Back in 2019, Dr. Sami Schalk contributed a piece to Inside Higher Ed titled “Lowbrow Culture and Guilty Pleasures? The Performance and Harm of Academic Elitism.” The article was in response to Times Higher Education reporter Jack Grove’s tweet, which put out a call to “some scholars who would write for THE about their guilty cultural pleasures/unashamed love for supposedly ‘lowbrow‘ subjects/activities.” Dr. Schalk argued that the uncritical use of term “lowbrow” ignored the biases embedded in such a word, […]
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The Exorcist’s Game Show Connection
By Adam Nedeff, researcher for the National Archives of Game Show History
The Exorcist is one of the most chilling horror films of the 20th century. Pea soup, flying furniture, and the terrifying guttural voice emitting from a 12-year-old girl came together to create a disturbing and impossible-to-forget experience for moviegoers.
And we have Groucho Marx to thank for it.
Groucho Marx’s comedy quiz show, You Bet Your Life, was firmly an institution by the start of 1961, having already logged more […]
Mister Rogers’….Game Show
By Adam Nedeff, researcher for the National Archives of Game Show History
More than two decades after the final episode of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood aired in 2001, the legacy of Fred Rogers has endured. Rogers has been the topic of a major feature film, It’s a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood starring Tom Hanks, and a documentary film, Won’t You Be My Neighbor. His namesake company, Fred Rogers Productions, has produced numerous public television series, including the spinoff Daniel Tiger’s […]
Original Jeopardy! Debuted 60 Years Ago
By Adam Nedeff, researchers for the National Archives of Game Show History
Barely five years removed from the quiz show scandals of the 1950s, NBC surprised viewers by touting an exciting new quiz show in which the contestants would be told all the answers…the catch was, they had to provide the questions. Sixty years ago this month, America was introduced to Jeopardy! in March of 1964.
Merv Griffin had lamented to his wife, Julann, about the absence of Q&A shows […]
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The Man Behind Memorable Game Show Graphics
By Adam Nedeff, researcher for the National Archives of Game Show History
Game shows are not just television programs. They are brands unto themselves, and some of them are represented by graphic icons—the blobby red Whammys of Press Your Luck; the merry joker of The Joker’s Wild; the distinctive dollar sign in The Price Is Right’s logo. These elements are calling cards for classic game shows. The best ones stand on their own as representatives of their show.
One of these classic […]
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The End of the Original, Daytime Game Show Format
By Adam Nedeff, researcher for the National Archives of Game Show History
Thirty years ago this month, a sad bit of game show history was made, but nobody recognized it at the time. On January 14, 1994, NBC aired Caesar’s Challenge for the last time. The following Monday, the network’s schedule was a wall of talk shows and soap operas. With no fanfare at all, viewers witnessed the end of the last original game show format to air on network […]
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Tiamat, the Chromatic Dragon, Has Landed in Hasbro Game Park
If you have come to the museum recently, you may have noticed a new friend—or foe—outside. She is breathing fire and mist, with five different colored heads roaring as you press the 20-sided dice (d20) before her, and her name is Tiamat! An infamous monster from the tabletop role-play game Dungeons & Dragons, the Dragon Queen is now at The Strong National Museum of Play in the Hasbro Game Park. I thought it would be nice to formally introduce her […]
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You’ll Be Sorry!
By Adam Nedeff, researcher for the National Archives of Game Show History
Have you ever teased a friend who was about to make a bad decision by saying “You’ll be sorry”? And you probably didn’t just say it. You probably said it with an odd, sing-song inflection. “You’lllllll be soooooooo-rrrrrrrryyyyyy!”
It was probably just something you picked up. You’ve heard friends say it. You’ve heard characters say it in movies and TV shows. But when you said “You’llllllll be sooooooooo-rrrrrrrrryyyyy” in that […]
“Let’s Make a Deal” Still a Big Deal
By Adam Nedeff, researcher for the National Archives of Game Show History
Let’s Make a Deal has been something of a sleeper hit for CBS, quietly maintaining a steady and loyal audience over the past 15 years. Host Wayne Brady hasn’t filled the shoes of original host and creator Monty Hall, only because there’s no need. Smooth, charming, funny, and clever, Brady is now in a league of long-time game show hosts who have found their own style.
Somewhere in the great […]
