Monday, January 22, 2018

Forgotten TV: Picture This (1963)

I was but an infant when Picture This bowed as a summer replacement series on CBS in 1963. On the surface, it looked like just another Mark Goodson-Bill Todman game. It wasn't, although you'd be forgiven if you thought it was. Announcer Lee Vines had worked on a few G-T shows prior to this, and the best way to describe this show would be Password with pictures. Jerry Van Dyke was tapped to host, and this would be his only game show assignment.

Only one episode is available now on YouTube, recently uncovered, from August 1963, with William Bendix (ex-The Life of Riley) and Alan Young (Mister Ed):



Of course, Van Dyke moved on to The Judy Garland Show just a few weeks after this series ended, and we know the rest of his story. Certainly looked like he could handle the game show business, but the ratings convinced CBS not to give him another chance.

Rating: B.

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