Top 10 Hosts, 1976-1998 |
| 10 |
|
Geoff Edwards |
| Famous for: Treasure Hunt, Jackpot!, Play the Percentages, Starcade, Shoot for the Stars | ||
| Edwards deserves to be in the top 10 for a simple reason--no other host had to memorize 66 different bits for Treasure Hunt (since, for security reasons, there were no cue cards). The quintessential people person. | ||
| 9 |  |
Tom Kennedy |
| Famous for: You Don't Say!, 50 Grand Slam, Name That Tune, Split Second '75, Whew!, Password Plus, WordPlay | ||
| Now semi-retired, Kennedy's long career had many distinctions, including capably taking over Password Plus after Allen Ludden's death. And once, on P+, was a player instead of a host--his brother Jack Narz hosted. Recently spotted on the Rosie O'Donnell Show. | ||
| 8 |
|
Art Fleming |
| Famous for: Jeopardy! | ||
| For many years, Art Fleming was Jeopardy. It's too bad that those of us born after 1975 barely remember this all-time great. | ||
| 7 |  |
Alex Trebek |
| Famous for: Double Dare '76, Wizard of Odds, The $128,000 Question, PitFall, Jeopardy!, Classic Concentration | ||
| Probably the first person people think of when they think of Jeopardy. | ||
| 6 |  |
Wink Martindale |
| Famous for: (Las Vegas) Gambit, Tic Tac Dough, Trivial Pursuit, Debt | ||
| Would have been higher up on the list if his interactive shows that ran on Family Channel were excluded. But they're not, so here he is. | ||
| 5 |  |
Richard Dawson |
| Famous for: Family Feud, I've Got a Secret (panelist), Match Game '7x (panelist), The Running Man (film) | ||
Like Art Fleming was Jeopardy!, Richard Dawson was Family Feud. Dawson was a very personable host, though his work on the 1994 revival of Feud was less than inspired. And in case you didn't know: Dawson's role in The Running Man? A game show host. Was also the primary reason that Match Game adopted the Star Wheel--because contestants would select him all the time for the Super Match. |
||
| 4 |
|
Bob Eubanks |
| Famous for: The Newlywed Game, Trivia Trap, Card Sharks '86 | ||
| The man who made the phrase "making whoopee" famous. | ||
| 3 |
|
Bill Cullen |
| Famous for: Hot Potato, The Joker's Wild, The Price is Right (Original), Chain Reaction | ||
| The dean of game show hosts, Cullen hosted over 30 shows and was a panelist on several others. Another of the all-time greats. | ||
| 2 |
|
Allen Ludden |
| Famous for: Password (All-Stars, Plus), GE College Bowl | ||
| The master. Turned Password into part of the American television fabric. | ||
| 1 |  |
Bob Barker |
| Famous for: Truth or Consequences, The (New) Price is Right | ||
| Anybody who's been doing it for this long has got to be doing something right. |
Thanks to James Vipond for the Richard Dawson photo. Geoff Edwards photo courtesy Mike Klauss.
To return to Ryan's Game Show Fan Page, click here.
