I didn't trust the weather. It was supposed to storm later. Called Uber, and frankly am glad I did. The driver picking me up didn't even take a minute. He made a wrong turn and somehow ended up going towards West Collingswood, but got turned around in enough time for me to not be late. The driver going home took 4 minutes. At least there was no traffic (or bad weather) in either case.
It didn't finally start raining until around 11 AM...and when it did, it never stormed. We did get an occasional heavy shower, but it was mostly light rain off and on the entire afternoon. The crowds were off and on, too. It was busy when I arrived, but the heavier rain cleared out our customers. It had gotten busy again by the time I was getting ready to go. I spent the entire day pushing carts. Had plenty of help from the Sunday morning bagger and two more in the late morning and afternoon. They took over sweeping the store and putting most of the cold items away. I did gather trash early in the day, but the evening bagger took over that later on. Got in and out with no trouble other than I was damp from the showers.
When I got home, I took a shower, grabbed dinner, and spent the rest of the night on YouTube watching today's game show marathon. Today, Allen Ludden is best-known for hosting the first three versions of Password, including the original 1961-1967 run that my mother loved watching with her grandparents and the 1971-1975 ABC version. The game was enjoyably simple. A celebrity described a word for a contestant and tried to get them to guess the word. The more clues used, the fewer points they got. Winners moved on to the Lightning Round, where they would describe five words in 60 seconds.
I don't think any host is more associated with the show than Allen. He met Betty White playing on that show; they announced their marriage on an episode that also featured their good friend Jack Paar. Betty would also be on the final color week of the original show with Frank Gifford (best-known nowadays as the husband of Kathie Lee Gifford).
There's a lot less of the 1971-1975 version kicking around. Alas, ABC erased this years ago (supposedly with Family Feud). Brett Somers plays her then-husband Jack Klugman in the episode from 1971 included here...and had her rear handed to her, according to her several years later on Match Game.
After the success of shows like The Price Is Right changed the rules for game shows, ABC tried to fancy this up with a big celebrity tournament. Only the last episode of Password All-Stars exists today, but it's hilarious enough to make me wish the entire tournament was available. Betty White, Richard Dawson, Bill Bixby, and Hal Linden have a blast playing each other...especially giving rather loud clues for "hallelujah!" We also got to see where Allen got the Tank watch he mentions in the week he and Betty did on Match Game together later in 1975 in the Password '75 series finale - Mark Goodson gave it to him.
It wasn't until the debut of Password Plus in 1979 that Goodson-Todman finally figured out how to update the game without making it overly complicated. Now, contestants and celebrities guessed five words that lead to a subject. Guessing the subject would win them the round. Winners went on to the Alphabetics round, where they would guess 10 words in alphabetical order.
Allen hosted most of the first year, but it was clear he was tiring. He took four weeks off during April 1980, when Bill Cullen took over. Bill was sweet and amiable, but really too slow for this show. Not to mention, he was also hosting Chain Reaction at the time. Allen returned until late October, when he finally left for good. He did see some really fun episodes in his first year, including the hilarious week where Betty kept flirting with handsome John Phillip Law.
Of course, Allen did host other shows. In fact, he was hosting GE College Bowl when he was offered Password. Two teams of college students face off in increasingly difficult questions. This one started on radio in the 50's, but by the time Allen left in 1962 to focus on Password, it had moved to TV.
My other favorite Allen series is Liar's Club, which I've featured with comedy shows and panel shows a couple of times on this blog. Four comedians or character actors describe a unique antique object. The contestants have to decide which one is telling the truth. This cross between Wordplay and To Tell the Truth made the most out of its hilarious panels and their wacky descriptions. Betty's joined here by Buddy Hackett, Peter Haskall, and show co-creator Larry Hovis.
Allen also had his share of failures. Win With the Stars was a syndicated revival of the Wink Martindale guess-the-song show What's That Song? Bob Crane and June Lockheart did their best to help guide contestants into singing the correct lyrics to a familiar standard, sort of a proto-Don't Forget the Lyrics, but the show only lasted a year. The overly-complicated connect-the-word game Stumpers! from 1976 didn't get past three months.
He also hosted several pilots that never made it to air. Of these, my favorite was The Smart Alecks. Three celebrity panelists judge whether someone's invention is worthy of being marketed. It helped that the panelists were Pat Carroll, Don Meredith, and Allen's own discovery David Letterman. Like I said on the chat, between their wisecracks and some unique inventors, this was more of a one-off comedy special than a failed pilot.
Talking Pictures was almost as funny. Allen led two contestants in trying to remember which secret belongs to which panel member behind a sliding door, in what amounted to a cross between Concentration, I've Got a Secret, and Laugh-In. Great panel for a one-off pilot too, including Carol Burnett, Ann Miller, Angela Cartwright, Peter Lawford, Lorne Greene, and Stubby Kaye.
Allen was also the original host of The Joker's Wild in its pilot. The main game is pretty much the same as it would be in the actual version, but the bonus round is very different. Contestants spin for prizes rather than money amounts. By the time CBS finally picked this up, Allen had moved to ABC, and they reluctantly turned it over to its creator Jack Barry.
The password is...class act! Celebrate the life and career of one of the classiest hosts on TV and the man who won the heart of its favorite comedienne for life!
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