50 Years Ago Today

[Ccook]

September 3, 1965, 11:30 AM EDT/PDT, 10:30 AM CDT: The original Bill Cullen edition of The Price Is Right had its final show. It had been on ABC the past two years, having moved from NBC (ABC snapped up both daytime and nighttime shows after NBC canceled the nighttime show for a Larry Blyden sitcom called Harry's Girls). It lost audiences to not all markets having an ABC affiliate (48 markets cleared Price on a CBS station) and to NBC's Jeopardy!, of which Price had gone up against in the east since December 28, 1964.

Eight years and one day later, Price made its triumphant return on CBS. It has never looked back since.

[Ccook]

Error: That should be seven years and one day later. Mea culpa.

[Teddy]

I wouldn't be surprised if the fact that the Cullen TPIR was carried on CBS stations in places that did not yet have ABC affiliates led CBS to pick up the current series (Barker/Carey) in 1972.

[Ccook]

Could be. But the CBS show was originally intended for once-a-week syndication with Dennis James. CBS green-lighted it for their daytime lineup in late spring of 1972.