High Rollers (NBC, Syndication) with Alex Trebek

[brainsareus]

alex, looked like a 70's porn star. 

[MsKeith1969]

i am old enough ( i am 41 years old, born in 1969) that i actually remember this game show. i just wish i could have been an adult back during the 70's.

[bradhig]

When did the 1974-1976 1979-1980 have big light up numbers on the set like the later 1980s version?

[StukInBuf]

July 1, 1974 when it all began... CANADA DAY!! And who else to be the host than Canada's own Alex Trebek.

[bluebear1985]

@StukInBuf Another interesting fact. The previous Friday, Alex had his first American game show cancelled by NBC, "The Wizard of Odds". He's one of only a few emcees to have a series canceled on Friday and be back the following Monday with a new one.

[wdm1219]

At 1:03 the host looks like Bert Convy more than Trebek.

[DA90027]

40 years and Ruta is still wearing her hair the same way...lol

[juan833cheer]

Forget the 1987-88 High Rollers Theme; this Old-School High Rollers theme with Alex Trebek as host ROCKED BIG TIME!!! SUPER THEME MUSIC BY THE GREAT STAN WORTH.

[StukInBuf]

A game show worthy of seeing the TV stage again... High Rollers!

Since CBS has now dumped two soaps(Guiding Light and As The World Turns), it would be nice to see at least "High Rollers" given a chance to come back to TV after a long absence.

Only one consideration, though... can one conceive of "High Rollers" and CBS being mentioned in the same breath?

[269848]

@StukInBuf Yeah, I agree. With the successes of TPIR and Let's Make A Deal, why not? I can't understand why the networks are so scared of trying game shows again. Nowadays, I'm trying to make up for lost time seeing game show programming.

[gameshowsful64]

The history of game shows certainly could have been changed forever if NBC followed through on its plan to cancel Wheel of Fortune after 5 1/2 years. The network had big plans for a 90-minute daytime talk show hosted by David Letterman, and 3 game shows were to be the casualties. Several mock schedules were drafted up, including one which gave the ax to Wheel of Fortune. The victims wound up being Chain Reaction, High Rollers, and the venerable Hollywood Squares.

[sageofsuccess]

That idiot Fred Silverman cancelled everything that was good.

[gamshwfan]

This is a very good theme song. It feels like a nigh on Broadway or Atlantic City. Perfectly fitting in with a game based around dice & gambling & a whole lot of glitz. Heatter & Quiggly have their best theme here; everyone of their other thees are too cheesy & don't fit in with game shows at all. The song has its combonations of all kinds of dinner theatre instruments like the sax & drums, making the beat more catchy. It's a classy theme worthy of 5 stars. High Rollers was a great show.

[palmercomm]

Blamin' it all on the nights on Broadway, are we?

[gshowguy]

I can hear electric guitar in the song, too.

[sylviabh8ule]

Does the 1976 finale exist anywhere? I think I remember seeing the final show. Alex and Ruta had the staff on stage and they threw balloons down at the end.

[gameshowfreak2007]

too bad the 1974-1976 eps. are most likely gone, I hear though that a few of the 1976-1980 eps. have popped up, and there's at least 1 ep. of the 1974 version in the trading circuit but good luck getting a trade for it.

[Hondo20132]

1. Do you know what site it is?

2. Doesn't the 1974 set look a lot like the one used on the 1988 version?

[gameshowfreak2007]

1. unfortunately I don't there was a brief, (very brief) clip on page o'clips but that site's shut down now.

2. well, all I've seen is the clip, and from that it seems so yes,

[Hondo20132]

It's too bad it's been shut down! :(

Then again, I've never heard about it until it was shut down!

[SuperGamer7]

The rules of the '74-'76 version were slightly different. In the main game, Ruta Lee (and Elaine too) ALWAYS rolled the dice for the contestants. A prize was attached to every number (1-9), when you knock a number off, you bank the prize, but you only kept it if you won the game. Cars could also be won, if you banked both halves of it and won the game. Other than that, I believe the rest of the rules were the same with regards to insurance markers and the BIG numbers.

[megamanj2004X]

Toward the end of the original 1974-76 run, the numbers in the maingame would conseal the identity of a famous person. Each time a player knocked off a number, more parts of a famous face appeared. The player would solved the puzzle, won a game and/or any prizes w/ it.

Also, the "Big Numbers" endgame was played a bit different on the 1974-76 run. Unlike the later versions of HR, each time you knocked a number off the board, you had the decision to stop and take the money.

[artytoons]

One of the classiest tv game show themes ever...nice Las Vegas show ambiance. Loved the opening with Kenny Williams announcing "This is the game of high stakes...where every answer is a gamble and every roll can be your last...'High Rollers!'...and now here is the man with the action...Alex Trebek!" Cue to the "High Rollers" logo with the word "High" floating upwards and each of the letters in "ROLLERS" rolling away from the screen.

[artytoons]

One of the classy game show themes ever. Nice Las Vegas show ambiance. I loved the original opening sequence of Kenny Williams announcing: "This is the game of high stakes where every answer is a gamble and any roll can be your last...'High Rollers!'...and now here is the man with the action, Alex Trebek!" The on-screen "High Rollers logo would then have the word "High" floating upwards and the letters in "ROLLERS" rolling away!

[gshowguy]

And Kenny Williams did a better job of announcing on the 1974 and 1978 versions than Dean Goss did on Wink Martindale's version in 1987, IMO.

Now if only Alex could grow the 'stache and 'fro back... ;-)