Post by mikef6 on Nov 20, 2022 16:58:01 GMT
I was watching a news show last night when an interviewee said, “That’s the $64,000 question.” Wait. What? The guy looked too young to make that reference, and how many viewers knew what the hell he was talking about?
A radio quiz show called “Take It Or Leave It” began in 1940. It would award contestants with a growing amount of money every time they correctly answered a question. The questions would get harder as the game went on. After each correct answer, the contestant would be given a choice to take the money won so far or attempt another question and risk losing it all. In 1947, the name was changed to “The $64 Dollar Question” which represented the highest amount to be won. The show lasted until 1952. It engendered the catchphrase, “That’s the $64 dollar question.”
The concept moved to television just 3 years later, but the top prize jumped to $64,000. Hal March, sitcom actor, was the emcee. The format was the same as the radio show in that questions got harder as money amounts grew and players got the choice to leave with all winnings every time after a correct answer. But TV introduced the “isolation booth,” an enclosure in which the player would stand and communicate only with March. The show was enormously popular but only lasted three seasons before being caught up in the game show cheating scandal and subsequent congressional investigation. The catchphrase changed to, "That's the $64,000 question," which I heard last night.
Name and discuss any other game or quiz shows that you remember fondly.
The Isolation Booth
A radio quiz show called “Take It Or Leave It” began in 1940. It would award contestants with a growing amount of money every time they correctly answered a question. The questions would get harder as the game went on. After each correct answer, the contestant would be given a choice to take the money won so far or attempt another question and risk losing it all. In 1947, the name was changed to “The $64 Dollar Question” which represented the highest amount to be won. The show lasted until 1952. It engendered the catchphrase, “That’s the $64 dollar question.”
The concept moved to television just 3 years later, but the top prize jumped to $64,000. Hal March, sitcom actor, was the emcee. The format was the same as the radio show in that questions got harder as money amounts grew and players got the choice to leave with all winnings every time after a correct answer. But TV introduced the “isolation booth,” an enclosure in which the player would stand and communicate only with March. The show was enormously popular but only lasted three seasons before being caught up in the game show cheating scandal and subsequent congressional investigation. The catchphrase changed to, "That's the $64,000 question," which I heard last night.
Name and discuss any other game or quiz shows that you remember fondly.
The Isolation Booth
