''The Wizard of Odds'' 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 ...

hosted by

Alex Trebek George Alexander Trebek (; July 22, 1940 – November 8, 2020) was a Canadian-American game show host and television personality. He is best known for hosting the syndicated general knowledge quiz game show ''Jeopardy!'' for 37 season ...

that aired on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

from July 16, 1973, to June 28, 1974, in which people from the studio audience vied in a number of rounds, primarily games revolving around statistical questions. John Harlan announced the pilot;

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

radio personality Sam Riddle was the show's first announcer; towards the end of the run, Charlie O'Donnell replaced him. The title was a parody of the classic 1939 movie '' The Wizard of Oz'' and was Trebek's first American game show he hosted.

Broadcast history

Relatively short-lived, ''The Wizard of Odds'' replaced ''

Sale of the Century ''Sale of the Century'' (stylized as ''$ale of the Century'') is an American television game show that originally debuted on September 29, 1969, on NBC daytime. It was one of three NBC game shows to premiere on that date, the other two being th ...

'' with

Joe Garagiola Joseph Henry Garagiola Sr. (February 12, 1926 – March 23, 2016) was an American professional baseball catcher, later an announcer and television host, popular for his colorful personality. Garagiola played nine seasons in Major League Basebal ...

at 11:00 a.m. Eastern (10:00 Central). The show did not perform well against

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 ...

' ''

Gambit A gambit (from Italian , the act of tripping someone with the leg to make them fall) is a chess opening in which a player sacrifices with the aim of achieving a subsequent advantage. The word '' gambit'' is also sometimes used to describe sim ...

'' (later replaced by '' Now You See It'' with

Jack Narz John Lawrence Narz Jr. (November 13, 1922 – October 15, 2008) was an American radio personality, television host, and singer. Early years Narz was born to John and Ado Narz, in Louisville, Kentucky, along with sister Mary, and younger brothe ...

) and NBC dropped it after less than a year. ''Wizard'' was Trebek's first American game show, after starting his broadcast career in his native Canada. He later hosted four more NBC games, ''

High Rollers ''High Rollers'' is an American television game show that involved contestants trying to win prizes by rolling dice. The format was based on the dice game shut the box. ''High Rollers'' debuted on July 1, 1974, as part of NBC's daytime lineup. ...

'' (which replaced ''Wizard''), from 1974 to 1976 and again as '' The New High Rollers'' from 1978 to 1980, '' Battlestars'' from 1981 to 1982 and again as ''

The New Battlestars ''Battlestars'' is an American game show that aired on NBC during the 1980s. The program's concept was developed and produced by Merrill Heatter, featuring a six-celebrity panel. The object of the game is to "capture" the celebrities by lighting ...

'' in 1983 ''

Classic Concentration ''Concentration'' is an American television game show based on the children's memory game of the same name. It was created by Jack Barry and Dan Enright. The show featured contestants matching prizes represented by spaces on a game board, whic ...

'' from 1987 to 1991. Finally, his fourth one was a brief revival of '' To Tell the Truth'' in 1991. Beginning in 1984, he hosted the syndicated TV hit game ''

Jeopardy! ''Jeopardy!'' is an American game show created by Merv Griffin. The show is a quiz competition that reverses the traditional question-and-answer format of many quiz shows. Rather than being given questions, contestants are instead given genera ...

'' until his death in 2020.

Episode status

It is believed that the series was

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 policy of the era, with NBC continuing this policy until 1979. The May 20, 1974 episode with special guest actor

Don DeFore Donald John DeFore (August 25, 1913 – December 22, 1993) was an American actor. He is best known for his roles in the sitcom ''The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet'' from 1952 to 1957 and the sitcom ''Hazel'' from 1961 to 1965, the former of w ...

exists in the

UCLA Film & 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 ...

. An audio recording of the finale also exists. One surviving episode, labeled as airing on March 19, 1974, was uploaded to YouTube on October 12, 2022.

Rules of the game

Contestants were selected from the studio audience and answered questions based on statistical information, all for cash and prizes. "The Wizard" (Trebek) began the show by choosing three contestants and asking them questions based on the law of averages, with cash and prizes awarded accordingly for correct answers; an example of a question was "What are the odds a man will recover his lost wallet if there is more than $20 inside it?" The next three players were given a series of phrases and told to pick the one that did not match. The person with the most correct answers was given the chance to pick one of five prizes, located behind windows that were either "open" or "locked". This person could continue to play or stop at any time, keeping the prizes; however, selecting a window that was locked lost all prizes accumulated up to that point. Every contestant selected had his or her name added to the "Wizard's Wheel of Fortune."

Wizard's Wheel of Fortune

At the end of the show, Trebek spun the wheel and the person it landed on was eligible for bonus gifts. A list of averages was then brought out, with a number above it. The contestant had to pick a group of items whose average added up to exactly the target number. If the contestant was correct, he or she won the bonus gifts, including a brand new car.

Theme

The theme song was composed and sung by

Alan Thicke Alan Thicke (born Alan Willis Jeffrey; March 1, 1947December 13, 2016) was a Canadian actor, songwriter, and game and talk show host. He is the father of singer Robin Thicke. In 2013, Thicke was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame. Thicke was be ...

, who was also one of the show's producers.

Lawsuit

Nearly a week after the show debuted, Leo Guild (who has created numerous radio and television shows, books, and newspaper columns) filed a $2 million lawsuit against NBC for stealing his ''Wizard'' title, which had been used as a newspaper column during the late 1940s.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wizard of Odds, The NBC original programming American game shows 1970s American game shows 1973 American television series debuts 1974 American television series endings English-language television shows Lost television shows