Blockbusters

This wasn't a bad game show. It was this game show, that got veteran game show host, Bill Cullen, his first and only emmy award, and he was great in this, too.

The concept of this puzzle game was great and original. I would recommend this to any game show fan. I hope they will make a modern update of Blockbusters.

I remember Blockbusters, one of the few quiz shows from Mark Goodson that debuted in 1980. It was a show that pitted a solo player against a family pair to prove that "two heads are better than one." It was a simple game that the home audience could play along and even better, Bill Cullen as host. He added a lot to the show and added plenty of humor to the game.

But NBC put Blockbusters into a time slot that was held by one of the disastrous attempts for something different in daytime, a talk show starring David Letterman. After four months of lousy ratings, it was canceled and replaced in the first half hour by a revival of Gambit that was taped in Las Vegas. The Wink Martindale-hosted show, leading into Blockbusters had to rebuild the time slot which suffered from not only low ratings but diminishing clearances by affiliates who opted syndicated talk shows such as the popular Phil Donahue Show.

Other than clearance problems and rebuilding a fallen time slot, Blockbusters was a show that people could learn something and the question structure in the main game was a lot like another Bill Cullen game show that aired on NBC, Winning Streak.

The best thing about Blockbusters was Bill Cullen. It's gratifying to see the maturity and confidence he had gained since his early The Price Is Right work for which he is better known. He's funny, witty, self-effacing, and just a pleasure to spend some time with. Overcoming polio, Cullen for me is the best of the game host emcees, far better than more celebrated figures like...well, you know. The other great thing about the show was the difficulty of the questions. What other game show will ask contestants for the name of Moss Hart's autobiography? So far as the two versus one dynamic, it's interesting but it doesn't always work. Sometimes only one of the couple is up to the challenge, sometimes dramatically so, which is embarrassing for everyone. Still, the concept is promising and can work well. The show disappoints when either the solo player or both of the couple don't have the intellectual firepower to compete.

First off, I must say that this is a fun game show. Also, since I'm 24, I haven't seen every episode. However, I do know the show very well. Every time I've watched it, I've had a lot of fun playing along and watching. Despite the fact that it's finished its run, this makes me long to be a contestant. The thing I like most about it are the questions. Even though I don't know that many answers, I still have fun playing along. I hope the Game Show Network keeps it on so I can keep playing along and watching. If that happens, I will be really happy. Before I wrap this up, I'd like to say that I'll always remember this show in my memory forever. Now, in conclusion, I hope that you catch it one day before it goes off the air for good.

It's very sad that a show with challenging questions, creative elements (the hexagonal pattern), and Bill Cullen's hosting talent all had to go away when this show went off the air. It's even more sad that it's not as celebrated as Card Sharks, The Price is Right, Press Your Luck, Wheel Of Fortune, not to mention Jeopardy. Not these shows are worse than Blockbusters, but Blockbusters certainly deserves just as equal attention. Although the music is not as simple as those game shows, it is nonetheless upbeat and great to listen to. In my opinion, this show should be, even, just as Press Your Luck has been, brought back.

Let me sum it all up: It is really a great game show.