Don Adams' Screen Test

Last updated
Don Adams' Screen Test
Don Adams 1975.jpg
Adams as the show's host
Created by Don Adams
Presented byDon Adams
Narrated by Charlie O'Donnell
Country of originUnited States
No. of episodes24 (+1 pilot)
Production
Running time24 mins.
Production companyStacey Productions
Original release
Network Syndicated
ReleaseSeptember 7, 1975 (1975-09-07) 
September 19, 1976 (1976-09-19)

Don Adams' Screen Test is an American game show that aired in syndication for one season. It was hosted by actor Don Adams and the announcer was Charlie O'Donnell.

Contents

Gameplay

The game involves two 15-minute periods, in which a random person would be asked to act out or re-enact a famous Hollywood movie scene (such as the race scene from the 1964 movie Viva Las Vegas ). They would then be helped out by Adams and guest celebrities who appeared on the show. Usually, Adams would direct; however, on occasion, he would act along with the contestant and the guest celebrity, and another celebrity would direct. Blunders such as forgotten lines, failures of props, and celebrities ad-libbing would provide additional comedy.

A second contestant would do the same. At the end, both contestants would see their screen tests, and the contestant whose screen test was judged to be better by a well-known director (different for each episode) was declared the winner and given a walk-on part on an upcoming movie or television show.

Episode status

The series is held in its entirety (including the hour-long pilot taped May 16, 1975) by Universal Television [1] but has not been seen since its original airing.

Notes

Related Research Articles

<i>Hollywood Squares</i> American television game show

Hollywood Squares is an American game show in which two contestants compete in a game of tic-tac-toe to win cash and prizes. The show piloted on NBC in 1965 and the regular series debuted in 1966 on the same network. The board for the game is a 3 × 3 vertical stack of open-faced cubes, each occupied by a celebrity seated at a desk and facing the contestants. The stars are asked questions by the host and the contestants judge the truth of their answers to gain squares in the right pattern to win the game.

<i>Match Game</i> American television game show

Match Game is an American television panel game show that premiered on NBC in 1962 and has been revived several times over the course of the last six decades. The game features contestants trying to match answers given by celebrity panelists to fill-in-the-blank questions. Beginning with the CBS run of the 1970s, the questions are often formed as humorous double entendres.

<i>The Gong Show</i> American television series

The Gong Show is an American amateur talent contest franchised by Sony Pictures Television to many countries. It was broadcast on NBC's daytime schedule from June 14, 1976, through July 21, 1978, and in first-run syndication from 1976 to 1980 and 1988 to 1989, and was revived in 2017 for broadcast on ABC. The show was created and originally produced by Chuck Barris, who also served as host for the NBC run and from 1977 to 1980 in syndication. Its most recent version was executive-produced by Will Arnett and hosted by Tommy Maitland, a fictional character performed by Mike Myers. The Gong Show is known for its absurdist humor and style, with the actual competition secondary to the often outlandish acts presented; a small cash prize has typically been awarded to each show's winner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Don Adams</span> American actor (1923–2005)

Donald James Yarmy, known professionally as Don Adams, was an American actor and stand-up comedian. In his five decades on television, he was best known as bumbling Maxwell Smart in the television situation comedy Get Smart, which he also sometimes directed and wrote. Adams won three consecutive Emmy Awards for his performance in the series (1967–1969). Adams also provided the voices for the animated series Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales (1963–1966) and Inspector Gadget (1983–1986) as well as several revivals and spinoffs of the latter in the 1990s.

Remote Control is an American TV game show that ran on MTV for five seasons from 1987 until 1990. It was MTV's first original non-musical program and first game show. A concurrent syndicated version of the series ran during the 1989-90 season and was distributed by Viacom. Three contestants answered trivia questions on movies, music, and television, many of which were presented in skit format.

<i>Whats My Line?</i> American panel game show

What's My Line? is a panel game show that originally ran in the United States, between 1950 and 1967, on CBS. The game show started in black and white and later in color, with subsequent U.S. revivals. The game uses celebrity panelists to question contestants in order to determine their occupation. The majority of the contestants were from the general public, but there was one weekly celebrity "mystery guest" for which the panelists were blindfolded. It is on the list of longest-running U.S. primetime network television game-shows. Originally moderated by John Charles Daly and most frequently with regular panelists Dorothy Kilgallen, Arlene Francis, and Bennett Cerf, What's My Line? won three Emmy Awards for "Best Quiz or Audience Participation Show" in 1952, 1953, and 1958 and the Golden Globe Awards for Best TV Show in 1962.

<i>Hey Hey Its Saturday</i> Australian variety television series

Hey Hey It's Saturday was a long-running variety television program on Australian television. It initially ran for 28 years on the Nine Network from 9 October 1971 to 20 November 1999, with a recess in 1978. Its host throughout its entire run was Daryl Somers, who later also became executive producer of the program. The original producer, Gavan Disney, left the program in the 1980s, and Somers then jointly formed his own production company, Somers Carroll Productions, with comedy writer and on-screen partner Ernie Carroll, the performer of Somers' pink ostrich puppet sidekick Ossie Ostrich.

Crackerjack is a British children's television series which was initially aired on the BBC Television Service between 14 September 1955 and 21 December 1984. The series was a variety show featuring comedy sketches, singers and quizzes, broadcast live with an audience.

<i>Ive Got a Secret</i> American game show

I've Got a Secret is an American panel game show produced by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman for CBS television. Created by comedy writers Allan Sherman and Howard Merrill, it was a derivative of Goodson–Todman's own panel show, What's My Line?. Instead of celebrity panelists trying to determine a contestant's occupation, however, as in What's My Line, the panel tried to determine a contestant's secret: something that is unusual, amazing, embarrassing, or humorous about that person.

<i>You Bet Your Life</i> American radio and television comedy quiz game show (1947-present)

You Bet Your Life is an American comedy quiz series that has aired on both radio and television. The original version was hosted by Groucho Marx of the Marx Brothers, with announcer and assistant George Fenneman. The show debuted on ABC Radio on October 27, 1947, moved to CBS Radio debuting October 5, 1949, and went to NBC-TV and NBC Radio on October 4, 1950. Because of its simple format, it was possible to broadcast the show on both radio and television but not simultaneously. Many of the laughs on the television show were evoked by Groucho's facial reactions and other visual gimmicks; the two versions were slightly different. The last episode in a radio format aired on June 10, 1960. The series continued on television for another year, recording a season on September 22, 1960 with a new title, The Groucho Show.

<i>The Sunday Night Project</i> British comedy-variety show

The Sunday Night Project is a British comedy-variety show by Princess Productions that first aired on Channel 4 in February 2005 under the title The Friday Night Project. Originally broadcast on Friday nights, the show moved to Sunday nights for its seventh series in 2008.

<i>Drew Careys Green Screen Show</i> American television series (2004–2005)

Drew Carey's Green Screen Show is an American improvisational comedy television series that aired in the fall of 2004 on The WB, and the fall of 2005 on Comedy Central. The show was hosted by Drew Carey, and was somewhat a follow-up to the show he formerly hosted, Whose Line Is It Anyway?. The distinguishing feature of the show was that the improv games were performed in front of a "green screen", with animation, music and sound effects inserted in post-production. The show was otherwise very similar to Whose Line? and featured many of the same performers and games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laila Morse</span> English actress (born 1945)

Maureen Oldman, known professionally as Laila Morse, is an English actress. Her roles include Janet in the drama film Nil by Mouth (1997) and Mo Harris in the BBC soap opera EastEnders.

<i>Who Wants to Be a Millionaire</i> (American game show) American television game show

Who Wants to Be a Millionaire is an American television game show based on the format of the same-titled British program created by David Briggs, Steven Knight and Mike Whitehill and developed in the United States by Michael Davies. The show features a quiz competition with contestants attempting to win a top prize of $1,000,000 by answering a series of multiple-choice questions, usually of increasing difficulty. The program has endured as one of the longest-running and most successful international variants in the Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? franchise.

<i>The Price Is Right</i> (1956 American game show) American game show

The Price Is Right is an American game show produced by Mark Goodson-Bill Todman Productions, wherein contestants placed successive bids on merchandise prizes with the goal of bidding closest to each prize's actual retail price without surpassing it. The show was a precursor to the current and best-known version of the program, which premiered in 1972 on CBS's daytime schedule. It makes The Price Is Right one of only a few game show franchises to have aired in some form across all three of the Big Three television networks.

<i>The Face Is Familiar</i> American TV series or program

The Face Is Familiar is an American game show which aired in color on CBS as a summer replacement show from May 7 to September 3, 1966. The show was hosted by Jack Whitaker and featured celebrity guests including Bob Crane, Dick Van Patten, Mel Brooks and June Lockhart.

<i>Whose Line Is It Anyway?</i> (American TV series) American improv TV series

Whose Line Is It Anyway? is an American improvisational comedy television series, and is an adaptation of the British series of the same name. It originally aired on ABC and ABC Family from August 5, 1998 to December 15, 2007, hosted by Drew Carey. A revival of the show, hosted by Aisha Tyler, began airing on The CW on July 16, 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Screen Junkies</span> Online movie magazine and YouTube channel

Screen Junkies is an online movie magazine and YouTube channel, owned and operated by Fandom, that focuses primarily on movies and television. Screen Junkies produce numerous shows now spread across two YouTube channels, including The Screen Junkies Show, Movie Fights!, Honest Trailers, Honest Trailer Commentary, Screen Junkies Universe (SJU), Movie Reviews, CRAM IT, and others.

<i>Ask Me Another</i> (radio program)

Ask Me Another is an hour-long radio puzzle game show that was produced by WNYC and National Public Radio. It was hosted by Canadian American comedian Ophira Eisenberg and featured as its "in-house musician" or "one-man house band" independent rock musician Jonathan Coulton. Episodes of the show were usually recorded at The Bell House in Brooklyn, New York, however the show did go to various states across the country and recorded one or more episodes from those locations. The show was produced by WNYC Studios. During the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, the show continued taping episodes from the homes of the participants, without a studio audience.

<i>Mask Singer</i> (French TV series) French reality television series

Mask Singer is a French reality television series based on the format of the South Korean television game show series King of Mask Singer by Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation. Run by TF1 Group, Mask Singer is a singing competition between celebrities donning elaborate costumes and face coverings to conceal their identity from the audience, judges and other contestants.

References