The Tournament of Champions in the Art Fleming era of Jeopardy!

[Robert K S]

The NBC Master Books broadcast logs, which are available on microfilm at the Library of Congress Motion Picture and Television Reading Room on the third floor of the Madison Memorial Building (and possibly also at other reference sites), are the only paper records of the Art Fleming-hosted Jeopardy! in public hands, and since only a handful of Fleming-era shows survive on videotapes and kinescope films, they may be the most complete records of the show extant. For many shows, they list contestant names and production notes, but often the contestant names are illegible or missing. Information about winners and their winnings is almost never included. For a large number of programs, complete teleprompter scripts have been included; they bear the production notes and doodles of some crew member, possibly the assistant director, and are sometimes the most valuable in terms of contemporary information about the show and its context in the 1960s and 1970s. The Master Books have 2-4 days of broadcast log per reel of microfilm and have no index, so locating information is difficult without knowing approximately which dates you need to be looking at, and time consuming even when you do.

The best-preserved information in the Master Books pertains to the television commercials aired with the show. Complete scripts, and frequently photo storyboards, of every television advertisement are retained. Art Fleming often delivered cheeky custom-written segues into the commercials, something that can no longer be done in the modern days of syndication, re-running and market-specific ad-buying. While simply an artifact of the production and record-keeping practices of the network at that time, the irony that the advertisements survive--some of them for brands that no longer do--while most of the program information has been lost reinforces the impression that television programming exists for the purposes of sponsorship rather than vice versa. It says that the ads were then--as they are today--the programming, and the entertainment and information value of our favorite TV show is purely incidental.

Using date information provided by Burns Cameron from his Tournament of Champions trophy, I was able to locate a lot more information about the Tournament of Champions during the Art Fleming era of Jeopardy! in the NBC Master Books broadcast logs. My findings are produced here. I hope to get information about the remaining Fleming ToCs on return trips to Washington, D.C. in the future.

[Robert K S]

1964 Tournament of Champions - first annual
Format

• 7 undefeated champions and 2 highest money winners among defeated champions were invited to participate.
• Three semifinal games produced three finalists.
• The three finalists competed in a two-game, total-point final match. Unlike in the Trebek era, scores were not reset to zero at the beginning of the second final game.

Prizes

• All players kept their scores as winnings throughout the tournament.
• The winner of the 2-day finals received a $1,000 bonus + a trophy ("the first annual Griffin Award") + a trip for 2 to San Juan, Virgin Islands aboard Pan Am. The trip featured "swimming at the pool and beach club of the famed Bluebeard's Castle in St. Thomas... overlooking Charlotte Amelie Harbor."

Contestants
#131, recorded in Studio 6A 1964-09-18, aired 1964-09-28

• Mrs. Helen Beck, a housewife from Jamaica, New York, winner of $2,490
• Mr. John Murphy, a teacher from Bay Shore, New York, winner of $6,000
• Mrs. Rosemary Taubert, a housewife from New York City, winner of $4,750

#132, recorded in Studio 6A 1964-09-18, aired 1964-09-29

• Mrs. Phyllis Gallo, a housewife from Lima, Ohio, winner of $4,090
• Mr. Pat McDermott, a teacher from New York City, winner of $3,290
• Mrs. Madeline Von Koch, a convention consultant from Forest Hills, New York, winner of $3,730

#133, recorded in Studio 6A 1964-09-18, aired 1964-09-30

• Mrs. Terry Thompson, a housewife from Plainsfield, New Jersey, winner of $5,080
• Mr. Sid Kramer, a waiter from Brooklyn, New York, winner of $2,570
• Mrs. Ruth Lind, a housewife from Springfield, Virginia, winner of $3,325

#134, recorded in Studio 6A 1964-09-24, aired 1964-10-01

• Mrs. Phyllis Gallo, a housewife from Lima, Ohio, winner of $4,870
• Mr. John Murphy, a teacher from Bay Shore, New York, winner of $6,890
• Mrs. Terry Thompson, a housewife from Plainsfield, New Jersey, winner of $6,080

#135, recorded in Studio 6A 1964-09-24, aired 1964-10-02

• Mrs. Phyllis Gallo, a housewife from Lima, Ohio, winner of $4,870
• Mr. John Murphy, a teacher from Bay Shore, New York, winner of $6,890
• Mrs. Terry Thompson, a housewife from Plainsfield, New Jersey, winner of $6,080

[No final score information is given. The record indicates that 3 brand new contestants appeared in the following game.]

1965 Tournament of Champions - second annual
Format

• 9 champions were invited to participate.
• Three semifinal games produced three finalists.
• The three finalists competed in a two-game, total-point final match. Unlike in the Trebek era, scores were not reset to zero at the beginning of the second final game.

Prizes

• All players kept their scores as winnings throughout the tournament.
• The winner of the 2-day finals received a $1,000 bonus + a trophy ("the second annual Griffin Award") + a trip for 2 to San Juan, Virgin Islands aboard Pan Am.

Contestants
#406, recorded in Studio 6A 1965-10-05, aired 1965-10-18

• Mr. Lou Ehrlich, a teacher from Queens Village, New York, winner of $3,780
• Mrs. Pat Day, a housewife from Pearl River, New York, winner of $3,650
• Mr. Bob Wilder, an air line representative from Fairfax, Virginia, winner of $3,850

#407, recorded in Studio 6A 1965-10-05, aired 1965-10-19

• Mrs. Doris Sullivan, a business woman from New York City, winner of $3,890
• Mr. Jim Cahill, a business man from Farmingdale, New York, winner of $3,450
• Mrs. Babs McClellan, a housewife from Auburn, New York, winner of $5,250

#408, recorded in Studio 6A 1965-10-05, aired 1965-10-20

• Mr. Bob Law, a retired service man from Brooklyn, New York, winner of $3,400
• Miss Carolyn Benson, a literary researcher from New York City, winner of $3,855
• Mr. Earle Codrington, a stripper from New York City, winner of $2,010

#409, recorded in Studio 6A 1965-10-07, aired 1965-10-21

• Miss Carolyn Benson, a literary researcher from New York City, winner of $4,255
• Mr. Bob Wilder, an air line representative from Fairfax, Virginia, winner of $4,930
• Mrs. Babs McClellan, a housewife from Auburn, New York, winner of $6,425

#409, recorded in Studio 6A 1965-10-07, aired 1965-10-22

• Miss Carolyn Benson, a literary researcher from New York City, winner of $4,255
• Mr. Bob Wilder, an air line representative from Fairfax, Virginia, winner of $4,930
• Mrs. Babs McClellan, a housewife from Auburn, New York, winner of $6,425

[The record indicates that Babs McClellan won this tournament, but no final score information is given. Babs went on to become a wildcard semifinalist in the 1991 Seniors Tournament during the Trebek era.]

1966 Tournament of Champions - third annual
Format

• 9 champions were invited to participate.
• Three semifinal games produced three finalists.
• The three finalists competed in a two-game, total-point final match. Unlike in the Trebek era, scores were not reset to zero at the beginning of the second final game.

Prizes

• All players kept their scores as winnings throughout the tournament.
• The winner of the 2-day finals received a trophy ("the third annual Griffin Award") + a trip for 2 to "a vacation paradise" aboard Pan Am.
• There may not have been a $1,000 bonus for the winner this year. There is no record of it being given, and Burns Cameron claims it was not.

Contestants
#666, recorded in Studio 6A 1966-10-06, aired 1966-10-17

• Mrs. Leona Huerbach, a housewife from Plainfield, New Jersey, winner of $2,750
• Mr. Tye Heckman, [occupation not filled in] from Wadesville, Indiana, winner of $5,160
• Mrs. Sarah Moore, a housewife from Kansas City, Missouri, winner of $3,350

#667, recorded in Studio 6A 1966-10-06, aired 1966-10-18

• Mr. Pat Rohan, a businessman from New York City, winner of $3,400
• Mrs. Phyllis Grant, a housewife from Birdsboro, Pennsylvania, winner of $2,780
• Mr. John Schenck, a copywriter from Bronxville, New York, winner of $3,570

#668, recorded in Studio 6A 1966-10-06, aired 1966-10-19

• Mr. Bob Bovard, a teacher from Hauppage, New York, winner of $2,980
• Mrs. Fran Winnick, a teacher from Hollis, New York, winner of $4,100
• Mr. Burns Cameron, an engineer from Larchmont, New York, winner of $7,070 [later appeared on Show #2000 to play for charity]

#669, recorded in Studio 6A 1966-10-07, aired 1966-10-20
[No contestant information recorded]
#670, recorded in Studio 6A 1966-10-07, aired 1966-10-21
[No contestant information recorded]
[Winner and winnings indeterminable, but I believe that Burns Cameron really is the winner of this tournament, since he has the trophy! Maybe Burns can chime in if he remembers who his two co-finalists were.]

[Robert K S]

1967 Tournament of Champions - fourth annual
Format

• 9 undefeated champions were invited to participate.
• Three semifinal games produced three finalists.
• The three finalists competed in a two-game, total-point final match. Unlike in the Trebek era, scores were not reset to zero at the beginning of the second final game.

Prizes

• All players kept their scores as winnings throughout the tournament.
• The winner of the 2-day finals received a $1,000 bonus + a trophy ("the fourth annual Griffin Award") + a 2-person cruise to the West Indies aboard Holland-America.

Contestants
#926, recorded in Studio 8G 1967-10-12, aired 1967-10-16

• Eleanor Endsley, a housewife from Indianapolis, Indiana, winner of $4,560
• Frank Gray, a businessman from Ridgewood, New Jersey, winner of $3,740
• Sheila Gabriel, a businesswoman from Forest Hills, New York, winner of $4,650

#927, recorded in Studio 8G 1967-10-12, aired 1967-10-17

• Rosemary Marnell, a housewife from San Diego, California, winner of $3,200
• Harry Murtha, a businessman from Clifton, New Jersey, winner of $3,910
• Libby Dyer, a housewife from Louisville, Kentucky, winner of $4,000

#928, recorded in Studio 8G 1967-10-12, aired 1967-10-18

• Dr. Gail Berry, a psychiatrist from New York City, winner of $4,210
• Howard August, a salesman from Los Angeles, California, winner of $3,930
• Anne Fried, a translator from New York City, winner of $2,610

#929, recorded in Studio 8G 1967-10-13, aired 1967-10-19

• Eleanor Endsley, a housewife from Indianapolis, Indiana, winner of $5,460
• Harry Murtha, a businessman from Clifton, New Jersey, winner of $4,260
• Anne Fried, a translator from New York City, winner of $2,850

#930, recorded in Studio 8G 1967-10-13, aired 1967-10-20

• Eleanor Endsley, a housewife from Indianapolis, Indiana, winner of $5,460
• Harry Murtha, a businessman from Clifton, New Jersey, winner of $4,260
• Anne Fried, a translator from New York City, winner of $2,850

[Winner and winnings indeterminable]

1968 Tournament of Champions - fifth annual
Format

• 9 undefeated champions were invited to participate.
• Three semifinal games produced three finalists.
• The three finalists competed in a two-game, total-point final match. Unlike in the Trebek era, scores were not reset to zero at the beginning of the second final game.

Prizes

• All players kept their scores as winnings throughout the tournament.
• The winner of the 2-day finals received a $1,000 bonus + a trophy ("the fifth annual Griffin Award") + a 2-person cruise to the West Indies aboard Holland-America.

Contestants
#1192, recorded in Studio 8G 1968-10-17, aired 1968-10-28

• Mr. Red Gibson, winner of $4,680
• Mrs. Fran Fisk, winner of $4,210
• Bill Martin, winner of $4,240

#1193, recorded in Studio 8G [it actually says "8H"--probably a typo] 1968-10-17, aired 1968-10-29

• Mrs. Penny Costigen, winner of $4,850
• Mr. John Miller, winner of $3,670
• Miss Marcia Bikalis, winner of $5,690

#1194, recorded in Studio 8G 1968-10-17, aired 1968-10-30

• Judy Gex [no winnings listed]
• Alan Shephard (introduced as "Shep Shepherd") [no winnings listed]
• Sally Hickman [no winnings listed]

#1195, recorded in Studio 8G 1968-10-18, aired 1968-10-31

• Red Gibson, winner of $5,080
• John Miller, winner of $4,300
• Alan Shepard (introduced as "Shep Shepherd"), winner of $6,270

#1196, recorded in Studio 8G 1968-10-18, aired 1968-11-01

• Red Gibson, winner of $5,080
• John Miller, winner of $4,300
• Alan Shepard (introduced as "Shep Shepherd"), winner of $6,270

[Winner and winnings indeterminable, though Red Gibson is cited as having won this tournament in TV Game Shows.]

1969 Tournament of Champions - sixth annual
Format

• 18 undefeated champions were invited to participate; tournament expanded to two weeks (10 games).
• Six quarterfinals produced six semifinalists.
• Two semifinals produced two finalists and a wildcard finalist (the highest-scoring nonwinner).
• The three finalists competed in a two-game, total-point final match, with every clue based on a Final Jeopardy! clue from 1964 and 1965. Unlike in the Trebek era, scores were not reset to zero at the beginning of the second final game.

Prizes

• All players kept their scores as winnings throughout the tournament.
• The winner of the 2-day finals received a $1,000 bonus + a trophy ("the sixth annual Griffin Award") + a trip for 2 to Hawaii on Pan Am with 5 days spent at Kona Village on Hawaii and 5 days on Maui. "All meals, relaxation and fun in the Hawaiian tradition."

Contestants
#1432, recorded in Studio 8G 1969-10-20, aired 1969-10-27

• Mr. Larry Schiller [no winnings listed because of contestant substitution]
• Mrs. Joan Nephew, winner of $2,890
• Mr. Jay Wolpert, winner of $5,160

#1433, recorded in Studio 8G 1969-10-20, aired 1969-10-28

• Captain John Gridley, winner of $2,330
• Miss Judy Rubin, winner of $1,590 [scheduled to play the first game, replaced with Schiller, who was scheduled for #1434]
• Dr. Nick Rorick, winner of $5,510

#1434, recorded in Studio 8G 1969-10-20, aired 1969-10-29

• Mr. Grant Willis, winner of $4,500
• Mrs. Jane Gschwend, winner of $8,250 [later appeared on Show #2000 to play for charity]
• Mr. Jack Gurner, winner of $4,230

#1435, recorded in Studio 8G 1969-10-21, aired 1969-10-30

• Mr. Mendy Snyder, winner of $2,210
• Miss Ann Baker, winner of $5,240
• Dr. Burt Sherman, winner of $3,430

#1436, recorded in Studio 8G 1969-10-21, aired 1969-10-31

• Mr. Elliot Baritz, winner of $3,430
• Mrs. Pat Dougiallo, winner of $3,960
• Mr. Jay Hayes, winner of $3,910

#1437, recorded in Studio 8G 1969-10-21, aired 1969-11-03

• Miss Judy Reimer, winner of $3,610
• Dr. Elliot Shteir, winner of $8,230 [later appeared on Show #2000 to play for charity]
• Mrs. Joan Lawrence, winner of $6,490

#1438, recorded in Studio 8G 1969-10-23, aired 1969-11-04

• Mr. Elliot Baritz, winner of $3,730
• Mrs. Jane Gschwend, winner of $8,750
• Mr. Nick Rorick, winner of $6,560

#1439, recorded in Studio 8G 1969-10-23, aired 1969-11-05

• Mr. Jay Wolpert, winner of $5,970
• Miss Ann Baker, winner of $5,905
• Dr. Elliot Shteir, winner of $10,110

#1440, recorded in Studio 8G 1969-10-24, aired 1969-11-06

• Mr. Jay Wolpert, winner of $5,970
• Dr. Elliot Shteir, winner of $10,920
• Dr. Nick Rorick, winner of $8,060

#1441, recorded in Studio 8G 1969-10-24, aired 1969-11-07

• Mr. Jay Wolpert, winner of $5,970
• Dr. Elliot Shteir, winner of $10,920
• Dr. Nick Rorick, winner of $8,060

[Winner and winnings indeterminable, though Jay Wolpert, who became a game show producer and feature film screenwriter, is cited as having won this tournament in Maxene Fabe's 1979 TV Game Shows book. Dr. Elliot Shteir later became the 1st runner-up ($10,000) in the Trebek era's 1995 Seniors Tournament in July, 1995, losing to Aaron Klein.]

[Robert K S]

1970 Tournament of Champions - seventh annual
Format

• 9 champions were invited to participate.
• The format was once again one week, but the format details are not recorded in the Master Books, and do not seem to be derivable based on the known contestant information. There seems to have been a weird two-day finals with different players in each game, and quite possibly the second game only had two players.

Prizes

• No prize information is listed.

Contestants
#1708, recorded in Studio 6A 1970-11-05, aired 1970-11-09

• Mary Lee Fox
• Russ Poylo
• Helen Mabry

#1709, recorded in Studio 6A 1970-11-05, aired 1970-11-10

• Hunter Farnum
• Barbara Franco
• Steve Haufman

#1710, recorded in Studio 6A 1970-11-05, aired 1970-11-11

• Dolores Henderson
• Gene Cheatham
• M. McNeil

#1711, recorded in Studio 6A 1970-11-06, aired 1970-11-12

• Russ Poylo
• Dolores Henderson
• Gene Cheatham

#1712, recorded in Studio 6A 1970-11-06, aired 1970-11-13

• Mary Lee Fox
• Barbara Franco
• [No third contestant listed]

[Winner and winnings indeterminable, but Maxine Fabe records Gene Cheatham was the winner. The following Monday's game was #1699, taped 1970-10-16.]


1971 Tournament of Champions - eighth annual
Format

• 9 champions were invited to participate.
• The format was once again one week, but the format details are not recorded in the Master Books. In fact, the Master Books give no indication that this week's games were a ToC other than the fact that the tournament structure seems derivable from the contestant listing.

Prizes

• No prize information is listed.

Contestants
#1958, recorded in Studio 8G 1971-11-10, aired 1971-11-15

• Peggy Rathert
• Don Marms
• Jan Churchwell

#1959, recorded in Studio 8G 1971-11-10, aired 1971-11-16

• Karolyn Battle
• Jim Shannon
• Riza Gross

There was an audio clue featuring "Z" (Blackwood).

#1960, recorded in Studio 8G 1971-11-10, aired 1971-11-17

• Michael Aronson
• Rock Johnson
• Joel Tuber

There were audio clues featuring "Strike Up The Band" (New World) and "The British Grenadiers" (public domain).

#1961, recorded in Studio 8G 1971-11-11, aired 1971-11-18

• Riza Gross
• Rock Johnson
• Jan Churchwell

There were audio clues featuring "High & The Mighty" (Witmark) and "Friendly Persuasion" (Feist).

#1962, recorded in Studio 8G 1971-11-11, aired 1971-11-19

• Riza Gross
• Rock Johnson
• Jan Churchwell

There was an audio clue featuring "Taps" (public domain).

[Winner and winnings indeterminable, but Maxine Fabe records Rock Johnson was the winner.]

1972 Tournament of Champions - ninth annual
Format

• 9 champions were invited to participate.
• The format was once again one week, but the format details are not recorded in the Master Books. In fact, the Master Books give no indication that this week's games were a ToC other than the fact that the tournament structure seems derivable from the contestant listing.

Prizes

• No prize information is listed.

Contestants
#2214, recorded in Studio 6B 1972-11-09, aired 1972-11-13

• Susan Smith
• Paul Wilson
• Lorraine Gorman (or Gurman or Corman?)

There was an audio clue featuring "Un Bel Di" Vedremo (public domain).

#2215, recorded in Studio 6B 1972-11-09, aired 1972-11-14

• Donna Angle
• Anne Marie Sutton
• Luanne Keller

There were audio clues featuring "Walking Happy" (Cahn & Van Heusen) and "I Don't Know How To Love Him" (from Jesus Christ Superstar).

#2216, recorded in Studio 6B 1972-11-09, aired 1972-11-15

• Sheila November
• Jay Delehanty
• Robin Phillips

There was an audio clue featuring "Tschaikovsky" (from Lady in the Dark) (Chappell).

#2217, recorded in Studio 6B 1972-11-10, aired 1972-11-16

• Jay Delehanty
• Anne Marie Sutton
• Susan Smith

There were audio clues featuring "All God's Chillun" (public domain) and "Tom Jones Themes" (from movie of same) (Unart).

#2218, recorded in Studio 6B 1972-11-10, aired 1972-11-17

• Jay Delehanty
• Anne Marie Sutton
• Susan Smith

There were audio clues featuring "Love Is A Many Splendored Thing" (Miller) and "Promises, Promises" (Blue Seas & JAC).

[Winner and winnings indeterminable, but Maxine Fabe records Anne Marie Sutton was the winner.]

[Robert K S]

1973 Tournament of Champions - tenth annual
Format

• 9 champions were invited to participate.
• The format was once again one week, but the format details are not recorded in the Master Books. In fact, the Master Books give no indication that this week's games were a ToC other than the fact that the tournament structure seems derivable from the contestant listing.

Prizes

• No prize information is listed.

Contestants
#2476, recorded in Studio 8G 1973-11-08, aired 1973-11-12

• Carol Reeve
• Reid Williamson
• Adeline Shulman

There was an audio clue featuring "The Nose Song" by A. Burgess & M.J. Lewis (Mediarts Music Corp.).

#2477, recorded in Studio 8G 1973-11-08, aired 1973-11-13

• Connie Christensen
• Phil Price
• Paula Ogren

There was an audio clue featuring "Theme From The Robe" (from the movie The Robe) by A. Newman (20th Century Music Corp.).

#2478, recorded in Studio 8G 1973-11-08, aired 1973-11-14

• Louise Windgrad
• Dan Donohue
• Rosemary Travis

There was an audio clue featuring "Around The World In Eighty Days" (Liza Music).

#2479, recorded in Studio 8G 1973-11-09, aired 1973-11-15

• Adeline Schulman
• Dan Donohue
• Paula Ogren

There was an audio clue featuring "Blueberry Hill" by Lewis, Stock & Rose (Chappell).

#2480, recorded in Studio 8G 1973-11-09, aired 1973-11-16

• Adeline Schulman
• Paula Ogren
• Dan Donohue

There was an audio clue featuring "Bach's Tocatta & Fugue in C" (public domain).

[Winner and winnings indeterminable, but Maxine Fabe records Paula Ogren was the winner.]


1974 Tournament of Champions - eleventh annual
Format

• The record is too sparse to derive accurate information about the format. It was probably a one-week tournament like the past several years, but with the second semifinal never aired, and the second final game either never committed to paper record in the Master Books or just not written down by me because I missed it.
• The Master Books give no indication that this week's games were a ToC other than the fact that the Monday, November 18 game was #2721, taped 1974-10-31, and the Tuesday, November 19 game was #2735, taped 1974-11-13.

Prizes

• No prize information is listed.

Contestants
#2735, recorded in Studio 6A 1974-11-13, aired 1974-11-19

• Pete Staley
• Kathleen Lang
• Art Newell

There was an audio clue featuring "Blue Tail Fly" (public domain).

#2736, recorded in Studio 6A 1974-11-13, aired 1974-11-20
This game appears to have been pre-empted for a news report of a West German Lufthansa 747 crash just after takeoff from Nairobi, Kenya. If it was the second semifinal game, it was won by Dave Hilliard (see below).

#2736, recorded in Studio 6A 1974-11-13, aired 1974-11-21

• Andy Miller
• Faye Ringel
• Denny Golden

This game was apparently re-aired after pre-emption.

#2737, recorded in Studio 6A 1974-11-14, aired 1974-11-22

• Dave Hilliard
• Denny Golden
• Pete Staley

There was an audio clue featuring "Ballad of Davy Crockett" by T. Blackburn & G. Bruns (Walt Disney).

[Winner and winnings indeterminable, but Maxine Fabe records Denny Golden was the winner.]

[Robert K S]

Placeholder for future information

[Robert K S]

Notes of interest
On Show #925, recorded 1967-10-03 in Studio 8G, aired 1967-10-13, the millionth dollar was awarded on Jeopardy! (records do not indicate to which player, of Eric Hanson, Zelda Pullium, or Gail Menkman). Art had been teasing the audiences over the past several games that it could happen at any time, and that when it did, something special would occur. When the millionth dollar was hit, the game was stopped and the contestant who hit it was given a 1968 American Motors Javelin SST sports hardtop that "comes complete with radio, reclining bucket seats, automatic transmission and whitewall tires". Some film of the car was shown. The contesant said a few words, and then the game resumed.

On Show #1185, recorded 1968-10-01 in Studio 8G, aired 1968-10-18, Art Fleming delivered a special note about the show "finding" undefeated champion Hutton Gibson, who had apparently relocated his large family to Ireland, so that he could be invited to participate in the 1968 Tournament of Champions. Gibson claims to have won the ToC that year, and while such a claim is not definitively corroboratable from the microfilm records of the Master Books, they do show that he made it to the finals, so the claim is plausible. (Claims of his cash winnings amounting to $20,000-$25,000, however, are not.)



Show #1696, recorded 1970-10-10 in Studio 6A, aired 1970-11-04, had a contestant written in the record as being an "M. Lasardo". Could this be Mary LoSardo, Trebek-era Season 22 1-time champion, who claimed to have won $60 and an encyclopedia in 1970 or 1971? The other challenger in her game was a Meredith Rodwell (or Ropwell) and the 1-time returning champion was Trish Baskin. Rights release forms indicate that audio clues on her show included "I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm" by Irving Berlin and "Thou Swell" by Rodgers and Hart. [Note: I received a message from Mary LoSardo on 2008-09-07 confirming that this was her game, and she remembers specific details about competing against a Meredith and getting those audio clues wrong.]

The daytime show was mercilessly pre-empted. The entire week leading up to Thanksgiving Day 1965, Art Fleming took time during the show to advertise that coverage of the Macy's Day Parade would appear on NBC, hosted by Betty White and Bonanza's Lorne Greene. Perhaps Jeopardy! aired on the West Coast, where the Macy's Day Parade appeared earlier in the schedule, but in the Master Books no record of Show #434 appears because of parade coverage pre-emption in New York. Similarly, records are missing wherever a news bulletin cut into the show (the Vietnam War and the Space Race were hot topics), or the network simply felt like airing a different show in Jeopardy!'s place. The network never aired re-runs or rescheduled pre-empted programming, meaning that it regularly spent money producing programming it would never show.

Here is Burns Cameron's introduction on his ToC. (These images have been retouched to reduce reflections from the microfilm reader screen from which they were taken.)

[Rex Kramer]

Originally Posted by Robert K S

• Miss Judy Reimer, winner of $3,610
• Dr. Elliot Shteir, winner of $8,230 [later appeared on Show #2000 to play for charity]
• Mrs. Joan Lawrence, winner of $6,490

Jeepers, Robert, was this still when the dollar values in the J! round were 10-20-30-40-50? Because if so, then this game is the equivalent of a modern game ending 72,200 to 164,600 to 129,800!

Rex

[Robert K S]

No, Bill, as I mentioned, the Master Books never give score information for the games. Those are the cumulative totals of the returning champions for their previous games.

[Rex Kramer]

Oh, I get it. A running total for all they've earned. Strange system.

Thanks!

[Peggles]

This was really interesting - a great blast from the past. Thanks!

[rgfohio]

Wow! Nice job in your research on the Art Fleming era Tournament of Champioms. F.Y.I.: Maxine Fabe Tv Game show book from 1979 does list the winners of those Tournament of Champions(Fleming era,of course) from 1968-1974. The list is on page 13, I've have the list at home.

1968: Red Gibson did win the tourney
1969: Jay Wolpert did win the tourney
1970: Gene Cheatham did win the tourney

If you want the list of winners from 1971-74 send me a pm and i will get that to you or you wait till your next trip to D.C.

[rgfohio]

Jane Gschwend from the 1969 Tourney also returned to play for Charity on Show # 2,000.

[Robert K S]

Thanks--updated in the list. I missed her because I had her written down in my Show #2000 notes as "Jane Schwenn (sp?)"... I guess that first G is silent. Eh, Gneq?

I'm going to guess that it was Gschwend and Cameron that Fleming was referring to in the interview excerpt that Myron Meyer posted to his blog:

Do you have to be genius to become a contestant?

"No," says Art. "We want average Americans. You don't even need a college degree; just be aware of what's going on in the world.

"Why, the biggest money winner was a woman who has only two years of high school. And the most money we ever gave was to a radar man who won $11,110 in one week...and he only had one year in college."

[AWSOP]

I know that I wrote something similar in the thread about Youtube's video of the 2000th show, but consider that Jane is from Lancaster (that is stated in the 2000th show) and was the highest winner ever in the Fleming era. Now we find out that she never went to college. You know, I wonder what Brad Rutter's mother's maiden name is?

Thanks for the research Robert. I love nostalgia. When I saw the 2000th show on Youtube I thought I remembered the dentist and now I know that it is very possible given that he was originally on in 1969.

[MathMom]

Robert, all I can say is "Wow!"

Speaking as someone who loves this show and everything associated with it, your research is greatly appreciated. Thank you for taking the time to do this and to share the results with us.

[joepozz]

I'll second that "Wow!" Thanks for an incredible research job. I'm sure that when those records were made, no one dreamed that there would be any interest in them 30 to 40 years later.

[Robert K S]

With thanks to rgfohio, here are the Fleming ToC winners listed in the book he mentioned:

1968: Red Gibson from South Ozone Park, New York
1969: Jay Wolpert from Glen Cove, New York
1970: Gene Cheatham from New Orleans, Louisiana
1971: Rock Johnson from Macon, Georgia
1972: Ann Marie Sutton from Yorktown Heights, New York
1973: Paula Ogren from Los Angeles, California
1974: Denny Golden from Palisades Park, New Jersey

[Gneq]

Originally Posted by Robert K S

Thanks--updated in the list. I missed her because I had her written down in my Show #2000 notes as "Jane Schwenn (sp?)"... I guess that first G is silent. Eh, Gneq?

Gschwend is an interesting name, for sure. Something like Gstaad (a town in Switzerland), but I don't think the G in Gstaad is silent. (I think it's a rather muted K sound.)

[RobertHutchinson]

Originally Posted by Robert K S

1969: Jay Wolpert from Glen Cove, New York

Huh, THE Jay Wolpert? I never knew that about him.