Password

... with Jeopardy. They are the two "pure" game shows in the history of television. No gimmicks and very little luck were involved to succeed at this game. What contestants needed was a good command of language and quick wits to come up with clues and guess the password.

Stars like Elizabeth Montgomery, Carol Burnette, Tony Randall, and Peter Lawford excelled at the game, with Lawford owning the record "Lightning Round", getting 5 passwords in 12 seconds.

The show was also notable as the venue where Alan Ludden first met Betty White. A few years later they married and remained so until his death eighteen years later, in 1982.

I was fortunate to see the show during the summers as a kid, and watched it again on the Game Show Network. Unfortunately, many episodes were lost when the network reused the tapes for Family Feud!

Every saturday, I watch the reruns of Password on Game Show Network. I think this is a fun game to play and I like to make up my own games and play it with my family. Allen Ludden (God rest his soul) was a very good host too.

"Password" was one of those rare game shows in which contestants had to rely on mental abilities *other* than memory. Contestants on games such as "Jeopardy" and "Who wants to be a Millionaire?" rely on their memories, or those of others, to come up with answers.

Unfortunately, the game placed people who do not have a great command of the English language at a disadvantage. People who have English as a second language may not have done too well in this game.

Nevertheless, "Password" demanded that the contestant make an intellectual effort to take a word (idea) and convey it someone else. That kind of effort takes imagination and insight in the nuances of language to do well. It's a cerebral game; maybe that's why Allen Ludden said: "Some time, somewhere, some day there will be another game show, but never one with the class of this one."

When I first discovered that "Password" reruns were airing on GSN a few years ago, I made it a point to get as many episodes on VHS as I could since there's no telling when the entire series will go into DVD. It's a pity that a lot of the game shows run on GSN don't have the class and continuity that "Password" did. Allen Ludden was always a great host - perfect for a game show like this. And like a lot of the game shows in the sixties and seventies, they made you think. I can also thank whoever made the decision at CBS to hang on to some of these great programs of that era such as "Password" for people to enjoy over again. I don't think the contestants were ever overawed by their celebrity partners and naturally we all found out how human they can be trying to think of a word to say in a few seconds from one-word clues. AND DON'T EVER SAY THE PASSWORD AS A CLUE...OOPS!!!!

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. Despite the fact that 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 play along and watch again. 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.