Gilbert Gottfried's Amazing Colossal Podcast - Mini-Ep #99: Forgotten Game Shows with Dick DeBartolo

Episode Date: February 16, 2017

"The Wizard of Odds"! "Don Adams' Screen Test"! Bouncing Bobby Van! And the rise (and fall) of Allan Sherman! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

That's the sound of unaged whiskey transforming into Jack Daniel's Tennessee whiskey in Lynchburg, Tennessee. Around 1860, Nearest Green taught Jack Daniel how to filter whiskey through charcoal for a smoother taste, one drop at a time. This is one of many sounds in Tennessee with a story to tell. To hear them in person, plan your trip at tnvacation.com. Tennessee sounds perfect. This episode is brought to you by FX's The Bear on Disney+. In Season 3, Carmi and his crew are aiming for the ultimate restaurant accolade, a Michelin star.

With Golden Globe and Emmy wins, the show starring Jeremy Allen White, Io Debrey, and Maddie Matheson is ready to heat up screens once again. All new episodes of FX's The Bear are streaming June 27, only on Disney+. Hi, I'm Gilbert Gottfried and I'm here with my co-host Frank Santopadre for Gilbert and Frank's

amazing Colossal obsessions. You're frightening me. And we're here at Nutmeg with Verna Rosa. And we're here at Nutmeg with our engineer, Frank Verna Rosa. And the beleaguered Paul Rayburn, our researcher. And we're here with Dick DiBartolo. If that's what he calls himself. That's what he calls himself.

That's what he's calling himself. I changed it recently. For part two of our game show episode. Now, we talked about Dick's experiences before on Match Game and To Tell the Truth and Tattletales and all kinds of stuff. And I got some game show research here. I got deep into this. Yes. And I thought, I wonder if I could fuck with these guys' heads and see what they

remember. So I'm going to see how many of these shows you guys remember. This is called This is Our Friends at Me TV helping us out with an article called Obscure Forgotten Game Shows of the 70s. Okay. Which I figure is our era. Yeah, yeah. Me TV thought I was too dirty. They did. Yes.

Yes, but they listened to the show because they did an article about our Don Wells episode. Ah. That's why I said our friends at MeTV. Oh, okay. Rather than those scumbags at MeTV. Hey, didn't you have questions? Oh, yeah. Oh, quotes.

We talked about Gilbert on Pyramid. In a previous episode, we told you, that's right, $25,000 Pyramid, which Gilbert remembered he'd been on. Correct. With Donny Osmond, not Dick Clark. On the internet, one who looks can find top Gilbert Gottfried quotes from $25,000 pyramid. That's sad. So I have one.

I have one. I always wish the hotels were like they are in movies and TV shows, where if you're in Paris, right outside your window is the Eiffel Tower. In Egypt, the pyramids are right there. In the movies, every hotel has a monument right outside your window. My hotel rooms overlook the garbage dumpster in the back alley. That's good. It's a philosophy of life. Wow.

It was more a statement about movies and TV than an actual joke. Yeah. Paul, once again. That's one of his top ten quotes. When you shouldn't have. See, now that observation could be used. We could do another obsession show. Called Trench Insights?

Yeah, or like ones that, you know, they've done they've talked about this a lot. Stuff that is only in movies and television. Right, we'll do one of those. Yeah, like girls waking up with their blanket over their breasts. No matter

where, how long they've been out of the apartment for the day, when two people walk in, there's always ice on the bar. Yes. That's interesting. No one ever goes to the refrigerator. Think of that. They also park right in front of the building.

Yes. And especially in a hospital. There's always a parking space. Yes. They pull right up and they get out and they leave their car there. That's a good idea for a future episode. Why would we research that? And then I like how girls will, when they're taking a bath, first of all, it'll always be a bubble bath.

And then they'll reach for the towel and wrap the towel around them while they're still in the water. They won't stand up. Well, that's a cousin of women getting up from the bed with the sheet and the blanket wrapped around them twice. And it fits like it fit Cleopatra perfectly. You know, it's. All right. So we've got the game show expert, Dick DiBartolo, here with us. Oh, before you talk to him.

Yeah. Talk to him. I'd rather not. Another one is if someone's just wrapped in nothing but a towel, they can get into a fight. They could dance. They can do cartwheels. The towel will not slip off. Even though you're begging it to. Yes.

Yes. It's like the towel is like staple to them. See, Dick, one of the things that's been established on this show is Gilbert likes what we call incidental nudity. It's called Gilbert nudity. Gilbert nudity. Oh, okay, right. He doesn't like nudity in the context of a sex scene. He likes casual nudity.

Oh, okay. Yeah, like I want a naked girl doing her taxes. Yes. Putting in a light bulb. Oh, yeah, changing a light bulb. Nudity in the act of doing, in the process of doing everyday tasks. Oh, okay. Okay, that's good.

Tacking down a carpet. Perfect. That kind of thing. Up on a ladder. Yeah. Oh, excellent. And now you're talking. Changing the floaty thing in the toilet tank.

Oh, yeah. Black round. You can see how many times I've changed it. Who remembers The Wizard of Odds? There you go, Gilbert. With Albert. Oh, my God. Wait.

Wait. Did I redeem myself with this one? What'd you find? Paul found a naked girl climbing up a ladder. Oh, my God. That's up a ladder. That's impressive. Yeah. Wow. My best piece of research ever. Yes. Your only

piece of research. I apologize to him. Yeah. All right. Let's see what you guys can do with these. Alex Trebek hosted a show called The Wizard of Odds. Remember anything about it? I do not remember. From 1973 to 1974.

Now, Gilbert, it's a special interest to you because it was produced by Alan Thicke. Oh, my God. Who also sang the theme song, of course he did. Oh, God. And composed it. God. Alan knows the money's in the theme song.

I'll have to listen to that theme song and come back and sing it Paul maybe you can find us the theme song from the Wizard of Oz hosted by Alex Trebek I think it was Alex Trebek's first this describes his foray into the American game show hosting

now there was a game show somebody even brought it up a game show that was even, somebody even brought it up on this show, that I remember I used to watch and I loved, but I don't think it lasted that long, and that was the movie game. Oh, with Sonny Fox. Yeah.

Former guest and Army Archard. And I liked that one. Do you remember the movie game? I remember one time they had Milton Berle as one of the contestants. I think. And he was great. Didn't we talk to Sonny? I think Sonny was the host of the movie game. That was a great episode.

And a film critic. Sonny's around. That's great. Sonny's 91. He was super. Yeah. He doesn't do the kid show anymore. D-Bar Tolo.

Yeah. He's a waste of time. But Sonny Fox was a good guest. You're being roasted, Dick. And Danny Aiello was a great... Dick DiBartolo. Who remembers this show called Stumpers, hosted by Alan Ludden? Anything?

No. These were short-lived. October to December of 1976. Oh, and then there was that game show that lasted one episode that Jackie Gleason came back. Oh, you're in the picture. Yeah, you're in the picture. Yeah. It ran one episode.

I think people would stick their head through a picture. You remember this? And have to guess. Yeah, you know it was like those Coney Island boardwalk things. So this person would stick their head. Oh, and then you have to guess what they were as. And Gleason hosted it one time and then came back the second week and apologized. Yeah.

He came on and said, I'm embarrassed about it. This was the worst show. You know what? Anywhere on there, is there a thing that Don Rickles hosted? Don Rickles hosted a game show. Yeah. I couldn't find it. I couldn't find the name of it. It was a Goodson show. It was very short-lived. Because I remember... Can you imagine

Rickles hosting a game show? We'll have to... Paul, see if you can dig that out. Who remembers The Fun Factory, hosted by Bobby Vann? Wizard of Odds is tough. That's a tough one. Maybe we can get that for a future episode. We will return to Gilbert Gottfried's amazing colossal podcast after this. And now back to the show.

So what am I looking at now? Rickles? Rickles hosted a game show. Yeah. No one remembers the Fun Factory? No. With Bobby Vann? No.

You remember Bobby Vann? Oh, yeah. The song The Dance Man. He was married to Elaine Joyce. The dance guy who did that bouncing thing. Yes, I was just going to say that. Right. He was like hopping through the entire. Yes, like for seven minutes. And I heard it was either the producer or the director.

They were pissed off at him. And they invented that dance as punishment where it just had to keep hopping up and down which probably became really painful. Wow. I had heard that this podcast was painful and it was created

to punish friends. And it does every week, my friend. It accomplishes that every week. Okay, here's a Goodson-Todman one called The Better Sex which was hosted by Bill Anderson and Sarah Purcell. Oh, my gosh.

Six men and six women competed against each other. I do not remember that. Those two were on a Goodson-Todman summer show called That's My Line. It was to compete with real people. Oh, okay. Where people came on. Yeah, I remember real people. Yeah, okay. Where people came on. Yeah, I remember real people. Yeah, okay.

How about Shoot for the Stars, Gilbert, in 1977, hosted by Jeff Edwards, who was better known for hosting a show called Jackpot. Yes. Wow. And this was the last NBC game show to originate from New York City. What, does it say what year?

1977. It aired from January to September of 1977. Holy cow. I didn't know they left that early. How about Blankety Blanks, hosted by Bill Cullen? Blankety Blank was Goodson Todman, wasn't it? Yeah. Created by Bob Stewart, who was a Goodson Todman protégé.

Goodson Todman person back then, yes. Okay, here's one of my favorites. The Magnificent Marble Machine. Oh, my God. Does anybody remember this but me? It was a giant pinball game. And the people... Hosted by Art James, who was a very big...

Yeah, did the people actually get in the machine? No, it was two celebrities. I have a picture here of Artie Johnson and Earl Holloman. Wow! It was two celebrities. I have a picture here of Artie Johnson and Earl Holliman. Wow. Making the magnificent marble machine against what looks like Leslie Uggams and Adrian Barbeau. What looks like? Oh, that's very funny. I can't tell because it's a very small picture.

That's not the perfect game show, Cash. That's just like the scripted. And Art James. Art James, who hosted. Died very early, right? Didn't he host PDQ? He did. Or was that Dennis James? No, I think it was Art James, who hosted. Died very early, right? Didn't he host PDQ? He did. Or was that Dennis James? No, I think it was Art James.

He used to live on 79th and Broadway, the Ansonia, I think. Or the Bears. Art James did a lot of game shows. Yes. Yeah, they described this as something like a psychedelic album or a Sid and Marty Croft production. It featured a massive pinball machine as its centerpiece that was 20 feet high and 12 feet long, created by Heater and Quigley.

Oh, yeah, Quigley and Heater production. Yeah. And here's some that we have talked about on this show. Now, I know you know this one, Gilbert. Yes. This is called Don Adams Screen Test. Oh, yes, yes. You remember this?

I remember. And this was Don Adams when he was at the height of two forces there. One was midlife crisis and the other was that horrible 70s fashions. Yeah, well,

there he is in a ridiculous leisure suit with a ruffled shirt. Now, he's clean-shaven there, though. Yeah. Because for a while, he grew like a handlebar mustache, I think. And he would dress in those terrible 70s fashion. He had the processed hair. And, yeah, I definitely remember that.

Yep. It was an American game show hosted by Don Adams. The announcer was Dick Tufeld of Lost in Space fame. He was the voice of the robot. Oh, my gosh. Lost in Space. He was the announcer. And it was an hour-long pilot.

Made May 16, 1975. It ran short-lived. September. One year. September 75 to September 76. I think I'm looking at the same thing you are, Frank. to September 76. So there's also,

I'm looking at, I think I'm looking at the same thing you are, Frank, says it's owned by Universal Television but has not been seen since its original airing. I found a clip on YouTube that has Rona Barrett

and the director, George Marshall, who was an old-time film director. So contestants would basically do screen tests. Yes. And the prize was you got to go to Hollywood and do an actual screen test.

Yes. Now, do you remember Richard Dawson's Masquerade Party? Yes. In the 70s. Before that. You know the fun- It was somebody else first, wasn't it? Yes, it was starting in the 50s.

Mike Stokies, right? I think it started in the 50s on the Dumont Network, hosted by Bud Collier. Oh, my God. I think it started in the 50s on the Dumont Network, hosted by Bud Collier. Oh, my God. But just getting back to that screen test one, what's so funny about that, they get you, if you win, you get a screen test. That was the prize. That's like, I think you're an intelligent guy.

I'm going to get you a job interview. I'm going to show you where they sell lottery tickets. That's funny. Masquerade Party started in 52. It ran through the 50s. Bud Collier, Peter Donald, Eddie Bracken hosted it. Oh, wow. At one point. The immortal Robert Q. Lewis. Oh, Robert,. Lewis in 58, who Cavett told us about.

Burt Parks hosted it from 58 to 60. And then they brought it back in the 70s with Richard Dawson as the host. Now, you'll love this, Gilbert. Comedian Alan Sherman was the producer. Oh, wow. How about that? And celebrities would dress in prosthetic makeup. Yes, I remember this show, yes.

And there was a theme to who they were, and you had to guess. They would act out scenes, and then people would guess. And then they would get a screen test. Yeah. Now, I heard that Alan Sherman, like, you know, before he became famous, you know, he was like a fat nebbish. And then when he started getting fame and money. He became a thin Catholic. Yeah. Yeah. No, he it just everything he he was before and everything he wanted to be.

It drove him crazy. They said he was a difficult guy he wanted to be, it drove him crazy. They said he was a difficult guy to work with. Yeah. Alan Sherman. And he died young. Yeah. He died, I think, during open heart surgery. Yeah, and I think he just got carried away with his own success. You'll never have to worry about that.

That's for sure. What do you got on Richard Dawson's masquerade party, Paul? Anything? No, I didn't. Sounds horrible. I'm looking, trying to see what happened to Alan Sherman, though. I'm working on that at the moment.

How about the Who, What, or Where game? Does that ring any bells? Also hosted by Art James. God, he hosted a lot of losers. And then Three on a Match, hosted by Bill Cullen. That wasn't Goodson, was it? Bob Stewart. Bob Stewart.

Oh, okay. Yeah. The announcer was, but these were shows that originated in New York. They did these shows in New York. Sale of the Century. Stewart was in New York. Joe Garagiola was done here in New York. Oh, Joe Garagiola did To Tell the Truth for a while.

Right. So tell us, did you ever work for Jack Barry and- I worked for Barry. And Enright? Yes. And Enright? I worked for Barry, yes. The famous blackballed producers? Yes, it was my first job. It was my after-school job working as a messenger. And then I met Bob Noah there, and Bob Noah went over to Goodson.

I met Bob Noah there, and Bob Noah went over to Goodson, and he said, you know, Goodson has this idea for a game show, Match Game. Oh, and then it became Match Game. And he said, you know, they're looking for someone to write questions. You want to give it a shot? And I said, yeah. Yeah, because Sonny told us that he knew Enright. Remember Sonny was on the fringes of the Kisho scandal? Yes.

Yeah. And Barry and Enright were really – they were brought down by that. They didn't work for years. No, absolutely. And also there was a third name for a while. It used to be Barry Enright Friendly. Was it? Ta-da!

Okay, another challenge for the Green Hornet, Paul. Can I give you Alan Sherman a little bit about – Go! Yeah. It's sad. It's a sad story. He was affected by the Kennedy assassination when Vaughn Meter stopped doing any impressions, and his comedy was perceived to be a similar kind of comedy. And so he couldn't get work.

He was divorced. His wife got custody of the kids. How bizarre. He lived in the—what is this? You guys probably know this. kids. How bizarre. He lived in the, what is this, you guys probably know this, the sort of a home for motion picture and television country house and

hospital near Calabasas. Yeah, Calabasas. In 1971 he did the voice of the cat in the hat. Sure. The television special. Did one more Dr. Seuss thing and died at either 47 or 44. Oh my gosh. He died very young. That's a tragedy.

He was a big star in the early 60s. He was a rocket. Yeah, he had his parodies. Yeah, they were super. He had a lot of albums. Yeah. Well, thanks for bringing the show down, Paul. Yeah, yeah.

It's funny. It's funny. Weird Al was definitely influential. We had Weird Al on the show, and he was a big Alan Sherman fan He's a big Mad fan too Yeah, I know he edited an issue of Mad Those Alan Sherman albums, if you go back My son, the folk singer, is quite good

Oh, very funny. I remember aside from you know, Hello Mother Hello Father, that was a number one hit on the radio He had that one Harvey and Sheila. Harvey and Sheila, Harvey. Right.

And that was something like, she worked for NBC, he worked for A&T. That's very funny. There was a parody of Matilda, the Harry Belafonte song called My Zelda. She took the money and ran with the tailor. And the Ballad of Harry Lewis. Glory, glory, Harry Lewis. Pop hates the Beatles. You've got a great memory.

Oh, I love Alan Sherman. We should do an episode looking back at those tunes. Yeah, well, we'll do a comedy album episode. We'll do one where we talk about Vaughn Meter, too, and Alan Sherman. In fact, their careers were happening right around the same time. Sherman was a big deal in the early 60s. My son, the folk singer, is filled with JFK references. Oh, yeah.

Jackie Kennedy, jump down, spin around, pick a dress of cotton. Oh, that's very funny. Funny man. pick a dress of cotton. Oh, that's very funny. Yeah. Funny man. And I don't want to disparage the man, but I understand he had a difficult life. Yeah. Wow.

47. That's too early to go. Yeah. Well, now I want to kill myself. Well, you knew none of these game shows. I'm just doing my job here. I still haven't figured out what you're talking about. I noticed he wrote down the name of that retirement home out in the news. That's hilarious.

He passed you a note and said, get me info. Get me room rates on that. We have the sad demise of Gloria Swanson and Alan Sherman in this episode. All right, Gil. Okay. Why don't you just say, our guest has been. Our guest has been. Dick DeBartolo.

He got it. And this has been. Gilbert. God. This has been Gilbert and Frank's amazing, colossal obsession. You sound like you're an iron lung. You're supposed to be sexy. Thank you, Dick.

Thank you. Thank you, Paul. Thank you, Frankie. I'm not thanking you.