Match Game '73: Premiere Episode (1 of 5)

[tdickensheets]

I was 12 years old.

[tpir1972]

When the pilot show in 1972?

[tpir1972]

Vicki Lawrence didn't return to Match Game until 1990.

[koolA1dmann]

is it me or is Richard Dawson in every match game lol

[enigma800]

$5,000 by today's value isn't much, is it! Back then you could buy a new car for $5,000

[tpir1972]

This was Vicki's ONLY appearance on THIS version of Match Game also, wasn't it?

[Cramhead43]

Thank you for uploading the tv premiere of match game! :) Did you know because of the watergate hearings cbs held off this a week?

[alanbmx321]

I watched this show everyday after school with my mom, 73 I was 8. Best game show ever

[Pdasilva0324]

Happy 38th anniversary, tomorrow, of the start of Match Game!

[breakfastclub75]

I love love this show! Thanks so much for uploading this. I was born 2 years after this, but it just seems like these were such good days compared to now.

[SoCalBuck42]

JOAnn Pflug was maried to Chuck Woolerly



[catholicpriest1]

Where is Gene's microphone....oh he's wearing a lapel mic.

[catholicpriest1]

Anita Gillette and Jack Glugman would later appear together in Quincy.



[TPIRHost7207]

good thing they added blue in 1978 that orange is as brett put it trrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrashy eech

[fluteplaya22593]

michael landon was on match game? sweet.

[fumetti]

I used to think Gene Rayburn said "blink" instead of "blank" when I was a kid.

[ePhilosopher9]

well as you can see, more celebs

[269848]

CBS should do a 40th anniversary special in 2013 because this happened to have been one of the shows that was so highly rated at the time. It would be a respectful thing.

[tvtimetravel]

:53 "I thought Allen Ludden had blond hair!" - Jack K.

[JerrySpringerisCool]

I love Match Game!!!!

[DENo1MatchGameFan]

Happy 37th Anniversary "Match Game", and RIP to Gene Rayburn, Brett Somers, Charles Nelson Reilly, Johnny Olson, Ira Skutch, and all of the other 'weirdos' that made the show the #1 show in daytime until 1976, and the #1 game show until 1977 - love you all!

[freeasabird12907]

i didn't realize michael landon wa on match game and no charle nelson & brett sommers

[Mech1360]

This was the successor to the failed Barry-Enright game show

"Hollywood's Talking".

[PatrioticPirate]

...and I'll be DAMNED if I spelled it right! LAVALIERE

[nextbarker]

Stanley, that's a strange first name for a woman

[smittykins]

@nextbarker I had an elementary school classmate named Stanne(mid-70s).

The orange box turns a little bit slower than it would in later eps..

[essentialeugene]

Where is Gene's long thin microphone?

[PatrioticLionLeo]

He didn't use that until '74. If you look closely, you can see the microphone attached to his clothes.

[the06bug]

Ah yes, the lavaliere mic. So useful, that thing.

[PatrioticLionLeo]

Yes it is. I find it interesting that Terry Wogan, the first host of the British adaption, "Blankety Blank," used a similar style of microphone. When his successor, Les Dawson, took over, he broke the mic in half on his first show and carried on with only a body mic similiar to the one Gene is using here.

[PatrioticPirate]

I've heard the word lavalier before, but YOU taught me how to spell it. THANK YOU!

[MrAaronLadner]

I'd like for GSN to bring back the 1990 Edition of Match Game, hosted by Ross Shafer.

[CraigFoye80]

@MrAaronLadner, Yeah! Me, too!!

[DENo1MatchGameFan]

7-2-09: 'Happy 36th Anniversary' "Match Game!"  RIP Gene Rayburn, Brett Somers, & Charles Nelson Reilly, and thank you for all of the laughs and memories!

[GEORGETOWN93]

Games shows like this in the 70's seem to have better lighting than the shows today,that seem to be darker blue and purple hues!

[SuperGamer7]

I think the lighting on game shows today simply reflect our digital culture. They are more high tech and I think they're fine, but sometimes you can't beat the classic chase lights, like the The Price Is Right continues to have, going on 38 years now!

[Lehnerd57]

If they kept this show in mornin before the price is right been longer runnin.....as for press u luck just not make with the late host peter tomarken....

[priscillaofmanila]

Fabulous Show. Very funny. Gene Rayburn is excellent. He used to be on Radio. No wonder I adore him.

[jas22]

i dont know much about him. he did have a reputation as being a "very nice guy", though. 30 yrs ago, that meant something, i guess!

i prefer THIS set, without the excessive glitter and lights of subsequent years.

[priscillaofmanila]

I appreciae your comments.

[GEORGETOWN93]

I wonder if Richard Dawson ever tried to get Bob Crane on this show. Crane had a great sense of humor.

[jesusfreak34988]

ok well i can say we sort of had a match game remake sort of its a long shot but think about Hollywood Squares in the 90s I mean there were two contestants and there was a panel of starts and they had to match the star on if it was true or false and there was a prize at the end that was some times money

[coloh08]

what made match game was the personalities. you could never remake it.

[GEORGETOWN93]

A new Match Game would never work today. Todays Hollywood not nearly as classy as back then.Gene Rayburn can't be replaced.

[charlene7071]

I totally agree

[PatrioticPirate]

I LOVE this theme song!

[Hyman305]

I hope Match Game comes back

[coolrag]

did you hear that there might be a new Match game series coming out this year

[bluebear1985]

Really? I hope so. CBS is cancelling the daytime soap "Guiding Light", and from what I know they may be replacing it with a couple of game shows, but I havn't heard what yet. A couple possibilities I've heard rumoured are "Pyramid", "Card Sharks", or "Press Your Luck". Honestly, I don't know too much about it. I've only heard about it on the BuzzerBlog website.

[nextbarker]

It should also be noted, mrmatchgame, this was also the second show to revived at CBS instead of being on NBC, The Price is Right the first.

[WaveOBabys]

haha. richard dawson's silly little notes during the opening.

i'm only 15, and i hate game shows. But this show is truly a laugh.

[RingtailStudios]

Shows that Richard's funny little quirks were present even in the first episodes!

[gamshwfan]

This truly was the moment that was about to set off a truly memorable run. Match Game is back and improved for the better; the celebrities look like they are ready for the show and are ready to have a good time. Even the contestants right off the bat have interesting stories, they are the kind of people needed for a show like this since we are not going top take it seriously.

[rlrshepherdstown]

Yes . This CBS version remind lot of the NBC version , and I do like this Theme as well as the old A Swingin Safari Theme still I will always remember it ,and I wish it was played on 70's version . The Ticket Promo cue sort of reminds of A Swingin Safari .

[bunnyluv41]

Ohhh how i remember this show .. and I was just a little kid .. i used to laugh along with my family. It was interesting that I understood a lot of the jokes. Hahahahaha! Thank you for sharing this with us.

[satyr72]

I never heard of the to women on the bottom. Then adain in 1973 I was in a bassinet!

[WhatsAYak]

JoAnn Pflug was an actress who co-hosted Candid Camera during its 3rd season and was married to Chuck Woolery until 1980, while Anita Gillette's credits include the short-lived sitcom Me and The Chimp (which was cancelled about 6 mos before the premiere of MG '73) and the daytime soap Search for Tomorrow.

[RandRdriver]

JoAnn Pflug was also in the original movie mash. She was the "Lt. Dish"

[WhatsAYak]

Didn't know that...will have to look for her next time!

[ericandy88]

Anita Gillette is also a legend on Broadway.

[DENo1MatchGameFan]

@WhatsAYak She was also Quincy's wife on "Quincy M.E." during it's last season, was a frequent celebrity on "Pyramid", and was John Goodman's mother on "Normal, Ohio" in 2000.

[megamanj2007]

Another note you might want to add is that this version of MG is also the 4th MG/BT to originate from Hollywood w/ TPiR, IGaS ('72-'73 version w/ Steve Allen) and ABC Password all originating in Hollywood prior to this version.

[bluebear1985]

Don't forget "Beat the Clock" with Jack Narz.

[gamshwfan]

BTC w/ Jack Narz was in New York for the first season and than moved to Canada

[davemock]

Actually, the Narz/Gene Wood-hosted "Beat the Clock" was taped in New York City and in Canada. The 1979 version of "Beat the Clock" with Monty Hall as emcee and Jack Narz as announcer/associate producer WAS taped at Television City.

[MrBlackSW]

It's just so weird to not see Gene Rayburn without that long Sony microphone. It's like seeing Jim Perry with his microphone on the Card Sharks pilot. It's jarring.

[tommy76tx]

Brett and Charles did not appear til later. And who knew at that time they would continue that same tradition for 9 wonderful years. They sat in their respective positions for most of the game's run.

[lamccaugh]

Match Game was the best damn educational TV program ever!....Match Game kinda reminded me of Romper Room the celebrities acted like a bunch of four year olds as Gene was playing teacher.

[MichaelLandonLover94]

Yay! Michael Landon! He is the best and that will never change. =]

I LOVE Michael Landon!!!! <3<3<3<3

[nextbarker]

Was this the only time Michael Landon was on Match Game?

[mrmatchgame]

this version yea

[DENo1MatchGameFan]

Happy 35th Anniversary to the BEST version of "Match Game" EVER! RIP Gene Rayburn, Johnny Olson, Brett Somers, Charles Nelson Reilly, and the many other celebrities who filled these seats who are no longer with us.

[RPSteve]

@DENo1MatchGameFan Perhaps you`d be glad to know, I voted up on your comment. I totally agree that this is the BEST version of Match Game! I never cared for the 1990 version. And knowing how bad the 1998 version was, I`m glad I never saw it!

[DENo1MatchGameFan]

@RPSteve That's good. I did like "MG '90", though, as it did try to stay true to the 70's version of the show - just not enough of the celebrities on that version, a bad time slot, and even though Ross Shaffer was good, I still wish Bert Convy would have hosted it, had he not gotten sick. As for "MG '98", be glad you never did see it - it was pathetic!

[SNLover09]

O thank you so much!!

[KlipKultur]

Cannot believe that Brett and charles were not on the premiere.

[Hondo20132]

At least Richard was there...

BTW, when did those 2 join the team? Like, weeks in the run?

[WhatsAYak]

CNR and BS both made their 1st appearances during the 3rd week, though interestingly enough, Brett was seated on the bottom row instead of her usual #2 position!

[DownsA530]

And the only reason she did the show initially was because of how Jack Klugman made jokes about her during the debut week, and MG thought it only apporpriate that she be allowed to have her chance to respond. The irony!

[hockeybagged]

I love the pop ups, great job!