Blankety Blanks
Encyclopedia
Blankety Blanks was a popular Australia
n game show
based on the American game show Match Game
. It was hosted by Graham Kennedy
on Network Ten
. It ran from 1977-1978.
Regular panelists were Ugly Dave Gray
, Noeline Brown
, Carol Raye
and Stuart Wagstaff
. Other panelists included Noel Ferrier
, Belinda Giblin
, Abigail
, Nick Tate
, Tommy Hanlon Junior, Dawn Lake
, Jon English
, Wendy Blacklock
, Barry Creyton
, Peta Toppano
, Mark Holden
, Delvene Delaney
and John Paul Young
.
Blankety Blanks had a two-season run from 1977 to 1978. It was screened at a rate of five, thirty-minute episodes each week, stripped across an early evening timeslot. It was broadcast at 7.30 PM in 1977, and at 7.00 PM in 1978.
Kennedy won a TV Week Gold Logie Award in 1978 for Most Popular Personality On Australian Television. When Kennedy succumbed to laryngitis, announcer Don Blake was forced to host the show for an episode.
The main game was played in two rounds. The challenger was given a choice of two statements labeled either "A" or "B." Kennedy then read the statement. The show's questions were designed as double entendres, such as "Joan and Paul went to bed and Joan asked Paul to her".
The celebrity panelists wrote their answers on cards, after which the contestant gave their answer. Kennedy then asked each celebrity in turn, beginning in the upper left hand corner, to reveal their response. The contestant earned one point for matching answer (or reasonably similar as determined by the adjudicator - producer Tony Connelly
who was dubbed by Kennedy "Tony the moustache twirler").
After completion of the round, Kennedy read the statement on the other card for the defender and play was identical.
The challenger again began Round 2, with two new questions, unless he/she matched everyone in the first round. Only panelists that a contestant didn't previously match played this round. If the players tied with the same score at the end of the round the scores were reset to 0-0. Play continued until there was a clear winner.
The winner of the game went on to play the Super Match. The contestant had to match a word in a fill-in-the-blank phrase with the most popular response given in an audience survey. The contestant could consult three panelists for suggestions. The most popular answer in the survey was worth $100, the second-most popular $50, and the third most popular $25. The contestant won the amount of the answer they matched with.
If a contestant failed to match any of the three answers, the bonus round ended. If successful the contestant had the opportunity to win 10 times that amount in the "Head-To-Head Match". In this part of the game, they must match another fill-in-the-blank response with a celebrity panelist of his or her choice. If successful, he/she won the money accumulated in both parts of the round. Either way, the winning contestant could keep playing until defeated by another challenger.
Kennedy's risque brand of humour often nudged the boundaries of contemporary Australian broadcasting standards. Peter Rhys-Davies was the crew member behind the show's sets pulling the lever that uncovered the correct answers on the board. In one running gag he was dubbed "Peter the Phantom Puller" by Kennedy. To reveal each answer in turn, Kennedy would call out "Peter could you have a pull", "Pull it Peter!", etc.
In one episode Kennedy came on with a prepared list of "rude" words which were deemed acceptable to be spoken on-air. Throughout the episode, he would suddenly launch into a chant of "wee poo bum, wee poo bum!"
production based on the long-running American game show Match Game
, which had been created by Mark Goodson
and Bill Todman
. Indeed, the Blankety Blanks set looked almost identical to its American counterpart.
In October 1978 the series came up for renewal, and Ten was keen to renew the series. Kennedy consulted key panelist Ugly Dave Gray
about the potential renewal. Gray felt he had used all his jokes and exhausted the comic potential of the formula and expressed a desire to not continue with the series. Kennedy observed that the ratings were down from earlier figures; although earlier figures were unusually high (ratings in the 40s), recent figures in the 30s range were still extremely high. In any event, Kennedy informed Ten that he would not be continuing with the series, and the show ended its run in late 1978.
The series has been repeated many times since its run ended. It was shown by the Ten Network many times though the 1980s. In the 2000s it has been screened in Foxtel
's TV1
. Beginning in January 2009, The Comedy Channel
began screening back-to-back episodes on Friday nights.
A DVD
set of 30 episodes was released in late 2005.
on the Nine Network
had little success. This was followed by a second revival
in 1996, again on the Nine Network. This time, it was hosted by Shane Bourne
. This had slightly more success, lasting two seasons. Both of these versions followed the same format as the Kennedy version, but with a top prize of $5,000 (Audience Match amounts were $500-$250-$100, equaling those from the 1973-1982 American versions of Match Game).
In the United Kingdom
a version based on the format, called Blankety Blank
, was very popular, running from 1979-1990 with a revival from 1997-2002.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n game show
Game show
A game show is a type of radio or television program in which members of the public, television personalities or celebrities, sometimes as part of a team, play a game which involves answering questions or solving puzzles usually for money and/or prizes...
based on the American game show Match Game
Match Game
Match Game is an American television game show in which contestants attempted to match celebrities' answers to fill-in-the-blank questions...
. It was hosted by Graham Kennedy
Graham Kennedy
Graham Cyril Kennedy, AO was an Australian radio, television and film performer, often called Gra Gra and The King of Australian television.-Childhood:...
on Network Ten
Network Ten
Network Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...
. It ran from 1977-1978.
Regular panelists were Ugly Dave Gray
Ugly Dave Gray
Ugly Dave Gray is an Australian television personality.-Career:Gray was a regular panellist on Graham Kennedy's Blankety Blanks in 1977-1978. He had earlier taken a straight dramatic role as publican Bunny Howard in the early episodes of soap opera The Young Doctors in 1976...
, Noeline Brown
Noeline Brown
Noeline Brown is an Australian actor and comedian. She has appeared in many films, television shows, plays and radio programs....
, Carol Raye
Carol Raye
Carol Raye is an Australian-based theatre and television actress and comedienne.Trained as a ballet dancer, Raye was discovered by choreographer Freddie Carpenter at age 16. She played lead roles in many musicals and television programs in the UK...
and Stuart Wagstaff
Stuart Wagstaff
Stuart Wagstaff AM is an Australian television and stage entertainer.- Early life :Wagstaff was born in Great Durnford, Wiltshire, England, and grew up on a farm with his parents and two older sisters. His father was very strict and emotionally abusive, and he received little affection from his...
. Other panelists included Noel Ferrier
Noel Ferrier
Noel Ferrier AM was an Australian television personality, stage and film actor, raconteur and theatrical producer. He had an extensive theatre career which spanned over fifty years.-Biography:...
, Belinda Giblin
Belinda Giblin
Belinda Giblin is an Australian actress.She played Kay Webster in the risqué, satirical 1970s soap opera The Box, and the scheming Alison Carr in the 1980s melodrama Sons and Daughters...
, Abigail
Abigail (actress)
Abigail is an actress who emigrated to Australia in 1968 and via the media of television became one of that country's significant sex symbols of the mid-1970s. Although born in England, she was educated in France. Her mother was a Ceylonese of Dutch Burgher/Eurasian ethnicity...
, Nick Tate
Nick Tate
Nicholas John "Nick" Tate is an Australian actor best known for his role as Eagle pilot Alan Carter in both seasons of the 1970s science fiction television series Space: 1999, as well as for playing the role of Gordon Hamilton's errant brother James in the 1980's soap opera "Sons and...
, Tommy Hanlon Junior, Dawn Lake
Dawn Lake
Dawn Lake was an Australian television comedian, singer, entertainer and actor, whose career spanned more than four decades. Bert Newton described her as "our greatest comedienne - Australia's Lucille Ball"...
, Jon English
Jon English
Jonathan James "Jon" English is an Australian rock singer, musician, actor and writer. English emigrated to Australia with his parents in 1961...
, Wendy Blacklock
Wendy Blacklock
Wendy Blacklock was an Australia-based theatre and television actor best known for her long-running role of Edith "Mummy" MacDonald in the 1970s television soap opera Number 96....
, Barry Creyton
Barry Creyton
Barry Creyton is an Australian actor and playwright.Creyton began his professional career in radio and revue in Melbourne, in Australia and became well-known in Sydney starring in and writing popular comedy-melodramas at the Music Hall theatre-restaurant in Neutral Bay...
, Peta Toppano
Peta Toppano
Peta Toppano is an actress who found success in Australian television. She is best known for her roles in popular television series such as The Young Doctors, Prisoner, and Home & Away, as well as Return to Eden in which she played a "superbitch".-Early life:Toppano was born in Finsbury Park,...
, Mark Holden
Mark Holden
Mark Holden is an Australian singer, television personality and barrister. He was one of a panel of three judges on the television series Australian Idol.-Acting career:...
, Delvene Delaney
Delvene Delaney
Delvene Delaney is an Australian actress and television presenter.The beauty pageant winner found fame on Australian television in the 1970s, initially as a weather presenter on Brisbane television...
and John Paul Young
John Paul Young
John Paul Young is an Australian pop singer who had a 1978 worldwide hit with "Love Is in the Air"...
.
Blankety Blanks had a two-season run from 1977 to 1978. It was screened at a rate of five, thirty-minute episodes each week, stripped across an early evening timeslot. It was broadcast at 7.30 PM in 1977, and at 7.00 PM in 1978.
Kennedy won a TV Week Gold Logie Award in 1978 for Most Popular Personality On Australian Television. When Kennedy succumbed to laryngitis, announcer Don Blake was forced to host the show for an episode.
Gameplay
Two contestants, including a returning champion, competed. The contestants were always a man and a woman - at no point did two people of the same gender compete. The object was to match the answers of the six celebrity panelists to fill-in-the-blank statements.The main game was played in two rounds. The challenger was given a choice of two statements labeled either "A" or "B." Kennedy then read the statement. The show's questions were designed as double entendres, such as "Joan and Paul went to bed and Joan asked Paul to
The celebrity panelists wrote their answers on cards, after which the contestant gave their answer. Kennedy then asked each celebrity in turn, beginning in the upper left hand corner, to reveal their response. The contestant earned one point for matching answer (or reasonably similar as determined by the adjudicator - producer Tony Connelly
Tony Connelly
Tony Connelly is a journalist and author. He is currently Europe Editor for RTÉ News and Current Affairs.Connelly has previously written for other agencies and publications, including Time, United Press International and the Irish Independent...
who was dubbed by Kennedy "Tony the moustache twirler").
After completion of the round, Kennedy read the statement on the other card for the defender and play was identical.
The challenger again began Round 2, with two new questions, unless he/she matched everyone in the first round. Only panelists that a contestant didn't previously match played this round. If the players tied with the same score at the end of the round the scores were reset to 0-0. Play continued until there was a clear winner.
The winner of the game went on to play the Super Match. The contestant had to match a word in a fill-in-the-blank phrase with the most popular response given in an audience survey. The contestant could consult three panelists for suggestions. The most popular answer in the survey was worth $100, the second-most popular $50, and the third most popular $25. The contestant won the amount of the answer they matched with.
If a contestant failed to match any of the three answers, the bonus round ended. If successful the contestant had the opportunity to win 10 times that amount in the "Head-To-Head Match". In this part of the game, they must match another fill-in-the-blank response with a celebrity panelist of his or her choice. If successful, he/she won the money accumulated in both parts of the round. Either way, the winning contestant could keep playing until defeated by another challenger.
Running gags
Many questions were quotations of a fictional character named Cyril, and would begin "Cyril said..." with the quotation recited by Kennedy in a stereotypical gay male voice (Cyril was Kennedy's middle name). Another recurring character in the questions was Dumb Dora - a joke borrowed from Match Game. A recurring comedy skit between Kennedy and Gray involved discussion about a man named "Dick", leading to "Did Dick?", "Dick did!" exchanges between Kennedy and Ugly Dave Gray.Kennedy's risque brand of humour often nudged the boundaries of contemporary Australian broadcasting standards. Peter Rhys-Davies was the crew member behind the show's sets pulling the lever that uncovered the correct answers on the board. In one running gag he was dubbed "Peter the Phantom Puller" by Kennedy. To reveal each answer in turn, Kennedy would call out "Peter could you have a pull", "Pull it Peter!", etc.
In one episode Kennedy came on with a prepared list of "rude" words which were deemed acceptable to be spoken on-air. Throughout the episode, he would suddenly launch into a chant of "wee poo bum, wee poo bum!"
History
The series was a Reg GrundyReg Grundy Organisation
The Reg Grundy Organisation was an Australian television production company founded in 1959 by businessman Reg Grundy . It has since branched out into Europe and the USA. The company first produced game shows, before branching into soap operas in 1973...
production based on the long-running American game show Match Game
Match Game
Match Game is an American television game show in which contestants attempted to match celebrities' answers to fill-in-the-blank questions...
, which had been created by Mark Goodson
Mark Goodson
Mark Goodson was an American television producer who specialized in game shows.-Life and early career:...
and Bill Todman
Bill Todman
William S. "Bill" Todman was an American television producer born in New York City. He produced many of television's longest running shows with business partner Mark Goodson.-Early life:...
. Indeed, the Blankety Blanks set looked almost identical to its American counterpart.
In October 1978 the series came up for renewal, and Ten was keen to renew the series. Kennedy consulted key panelist Ugly Dave Gray
Ugly Dave Gray
Ugly Dave Gray is an Australian television personality.-Career:Gray was a regular panellist on Graham Kennedy's Blankety Blanks in 1977-1978. He had earlier taken a straight dramatic role as publican Bunny Howard in the early episodes of soap opera The Young Doctors in 1976...
about the potential renewal. Gray felt he had used all his jokes and exhausted the comic potential of the formula and expressed a desire to not continue with the series. Kennedy observed that the ratings were down from earlier figures; although earlier figures were unusually high (ratings in the 40s), recent figures in the 30s range were still extremely high. In any event, Kennedy informed Ten that he would not be continuing with the series, and the show ended its run in late 1978.
The series has been repeated many times since its run ended. It was shown by the Ten Network many times though the 1980s. In the 2000s it has been screened in Foxtel
Foxtel
Foxtel is an Australian pay television company, operating cable, direct broadcast satellite television and IPTV services. It was formed in 1995 through a joint venture established between Telstra and News Corporation....
's TV1
TV1 (Australia)
TV1 is an Australian cable and satellite channel available on Foxtel, Austar and Optus Television's subscription platforms.-History:TV1 launched as part of the original Galaxy lineup. The channel is jointly owned by Sony International Television, Universal Studios and Paramount. The channel shows...
. Beginning in January 2009, The Comedy Channel
The Comedy Channel
The Comedy Channel is an Australian subscription television channel available on Foxtel, Austar and Optus Television.-History:...
began screening back-to-back episodes on Friday nights.
A DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
set of 30 episodes was released in late 2005.
Revivals
Other Australian games using the same format appeared in later decades. A 1985 version hosted by Daryl SomersDaryl Somers
Daryl Paul Somers OAM , is an Australian television personality. The son of a dairy farmer and a cabaret singer, Somers rose to national fame as the host of the long-running comedy-variety program Hey Hey It's Saturday.-Early life:Somers, who has an Irish Catholic heritage, was educated at...
on the Nine Network
Nine Network
The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
had little success. This was followed by a second revival
Blankety Blanks (1996 TV Series)
Blankety Blanks was a remake of popular Australian game show Blankety Blanks. The remake aired on the Nine Network with Shane Bourne as host...
in 1996, again on the Nine Network. This time, it was hosted by Shane Bourne
Shane Bourne
Shane Bourne is an Australian stand-up comedian, actor and a television host.-1980's / 1990's:...
. This had slightly more success, lasting two seasons. Both of these versions followed the same format as the Kennedy version, but with a top prize of $5,000 (Audience Match amounts were $500-$250-$100, equaling those from the 1973-1982 American versions of Match Game).
In the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
a version based on the format, called Blankety Blank
Blankety Blank
Blankety Blank is a British comedy game show based on the 1977–1978 Australian game show Blankety Blanks ....
, was very popular, running from 1979-1990 with a revival from 1997-2002.