November 2, 1959…The Game Show Scandal Breaks Wide Open

On November 2, 2016 - TV History

November 2, 1959…The Game Show Scandal Breaks Wide Open

It was on this day in 1959 that Charles Van Doren admitted before a congressional committee that he had indeed received the answers to the questions on “Twenty One”.

Here is Herb Stempel discussing loosing to Charles Van Doren by missing the “Marty’ Question. For all of us that have seen the movie “Quiz Show”, you must admit that the movie was very accurate in it’s portrayal of this whole story.

One of the key players in the “Twenty One” story, was producer Dan Enright. At this link is a very interesting and detailed article on Enright’s part, his rise and fall, and his eventual return to television with the shows “Jokers Wild” and “Tic, Tac, Dough”.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/quizshow/peopleevents/pande04.html

Actually, “Dotto” with host Jack Narz was the first show to be found rigged, and went off the air in August 1958. Narz was cleared of any wrong doing, but game shows were not, and over a three month period, all were canceled on every network, including “Twenty One”, which last aired October 16, 1958. -Bobby Ellerbee

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8 Comments

  1. Steve Finkelmeyer November 5, 2016

    It occurred to me when I was casually watching Quiz Show on Netflix shortly after one of the debates, that the Twenty-One format might work well for future presidential debates. Two soundproof boxes and the moderator can turn their mics off. Some questions they shouldn’t be allowed to hear how the other answers.

  2. Val Ginter November 3, 2016

    I liked the movie. They used the New-York Historical Society library for the courtroom scenes.

  3. Paul S Erstein November 3, 2016

    For a time in the mid 80’s I shared an office with the elderly Mert Koplin, who was involved in this scandal. He was a gentle soul who got caught up in this mess. RIP

  4. Max A Schindler November 2, 2016

    I remember it well.

  5. Jeffrey Gold November 2, 2016

    The low dollar unfixed Goodson-Todman panel shows survived. But, the cancellations of the rigged quizzes damaged overall NY-based production at a time of migration west.

  6. Rick Bozeman November 2, 2016

    I was in junior high school then and it was all,over the news, what news there was back then.

  7. Robert Kristelli November 2, 2016

    I was young then, but I remember the game shows with isolation booths.

  8. William A Padron November 2, 2016

    As a coincidence, the cancellation date of “Twenty One” on Thursday, October 16, 1958 was also the date of my birth into this world.