Chuck Barris

Charles Hirsch Barris (June 3, 1929 – March 21, 2017) was an American game show creator, producer, and host. He was best known for hosting The Gong Show and creating The Dating Game and The Newlywed Game. He was also a songwriter who wrote "Palisades Park", recorded by Freddy Cannon and also recorded by Ramones. He also wrote or co-wrote some of the music that appeared on his game shows. He wrote an autobiography titled Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, which was made into the film of the same title starring Sam Rockwell and directed by George Clooney. He formed his production company, Chuck Barris Productions, on June 14, 1965. His first success came in 1965 with The Dating Game, which aired on ABC. The show ran until 1980 and was twice revived, later in the 1980s and 1990s. In 1966, he began The Newlywed Game, originally created by Nick Nicholson and E. Roger Muir, also for ABC. The show is the longest lasting of any developed by his company, broadcast until 1985, for a total of 19 full years on both "first run" network TV and syndication. He became a public figure in 1976 when he produced and served as the host of the talent show spoof The Gong Show, which he packaged in partnership with TV producer Chris Bearde. It ran only two seasons on NBC (1976–78) and four in syndication (1976–80). It has had four subsequent revivals, one under Barris' title (with Don Bleu) in 1988–1989, one on The Game Show Network in 2000 called Extreme Gong and another with current format owner Sony Pictures Television (with Dave Attell) in 2008. A fourth version, produced by Will Arnett and hosted by fictional British celebrity "Tommy Maitland" (Mike Myers), aired on ABC in 2017. In 1980, he starred in and directed The Gong Show Movie. The film was a major failure at the box office. In 1984, he wrote an autobiography, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind. In the book, he states that he worked for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) as an assassin in the 1960s and 1970s in Southeast Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East. A 2002 feature film version depicts Barris killing 33 people. He wrote a sequel to the autobiography in 2004 called Bad Grass Never Dies. The CIA denied Barris ever worked for them in any capacity. After the release of the movie, CIA spokesman Paul Nowack said Barris' assertions that he worked for the CIA “[are] ridiculous. It's absolutely not true". In an interview on NBC's Today Show in 1984, Barris admitted to having made the story up. His first wife was Lyn Levy, the niece of one of the founders of CBS. Their marriage lasted from 1957 to 1976, ending in divorce. They had a daughter, Della, who frequently appeared on The Gong Show, usually introducing her father. Della died of an alcohol and cocaine overdose in 1998 at the age of 36. At the time of her death, she was HIV positive. He published Della: A Memoir of My Daughter in 2010 about the death of his only child and her struggle with drug addiction. In 1980, he married Robin Altman, 23 years his junior, and they divorced in 1999. The following year, he married Mary Clagett. He was diagnosed with lung cancer in the 1990s. After undergoing surgery to remove part of his lung, he contracted an infection and spent a month in intensive care. He died on March 21, 2017, of natural causes at the age of 87 at home in Palisades, NY, where he lived with his wife, Mary.

Works

6.0

Chop Chop Chang: Operation C.H.I.M.P

The incredible story of Chop Chop Chang, a world famous circus chimpanzee who is secretly trained by the CIA into a deadly assassin.

Release Date: 2019-01-11

Character: Himself

Vote Count: 2

The Gong Show with Dave Attell
1.0

The Gong Show with Dave Attell

The Gong Show with Dave Attell is a revival of the 1970s Chuck Barris comedy game show called The Gong Show, hosted by comedian Dave Attell. The show premiered on July 17, 2008. It was produced by Adam Sandler's production company Happy Madison Productions and Sony Pictures Television.

Release Date: 2008-07-17

Department: Creator

Job: Creator

Vote Count: 1

The Chuck Barris Story: My Life On The Edge

The Chuck Barris Story: My Life on the Edge is a special documentary about the creator of The Dating Game and The Newlywed Game and creator and host of The Gong Show Chuck Barris. Chronicling the tragedies of his life including harsh criticisms from the press and his peers, a number of failed marriages, working for the C.I.A and the loss of his daughter due to a drug overdose.

Release Date: 2006-12-10

Character: Self

6.7

Confessions of a Dangerous Mind

Television made him famous, but his biggest hits happened off screen. Television producer by day, CIA assassin by night, Chuck Barris was recruited by the CIA at the height of his TV career and trained to become a covert operative. Or so Barris said.

Release Date: 2002-12-31

Department: Writing

Job: Novel

Character: Actual Barris

Vote Count: 1167

5.1

Hugo Pool

Hugo Pool is a quirky tale of a Los Angeles pool cleaner who falls in love with a young man dying of Lou Gerhig's Disease.

Release Date: 1997-12-12

Character: Irwin

Vote Count: 53

Late Night with Conan O'Brien
7.1

Late Night with Conan O'Brien

Stepping into the late-late slot vacated by David Letterman, Conan O'Brien stars in a show that far outdoes its competition in sheer strangeness. Along with the celebrity interviews and musical numbers typical of late-night talk shows, this program make frequent use of odd walk-on characters and frequent "visits" from celebrity guests.

Release Date: 1993-09-13

Character: Self - Guest

Episode Count: 1

Vote Count: 140

4.0

The Gong Show Movie

A week in the life of "The Gong Show" host and creator Chuck Barris.

Release Date: 1980-05-23

Department: Directing

Job: Director

Character: Himself

Vote Count: 12

The Gong Show
6.0

The Gong Show

The Gong Show is an amateur talent contest franchised by Sony Pictures Television to many countries. It was broadcast on NBC's daytime schedule from June 14, 1976 through July 21, 1978, and in first-run syndication from 1976 to 1980 and 1988 to 1989. The show was produced by Chuck Barris, who also served as host for the NBC run and from 1977 to 1980 in syndication. The show is best remembered for its absurdist humor and style, often awarding participants ridiculous and worthless prizes.

Release Date: 1976-06-14

Department: Production

Job: Producer

Character: 

Episode Count: 7

Vote Count: 4

The Newlywed Game
4.0

The Newlywed Game

The Newlywed Game is an American television dating game show that pits newly married couples against each other in a series of revealing question rounds to determine how well the spouses know or do not know each other. The program, originally created by Robert "Nick" Nicholson and E. Roger Muir and produced by Chuck Barris, has appeared in many different versions since its 1966 debut. The show became famous for some of the arguments that couples had over incorrect answers in the form of mistaken predictions, and it even led to some divorces. Many of The Newlywed Game's questions dealt with "making whoopee", the euphemism that producers used for sexual intercourse to circumvent network censorship. However, it became such a catchphrase of the show that its founding host, Bob Eubanks, continued to use the word throughout the show's many runs, even in the 1980s and 1990s episodes and beyond, when he could easily have said "make love" or "have sex" without censorship. GSN's version of The Newlywed Game airs reruns throughout the week. Network Bounce TV has acquired the reruns from GSN. In 2013, TV Guide ranked it #10 in its list of the 60 greatest game shows ever.

Release Date: 1966-07-11

Department: Production

Job: Producer

Episode Count: 301

Vote Count: 5

The Family Game

The Family Game

The Family Game was a game show that ran on ABC for six months in 1967. Geoff Edwards was originally to host the pilot, but was dropped at the last minute and was replaced by producer Chuck Barris. Although ABC bought the series, they mandated that someone other than Barris be the host; Bob Barker, then hosting Truth or Consequences, was selected without a screen test or pilot. The Family Game was played similar to Barris' more popular ABC game show The Newlywed Game, except that instead of four married couples there were three families. The series is notable for being the last new black-and-white network series to air in America prior to the nationwide switch to color in 1968.

Department: Creator

Job: Creator

The $1.98 Beauty Show
8.0

The $1.98 Beauty Show

The $1.98 Beauty Show is an American game show that aired in syndication from September 1978 to September 1980. Hosted by Rip Taylor, the series is a parody of beauty contests, and featured six female contestants competing for the title of "$1.98 Beauty Queen". Chuck Barris created the series and was executive producer while Johnny Jacobs announced.

Release Date: 1978-09-04

Department: Creator

Job: Creator

Vote Count: 1

The Dating Game
3.5

The Dating Game

The Dating Game is an ABC television show that first aired on December 20, 1965 and was the first of many shows created and packaged by Chuck Barris from the 1960s through the 1980s. ABC dropped the show on July 6, 1973, but it continued in syndication for another year as The New Dating Game. It was revived as follows: 1978–1980, 1986–1989 and 1996–1999. For years it was almost always aired in tandem with another Barris production, The Newlywed Game, which premiered on ABC the following year. The show was a forerunner of a number of other shows themed in the same style.

Release Date: 1965-12-20

Department: Creator

Job: Creator

Vote Count: 4

Cop Out

Cop Out

Department: Creator

Job: Creator

Three's a Crowd

Three's a Crowd

Three's a Crowd is an American game show originally packaged by Chuck Barris Productions. The first version aired in syndication from September 17, 1979 to February 1, 1980. The second version ran in 2000 on Game Show Network.

Department: Creator

Job: Creator

Jimmy Kimmel Live!
5.5

Jimmy Kimmel Live!

Jimmy Kimmel Live! is an American late-night talk show, created and hosted by Jimmy Kimmel and broadcast on ABC.

Release Date: 2003-01-26

Episode Count: 1

Vote Count: 166

The Chuck Barris Rah-Rah Show

The Chuck Barris Rah-Rah Show

Release Date: 1978-02-28

Episode Count: 6

Sanford and Son
7.4

Sanford and Son

The misadventures of a cantankerous junk dealer and his frustrated son.

Release Date: 1972-01-14

Episode Count: 1

Vote Count: 90

Treasure Hunt

Treasure Hunt

Treasure Hunt is an American television game show that ran in the 1950s, 1970s, and 1980s. The show featured contestants selecting a treasure chest or box with surprises inside, in the hope of winning large prizes or a cash jackpot.

Release Date: 1956-09-07

Department: Creator

Job: Creator

The Parent Game

The Parent Game

The Parent Game is an American game show that ran in syndication from 1972–1973. The show was hosted by Clark Race, a Los Angeles radio personality, with Johnny Jacobs as the announcer. The answers were commented by child psychologist Dorothy Thompson, who did not appear in-studio. The series was produced by Chuck Barris Productions. The show's theme song would later be used as a cue on the syndicated versions of Barris-produced The Newlywed Game, The Dating Game, and The New Treasure Hunt.

Department: Creator

Job: Creator

The Game Game

The Game Game

The Game Game is a game show hosted by Jim McKrell. It was packaged by Chuck Barris and aired during the 1969-1970 season; the show was Barris' first syndicated program.

Department: Creator

Job: Creator

How's Your Mother-in-Law?

How's Your Mother-in-Law?

How's Your Mother-in-Law? was a comedy game show hosted by Wink Martindale that aired on ABC from December 4, 1967 to March 1, 1968. The series was produced and created by Chuck Barris during a period which, as he recounted in his autobiography Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, had him creating horrible formats due to the success of The Newlywed Game and The Dating Game.

Release Date: 1968-01-22

Department: Creator

Job: Creator

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