'Truth or Consequences' was the first TV quiz show

Revelations about quiz show ‘Dotto’ led to a larger scandal across the industry

The show, which aired on both CBS and NBC in slightly different iterations in 1958, followed a fairly standard question-and-answer format, with correct answers slowly revealing an image that contestants needed to solve. Despite its popularity, the show was canceled after it was revealed that one contestant had been provided with answers to the questions. That revelation led to similar scandals with four more shows over the next few months.

'Jeopardy!' was conceived as a way to earn back skeptical audiences' trust

In the wake of the ‘50s scandals, networks were reluctant to greenlight new quiz shows. Merv Griffin’s wife suggested he flip the formula on its head, providing contestants with the answers (the exact act that had led to the scandals) and asking them to provide the questions. “Jeopardy!” premiered in 1964, effectively reviving the genre. It eventually became the top-rated quiz show in history with 23 million viewers.

The quiz show scandals eroded trust in the media

Many viewers were attracted to the shows because they were filled with real people winning real money. After it was exposed that “Dotto,” “Twenty-One,” “The $64,000 Question,” and others had been fixed, the genre struggled to regain viewers’ trust. The government intervened, too: President Eisenhower called the shows’ deception “a terrible thing to do to the American people” and Congress amended the Communications Act in 1960, explicitly outlawing fraudulent game shows.

A New Mexico town named itself after the quiz show 'Truth or Consequences.'

Claims about 'Twenty-One' weren't taken seriously until other quiz shows were exposed

Contestant Herb Stempel alleged that “Twenty-One” was fixed after his loss to Charles Van Doren, saying that everything on the show was “carefully choreographed,” though his claims were dismissed as mere bitterness. In truth, Stempel had been promised a network job if he went along with the con and became outspoken when it didn’t materialize. Van Doren, meanwhile, became a celebrity, donning the cover of Time magazine.

'The $64,000 Question' took the quiz show formula to new levels

Creator Louis G. Cowan upped the potential winnings and had his team scour through contestant applications in search of everyday people with exceptional knowledge in a particular area. When the show premiered in 1955, they made the game appear high-tech by using cutting-edge IBM technology to deliver questions. The gambit worked: At one point, 55 million Americans tuned in.

A 1954 Supreme Court ruling helped quiz shows avoid regulation

When the Federal Communications Committee attempted to rein in giveaway shows, the Supreme Court ruled that quiz shows were not a form of gambling because contestants did not have to risk anything to participate. Some believe that the ruling prevented proper oversight of the industry as it became more popular.

The modern quiz show debuted in 1926

“The Brooklyn Daily Eagle on Current Events” was a radio show on New York’s WNYC. The Brooklyn Daily Eagle was a local newspaper, providing an air of authority to the format, with the paper’s associate editor acting as quizmaster.

The American 'Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?' redefined the quiz show

The show was already a success in the United Kingdom when it was adapted for the US to boost ratings during 1999’s “sweeps week,” a pivotal time for television ratings. The show worked, thanks to a charismatic host in Regis Philbin and the high stakes of a big cash prize. That combination would be replicated with great success in reality competition shows, such as “American Idol,” which would follow.

'Vox Pop' gave ordinary contestants the chance to win quick cash

The radio show began in 1932 with man-on-the-street interviews in Houston, but soon began traveling to different locations around the country. The show became known for its quiz feature, which offered $1 for each question randomly picked people answered correctly. The show was a hit, not only because audiences could imagine themselves in the contestants’ shoes, but also because it was relatively inexpensive for the network to produce.

'Twenty-One' producers presented fabricated narratives as reality

Producers of “Twenty-One,” which featured two contestants competing from separate isolation booths, knew the quiz show format could use storytelling in the same way that any fictional program could. They found a perfect narrative in the matchup between Charles Van Doren, an all-American Columbia University instructor, and Herb Stempel, an arrogant Queens native. Stempel intentionally lost the game, pretending not to know the answer to a question about his favorite movie, “Marty.”

Radio quiz shows took off in the '40s

The concept took hold during the Great Depression, with 50 shows on the air by 1940, because they allowed families to imagine a financial windfall was just a few questions away. Although the genre had a slight downturn during World War II, it experienced a resurgence by the end of the decade, with 200 shows on the air.

Before he had his own show, Pee-wee Herman appeared on 'The Dating Game'

Paul Reubens' character Pee-wee Herman would become a sensation with his 1986 children's show "Pee-wee's Playhouse," but in 1979 he appeared as the hilariously naive character on "the Dating Game." It's not clear if the show (or its audience) understood what they were seeing.

'SNL' began as a low-budget replacement for reruns of 'The Tonight Show'

Johnny Carson, host of "The Tonight Show," asked NBC to move his reruns to weeknights instead of weekends. That freed up a weekend slot and the network decided to try a new live show.

'SNL' was originally called 'NBC's Saturday Night'

Another show already owned the title: the short-lived "Saturday Night Live with Howard Cosell." The variety show only lasted one season and was widely panned, despite featuring several talented comedians—like Bill Murray, Christopher Guest, and Billy Crystal—who'd later be stars on "SNL" ... after officially changing its name.

Bob Hope's radio shows brought stand-up to the masses

Bob Hope’s 1930s variety shows featured comedic monologues. Unlike the tightly scripted and evergreen sets of vaudeville, Hope’s monologues leaned into topical and political humor, sometimes to the disapproval of his network.

A low-budget, Seattle-based comedy show launched Bill Nye's on-camera career

"Almost Live!" began in 1984 as a Sunday evening talk show before evolving into a sketch comedy show that served as the lead-in for "Saturday Night Live" on NBC's Seattle affiliate station. Besides Nye, TV stars Joel McHale and Lauren Weedman were regular cast members.

Following the scandals, CBS briefly banned canned laughter

The network was looking to correct the public perception that its programming was fraudulent, so it banned laugh tracks and fake applause from its broadcasts. The policy didn’t last long; within a few years, sitcoms were regularly “sweetened” with the sound effects.

'I Love to Eat' was the first nationally televised cooking show

Beard’s show, cohosted with Julia Child, debuted in 1946. It was invaluable in setting the stage for today’s massive trove of televised and online cooking content.

HBO premiered the modern stand-up special in 1975

When they appeared on TV, stand-ups were typically limited to five-minute spots on late-night talk shows, like "The Tonight Show." That changed with the fledgling HBO, which offered comics hourlong slots. The first was "An Evening with Robert Klein," a special that would define "the hour" for decades.

The 1979 murder trial of Ted Bundy was the first nationally televised trial, offering a preview of the national obsession with true crime.

Johnny Carson was a stand-up kingmaker

While it was on the air, “The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson” was a prime outlet for stand-up comedy. Getting invited over to Carson’s couch meant he’d enjoyed the set—and that the comic was destined for great success.

'The Muppet Show' debuted in the UK because it was rejected by every US network.

One prankster started a movement to clothe animals in the mid-20th century

G. Clifford Prout founded the Society for Indecency to Naked Animals, saying that animal nudity was rude and immoral. The campaign continued for years until CBS employees realized Prout was actually a comedian named Buck Henry.

The Kennedy-Nixon debates marked the presidency's entry into the television era

In 1960, John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon faced off in the first televised presidential debates. Kennedy's calm, telegenic presence contrasted with Nixon's uneasy appearance, showing how the new medium could shape voter perceptions and modern campaign strategy.

Watch Bill Haley bring rock 'n' roll to mainstream America with his first performance on 'The Ed Sullivan Show.'

The best wrong answers from 'Jeopardy!'

“Jeopardy!” is known for its geniuses, but that doesn’t mean every minute of the show is an illustration of brilliance. This compilation corrects some of the funniest incorrect responses from contestants, making for over 10 minutes of hilarity.

The host of ‘The Dating Game’ claimed it was a CIA front

In his 1984 autobiography, “Confessions of a Dangerous Mind,” “Dating Game” host Chuck Barris claimed the show was a front concealing his true job as a contract assassin for the CIA. Despite skeptical responses and a lack of evidence, Barris continued to say the story was true. In 2002, screenwriter Charlie Kaufman adapted the book for the screen.

The opposition party to the president first delivered a televised response in 1966

Television networks first granted airtime to the out-of-power party in 1966, with Republicans Everett Dirksen and then-Representative Gerald R. Ford delivering the inaugural response. See a list of each opposition response to the State of the Union since then.

Watch every 'Simpsons' short from 'The Tracey Ullman Show'

Before it was a standalone sitcom, "The Simpsons" began in 1987 as a series of interstitials on "The Tracey Ullman Show," a short-lived sketch comedy show. You'll notice some slight differences—off-kilter voices, oddly drawn characters—but the series' premise was there, leading Fox to spin it off into its own show in 1989.

The first nationally broadcast soap opera was 'Clara, Lu, 'n Em'

The show first aired in Chicago in 1930, but was then picked up by NBC and broadcast across the country in 1931. The show followed three women who lived in the same duplex. Listen to a 1934 episode below, including the preshow's soap-centric advertising.

Hitchcock's TV show emphasized the director's playful yet suspenseful tone

"Alfred Hitchcock Presents" was a television series that aired from 1955 to 1965, offering viewers weekly bites of the director's unnerving storytelling. Hitchcock acted as host, framing the short films with his haunting voice and gothic language.

Alex Trebek only missed one day in 37 years of hosting 'Jeopardy!'

Art Fleming was the show’s original host, but Trebek took over when the show went to syndication in 1984. The only taping he missed while host was on April 1, 1997, when he and Pat Sajak, host of “Wheel of Fortune,” switched gigs for April Fools’ Day.

Spinal Tap began as a sketch on a short-lived TV show

The fake band might be best known for "This is Spinal Tap," 1984 movie that effectively created the comedy mockumentary, but the premise began with an appearance on a short-lived ABC show called "The TV Show."

Carlin's 'Seven Words' led to a landmark Supreme Court ruling

The original recording of Carlin's bit aired on a New York radio station in 1973, leading to an FCC complaint. The case went up to the Supreme Court, which ruled that the FCC had the right to penalize broadcasters that aired obscene content during the daytime.

Ranking the 50 worst decisions in TV history

Most shows bomb or never even get recorded; some that do are lost to history, having failed to impress the audience or critics. This list combs through six decades of TV production history and identifies some of the worst decisions made by management in network history. Dive into the 50 worst executive decisions here, from giving the Geico cavemen a show to Geraldo Rivera's live walkthrough of Al Capone's vault.

Jim Henson and his Muppets were part of the first season of 'Saturday Night Live' because NBC was hoping to tamp down Lorne Michaels' countercultural plans for the show.

Don Herbert, better known as 'Mr. Wizard,' was the predecessor to the 'Science Guy'

From 1951 to 1965, the former B-24 bomber pilot performed science experiments that home audiences could replicate on "Watch Mr. Wizard," inspiring about 50,000 Mr. Wizard Science Clubs throughout North America. Subsequent series, including "Mr. Wizard’s World" and "Teacher to Teacher with Mr. Wizard," ran on Nickelodeon until 1996.

10 ways David Letterman changed late-night TV

Late-night TV is an American institution with its own tropes and traditions. While Johnny Carson is often noted as the model for late-night hosts, the modern notion of the format owes just as much (if not more) to David Letterman, who redefined the model in the early 1980s. This list from ABC News ranks the 10 ways Letterman accomplished that, using one of Letterman's classic bits to honor the man's legacy.

The oft-cited roots of the true crime genre

The 1966 book "In Cold Blood" by American author Truman Capote is often considered the beginning of true crime as it's known today. The story details the real-life murders of a family of four in Holcomb, Kansas, using techniques that, at the time, were relegated to fictional tales. Before it was a book, the narrative was published by The New Yorker in 1965 as a four-part series. 

Steve Martin was vying for love on 'The Dating Game' before he was selling out arenas

In 1968, the 21-year-old Martin was a writer for the Smothers Brothers, who had a popular variety show. He appeared on “The Dating Game” as one of the bachelors, attempting to impress the twin sister of his childhood crush. (Spoiler: It worked.)

Watch Bill Nye's debut as the 'Science Guy' on 'Almost Live!'

Knowing that Nye explained scientific concepts as a volunteer at the Pacific Science Center, host Ross Shafer suggested Nye perform scientific demonstrations to fill the time left by a canceled guest. "You could be, like, Bill Nye the Science Guy," said Shafer.

Clue, the murder-mystery board game, was designed during World War II air raids.

Mel Brooks got his first big break in 1950 as a writer on Sid Caesar's 'Your Show of Shows,' a pioneering TV variety show.

2 'Simpsons' producers break down the show's turning points

Longtime director David Silverman and showrunner Matt Selman walk you through some of the show's biggest turning points, from the early days on "The Tracey Ullman Show" through its biggest guest stars and eerily accurate predictions.

Before 'SNL,' producer Lorne Michaels was a performer

Michaels was a costar on "The Hart and Lorne Terrific Hour," a popular show on the Canadian network CBC. As these clips show, it was a standard variety show, something Michaels would intentionally react against with "SNL."

Watch 5 decades of Times Square ball drops

Dick Clark started hosting his “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” show in 1972, which has become an annual television staple. This compilation includes five decades' worth of ball drops, allowing you to watch how the tradition subtly evolved.

The first cast members were relatively unknown 'enlightened amateurs'

“SNL” producers aimed to cast relative newcomers for the show’s first season, convinced that amateurs would infuse the show with the countercultural spirit Lorne Michaels envisioned.

SNL's history in 60 seconds

Saturday Night Live has been a fixture of American comedy since 1975. Created by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol, the show was designed as an alternative to late-night reruns, blending live sketch comedy, political satire, and celebrity impressions.

How HBO pioneered the hourlong stand-up comedy special

Stand-up comedy was already on television in the 1970s thanks to Johnny Carson, but comics were limited to clean sets that typically lasted five minutes. HBO, on the other hand, offered stand-ups the opportunity to air their unadulterated material like they would at a club.