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Every year I find myself searching for ways to cope with awful January grimness, and luckily I've found us a kickass anniversary to celebrate: Password debuted in primetime 50 years ago this week, and it remains one of the definitive entertainments in the wide, mysteriously under-respected world of game shows. Like with most great game shows including To Tell the Truth, The Price is Right, and Pyramid, gaming genius Bob Stewart (who passed away this year at age 91) was a critical part of Password's inception. It's a parlor activity of hints and responses, but somehow the suspense of coming up with just the right clue is telegenic enough to endure decades of relevance.
Let's take a look back at multiple versions of this fine show and mutter in our best monotone narration, "The password is... fabulous."
Forget George Burns and Gracie Allen: I prefer the team of Allen Ludden and Betty White!
Betty White married Password's legendary emcee Allen Ludden after appearing on the show. She's the only celebrity to have appeared on every airing version of the series (including the recent Million Dollar Password), and she may be the greatest Password contestant. I'd include Vicki Lawrence, Carol Burnett, and Elizabeth Montgomery among those ranks. As a bonus, this clip features Arlene Francis, the matriarch of the also-unbeatable game show What's My Line?.
Jane Fonda and James Mason duke it out!
Have you figured out that I'm obsessed with Jane Fonda? Point is: There was a time when game shows attracted real celebrities constantly. In this episode with Fonda and James Mason, we watch as Henry's daughter doggedly describes things. The passion! Klute's Klues!
Oh, '70s Password. You're so weird.
In this not-so-legendary version of Password from '75, we watch as contestants compete in a Price is Right-style contestant gallery before jumping up to play the familiar one-on-one sit-down game. Ludden is your ferocious host, and he maintains decorum in the show's madcap buzzer round.
TheOdd Couple Episode That Matters Most
Password was immortalized in an episode of The Odd Couple, when "celebrity" sportswriter Oscar Madison (R.I.P. Jack Klugman) is paired up with his own roommate Felix Unger (Tony Randall). Hijinks ensue when Felix's clues are as opaque and mysterious as Ludden's tan. I mean, is it even tan? It is dark olive with a topaz sheen. It is a Crayola underworld.
Password Plus is downright groovy!
First things first: Password Plus has the hands-down greatest Password theme. It is a bass-heavy late '70s, swanky-ass groove, and if I were the kind of scum who still had a ringtone, I'd have it cued up on my iPhone. Secondly, Password Plus is my favorite iteration of the series, as it combines more strategy and intuition than previous incarnations. Ludden died only two years after this version hit the air, and in a perfect world, he'd still be hosting it today.
Super Password is super red, white, and blue -- and Rip Taylor sometimes owns it.
Bert Convy is a charming fellow as well as a dynamite Password contestant, but as a host of Super Password he would sometimes dilly-dally for much too long, occasionally getting to the actual game at the five-minute mark. Still, the game is great: From '84-'89 Convy helmed a fine version of the show, and that once meant this legendary appearance from a wig-wagging Rip Taylor.
Million Dollar Passwordwith NPH
I respect Regis Philbin as a game show host, but even his charm couldn't patch together the somewhat stilted gameplay in the 2009 version of the old show. The short-lived series did give us a fun appearance from a fun-as-hell Betty White, as well as a most impressive showing from our man (and noted game show aficionado) Neil Patrick Harris. Ugh, for "FIASCO" he totally should've given the clue "LUPE." Current musical references! That'll show 'em!
What are your favorite Password moments?
