Anniversary Game

Anniversary Game
Created by Larry Miller
Presented by Alan Hamel
Narrated by Dean Webber
Country of origin  United States
Production
Running time 30 minutes
Broadcast
Original channel Syndicated (daily)
Original run January 27, 1969 – September 1970

The Anniversary Game was a daily syndicated game show that involved three married couples competing for points and prizes by performing stunts and answering questions, à la Beat the Clock. The host was Alan Hamel, with voice-over artist Dean Webber announcing.

The program was taped in San Francisco at KGO-TV, formerly the home of Oh My Word.

Game play

The object of the game was to earn more points than the other couples to win the "anniversary surprise". The first round consisted of each spouse predicting how the other would react to a practical joke or zany gag. If they were correct, the team would win points.

In the second round, the couples teamed up against each other in order to complete the stunt. The winning team would then receive points.

The board used on The Anniversary Game.

In the final round, all the couples competed against one another to answer general knowledge questions (this was not a timed portion of the game; there was no countdown clock as in the Sale Of The Century speed round). Point values were determined by a randomly flashing point-value board (see image, right) showing numbered lights with values ranging from 1 to 10 points; a player sounding in to answer pressed his/her button, stopping the flashing sequence on a particular point value. A special 1-point prize (such as a vacation trip) was always at the middle of this board (and rarely hit). The board had three rows each of which had approximately a dozen point values (the middle row was split by the "big 1" space). A player sounding in was recognized by the couple's name and then the point value - e.g., "4 points, Shermans." The team with the most points overall won a merchandise prize called the "anniversary surprise".

Trivia

One of the prize models during the series run was Suzanne Somers, whom Hamel would marry in 1977.

Episode status

The series has not been seen since its original run. Its status is unknown, but most likely destroyed.

References