[citation needed] At the time, this was a very rare instance of a television personality working on two different US broadcast TV networks simultaneously. Five-day-a-week syndicated update of the longtime CBS game show, wherein celebrity panelists guess occupations of the contestants.Five-day-a-week syndicated update of the longtime CBS game show, wherein celebrity panelists guess occupations of the contestants.Five-day-a-week syndicated update of the longtime CBS game show, wherein celebrity panelists guess occupations of the contestants. The series also inspired a multitude of concurrent international versions and a syndicated U.S. revival in 1968 in which Daly did not participate. On Fred Allen's death in 1956, Random House book publisher co-founder and humorist Bennett Cerf became the anchor panelist who would usually introduce Daly. Yul Brynner said this memorable line in "The King and I". What's My Line? Daly had received many letters over the years asking him to fill that role; until the finale he never could, because Daly served as the "emergency mystery guest", in case the scheduled celebrity failed to show on the live program. The moderator and panel's desks were not brought over, as they had been for the Chicago special.[45]. [40][42] Meanwhile, the concurrent 19521953 Radio edition, at least during the CBS run, was heard live from CBS Studio Building 22 (49 E. 52nd St., NY). The syndicated series ran for 1,320 episodes over seven seasons. Soon, other panelists were asking this question as well. ET. In July, 1959, along with the Associated Press writer John Scali, Daly reported from Moscow on the infamous Kitchen Debate between First Secretary Nikita Khrushchev and Vice President Richard M. Nixon. [4] New episodes have not been created for American television since December 12, 1974. Cerf and Daly enjoyed a friendly feud from across the stage for the remainder of the history of the program. That practice continued until the beginning of the final season in 1974, when announcer Chet Gould began introducing the panelists and host Blyden at once, in a conventional fashion. The Prime Time Access Rule was intended to permit local stations to produce news and public affairs programming, but instead many of them turned to programs like WML, as practically all stations outside the largest markets found it unprofitable to produce their own shows locally. From November 2004 to July 2006, Jim Newman and J. Keith van Straaten produced one-hour live stage versions of the show at the ACME Comedy Theatre in Los Angeles, California, titled What's My Line? The show lasted 17 years, with Daly hosting all but four episodes of the weekly series. [32] An April 1967 episode featuring Candice Bergen as the mystery guest was lost in its entirety, as was a June 1967 episode featuring both Betty Grable and F. Lee Bailey. This pilot started with three panelists playing the Mystery Guest round; the guest would then be the fourth panelist for the remainder of the episode. Answer: Yul Brynner. Episode #195 (February 21, 1954) only exists among collectors as a second-hand kinescope, as the official kinescope is missing from the Goodson-Todman archive. Often Daly would need to clarify a potentially confusing question, but he had a penchant for amusingly wordy, long-winded replies that often left panelists more confused than before, which Danny Kaye once parodied as a panelist. Revivals in the United States were proposed several times, but all of them failed to go past the planning stages. < What's My Line? Unsubscribe at any time. Bruner left the series at the conclusion of its fourth season in 1972, and Broadway actor Larry Blyden, who had already helmed several other gameshows and served as both a Line panelist and mystery guest in the past, stepped in at the beginning of the 19721973 season to host the remaining three seasons. However, the show was developed as a reality show and had no panel or game elements. is the long-running panel game show where the celebrity panelists try to figure out unusual occupations of everyday people. And since human nature is still the same, I'll bet an up-to-date version of this show would be a smash hit. Panelists have included Jonathan Ames, Joy Browne, Stephanie D'Abruzzo, Frank DeCaro, Michael Riedel, and original TV version veterans Betsy Palmer and Julia Meade. [4][22] In its early years, business suits and street dresses were worn by the host and panelists, but by 1953, the men normally wore black suits with bow tie (a few guests in fact wore black tie) while female panelists donned formal gown and often gloves. [40], Beginning with the first Wednesday episode (#005; April 12, 1950, and continuing until around 1951), the show was broadcast from the now demolished CBS Studio 51 (Maxine Elliott's Theatre, aka Maxine Elliott Theatre, 109W. 39th St., NY). [1][2], More than 700 episodes exist as kinescope recordings (filming a television screen in 16mm), which was the only way moving pictures and sound from spontaneous, unscripted television shows could be preserved on a long-term basis before the digital era. Daly did not host the syndicated version of What's My Line?, although he did co-host a 25th-anniversary program about the show for ABC in 1975. The show featured a panel of four celebrities who questioned the contestants. Mark Goodson, Arlene Francis and John Charles Daly appeared on-camera in 1975 having a conversation that introduced the old kinescope clips. Daly would then often fire back his own retort. Mrs. Roosevelts Oct 18, 1953 appearance is a delight, especially her pantomimed disgust at the 17:29 mark, above, when blindfolded panelistArlene Francisasks if shes associated with politics, and Daly jumps in to reply yes on her behalf. However, even with such formality, Daly was not above trading bon mots with the panelists during the game, and Cerf would often attempt to make a pun of his name. The show began as a live broadcast but during the last eight years many episodes were videotaped weeks or months in advance of their telecasts. What's My Line? is known for its attention to manners and class. [3], Last edited on 24 February 2023, at 05:51, "John Charles Daly Jr., the Host Of 'What's My Line? In his last years, Cerf explained to interviewer Robbin Hawkins that Montenier was ultimately ruined by his refusal to abandon or share sponsorship as the show entered new markets and became too expensive. moved from the Broadway studio to Studio 6-A at NBC in Rockefeller Center,[53] and the series remained there for the rest of its run, with a set redesign in 1974 for the final season. What's My Line? As Daly occasionally noted, "Ten flips and they (the panel) are a flop!" By clicking Accept, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. Produced by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman for CBS, the show was initially called Occupation Unknown before deciding on the name What's My Line? lighting director (1 episode, 1968) Stan Alper. [16] The most notable and last guest on a "Critique" program hosted by Daly was Bronx-born singer/songwriter/pianist Laura Nyro, probably recorded on December 4, 1968,[citation needed] and originally broadcast on January 1, 1969, in which she performed demos of "And When I Die," "The Man Who Sends Me Home," "Captain Saint Lucifer," "Mercy on Broadway," "You Don't Love Me When I Cry," and "Save the Country," and also featured an interview with her manager David Geffen. The producers, Fates said, were unable to challenge Daly for fear of losing him as the show's moderator. [60] In the process of viewing and editing the films for the special, they accidentally damaged or destroyed several kinescope films that spanned the entire run of the original series, including a few that did not make the final cut of the retrospective. The ultimate or penultimate round of an episode involved blindfolding the panel for a celebrity guest appearance (originally called "mystery challengers" by Daly) whom the panel had to identify by name, rather than occupation. 2. Daly became completely convulsed in laughter during the live telecast on the NBC network. A panelist chosen by Daly would begin the game. Also, the animated intro was done away with in favor of the show's announcer (usually Gould) offering a brief preview of one of the contestants' games. The producers considered the revival a merger of What's My Line? He was F. Lee Bailey. The fourth panelist then introduced moderator. What's My Line? The cover of the book features the photos of panelists Arlene Francis, Bennett Cerf, Dorothy Kilgallen and host John Daly. While Daly moderated the first live episode after his return from Moscow, he praised his employers use of videotape. We never spam. Panelists had the option of passing to the next panelistor even disqualifying themselves entirely if they somehow knew the contestant's occupation or identity, in the case of a mystery challenger, before the round. However, according to Miramax TV president Billy Campbell, the deal crumbled because the network decided the show was too costly and ambitious. The show was hosted by John Charles Daly and the regular panelists were Dorothy Kilgallen, Arlene Francis and Bennett Cerf. In this movie he played Mongkut, King of Siam. The unscripted urbane banter kept viewers tuning in. If all four panelists failed, each member of the team won an additional bonus prize. was Pat Finch, a hat check girl at the Stork Club. It was originally aired on BBC Television Service from 16 July 1951 to 13 May 1963, hosted by Eamonn Andrews. [16][17] On one occasion the guest was a man who made breadboxes. The game followed a line of formality and adherence to rules. The host, then called the moderator, was veteran radio and television newsman John Charles Daly. The original What's My Line?, based on the Daly era, was released by Lowell in 1955. What's My Line? In September 1966, all three networks began broadcasting their prime-time schedules entirely in color television, including What's My Line? During the 1950s, Daly became the vice president in charge of news, special events, and public affairs, religious programs and sports for ABC and won three Peabody Awards. Directed by Paul Munroe (1950) Franklin Heller (1950-1967) Frank Satenstein Paul Alter(1957-1961) Ira Skutch Lloyd Gross (1968-1975 syndicated version) Presented by John Charles Daly Wally Bruner Larry Blyden Starring Arlene Francis Dorothy Kilgallen Louis Untermeyer Hal Block Bennett Cerf Steve Allen Fred Allen Soupy Sales An attempt at an eighth season did not get off the ground as not enough stations were willing to pick up the series for an additional year. The existing kinescope films (now digitized) have subsequently been rerun on television. [19] They were married for more than 30 years, until Daly's death. The second version, based on the Bruner/Blyden era, was released by Whitman in 1969. Four panelists must determine guests' occupations - and, in the case of famous guests, while blindfolded, their identity - by asking only "yes" or "no" questions. In 2000, a pilot was shot with host Harry Anderson for CBS, but was later turned down in favor of the reality show Survivor. had yet to air in certain markets; by the fall of 1975, the last of these episodes had aired across the United States. [52] In 1971, production of What's My Line? [citation needed]. A typical episode featured two standard rounds (sometimes a third, and very rarely a rushed fourth) plus one mystery guest round. [3] Daly worked for a time in a wool factory and a transit company in Washington, D.C. before becoming a reporter for NBC Radio and, later, CBS.[3]. As he wrote in his book, Fates knew, but did not tell viewers, about the production costs that would have gone to waste had his company acceded to the demands, some coming from station managers, to scrap the Cerf videotapes.[57]. In order to commemorate the show's 50th Anniversary at the time, this version was released by Endless Games in 2001. The tiles were done away with in favor of having blue walls with question marks painted on them, and the rest of the set adopted a red and yellow color palette. Recorded in New York City, New York at the Grand Central Studios/CBS Studio 41 from February to March 1950, the Maxine Elliott's Theatre/CBS Studio 51 from April to December 1950, the Mansfield Theater/CBS Studio 59 from January 1951 to June 1960, CBS Studio 52 from June 1960 to July 1966, and . Expect the usual gender-based assumptions of the period, but also appearances byMary G. Ross, a Cherokee aerospace engineer, and physicistHelen P. Mann, a data analyst at Cape Canaveral. The main differences I find between this version and the original is that it tended to lean more towards comedy and that the stylish attire was gone (the men didn't wear tuxedos and the women eschewed evening gowns in favor of slacks or casual attire). However, there was one weekly celebrity "mystery guest" for which the panelists were blindfolded. From May 20 to August 27, 1952, an NBC Radio Network version was produced on Tuesday nights with the same cast as the TV version. What's My Line? Viacom and Goodson-Todman found themselves unable to secure contracts with enough stations to justify continuing to produce the program beyond the episodes that had been videotaped on or prior to December 12, 1974. is the longest-running game show in the history of prime time network TV. In July 1959, this was state-of-the-art technology. Too bad it is not shown on a regular basis anymore. Yul Brynner said this memorable Line in & quot ; the King and I & quot ; the and! 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