"You Don't Say" (1963) TV series 1963-1975

Seasons:

1 | unknown

Release Date:

1 April 1963 (USA)

Genre:

Game-Show

Tagline:

It's not what you say that counts, it's what you DON'T say.

Plot:

Two teams of two players compete against each other to determine the name of a famous person. One member of the team...

Plot Keywords:

Quiz Show | Non Fiction

Awards:

Nominated for Primetime Emmy.

Cast

Pat Carroll	...	Herself (6 episodes, 1964-1968)
June Lockhart	...	Herself (6 episodes, 1966-1975)
Betty White	...	Herself / ... (5 episodes, 1963-1975)
Abby Dalton	...	Herself (5 episodes, 1964-1975)
Guy Williams	...	Himself (5 episodes, 1966)
Mickey Manners	...	Himself (4 episodes, 1965-1975)
Larry Hovis	...	Himself (4 episodes, 1975)
Barbara McNair	...	Herself (3 episodes, 1964-1975)
Richard Long	...	Himself (3 episodes, 1964-1968)
Ruta Lee	...	Herself (2 episodes, 1964-1969)
Rod Serling	...	Himself (2 episodes, 1965-1967)
Frank Gorshin	...	Himself (2 episodes, 1967-1969)
Mel Tormé	...	Himself (2 episodes, 1967-1969)
Jaye P. Morgan	...	Herself (2 episodes, 1969-1970)
Bob Crane	...	Himself (2 episodes, 1975)
Ann Elder	...	Herself (2 episodes, 1975)
Peter Haskell	...	Himself (2 episodes, 1975)
Rex Reed	...	Himself (2 episodes, 1975)
Robert Ridgely	...	Himself (2 episodes, 1975)
Conny Van Dyke	...	Herself (2 episodes, 1975)

Runtime:

30 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White (1963-1969) | Color (1963-1969 and 1975)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:TV-G

Filming Locations:

Stage 1, NBC Studios - 3000 W. Alameda Avenue, Burbank, California, USA

Company:

American Broadcasting Company (ABC)

Trivia:

Tom Kennedy appeared on "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In" (1967) and made several 5 second blackouts that were inserted randomly throughout the show where he only said the title of the game show using various inflections. i.e. "YOU don't say!' You DON'T say!"

Movie Connections:

Followed by "You Don't Say" (1978)

The Original Version was a Hit, The Revival Was Not

I remember watching the original You Don't Say in the 60s and i felt it was one of the best game shows of that decade. It was also the show that established Tom Kennedy as one of TV's best game show hosts and became the big hit for producer Ralph Andrews. Even though game show giants Mark Goodson and Bill Todman sued Andrews and partner Bill Yagemann for plagarizing Password, it was a much different game than Password. Instead of giving one word clues, contestants and celebrities would give clues in the form of sentences that would lead to a famous name or place.

There were some shows where Kennedy played on the panel and his brother Jack Narz filled in as host. Also, some shows around Christmas used children as contestants. A lot of celebrities did the show including Betty White, Pat Carroll, Rowan and Martin and Mel Torme. Like me, a lot of people would come home from school to watch You Don't Say as well as the original Match Game. A solid one-two punch that shouldn't have been canceled abruptly due to a new NBC daytime VP who cleaned house. It was a show that should have had a longer run.

As for the 70s revival, it wasn't very good. first of all, they added more celebrities, a la Match Game and they changed the scoring system as well as the bonus round. To make things even worse, ABC scheduled the revival at 4 PM EST where a lot of stations opted for local or syndicated shows at that time. The ABC affiliate in Minneapolis aired the show on a delayed basis at 10 AM. Even though Tom Kennedy handled the show well, it turned out to be a flop. Some day You Don't Say should be revived, with the original format.