Over the last few days, we've been taking a look at some classic game shows from the 50's & 60's, thanks to TV Guide Spotlight on: TV's Greatest Game Shows, a recent release from Mill Creek Entertainment, which I acquired through Radio Spirits, a respected mail order firm that specializes in----wait for it---old time radio.
The collection consists of 26 episodes covering 15 different series. Some shows are represented by just 1 episode. You Bet Your Life, which we discussed a while back, has 7 episodes, taking up half a disc all by itself.
But there are some clunkers in the mix. We looked at Cliff Saber's ill-advised, and ill-preserved, for that matter, Pass The Line the other day, for example. The back cover advertises an episode of the original Tic Tac Dough as hosted by sportscaster Win Elliot. Nope. Jay Jackson is the MC here. Other shows, such as Dollar a Second with Jan Murray and Beat The Clock with Bud Collyer, were reviewed some time back as well.
We'll be taking a look later this week at Jack Barry's infamous Twenty-One, and Edgar Bergen's Do You Trust Your Wife?, but for right now, we'll look at a sample of an early Bill Cullen hosted show, Place The Face, and yes, this was another Goodson-Todman entry. Their answer, if ya will, to Ralph Edwards' This is Your Life.
Bill was trying too hard to be a comedian here, and it wasn't working out so well. In fact, he was the third and last host of Place, following Jack Smith (later of You Asked For It) and Jack Bailey (Queen For a Day, which we reviewed last time). The comedy seems a little awkward, considering it's, presumably, live television.
Place The Face merits a B-. The TV Guide Spotlight compilation gets a B.
No comments:
Post a Comment