Clock (game show)
| Beat the Clock | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Genre | Game show |
| Presented by |
Bud Collyer (1950–1961) Jack Narz (1969–1972) Gene Wood (1972–1974) Monty Hall (1979–1980) Gary Kroeger (2002–2003) |
| Narrated by |
Bern Bennett (1950–1958) Dirk Fredericks (1958–1961) Gene Wood (1969–1972) Nick Holenreich (1972–1974) Jack Narz (1979–1980) |
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of seasons | 18 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 22-26 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Mark Goodson-Bill Todman Productions (1950–1961, 1969–1974, 1979–1980) The Clock Company (1979–1980) FremantleMedia (2002–2003) Paxson Communications Corporation (2002–2003) Paxson Entertainment (2002–2003) Tick Tock Productions, Ltd. (2002–2003) |
| Distributor |
20th Century Fox Television (1969–1972) Firestone Film Syndication, Ltd. (1972–1974) FremantleMedia North America (current) |
| Release | |
| Original network |
CBS (1950–1958, 1979–1980) ABC (1958–1961) Syndicated (1969–1974) PAX (2002–2003) |
| Original release | March 23, 1950 – February 16, 1958 September 16, 1957 – January 27, 1961 September 15, 1969 – September 20, 1974 September 17, 1979 – February 1, 1980 September 2, 2002 – September 4, 2003 |
Beat the Clock is a Goodson-Todman game show that aired on American television in several versions from 1950 to 2003.
The original show, hosted by Bud Collyer, ran on CBS from 1950 to 1958 and ran on ABC from 1958 to 1961. The show was revived in syndication as The New Beat the Clock from 1969 to 1974, with Jack Narz as host until 1972, when he was replaced by the show's announcer, Gene Wood. Another version ran on CBS from 1979 to 1980 (as The All-New Beat the Clock, and later as All-New All-Star Beat the Clock), with Monty Hall as host and Narz as announcer. The most recent version aired from 2002 to 2003 on PAX (now ION) with Gary Kroeger and Julielinh Parker as co-hosts. In October 2017, Universal Kids ordered a family-oriented revival to premiere in 2018.
Contestants were required to perform tasks (called "problems") within a certain time limit which was counted down on a large 60-second clock. If they succeeded, they were said to have "beaten the clock"—otherwise, "the clock beat them". The show had several sponsors over its run, with the most longstanding being the electronics company Sylvania.
Substitute hosts on the original version included Bill Hart (1951), John Reed King (1952), stunt creator Frank Wayne (1953), Bob Kennedy (1954), Win Elliot (1955), and Sonny Fox, who became Collyer's permanent substitute from 1957 to 1960. Collyer was referred to in the introductions as "America's number one clockwatcher", and the fill-in hosts were each named "America's number two clockwatcher".
The show had several female on-air assistants. The original hostess was Roxanne (née Delores Evelyn Rosedale). Roxanne was replaced by Beverly Bentley in August 1955. Bentley's departure in 1956 coincided with Hazel Bishop's sponsorship and a period of having no main assistant (see production changes below). She reappeared as one of the models on the original version of The Price Is Right for its entire run.
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