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IMDb > "The Dating Game" (1965)

"The Dating Game" (1965) More at IMDbPro »TV series 1965-1986


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Overview

User Rating:
5.7/10   65 votes
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Writers:
Draper Lewis (writer)
Bill Mitchell (1973-1974)
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Contact:
View company contact information for The Dating Game on IMDbPro.
Seasons:
Release Date:
20 December 1965 (USA) more
Plot:
One of the classic game shows created by Chuck Barris. In this show, a single woman would be given a... more
NewsDesk:
(6 articles)
User Comments:
The First Reality Dating Show ever more (1 total)

Cast

 (Series Cast Summary - 12 of 16)
Jim Lange ... Host (1 episode, 1965-1986)

Jay Ellis ... Himself (1 episode, 1966)
Gardner McKay ... Himself (1 episode, 1966)
Barbara Parkins ... Herself (1 episode, 1966)
Bill Bixby ... Himself (1 episode, 1970)
Peggy Ann Garner ... Herself (1 episode, 1970)

Steve Martin ... Himself (1 episode, 1970)

Taylor Negron ... Himself (1 episode, 1970)

Andy Kaufman ... Himself - Participant (1 episode, 1978)
David Ulmer ... Himself (1 episode, 1978)

S.A. Griffin ... Himself (1 episode, 1980)
Marc Samuels ... Bachlor #1 (1 episode, 1980)
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
The New Dating Game (USA) (syndication title)
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Runtime:
30 min (2035 episodes)
Country:
Language:
Color:
Black and White (1965-1967) | Color (1967-1986)
Sound Mix:
Certification:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
In the early 1970s, a grown up Jay North, child star of "Dennis the Menace" (1959) on TV, appeared on the show. Roles were reversed; North asked questions and chose a date from three eligible "bachelorettes". more
Movie Connections:
Soundtrack:
THE DATING GAME more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
1 out of 1 people found the following comment useful.
The First Reality Dating Show ever, 14 August 2009
8/10
Author: Cihan (Sean) Vercan (Victorydawn) from London, Ontario

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Can be remembered as one of the longest running reality shows of all time, and the pioneer of its own genre :Reality Dating Shows: The Dating Game has been aired in both prime time(1966-70) and daytime(1965-73), and followed by syndicated versions(1973-74, 1977-80, and 1996-2000). The show also ran in syndication in 1986 under the title "The New Dating Game" which was changed for the remainder of its run(1987-89) to "The All-New Dating Game".

Unlike "The Bachelor" and other recent dating shows on which a single male or female over the course of several episodes hopes to find a potential life partner; a contestant on The Dating Game would ask three delegates of the opposite sex a series of questions with a view to pick one for accompanying him/her on a chaperoned date. There is a folding screen separating the junior suite of the three delegates and the contestant; that way the contestant cannot see their face but can talk further ahead after each question answered. This show has screened all over the world's most watched TV channels till 2000s. In early 1990s' under the title "Saklambaç", it was also introduced in Turkey, as well; thanks to the unforgettable episodes with the host Nurseli Idiz.

The Dating Game was surely the inspiration for several other shows and today's most popular reality dating shows which tinkered with its structure to reflect the changes in societal attitudes toward sex. For instance, after choosing their date, contestants on "Love Connection(1983-99)" and "Studs(1991-93)" would return to the program to relay the details of what did happen on their date. More recent shows such as "Best Friend's Date(2004-05" and the most famous "Blind Date(1999-2006)" have taken it one step further by sending a camera crew along to capture the highs and lows - the ins and outs of the couple's date.

(JPF&T) ---End of spoilers---

Later on, the shows became more interactive that the viewers in front of the TV was able to make decisions to eliminate the undesirable contestants and to choose the winner of this contest after all the contestants have stayed together and shared a house for several weeks as long as the show episode lasts.

Unfortunately, most reality dating show couples did not stay together. Being at the spot of our daily lives of our 80s' X-generation, our lives/choices/relations became like them unwillingly, uncontrollably. Nowadays the sense of a good relationship or a companionship is lost. Deeply looking at the relations of the couples today, there is nothing to see. No one knows each other in deep. Relationships are so shallow and depending on one's own personal satisfaction needs. Promiscuous friendships and promiscuous sexual intercourses captured the meanings of our lives. The meaning of love, the reason to stay together, the reflections on each others' personalities, the explorations on each others' characteristic properties don't make sense any more. We found the joy over someone else's weaknesses, instead of finding it over togethernesses. Love is defeated, families are broken. Eros doesn't have any more of his those two-headed arrows that used to be shot stuck into our hearts inseparable within its front-end & low-end.

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Message Boards

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Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Geting copy of old Dating Games sfe
Chairs used by the questioners kurttoy
Celebrity Appearances kurttoy
The New Dating Game statum-4
Dating Game-Dick Clark appearance weednred
Dating Game tape from around 1980 ggross414
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