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The Dating Game
Show logo
Format	Game show
Created by	Chuck Barris
Starring	Jim Lange (host, 1965-1980); Elaine Joyce (1986-1987); Jeff McGregor (1987-1989); Brad Sherwood (1996-1997); Chuck Woolery (1997-1999)
Country of origin	United States
Production
Running time	30 minutes with commercials
Broadcast
Original channel	ABC, Syndicated,
Original run	1965 – 1999

The Dating Game is an ABC television show that first aired on December 20, 1965 and was the first of many shows created and packaged by Chuck Barris from the 1960s through the 1980s. ABC dropped the show on July 6, 1973, but it resurfaced in several syndicated versions (1973-1974 as The New Dating Game, 1978-1980, 1986-1989 and 1996-1999).

For the first few episodes in at the beginning of the ABC run, live music was provided by The Regents. For years it would almost always be aired in tandem with another Barris production, The Newlywed Game, which premiered on ABC the following year.

Typically, a bachelorette would question three bachelors, who were hidden from her view; at the end of the questioning period, she would choose one to go out with on a date paid for by the show. Occasionally, the roles would be reversed with a man questioning three ladies; other times, a celebrity would question three players for a date for themselves, a co-worker or a relative of theirs. Many celebrities played the game looking for love themselves.

Some contestants who were quite famous, included Suzanne Somers, Farrah Fawcett, Andy Kaufman (who went under a different name "Baji Kimran"), Steve Martin, Burt Reynolds, Michael Jackson, Sally Field, John Ritter, Phil Hartman, Jennifer Granholm, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Tom Selleck (who went on the show twice and lost both times). The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit judge Alex Kozinski appeared on it and won. [1] One standard trademark was that at the end of each episode, the host and winning contestants would blow a kiss to the viewers.

This was a forerunner for a number of other shows done in the same style (although a show called Blind Date was matching up contestants in a much tamer setting almost two decades earlier). The late 1970s version of the show was much more sexually explicit (and played for laughs) than other versions.

It was hosted by San Francisco disc jockey Jim Lange throughout the '60s and '70s, by Elaine Joyce and later Jeff MacGregor in the '80s (in which future stars Cuba Gooding Jr., Oprah Winfrey, Michael Richards, and Jim Carrey appeared as contestants) and by Brad Sherwood and later Chuck Woolery in the '90s.

Chuck Barris has claimed that the show was a cover for his CIA activities and was promoted by the company, according to his autobiography "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind."

Contents 1 Game play 1.1 Classic version 1.2 1990s version 2 Episode status 3 Celebrities on the show 4 Musical cues

Generally the bachelorette would ask questions written in advance on cards to each of the three bachelors. The same question could be asked to multiple bachelors. This continued until time ran out. The bachelorette would make her choice based solely on the answers to her questions.

For this revival's first season, two formats were used.

The basic format for this show, used throughout the first year, was for the bachelor/bachelorette to pick from two facts about the three potential dates. Once it was picked, the person in question would reveal the reason behind the fact to the hopeful single. After a round of questioning, the bachelor/bachelorette chose their date. All three of the potential dates had their names revealed before the questioning started as well, something that wasn't done on any version of TDG prior.

During a part of the first season, in addition to asking the questions, the bachelor/bachelorette got to see all three contestants at the outset of the game (who all had headphones on so they couldn't hear what their potential date was saying about them), and would pick who they thought was the best looking of the bunch. After that, the question round was conducted in its usual fashion, with the bachelor/bachelorette picking who they thought had the best personality out of the three. After the choices were made, the contestant was then prompted to choose between their choice for best looking or best personality.

The show reverted to its classic format in its second season, when Chuck Woolery took over as host.

The ABC daytime episodes are believed to have been erased after broadcast, as was the standard practice with network daytime programs prior to the late 1970s. The ABC nighttime shows exist, as GSN has aired them in the past, but it is not known exactly how many have survived.

The remaining versions of the show apparently exist in their entirety.

• Adam West - 1966
• Michael Richards - 1967
• Danny Bonaduce - 1972
• Kathryn Minner, "The Little Old Lady from Pasadena" - 1966
• Kathy Garver - 1966;December 31, 1970 and January 1, 1971
• Sally Field & Robert Vaughn - 1966
• John Ritter - 1967
• Groucho Marx - 1967 (as a prank on his daughter Melinda, who was Bachelorette #1)
• Paul Lynde - 1968
• Richard Dawson - 1968
• Bill Bixby - 1968 (Bixby appeared on the show four times and was never selected)
• Deep Purple - 1968
• Steve Martin - 1968 & 1970
• McLean Stevenson - 1968
• Jackson Bostwick - 1968
• Joanna Cameron - Late 1960s
• Farrah Fawcett - 1969
• Iron Butterfly - 1969
• Karen Carpenter - July 1970
• Richard Carpenter - July 1970
• Ann B. Davis - 1970 & 1971
• Maureen McCormick - 1971 & 1973
• Barry Williams - 1972
• Michael Jackson - 1972
• Butch Patrick - 1972
• H.R. Pufnstuf - December 25, 1972
• Dick Clark - 1973
• Arnold Schwarzenegger on "The New" Dating Game - 1973
• Suzanne Somers on "The New" Dating Game - 1973
• Willie Aames - 1978
• Andy Kaufman - 1978
• Jimmie Walker - 1978
• Phil Hartman - 1979
• Paul Reubens (as Pee Wee Herman) - 1979
• Bob Saget - 1979 & 1980
• Jennifer Granholm, Current Governor of Michigan
• Murray Langston (as The Unknown Comic) - 1978

The following music used on the series were done by Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass:

• "Spanish Flea" (bachelor intro)
• "Whipped Cream" (bachelorette intro)
• "Lollipops and Roses" (date location cue)
• "Ladyfingers" and "Lemon Tree" (think cues)

Other music cues used on the show include:

• "Fantail" by Count Basie (turntable cue when Jim Lange says, "and here they are!")
• "Little Rosie" by Chuck Barris (New Dating Game 1973 closing theme)
• "Love Sickness" by Milton DeLugg (times up cue)
• "Boston Bust-Out" by Jimmy McGriff (prize intro cue)
• Dating Game 1965, main theme Chet Baker/The Mariachi Brass
• New Dating Game 1973, main theme by David Mook