You Bet Your Life
Encyclopedia
You Bet Your Life is an American
quiz show
that aired on both radio and television. The original and best-known version was hosted by Groucho Marx
of the Marx Brothers
, with announcer and assistant George Fenneman
. The show debuted on ABC Radio in October 1947, then moved to CBS Radio
in September 1949 before making the transition to NBC-TV in October 1950. Because of its simple format, it was possible to broadcast the show simultaneously on the radio and on television. In 1960, the show was renamed The Groucho Show and ran a further year. Most episodes are in the public domain
.
The play of the game, however, was secondary to the interplay between Groucho, the contestants, and occasionally Fenneman. The program was rerun into the 1970s, and later in syndication as The Best of Groucho. As such, it was the first game show to have its reruns syndicated.
, sponsored by Pabst Blue Ribbon
beer, had begun in March 1943 and had failed to catch on. Groucho left the program in June 1944, replaced by vocalist Kenny Baker until the show's end two months later. He also reluctantly appeared in two movies with brothers Chico
and Harpo Marx
, A Night in Casablanca
and the lackluster Love Happy
.
During a radio appearance with Bob Hope
in March 1947, Marx ad-libbed most of his performance after being forced to stand by in a waiting room for 40 minutes before going live on the air. John Guedel
, the Hope program's producer, formed an idea for a quiz show
and approached Marx about the subject.
After initial reluctance by Marx, Guedel was able to convince him to host the program after Marx realized the quiz would be only a backdrop for his contestant interviews and the storm of ad-libbing that they would elicit. Guedel also convinced Marx to invest in 50% of the show, in part by saying that he was "untouchable" at ad-libbing, but not at following a script.
As Marx and the contestants were ad-libbing, he insisted that each show be filmed and edited before release to remove the risque or less interesting material. The show for the studio audience ran longer than the broadcast version.
during the Korean War
).
After his signature introduction of "Here he is: the one, the only..." by Fenneman and finished by a thunderous "GROUCHO!" from the audience, Marx would be introduced to the music of "Hooray for Captain Spaulding
", his signature song.
Some show tension revolved around whether a contestant would say the "secret word", a common word revealed to the audience at the show's outset. If a contestant said the word, a toy duck resembling Groucho with a mustache and eyeglasses
, and with a cigar in its bill, descended from the ceiling to bring a $100 bill. A cartoon of a duck with a cigar was also used in the opening title sequence. In one episode, Groucho's brother Harpo
came down instead of the duck, and in another a model came down in a birdcage with the money. Marx sometimes slyly directed conversation to encourage the secret word to come up. The duck was also occasionally replaced with a wooden Indian figure.
From 1947–1956, if the couple ended with $25 or less, Marx asked an elementary consolation question for a total of $25 (later $100) which did not count toward the scores. The questions were made easy in hopes that nobody would answer incorrectly, and included such examples as "Who is buried in Grant's Tomb?", "When did the War of 1812 start?", "How long do you cook a three-minute egg?", and "What color is an orange?" The question about Grant's Tomb became such a staple of the show that both Marx and Fenneman were shocked when one man got the question "wrong" by answering "No one". As the contestant then pointed out, Grant's Tomb is an above ground mausoleum.
covered the period between October and April of the following year. The rating number represents the percentage of homes tuned into that program.
Despite not being involved with the quiz show scandals
, the show's popularity waned and You Bet Your Life fell out of the top 25. NBC ended the show in 1961.
, with advertisements for DeSoto
automobiles incorporated into the opening credits and the show itself. Each show would end with Groucho sticking his head through a hole in the DeSoto logo and saying, "Friends...go in to see your DeSoto-Plymouth dealer tomorrow. And when you do, tell 'em Groucho sent you." Still later sponsors included The Toni Company (Prom Home Permanent, White Rain Shampoo), Lever Brothers
(Lux Liquid, Wisk Detergent), Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Geritol
), and Lorillard Tobacco Co. (Old Gold cigarettes).
and his offhandedly comic remarks; a witty housewife named Phyllis Diller
; author Ray Bradbury
; virtuoso cellist Ennio Bolognini
; blues singer and pianist Gladys Bentley
; strongmen Jack LaLanne
and Paul Anderson
; actors John Barbour
and Ronnie Schell
all appeared as contestants while working on the fringes of the entertainment industry.
Harland Sanders, who talked about his "finger-lickin'" recipe for fried chicken which he parlayed into the Kentucky Fried Chicken chain of restaurants, once appeared as a contestant. A guest purporting to be a wealthy Arabian prince was really writer William Peter Blatty
; Groucho saw through the disguise, stating "You're no more a prince than I am because I have an Arabian horse and I know what they look like". Blatty won $10,000 and used the leave of absence the money afforded him to write The Exorcist
. No one in the audience knew who contestant Daws Butler
was until he began speaking in Huckleberry Hound
's voice. He and his partner went on to win the top prize of $10,000. Cajun politician Dudley J. LeBlanc
, a Louisiana state senator, demonstrated his winning style at giving campaign speeches in French. General Omar Bradley
was teamed with an army private, and Marx goaded the private into telling Bradley everything that was wrong with the army. Professional wrestler Wild Red Berry admitted that the outcomes of matches were determined in advance, but that the injuries were real; he revealed a long list of injuries he had sustained.
Other celebrities, already famous, occasionally teamed with their relatives to win money for charity. Arthur Godfrey
's mother Kathryn was a contestant and held her own with Marx. Edgar Bergen
and his then 11-year-old daughter Candice
teamed up with Marx and his daughter Melinda
to win $1,000 for the Girl Scouts of the USA
; Fenneman played quizmaster for this segment. Ernie Kovacs
, Hoot Gibson
, Ray Corrigan, John Charles Thomas
, Max Shulman
, Sammy Cahn
, Joe Louis
, Bob Mathias
, Johnny Weissmuller
, Sam Coslow
, Harry Ruby
, Liberace
, Lord Buckley
, Don Drysdale
, Tor Johnson
, and Frankie Avalon
also appeared on the program, among others. Harpo Marx
appeared in 1961 to promote his just-published autobiography, Harpo Speaks.
s.
No recorded outtake of the exchange exists, while both Marx and Fenneman denied the incident took place. Interviewed for Esquire
in 1972, Marx flatly stated "I never said that." However, Hector Arce, Marx's ghost writer for his 1976 autobiography The Secret Word Is Groucho recounted the claim as fact, but Arce compiled the 1976 book from many sources, not solely the then-ailing Marx himself.
You Bet Your Life was parodied on a live April 1955 episode of The Jack Benny Program
, in which Benny pretended to be someone else to get on the quiz show, and continually blabbed in an effort to say the secret word. In the skit, Benny is unable to answer the final question, which ironically is about himself, simply because it asks his real age, which Benny would never give voluntarily. After its original airing, the episode could only be watched at Marx's home on film (he asked for and received a personal kinescope copy), and even then, only if one was invited to see it. After Marx's death, the film appeared in the Unknown Marx Brothers documentary on DVD. A brief clip of this episode also appeared in the 2009 PBS
special Make 'Em Laugh: The Funny Business of America.
hosted a new version produced by Hill-Eubanks Productions, and syndicated by MCA
. Fenneman's announcer/sidekick role was taken over by nightclub entertainer Ron Husmann
.
The show would begin with Buddy doing a brief stand up routine followed by a brief chat with Husmann. Three individual contestants appeared on each episode, one at a time. The contestants were interviewed by Hackett and then played a true or false quiz of five questions in a particular category. The first correct answer to a question earned $25, and the amount doubled with each subsequent correct answer. After the fifth question, the contestant could opt to try to correctly answer a sixth question to triple their winnings; however, if the contestant was incorrect, their earnings were cut in half. Additionally, the secret word was still worth $100.
The contestant with the most money returned at the end of the show to meet "Leonard", the prize duck. The contestant then stopped a rotating device, causing a plastic egg to drop out which concealed the name of a bonus prize, one of which was a car.
George Fenneman appeared on one episode as a guest, playing for a member of the studio audience.
Two teams of two unrelated players came out one team at a time and were asked three questions, either $100, $150 or $200. Later, both teams came out and played four questions each at either $200, $300 or $400. The team with the most money at the end of this round went onto a bonus game. The secret word was around, but since it was never guessed, it's unknown whether the duck survived for this pilot. However, Richard told one couple on the pilot "if you say the secret word you'll win $100 each" so based on that, it's assumed the secret word was worth $200.
In the bonus game, announcer/sidekick Steve Carlson read questions with either true or false answers. The players locked in their answers over 30 seconds. If the players matched on five answers and their matched answer was correct, the team won $5,000. If they didn't reach five, they earned $200 per correct match.
aired from September 7, 1992 to June 4, 1993 (with repeats airing until September 3 of that year) in syndication
. Carsey-Werner syndicated the series, the first show they distributed themselves. Cosby was joined on this show by a female announcer and sidekick, Robbi Chong
, who was referred to as "Renfield". Organist Shirley Scott
contributed the jazzy theme music, and the program was taped in Philadelphia.
Three couples competed, each couple playing the game individually. After the couple was introduced, they spent time talking with Cosby. When the interview was done, the game began. Each couple was staked with $750 and were then asked three questions within a category presented at the start of the game. Before each question, the couple made a wager, which would be added to their winnings if they were correct or subtracted if they were incorrect. The secret word in this version, worth $500, was represented by a blackbird wearing a sweatshirt from Temple University
, Cosby's alma mater.
The couple with the most money played for an additional $10,000. The winning couple was asked one last question in any given subject. A correct answer won a choice of three envelopes, which were all attached to the blackbird. Two of the envelopes had the bird's head in it, and choosing either of them doubled the couple's money. The other envelope hid $10,000.
Low ratings prompted the cancellation of the series after one season; however, Bill Cosby won a Kid's Choice Award
while he was hosting the show.
by NBC as The Best Of Groucho from 1961–1968, then rerun on PBS
to this day. A number of episodes have also been released to DVD. Also existing is the unaired pilot episode for the TV version, which was produced for CBS
on December 5, 1949.
Unlike most pre-1973 NBC in-house productions, it was not part of the package of TV series sold to National Telefilm Associates
(later Republic Pictures
Television, Worldvision Enterprises, Paramount Domestic Television
, CBS Paramount Domestic Television
, and finally CBS Television Distribution
).
The reason for NBC holding on to ancillary rights of this version remains unknown to this day, but distribution began with NBC Enterprises as a distribution unit from 2001–2004. Since September 2004, NBCUniversal Television Distribution handles syndication rights to the Marx (non-public domain episodes) and Hackett versions.
Carsey-Werner Productions
owns the Cosby version as it produced this revival.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
quiz show
Quiz Show
Quiz Show is a 1994 American historical drama film produced and directed by Robert Redford. Adapted by Paul Attanasio from Richard Goodwin's memoir Remembering America, the film is based upon the Twenty One quiz show scandal of the 1950s...
that aired on both radio and television. The original and best-known version was hosted by Groucho Marx
Groucho Marx
Julius Henry "Groucho" Marx was an American comedian and film star famed as a master of wit. His rapid-fire delivery of innuendo-laden patter earned him many admirers. He made 13 feature films with his siblings the Marx Brothers, of whom he was the third-born...
of the Marx Brothers
Marx Brothers
The Marx Brothers were an American family comedy act, originally from New York City, that enjoyed success in Vaudeville, Broadway, and motion pictures from the early 1900s to around 1950...
, with announcer and assistant George Fenneman
George Fenneman
George Watt Fenneman was an American radio and television announcer.Fenneman was born in Beijing, China, the only child of American parents in the import-export business. He was nine months old when his parents moved to San Francisco, California, United States, where he grew up...
. The show debuted on ABC Radio in October 1947, then moved to CBS Radio
CBS Radio
CBS Radio, Inc., formerly known as Infinity Broadcasting Corporation, is one of the largest owners and operators of radio stations in the United States, third behind main rival Clear Channel Communications and Cumulus Media. CBS Radio owns around 130 radio stations across the country...
in September 1949 before making the transition to NBC-TV in October 1950. Because of its simple format, it was possible to broadcast the show simultaneously on the radio and on television. In 1960, the show was renamed The Groucho Show and ran a further year. Most episodes are in the public domain
Public domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
.
The play of the game, however, was secondary to the interplay between Groucho, the contestants, and occasionally Fenneman. The program was rerun into the 1970s, and later in syndication as The Best of Groucho. As such, it was the first game show to have its reruns syndicated.
History
The mid-1940s was a lull in Groucho Marx's career. His radio show Blue Ribbon TownBlue Ribbon Town
Blue Ribbon Town was a comedy-variety radio series, sponsored by Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer, broadcast on CBS from March 27, 1943 to August 5, 1944. The 30-minute series was heard Saturday nights at 10:30pm until October when it moved to 8pm...
, sponsored by Pabst Blue Ribbon
Pabst Blue Ribbon
Pabst Blue Ribbon is a brand of beer sold by Pabst Brewing Company, originally established in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, but now based in Los Angeles. Pabst Blue Ribbon is contract-brewed in six different breweries around the U.S...
beer, had begun in March 1943 and had failed to catch on. Groucho left the program in June 1944, replaced by vocalist Kenny Baker until the show's end two months later. He also reluctantly appeared in two movies with brothers Chico
Chico Marx
Leonard "Chico" Marx was an American comedian and film star as part of the Marx Brothers. His persona in the act was that of a dim-witted albeit crafty con artist, seemingly of rural Italian origin, who wore shabby clothes, and sported a curly-haired wig and Tyrolean hat.As the first-born of the...
and Harpo Marx
Harpo Marx
Adolph "Harpo" Marx was an American comedian and film star. He was the second oldest of the Marx Brothers. His comic style was influenced by clown and pantomime traditions. He wore a curly reddish wig, and never spoke during performances...
, A Night in Casablanca
A Night in Casablanca
A Night in Casablanca was the twelfth Marx Brothers movie, starring Groucho Marx, Chico Marx, and Harpo Marx. The picture was directed by Archie Mayo and written by Joseph Fields and Roland Kibbee, and is generally considered one of the better of the Marx Brothers' later films.-Plot:Set in...
and the lackluster Love Happy
Love Happy
Love Happy was the 14th and last starring feature for the Marx Brothers. The film stars Harpo Marx, Chico Marx, and, in a smaller role than usual, Groucho Marx, plus Ilona Massey, Vera-Ellen, Paul Valentine, Marion Hutton, Raymond Burr, Bruce Gordon , and Eric Blore, with a walk-on by Marilyn Monroe...
.
During a radio appearance with Bob Hope
Bob Hope
Bob Hope, KBE, KCSG, KSS was a British-born American comedian and actor who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in radio, television and movies. He was also noted for his work with the US Armed Forces and his numerous USO shows entertaining American military personnel...
in March 1947, Marx ad-libbed most of his performance after being forced to stand by in a waiting room for 40 minutes before going live on the air. John Guedel
John Guedel
John Guedel, was a radio and television producer who co-created and produced Art Linkletter's and Groucho Marx's most important and successful broadcast properties, including You Bet Your Life and People Are Funny...
, the Hope program's producer, formed an idea for a quiz show
Quiz Show
Quiz Show is a 1994 American historical drama film produced and directed by Robert Redford. Adapted by Paul Attanasio from Richard Goodwin's memoir Remembering America, the film is based upon the Twenty One quiz show scandal of the 1950s...
and approached Marx about the subject.
After initial reluctance by Marx, Guedel was able to convince him to host the program after Marx realized the quiz would be only a backdrop for his contestant interviews and the storm of ad-libbing that they would elicit. Guedel also convinced Marx to invest in 50% of the show, in part by saying that he was "untouchable" at ad-libbing, but not at following a script.
As Marx and the contestants were ad-libbing, he insisted that each show be filmed and edited before release to remove the risque or less interesting material. The show for the studio audience ran longer than the broadcast version.
Gameplay
Contestant teams usually consisted of one male and one female, most selected from the studio audience. Occasionally, famous or otherwise interesting figures were invited to play (e.g., a Korean-American contestant who was a veteran and had been a prisoner of warPrisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
during the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
).
After his signature introduction of "Here he is: the one, the only..." by Fenneman and finished by a thunderous "GROUCHO!" from the audience, Marx would be introduced to the music of "Hooray for Captain Spaulding
Hooray for Captain Spaulding
"Hooray for Captain Spaulding" is a song, originally from the 1928 Marx Brothers stage musical Animal Crackers and the 1930 film version. It later became well known as the theme song for the Groucho Marx television show You Bet Your Life ....
", his signature song.
Some show tension revolved around whether a contestant would say the "secret word", a common word revealed to the audience at the show's outset. If a contestant said the word, a toy duck resembling Groucho with a mustache and eyeglasses
Groucho glasses
Groucho glasses, often called funny glasses or beaglepuss, are a novelty disguise that caricature Groucho Marx. Typically consisting of black horn-rimmed glasses with attached eyebrows, large plastic nose, and bushy moustache, Groucho glasses were marketed as early as the 1940s. Groucho glasses...
, and with a cigar in its bill, descended from the ceiling to bring a $100 bill. A cartoon of a duck with a cigar was also used in the opening title sequence. In one episode, Groucho's brother Harpo
Harpo Marx
Adolph "Harpo" Marx was an American comedian and film star. He was the second oldest of the Marx Brothers. His comic style was influenced by clown and pantomime traditions. He wore a curly reddish wig, and never spoke during performances...
came down instead of the duck, and in another a model came down in a birdcage with the money. Marx sometimes slyly directed conversation to encourage the secret word to come up. The duck was also occasionally replaced with a wooden Indian figure.
Main game
After the contestants' introduction and interview, the actual game began. Couples chose from a list of 20 available categories before the show, then tried to answer a series of questions within that category. From 1947–1956, couples were asked four questions.- 1947–1953 – Each couple began with $20, wagering part or all of their bankroll for each question.
- 1953–1954 – Each couple now began with $0, but selected values from $10 to $100 (in $10 increments). A correct answer added the value of the question to their bankroll, while an incorrect answer did nothing. According to co-director Robert Dwan in his book As Long As They're Laughing, Guedel changed the scoring format because too many couples were betting, and losing, most or all of their money.
- 1954–1956 – The format was slightly altered to start each couple with $100. Incorrect answers now cut their bankroll to that point in half.
- 1956–1959 – Two couples (reduced from three) answered questions until they either gave two consecutive incorrect responses or answered four consecutive questions correctly for a prize of $1,000.
- 1959–1961 – For the last two seasons, couples picked four questions worth $100, $200, or $300 each, potentially winning up to $1,200. Winning at least $500 qualified the team to go for the jackpot question.
From 1947–1956, if the couple ended with $25 or less, Marx asked an elementary consolation question for a total of $25 (later $100) which did not count toward the scores. The questions were made easy in hopes that nobody would answer incorrectly, and included such examples as "Who is buried in Grant's Tomb?", "When did the War of 1812 start?", "How long do you cook a three-minute egg?", and "What color is an orange?" The question about Grant's Tomb became such a staple of the show that both Marx and Fenneman were shocked when one man got the question "wrong" by answering "No one". As the contestant then pointed out, Grant's Tomb is an above ground mausoleum.
Jackpot question
In all formats, one of the two players on the team could keep their half of the winnings while the other risked their half. In this case, all amounts being played for were divided in half.- 1947–1956 – The highest-scoring couple was given one final question for the jackpot, which began at $1,000 and increased by $500 each week until won (reaching $6,000 at least once, in 1952). In the event of a tie, the tied couples wrote their answers on paper and all couples who answered correctly split the jackpot.
- 1956–1957 – For a brief period following the format change, couples who won the front game could wager half on another question worth $2,000.
- 1957–1959 – Winning couples now faced a wheel with numbers from 1–10, selecting one number for $10,000. If the number selected was spun, a correct answer to the jackpot question augmented the team's total winnings to that amount; otherwise, the question was worth a total of $2,000.
- 1959–1961 – For the last two seasons, the format was slightly altered to eliminate the risk and add a second number for $5,000.
Nielsen ratings
Seasonal Nielsen ratingsNielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
covered the period between October and April of the following year. The rating number represents the percentage of homes tuned into that program.
| Season | Rating/Share | Place |
|---|---|---|
| 1950–51 | 36.0 | 17th |
| 1951–52 | 42.1 | 10th |
| 1952–53 | 41.6 | 9th |
| 1953–54 | 43.6 | 3rd |
| 1954–55 | 41.0 | 4th |
| 1955–56 | 35.4 | 7th |
| 1956–57 | 31.1 | 17th |
| 1957–58 | 30.6 | 10th |
| 1958–59 | N/A | Below the top 30 |
| 1959–60 | ||
| 1960–61 |
Despite not being involved with the quiz show scandals
Quiz show scandals
The American quiz show scandals of the 1950s were a series of revelations that contestants of several popular television quiz shows were secretly given assistance by the show's producers to arrange the outcome of a supposedly fair competition....
, the show's popularity waned and You Bet Your Life fell out of the top 25. NBC ended the show in 1961.
Sponsorship
The radio program was sponsored by Allen Gellman, president of Elgin American, maker of watch cases and compacts, during its first two and a half seasons. Later, seasons of the television show (as well as the radio show, after January 1950) were sponsored by ChryslerChrysler
Chrysler Group LLC is a multinational automaker headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan, USA. Chrysler was first organized as the Chrysler Corporation in 1925....
, with advertisements for DeSoto
DeSoto (automobile)
The DeSoto was a brand of automobile based in the United States, manufactured and marketed by the Chrysler Corporation from 1928 to 1961. The DeSoto logo featured a stylized image of Hernando de Soto...
automobiles incorporated into the opening credits and the show itself. Each show would end with Groucho sticking his head through a hole in the DeSoto logo and saying, "Friends...go in to see your DeSoto-Plymouth dealer tomorrow. And when you do, tell 'em Groucho sent you." Still later sponsors included The Toni Company (Prom Home Permanent, White Rain Shampoo), Lever Brothers
Lever Brothers
Lever Brothers was a British manufacturer founded in 1885 by William Hesketh Lever and his brother, James Darcy Lever . The brothers had invested in and promoted a new soap making process invented by chemist William Hough Watson, it was a huge success...
(Lux Liquid, Wisk Detergent), Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Geritol
Geritol
Geritol is a US trademarked name for various dietary supplements, past and present. Geritol is currently a brand name for several vitamin complexes plus iron or multimineral products in both liquid form and tablets, containing from 9.5 to 18 mg of iron per daily dose...
), and Lorillard Tobacco Co. (Old Gold cigarettes).
Contestants
The interviews were sometimes so memorable that the contestants became celebrities: "nature boy" health advocate Robert Bootzin; hapless Mexican laborer Pedro Gonzalez-GonzalezPedro Gonzalez-Gonzalez
Pedro Gonzalez-Gonzalez was an American character actor best known for his appearances in a number of John Wayne movies....
and his offhandedly comic remarks; a witty housewife named Phyllis Diller
Phyllis Diller
Phyllis Diller is an American actress and comedian. She created a stage persona of a wild-haired, eccentrically dressed housewife who makes jokes about a husband named "Fang" while pretending to smoke from a long cigarette holder...
; author Ray Bradbury
Ray Bradbury
Ray Douglas Bradbury is an American fantasy, horror, science fiction, and mystery writer. Best known for his dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451 and for the science fiction stories gathered together as The Martian Chronicles and The Illustrated Man , Bradbury is one of the most celebrated among 20th...
; virtuoso cellist Ennio Bolognini
Ennio Bolognini
Ennio Bolognini was born in Buenos Aires and was a cellist, composer and conductor.-Early life and musical training:Born into a musical family, his father was an amateur cellist and a close friend of the conductor Arturo Toscanini, who became Ennio's godfather.Bolognini studied first with his...
; blues singer and pianist Gladys Bentley
Gladys Bentley
Gladys Bentley was an American blues singer during the Harlem Renaissance.-Biography:Bentley was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the daughter of American George L. Bentley and his wife, a Trinidadian, Mary Mote...
; strongmen Jack LaLanne
Jack LaLanne
Francois Henri "Jack" LaLanne was an American fitness, exercise, and nutritional expert and motivational speaker who is sometimes called "the godfather of fitness" and the "first fitness superhero." He described himself as being a "sugarholic" and a "junk food junkie" until he was 15...
and Paul Anderson
Paul Edward Anderson
Paul Edward Anderson was a weightlifter, strongman, and powerlifter.- Biography :Anderson was born in Toccoa, Georgia, United States of America....
; actors John Barbour
John Barbour (actor)
John Barbour is an actor, comedian, and television host, known as one of the hosts of the reality television series Real People.-Career:Barbour moved to the United States in the early sixties...
and Ronnie Schell
Ronnie Schell
Ronald Ralph "Ronnie" Schell is an American actor, stand-up comedian and cartoon voice actor . Early in his career he appeared as himself as a contestant on You Bet Your Life opposite Groucho Marx, demonstrating a comic barrage of jive talk.-Life and career:Schell was born in Richmond, California...
all appeared as contestants while working on the fringes of the entertainment industry.
Harland Sanders, who talked about his "finger-lickin'" recipe for fried chicken which he parlayed into the Kentucky Fried Chicken chain of restaurants, once appeared as a contestant. A guest purporting to be a wealthy Arabian prince was really writer William Peter Blatty
William Peter Blatty
William Peter Blatty is an American writer and filmmaker. The novel The Exorcist, written in 1971, is his magnum opus; he also penned the subsequent screenplay version of the film, for which he won an Academy Award....
; Groucho saw through the disguise, stating "You're no more a prince than I am because I have an Arabian horse and I know what they look like". Blatty won $10,000 and used the leave of absence the money afforded him to write The Exorcist
The Exorcist
The Exorcist is a novel of supernatural suspense by William Peter Blatty, published by Harper & Row in 1971. It was inspired by a 1949 case of demonic possession and exorcism that Blatty heard about while he was a student in the class of 1950 at Georgetown University, a Jesuit school...
. No one in the audience knew who contestant Daws Butler
Daws Butler
Charles Dawson "Daws" Butler was a voice actor originally from Toledo, Ohio. He worked mostly for Hanna-Barbera and originated the voices of many famous animated cartoon characters, including Yogi Bear, Quick Draw McGraw, Snagglepuss, and Huckleberry Hound.Daws Butler trained many working actors...
was until he began speaking in Huckleberry Hound
Huckleberry Hound
The Huckleberry Hound Show is a 1958 syndicated animated series and the second from Hanna-Barbera following The Ruff & Reddy Show, sponsored by Kellogg's. Three segments were included in the program: one featuring Huckleberry Hound; another starring Yogi Bear and his sidekick Boo Boo; and a third...
's voice. He and his partner went on to win the top prize of $10,000. Cajun politician Dudley J. LeBlanc
Dudley J. LeBlanc
Dudley Joseph "Coozan Dud" LeBlanc was a colorful and popular Democratic and Cajun member of the Louisiana State Senate whose entrepreneurial talents netted him a fortune through the alcohol-laden patent medicine known as "Hadacol." He is also considered the "father of the old age pension" in...
, a Louisiana state senator, demonstrated his winning style at giving campaign speeches in French. General Omar Bradley
Omar Bradley
Omar Nelson Bradley was a senior U.S. Army field commander in North Africa and Europe during World War II, and a General of the Army in the United States Army...
was teamed with an army private, and Marx goaded the private into telling Bradley everything that was wrong with the army. Professional wrestler Wild Red Berry admitted that the outcomes of matches were determined in advance, but that the injuries were real; he revealed a long list of injuries he had sustained.
Other celebrities, already famous, occasionally teamed with their relatives to win money for charity. Arthur Godfrey
Arthur Godfrey
Arthur Morton Godfrey was an American radio and television broadcaster and entertainer who was sometimes introduced by his nickname, The Old Redhead...
's mother Kathryn was a contestant and held her own with Marx. Edgar Bergen
Edgar Bergen
Edgar John Bergen was an American actor and radio performer, best known as a ventriloquist.-Early life:...
and his then 11-year-old daughter Candice
Candice Bergen
Candice Patricia Bergen is an American actress and former fashion model.She is known for starring in two TV series, as the title character on the situation comedy Murphy Brown , for which she won five Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards; and as Shirley Schmidt on the comedy-drama Boston Legal...
teamed up with Marx and his daughter Melinda
Melinda Marx
Melinda Marie Marx is an American actress who had a brief movie career. She is the daughter of Groucho Marx and his second wife, Kay Marvis Gorcey.-Biography:...
to win $1,000 for the Girl Scouts of the USA
Girl Scouts of the USA
The Girl Scouts of the United States of America is a youth organization for girls in the United States and American girls living abroad. It describes itself as "the world's preeminent organization dedicated solely to girls". It was founded by Juliette Gordon Low in 1912 and was organized after Low...
; Fenneman played quizmaster for this segment. Ernie Kovacs
Ernie Kovacs
Ernie Kovacs was a Hungarian American comedian and actor.Kovacs' uninhibited, often ad-libbed, and visually experimental comedic style came to influence numerous television comedy programs for years after his death in an automobile accident...
, Hoot Gibson
Hoot Gibson
Hoot Gibson was an American rodeo champion and a pioneer cowboy film actor, director and producer.-Early life and career:...
, Ray Corrigan, John Charles Thomas
John Charles Thomas
John Charles Thomas was a popular American opera, operetta and concert baritone.-Birth, schooling and stage debut:...
, Max Shulman
Max Shulman
Max Shulman was an American writer and humorist best known for his television and short story character Dobie Gillis, as well as for best-selling novels.-Early life and career:...
, Sammy Cahn
Sammy Cahn
Sammy Cahn was an American lyricist, songwriter and musician. He is best known for his romantic lyrics to films and Broadway songs, as well as stand-alone songs premiered by recording companies in the Greater Los Angeles Area...
, Joe Louis
Joe Louis
Joseph Louis Barrow , better known as Joe Louis, was the world heavyweight boxing champion from 1937 to 1949. He is considered to be one of the greatest heavyweights of all time...
, Bob Mathias
Bob Mathias
Robert Bruce "Bob" Mathias was an American decathlete, two-time Olympic gold medalist, actor and United States Congressman representing the state of California.-Early life and athletic career:...
, Johnny Weissmuller
Johnny Weissmuller
Johnny Weissmuller was an Austro-Hungarian-born American swimmer and actor best known for playing Tarzan in movies. Weissmuller was one of the world's best swimmers in the 1920s, winning five Olympic gold medals and one bronze medal. He won fifty-two US National Championships and set sixty-seven...
, Sam Coslow
Sam Coslow
Sam Coslow was an American songwriter, singer, film producer, publisher, and market analyst. Coslow was born in New York City. He began writing songs as a teenager...
, Harry Ruby
Harry Ruby
Harry Ruby was a Jewish American songwriter and screenwriter.After failing in his early ambition to become a professional baseball player,...
, Liberace
Liberace
Wladziu Valentino Liberace , best known simply as Liberace, was a famous American pianist and vocalist.In a career that spanned four decades of concerts, recordings, motion pictures, television and endorsements, Liberace became world-renowned...
, Lord Buckley
Lord Buckley
Lord Richard Buckley was an American stage performer, recording artist, monologist, and hip poet/comic...
, Don Drysdale
Don Drysdale
Donald Scott "Don" Drysdale was a Major League Baseball player and Hall of Fame right-handed pitcher with the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was one of the dominant starting pitchers of the 1960s, and became a radio and television broadcaster following his playing career...
, Tor Johnson
Tor Johnson
Tor Johansson , better known by the stage name Tor Johnson, was a Swedish professional wrestler and actor....
, and Frankie Avalon
Frankie Avalon
Frankie Avalon is an American actor, singer, playwright, and former teen idol.-Career:By the time he was 12, Avalon was on U.S. television playing his trumpet. As a teenager he played with Bobby Rydell in Rocco and the Saints...
also appeared on the program, among others. Harpo Marx
Harpo Marx
Adolph "Harpo" Marx was an American comedian and film star. He was the second oldest of the Marx Brothers. His comic style was influenced by clown and pantomime traditions. He wore a curly reddish wig, and never spoke during performances...
appeared in 1961 to promote his just-published autobiography, Harpo Speaks.
Cigar incident
A much-recounted moment centers around a female contestant named Charlotte Story who had borne eleven children. Supposedly, when Marx asked why she had chosen to raise a large family, the contestant replied, "I love my husband", to which Marx responded with, "I love my cigar, but I take it out of my mouth once in a while!" According to the anecdote, the remark was judged too risqué to be aired, and was edited out before broadcast, but the audio of the audience's explosive laughter was used by NBC for years whenever a wild reception was called for in laugh trackLaugh track
A laugh track is a separate soundtrack invented by Charles "Charley" Douglass, with the artificial sound of audience laughter, made to be inserted into television programming of comedy shows and sitcoms.The term "laugh track" does not apply to the genuine audience laughter on shows that shoot in...
s.
No recorded outtake of the exchange exists, while both Marx and Fenneman denied the incident took place. Interviewed for Esquire
Esquire (magazine)
Esquire is a men's magazine, published in the U.S. by the Hearst Corporation. Founded in 1932, it flourished during the Great Depression under the guidance of founder and editor Arnold Gingrich.-History:...
in 1972, Marx flatly stated "I never said that." However, Hector Arce, Marx's ghost writer for his 1976 autobiography The Secret Word Is Groucho recounted the claim as fact, but Arce compiled the 1976 book from many sources, not solely the then-ailing Marx himself.
Legacy
Seven months after You Bet Your Life ended its 11-season run at NBC, Marx had another game show in prime-time, Tell It to Groucho, which aired on CBS during the winter and spring months of 1962. The game involved each of three celebrity pictures being flashed on a screen, each for a quarter of a second. The couple won $500 for each picture they identified. If the couple could not identify any of the three pictures, they were shown one picture and won $100 for a correct guess. As in You Bet Your Life, the focus of the show was on Marx's interviews with the contestants before gameplay.You Bet Your Life was parodied on a live April 1955 episode of The Jack Benny Program
The Jack Benny Program
The Jack Benny Program, starring Jack Benny, is a radio-TV comedy series that ran for more than three decades and is generally regarded as a high-water mark in 20th-century American comedy.-Cast:*Jack Benny - Himself...
, in which Benny pretended to be someone else to get on the quiz show, and continually blabbed in an effort to say the secret word. In the skit, Benny is unable to answer the final question, which ironically is about himself, simply because it asks his real age, which Benny would never give voluntarily. After its original airing, the episode could only be watched at Marx's home on film (he asked for and received a personal kinescope copy), and even then, only if one was invited to see it. After Marx's death, the film appeared in the Unknown Marx Brothers documentary on DVD. A brief clip of this episode also appeared in the 2009 PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
special Make 'Em Laugh: The Funny Business of America.
1980–1981
In 1980, Buddy HackettBuddy Hackett
Buddy Hackett was an American comedian and actor.-Early life:Hackett was born in Brooklyn, New York, New York, the son of a Jewish upholsterer. He grew up on 54th and 14th Ave in Borough Park, Brooklyn, across from Public School 103...
hosted a new version produced by Hill-Eubanks Productions, and syndicated by MCA
Music Corporation of America
MCA, Inc. was an American talent agency. Initially starting in the music business, they would next become a dominant force in the film business, and later expanded into the television business...
. Fenneman's announcer/sidekick role was taken over by nightclub entertainer Ron Husmann
Ron Husmann
Ron Husmann is an American actor.Born in Rockford, Illinois, Husmann graduated from Northwestern University in 1959, and made his Broadway debut in Fiorello! later that year. In 1960 he was cast in Tenderloin, garnering a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Musical and winning the...
.
The show would begin with Buddy doing a brief stand up routine followed by a brief chat with Husmann. Three individual contestants appeared on each episode, one at a time. The contestants were interviewed by Hackett and then played a true or false quiz of five questions in a particular category. The first correct answer to a question earned $25, and the amount doubled with each subsequent correct answer. After the fifth question, the contestant could opt to try to correctly answer a sixth question to triple their winnings; however, if the contestant was incorrect, their earnings were cut in half. Additionally, the secret word was still worth $100.
The contestant with the most money returned at the end of the show to meet "Leonard", the prize duck. The contestant then stopped a rotating device, causing a plastic egg to drop out which concealed the name of a bonus prize, one of which was a car.
George Fenneman appeared on one episode as a guest, playing for a member of the studio audience.
1988 pilot
Richard Dawson hosted a pilot for a potential revival in 1988, but NBC declined to pick up the show.Two teams of two unrelated players came out one team at a time and were asked three questions, either $100, $150 or $200. Later, both teams came out and played four questions each at either $200, $300 or $400. The team with the most money at the end of this round went onto a bonus game. The secret word was around, but since it was never guessed, it's unknown whether the duck survived for this pilot. However, Richard told one couple on the pilot "if you say the secret word you'll win $100 each" so based on that, it's assumed the secret word was worth $200.
In the bonus game, announcer/sidekick Steve Carlson read questions with either true or false answers. The players locked in their answers over 30 seconds. If the players matched on five answers and their matched answer was correct, the team won $5,000. If they didn't reach five, they earned $200 per correct match.
1992–1993
A version hosted by Bill CosbyBill Cosby
William Henry "Bill" Cosby, Jr. is an American comedian, actor, author, television producer, educator, musician and activist. A veteran stand-up performer, he got his start at various clubs, then landed a starring role in the 1960s action show, I Spy. He later starred in his own series, the...
aired from September 7, 1992 to June 4, 1993 (with repeats airing until September 3 of that year) in syndication
Television syndication
In broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows by multiple radio stations and television stations, without going through a broadcast network, though the process of syndication may conjure up structures like those of a network itself, by its very...
. Carsey-Werner syndicated the series, the first show they distributed themselves. Cosby was joined on this show by a female announcer and sidekick, Robbi Chong
Robbi Chong
Robbi Lynn Chong is a Canadian actress and former model.-Early life:Chong was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, the daughter of Maxine Sneed and Tommy Chong, a comedian, actor, writer and director. Chong's father is of Chinese and Scots-Irish ancestry and her mother is of African and Cherokee...
, who was referred to as "Renfield". Organist Shirley Scott
Shirley Scott
Shirley Scott was an American hard bop and soul-jazz organist. She was most known for working with her husband, Stanley Turrentine, and with Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis...
contributed the jazzy theme music, and the program was taped in Philadelphia.
Three couples competed, each couple playing the game individually. After the couple was introduced, they spent time talking with Cosby. When the interview was done, the game began. Each couple was staked with $750 and were then asked three questions within a category presented at the start of the game. Before each question, the couple made a wager, which would be added to their winnings if they were correct or subtracted if they were incorrect. The secret word in this version, worth $500, was represented by a blackbird wearing a sweatshirt from Temple University
Temple University
Temple University is a comprehensive public research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Originally founded in 1884 by Dr. Russell Conwell, Temple University is among the nation's largest providers of professional education and prepares the largest body of professional...
, Cosby's alma mater.
The couple with the most money played for an additional $10,000. The winning couple was asked one last question in any given subject. A correct answer won a choice of three envelopes, which were all attached to the blackbird. Two of the envelopes had the bird's head in it, and choosing either of them doubled the couple's money. The other envelope hid $10,000.
Low ratings prompted the cancellation of the series after one season; however, Bill Cosby won a Kid's Choice Award
Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards
The Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards, also known as the KCAs or Kids Choice Awards, is an annual awards show that airs on the Nickelodeon cable channel, which airs live and is usually held and telecast live on a...
while he was hosting the show.
Episode status
Most episodes of the Marx era still exist, with 1954–1961 episodes syndicatedTelevision syndication
In broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows by multiple radio stations and television stations, without going through a broadcast network, though the process of syndication may conjure up structures like those of a network itself, by its very...
by NBC as The Best Of Groucho from 1961–1968, then rerun on PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
to this day. A number of episodes have also been released to DVD. Also existing is the unaired pilot episode for the TV version, which was produced for CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
on December 5, 1949.
Unlike most pre-1973 NBC in-house productions, it was not part of the package of TV series sold to National Telefilm Associates
National Telefilm Associates
National Telefilm Associates was an independent distribution company that handled reissues of American film libraries, including much of Paramount Pictures' animated and short-subjects library.-History:...
(later Republic Pictures
Republic Pictures
Republic Pictures was an independent film production-distribution corporation with studio facilities, operating from 1934 through 1959, and was best known for specializing in westerns, movie serials and B films emphasizing mystery and action....
Television, Worldvision Enterprises, Paramount Domestic Television
Paramount Domestic Television
Paramount Domestic Television was the television distribution arm of American television production company Paramount Television, once the TV arm of Paramount Pictures...
, CBS Paramount Domestic Television
CBS Paramount Domestic Television
CBS Paramount Domestic Television was an American television distribution company/production that was formed on January 17, 2006 and owned by CBS Corporation...
, and finally CBS Television Distribution
CBS Television Distribution
CBS Television Distribution is a global television distribution company, formed from the merger of CBS Corporation's two domestic television distribution arms CBS Paramount Domestic Television and King World Productions, including its home entertainment arm CBS Home Entertainment...
).
The reason for NBC holding on to ancillary rights of this version remains unknown to this day, but distribution began with NBC Enterprises as a distribution unit from 2001–2004. Since September 2004, NBCUniversal Television Distribution handles syndication rights to the Marx (non-public domain episodes) and Hackett versions.
Carsey-Werner Productions
Carsey-Werner Productions
Carsey-Werner Productions is an independent production company founded in 1981 by former ABC writer/producer duo Marcy Carsey and Tom Werner...
owns the Cosby version as it produced this revival.
External links
- Clips of You Bet Your Life (Marx era)
- Groucho's You Bet Your Life radio shows on archive.org
- Episodes from the TV show (Public DomainPublic domainWorks are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
) - Snopes.com page about the "I love my cigar..." urban legend