The Hollywood Squares (1965–1982)

Contestants guess the correctness of celebrities' answers in order to win spaces in a tic-tac-toe game.

Stars:

Kenny Williams, Peter Marshall, Cliff Arquette

Nominated for 8 Primetime Emmys. Another 12 wins & 13 nominations.

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
Kenny Williams	...	Announcer (1203 episodes, 1965-1980)
Peter Marshall	...	Himself - Host (1202 episodes, 1966-1980)
Cliff Arquette	...	Regular (828 episodes, 1965-1974)
Wally Cox	...	Himself (772 episodes, 1965-1973)
Paul Lynde	...	Himself - Center Square (707 episodes, 1966-1979)
Rose Marie	...	Herself (564 episodes, 1965-1980)

Storyline

Nine celebrities, seated in a three-by-three tier as in a tic-tac-toe board, joined two contestants one of them a champion in a game known best for the celebrities' witty answers to questions. The object was to win an otherwise standard game of tic-tac-toe by determining whether a celebrity was giving a correct answer to a general knowledge question or bluffing ("agree" or "disagree"). Contestants selected a celebrity, for which host Marshall read a question; a correct decision to agree or disagree by the player allowed him/her to place their mark in that box, while the opponent's mark was placed there if said decision was incorrect (unless it led to tic-tac-toe, in which case the contestant had to earn the box). During the first complete game of a show, a "Secret Square" game offered the contestants a bonus prize package for a correct answer. The contestant winning the best-of-three match was champion and returned to face a new challenger. Five-time champions retired un-defeated with...

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Plot Keywords:

celebrity | tic tac toe | non fiction

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Genres:

Comedy | Family | Game-Show

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Certificate:

TV-G

Details

Official Sites:

King World Studios West

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Filming Locations:

Burbank, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Filmways Television, Merrill Heatter-Bob Quigley Productions, National Broadcasting Company (NBC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min 30 min (3536 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (1966-1980) Black and White (surviving kinescope prints from mid-1960s)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Host Peter Marshall had said that most of the episodes were destroyed by NBC. But a Cable TV station found 3,500 episodes (while looking for the TV series Dark Shadows) and were sent to Game Show Network. Episodes began airing on April 15th, 2002.

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Quotes

Peter Marshall: True or false: According to columnist Bert Bacharach, people tend to start shrinking a little after age 30.
Paul Lynde: Did you know that Rose Marie is standing up right now in her cubicle?
Rose Marie: [to Paul] OH, SHUT UP!

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Connections

Referenced in The Nanny: That's Midlife (1996)

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Soundtracks

"Merrill & Bob's Theme"
(We're THE HOLLYWOOD SQUARES No. 2)
Performed by the William Loose Orchestra from 1969 to 1979

User Reviews

Original 1960s Gameshow is Excellent/Post 60s worthless

The Gameshow Channel is now running the original Hollywood Squares from the 60s. First thing that strikes you is the spontaneity, the rapour, the easy going fun fresh atmosphere, the 1960s feel of the show. As the show goes along you realize the contrast between the cleverness of the answers and the dimwittedness of today's gameshows. And of course the nostalgia value...it's now a classic. As a kid I watched the show from the early 70s on when the formula was getting dry and worn out, so see the 60s shows. Of course they're all worth it for Paul Lynde.