To Tell the Truth 

Five-day-a-week syndicated revival of one of Goodson-Todman's most durable and longest-lived formats: A celebrity panel determines which of three contestants is the actual person associated with a given story.

Stars:

Peggy Cass, Bill Cullen, Kitty Carlisle

Cast

Series cast summary:
Peggy Cass	...	Herself - Panelist / ... 60 episodes, 1970-1978
Bill Cullen	...	Himself - Panelist / ... 56 episodes, 1970-1978
Kitty Carlisle	...	Herself - Panelist / ... 56 episodes, 1970-1978
Garry Moore	...	Himself - Host / ... 54 episodes, 1969-1977
Bill Wendell	...	Himself - Announcer 34 episodes, 1973-1977

Storyline

The 1969 version of "To Tell the Truth" was among the best known of all versions of this durable format. Many game show fans fondly remember this version for the colorful, "groovy" set (used from 1969-1973, after which a conservative, blue-accented set was used) and its soft rock-flavored lyrical theme. The format, however, remained the same as always: A team of three contestants, one the actual person associated with a story and two imposters, tried to fool the four-member celebrity panel. An affidavit relating a person's story is read sometimes funny; sometimes serious; sometimes inspirational; sometimes having to do with their profession, political activity or cause they were actively involved in; but always interesting. The celebrity panelists, one at a time, question the three contestants (addressing them by No. 1, No. 2. and No. 3) in an attempt to expose the liars and determine who was telling the truth. After all four celebrities have had their turn to question the team, they ...

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Plot Keywords:

non fiction | 

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Genres:

Family | Game-Show

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 September 1969 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Ed Sullivan Theater - 1697 Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mark Goodson-Bill Todman Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min (1760 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

When the show's creators Mark Goodson and Bill Todman were planning on bringing the show back on television in syndication, they planned on bringing Bud Collyer back as host. However, Collyer, citing health reasons, declined. Ironically, the day the show premiered in most markets, September 9, 1969, Collyer passed away due to circulatory disease.

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Connections

Referenced in The Brady Bunch: Will the Real Jan Brady Please Stand Up? (1971)

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Soundtracks

To Tell The Truth Sig Theme
Syndicated Theme 1
Composers: Paul Alter (ASCAP) and Susan Otto (ASCAP)
Original Publisher: Goodson-Todman Associates, Inc.(ASCAP)
Current Publisher: Mark Goodson Productions, LLC
c/o All-American Communications, Inc.

User Reviews

My TTT experience and HELP

I was on the program with Gary Moore, Bill Cullen, Kitty Carlisle, Peggy Cass and I don't recall the fourth.

I was an impostor for a man who, blinded at birth by an accident, had his sight restored at about age 27 or 28 (also my age then).

Prior to the restoration, he had graduated college, met and married, had two kids and one dog. He had no memory of seeing a cloud, his family, a dog, a car, a tree, a house, as a Jew a Star of David, a globe of the Earth, a sunrise or sunset, the Moon; the list was endless.

I got two votes, Kitty and Peggy.

Does anyone know how to get a kinescope of the program?

It was great fun although as a stutterer I was afraid I'd be found out. The puce shag carpeting fixed that, as any contestant will confirm, and since it was a live broadcast, that was really important.

Nifty.