watching Game Show Network this morning (I was home sick from work), I saw several commercials air multiple times. one of those was featuring a special run next week of all the Match Game episodes featuring Bob Barker as one of the celebrity panelists.
(you can watch the first episode here:
Why are they doing this?
Well, Bob turns 90 next week (December 12th).
And to celebrate, he's coming back to The Price is Right to host 1 final time.
Now, I need to prepare you for this, if you have not seen Bob in some time. Remember... he's 89+......
WOW has he aged. It'll be somewhat strange to see him up on stage again, even if it's just 1 episode.
This is how I remember him:
The Price is Right (TPIR) was my favorite game show as I was growing up. On days when there was no school, or on days when I was home sick, I remember doing a lot of TPIR-watching.
I loved the showcase showdown at the end of each episode.
And my favorite prize game was "Cliff Hangers", where that crazy yodelling music played in the background as the little "guy" climbed the "Alps".
It was also fun to see Bob take a stab at putt-putt, when they'd have a contestant play that little golfing game.
But, I didn't care much for the Big Wheel that they rolled out on stage two times each show.
Here's Bob from his very first episode of TPIR:
That was the first of over 6,400 episodes!!
For a whopping 35 years, Bob was the man IMHO when it came to game show hosts.
I mean, really.... is there any other host that can come anywhere close to Bob's unique combination of humor and lovability ? I think not.
One guy wrote a cute little essay about things that would be missed with Bob's retirement:
He includes Barker's Beauties, the "have your pets spayed or neutered" line, and the weird "reach into Bob's pocket for 100 bucks" thing.
Those are all great memories that I have too, plus I'd add that funky, super-long trademark microphone that Bob carried around.
Bob is coming back to TPIR stage 1 last time... this week.... wonder if they'll let him carry that microphone?
Out for now.....
Matt
