Saturday, January 18, 2025

The Queen of Matches

Began the morning with breakfast and the gospel documentary Say Amen, Somebody at YouTube. I go further into this history of gospel music and the people who brought it to the masses in the 30's and 40's at my Musical Dreams Movie Reviews blog. 


Hurried out even before Say Amen ended. It was raining when I rushed in the Acme, and would continue coming down in one way or another for most of the afternoon. I spent most of it overwhelmed. The head bagger was in a register until the afternoon people started coming in at 3. At least, by the time she was able to help out, the rain had finally vanished and the clouds were breaking up, and there was actually a rather nice deep orange sunset. 

Took the trash and recycling out when I got home, then went straight in the shower. Grabbed dinner after I got out, then spent the rest of the night watching the Match Game marathon on YouTube. Betty White, whose 104th birthday would have been yesterday, was in the spotlight with some of her best Match Game episodes. Betty was on Match Game literally from the beginning. She started a riot not five minutes into the pilot episode over "friend" not matching "girlfriend." Her first week on the regular show also introduced Brett and Charles, whom she would become good friends with over the years.

Betty had some of the best moments on the entire show. There was the time in 1975 when her beloved Password host hubby Allen Ludden was on and Gene said "I've had Betty" when the contestant called on her for the Audience Match. The contestant was supposed to belly dance if she won the Head-to-Head, but the music department played "The Star Spangled Banner" instead of anything Indian. That didn't stop Brett and Betty from doing their own idea of belly dancing!

Some later episodes were pretty funny, too. Betty could never resist taking her clothes - or at least, her jacket - off in tune to "The Stripper." She did it at least three times, starting in 1978 and ending with her showing off a see-through black blouse in 1981. A year later, she turned up in a flaming red dress made by a designer friend of Sharon Farrell. Later in the show, Sharon inadvertently demonstrates mud wrestling with Richard Paul and McLean Stevenson is scared off by a contestant with an especially creepy laugh. 

Betty had fun on nighttime episodes, too. There was the time in 1978 when she and Richard played Charles and Brett, complete with glasses and hat and pipe, and were absolutely hilarious. Most of the week in 1981 where Betty and Allen sat next to each other is currently lost...except for the PM episode. Betty and Allen were clearly enjoying playing off each other. They're joined here by Jimmie Walker and Jonnelle Allen. 

Celebrate Betty's birthday with some of her most memorable moments!

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