910 – October 12, 1985) was an American radio personality and television announcer. Olson is perhaps best known for his work as an announcer for game shows, particularly the work he did for Mark Goodson-Bill Todman P ...
announced from the debut through his death in October 1985, after which Gene Wood (''Showoffs announcer) and
Bob Hilton
Robert Wesley Hilton (born July 23, 1943) is an American television game show personality. He hosted ''The Guinness Game'', a revival of '' Truth or Consequences'', and the 1990 revival of ''Let's Make a Deal'' for one season and replaced by Monty ...
announced through the end of the run.
Episode status
The series is believed to have been
wiped
Lost television broadcasts are mostly those early television programs which cannot be accounted for in studio archives (or in personal archives) usually because of deliberate destruction or neglect.
Common reasons for loss
A significant prop ...
, as per network practices of that era. Reportedly, only one episode is known to exist and is among tape traders in varied quality. Originally broadcast on November 28, guest celebrity
Dr. Joyce Brothers
Joyce Diane Brothers (October 20, 1927 – May 13, 2013) was an American psychologist, television personality, advice columnist, and writer.
She first became famous in 1955 for winning the top prize on the American game show '' The $64,000 Ques ...
injured herself on that episode, requiring celebrity partner
Dick Gautier
Richard Gautier (October 30, 1931 – January 13, 2017) was an American actor, comedian, singer, and caricaturist. He was known for his television roles as Hymie the Robot in the television series ''Get Smart'', and Robin Hood in the TV comedy s ...
to do her portion of the charades alone for the final round.
Karen Morrow
Karen Morrow (born December 15, 1936) is an American singer and actress best known for her work in musical theater. Her honors include an Emmy Award and a Theatre World Award, and an Ovation Award and five Drama-Logue Award nominations.
Early ...
and
Mike Farrell
Michael Joseph Farrell Jr. (born February 6, 1939) is an American actor, best known for his role as List of M*A*S*H characters#B.J. Hunnicutt, Captain B.J. Hunnicutt on the television series ''M*A*S*H (TV series), M*A*S*H'' (1975–83). Farrell ...
were the other two celebrities that day.
One of Blyden's pilots 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 ...
; a clip was shown in
VH-1
VH1 (originally an initialism of Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network based in New York City and owned by Paramount Global. It was created by Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment, at the time a division of Warner Communi ...
's 2005 series ''Game Show Moments Gone Bananas''. Wink Martindale's YouTube page released one of the pilots starting on January 19, 2021.
The episode broadcast on Christmas Day is also held at UCLA and was aired by
Buzzr
Buzzr is an American digital broadcast television network owned by Fremantle North America, a unit of the Fremantle subsidiary of RTL Group. The network serves as an outlet for the extensive library of classic game shows owned by Fremantle. Buzz ...
on September 25, 2021 as part of their annual ''Lost and Found'' marathon.
References
{{reflist
External links
''Showoffs'' on IMDb
American Broadcasting Company original programming
1970s American game shows
1975 American television series debuts
1975 American television series endings
Television series by Mark Goodson-Bill Todman Productions
Lost television shows