Liar's Club
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about the Liar's Club TV game show. You may be looking for the band of the same name.
Liar's Club was an American comedy game show. It was first seen in 1969 with Rod Serling as host, and returned for a three-season syndicated run from 1976 to 1979. Bill Armstrong was the original host, soon succeeded by Allen Ludden. It was later revived for almost one year from 1988 - 1989 as The New Liar's Club; Eric Boardman was the host. The 1988 version was produced by Blair Murdoch at CKVU-TV in Vancouver. The title is a spin on the Friars Club.
Contents |
[edit] Gameplay
The show featured a panel of celebrity guests, who would be presented with an unusual object; each would give a ridiculous explanation of what the object was used for. Contestants (there were two on the 60s version, four on the 80s version and the first season of the 70s version, and three during the Ludden era) would place wagers on which star was telling the true story. They played for money in the 70s version; but they played for points in the 80s version. They started at 100 dollars/points at the beginning of the game and were allowed to bet in $10 increments up to $100 on the 70s version, while the 80s version's betting range was 10 to 50 points.
[edit] The Odds
The odds increase for each round:
Round 1 - 1-1
Round 2 - 2-1
Round 3 - 5-1
Round 4 - 10-1
[edit] The Liar's Club Gallery / The Art Corner
This was always the last round of the game in which artwork was presented before the panel and contestants. Each celebrity would each offer their own title for the art. Each player would then make one last wager on which star gave the right title. Correct answers from the contestants won the wager at a 10-1 payoff. The player with the highest score won the game and a bonus prize (on the 80s version, a correct bet in all 4 rounds was also worth an additional prize).
[edit] Panelists
Frequent panelists on the '70s version included Joey Bishop, Betty White, Dick Gautier, Fannie Flagg and Larry Hovis. Canadian comedian John Barbour was the regular panelist in the 80s version, and other frequent panelists included Fred Willard, Shannon Tweed, Jimmie Walker, James Doohan and Pete Barbutti.
