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Bill's Guest Appearances

In addition to being a popular host, Bill was also a popular celebrity guest on just about every game show that needed one.  One of the more intelligent game players, Bill usually won most any game he played and still managed to be witty and funny doing it.  Plus he always looked like he was having such a good time!

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This list is of Bill's appearances as a guest on various game shows, including a couple of times when he appeared only to plug his own show and not to play.

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Sources for the list below include TV Guide listings, vintage newspaper articles, references and pictures in The Encyclopedia of TV Game Shows, tapes that exist in the collections of game show traders and several internet game show databases.  Brendan McLaughlin has been very generous in sharing his own research and TV Guide listings.  Kenneth Johannessen, Chris Tufts and Marshall Akers were able to add several items as well.  Your specific additions are welcome.


 It's worth noting that the only reason this list isn't even longer is that throughout the seventies, most game shows were based in California while Bill was still working in New York.  Appearances on those west coast shows were limited to occasional visits during breaks in his own schedule. For example, in a short trip to L.A. in July, 1975, Bill taped appearances as a celebrity guest on Tattletales, Rhyme and Reason and You Don't Say.

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The $10,000 Pyramid  (Dick Clark)

  • August 22-24 and 27-28, 1973 with Fannie Flagg 

  • January 23-25 and 28-29, 1974 with Anita Gillette   

(Televised coverage of the Senate Watergate Hearings wreaked havoc on daytime schedules in the summer of 1973 and beyond​, causing many pre-recorded weeks of shows to straddle across a weekend)

  • March 3-7, 1975 with Jo Anne Worley            

  • August 18-22, 1975 with Lee Meriwether            

  • October 13-17, 1975 with Stephanie Braxton   
        

The $20,000 Pyramid  (Dick Clark)

  • January 19-23, 1976 with Jo Anne Worley (first week with larger prize)   

  • March 29-April 2, 1976 with Anita Gillette            

  • July 12-16, 1976 with Barbara Feldon  

  • December 13-17, 1976 with Anita Gillette   

  • September 27-October 1, 1976 with Anne Meara            

  • August 8-12, 1977 with Lucie Arnaz            

  • December 12-16, 1977 with Caren Kaye            

  • December 4-8, 1978 with Lynn Redgrave            

  • March 5-9, 1979 with Anne Meara            

  • July 23-27, 1979 with Adrienne Barbeau            

  • June 23-27, 1980 with Lois Nettleton (final week of series)  
     

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FREAKS & GEEKS & BILL CULLEN

One of the champions of The $25,000 Pyramid during Bill's July 1986 week was aspiring actor Paul Feig. Feig has gone onto much greater success as a writer, director, and producer. His film credits include Bridesmaids and The Heat. His television work includes numerous episodes of The Office, Arrested Development, and Freaks and Geeks, which he also created.

The $25,000 Pyramid  (Dick Clark)

  • October 10-14, 1983 with Shelley Smith            

  • March 11-15, 1985 with Jo Anne Worley            

  • March 24-28, 1986 with Elaine Joyce            

  • July 21-25, 1986 with Lois Nettleton            

  • June 1-5, 1987 with Betty White (Bill's last TV appearance)   
          

All-Star Secrets  

(Bob Eubanks)

  • Feb 26-March 2, 1979 with Nanette Fabray, Arte Johnson, Della Reese and John Schuck  
      

Betty White Dick Clark Bill Cullen $25,000 Pyramid game show

Break the Bank  (Bert Parks)

  • Bill filled in as host during Parks' vacation in August, 1954. 
     

Break the Bank  (Jack Barry)

  • Two 1976 episodes with Barbara Eden, Joey Bishop, William Conrad, Abe Vigoda, Bob Crane, Jaye P. Morgan, Lee Meriwether and Anson Williams
     

Break the Bank  (Tom Kennedy)

  • July 19-23, 1976 (final week of series) with Joyce Bulifant, Soupy Sales, Elke Sommer, Donny Most, Jo Anne Worley, Jan Murray, Jaye P. Morgan and Lonnie Schorr   
     

Card Sharks  (Jim Perry)

Jim Perry Bill Cullen Card Sharks game show

  • September 8-26, 1980 three-week series featuring game show hosts, with Gene Rayburn, Wink Martindale, Jack Clark, Tom Kennedy, Jim Lange, Allen Ludden and Alex Trebek.    
     

Celebrity Sweepstakes  

(Jim McKrell)

  • September 16-20, 1974 with Geoff Edwards, Carol Wayne, Jo Ann Pflug, Macdonald Carey and Pat Henry   

  • April 26-30, 1976 with Lynn Anderson, Peter Brown, Dody Goodman, Dick Martin and Carol Wayne  

  • July 12-16, 1976 with James Darren, Anne Meara, Paul Williams, Dick Gautier, and Carol Wayne  

  • Fall, 1976 syndicated show with Dick Gautier, Arte Johnson, Lonnie Schorr, Carol Wayne, and Buddy Hackett.  
     

MAXIMUM BILL!

During the week of November 12-16, 1973, Bill appeared on CBS as a panelist on Match Game '73, on ABC as a celebrity partner on Password, on NBC as the host of Three on a Match, and in many cities, in syndication as a panelist on To Tell the Truth.

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Bill pulled off this feat again during the week of July 12-16, 1976, during which he appeared on Tattletales (CBS), The $20,000 Pyramid (ABC), Celebrity Sweepstakes (NBC), and To Tell the Truth (syndication).

Concentration  (Hugh Downs)

  • December 24, 1965 with Betty White; Bill used this appearance to promote the impending debut of Eye Guess

  • 1971 episode; Bill didn't play, but popped in to promote the premiere of Three on a Match
     

The Cross-Wits  

(Jack Clark)

  • 1976 with Fannie Flagg, Patti Deutsch and Jack Carter     

  • 1977 with Fannie Flagg, Elaine Joyce and Rick Hurst     

  • 1977 with Dody Goodman, Joyce Bulifant and Ron Ely   

  • 1978 with Pat Carroll, Alice Ghostley, and Milt Kamen    

  • #656-660, taped December 16, 1978, with Roxie Roker, Marcia Wallace and Fred Grandy      

  • #691-#695, taped February 3, 1979 with Vicki Lawrence, Polly Holliday and Don Galloway      

  • #741#-745, taped March 25, 1979 with Jo Anne Worley, Elinor Donahue and Johnny Brown 

  • 1979 with Roxie Roker, Marcia Wallace and Bobby Goldsboro     
     

Bill Cullen Fannie Flagg Cross Wits game show

Family Feud  

(Richard Dawson)

  • Episodes #8061-#8065 taped 1983: "Battle of the Television Hosts," which pitted The Magnificent MCs against the Heavenly Hosts. The Magnificent MCs were Bill, Bob Eubanks, Jim Perry, Nipsey Russell, and Betty White. The Heavenly Hosts were Tom Kennedy, Jim Lange, Peter Marshall, Bert Parks and Leslie Uggams.   
     

He Said, She Said  

(Joe Garagiola)

Nipsey Rusell Bill Cullen Jim Perry Richard Dawson Betty White Family Feud game show

Syndicated.  Specific dates varied.   

  • 1969 with Gene Rayburn and others             

  • 1970 with Orson Bean, Robert Lansing and Heywood Hale Broun  

  • 1970 with Orson Bean, Patrick O'Neal, and Pat Carroll   

  • 1970 with Dick Clark, Peter Duchin, and Peter Lind Hayes & Mary Healy   

  • 1970 with Alejandro Rey, Genevieve, and Kyle Rote & Sharon Ritchie   

  • 1970 with Dick Clark, Jerry Shane, and Ruby Dee & Ossie Davis   

  • 1970 with Kyle Rote & Sharon Ritchie, Phyllis Newman & Adolph Green, and Phil Ford & Mimi Hines.

  • Bill also substituted for Joe Garagiola as host on at least one occasion, possibly when Joe had a commitment to baseball broadcasting.
     

Syndicated shows in the 1960s, 1970s, and early 1980s, including many of the games listed here, were on tapes that were "bicycled" from one station to the next throughout the country.  Under that system, different markets saw different episodes of a given series on any given day.  That's why we can't be more specific about the air dates of those shows.  In today's system of satellite distribution, virtually all markets see the same episode of a syndicated show on the same day.

The Hollywood Squares  (Peter Marshall)

  • August 16-20, 1971 with Wally Cox, Rose Marie, Jack Klugman, Tony Randall, Karen Valentine, Jackie Vernon, Charley Weaver, and Carol Lawrence.         
     

Jeopardy!  (Art Fleming)

  • March 30, 1972 Eighth Anniversary Show with Peter Marshall and Art James           
     

Bill Cullen Peter Marshall Art James Jeopardy game show

Liars Club  (Allen Ludden)

  • 1977 with Larry Hovis, Mitzi McCall, and Dody Goodman

  • 1978 with Larry Hovis, Dody Goodman and Alan Sues        
      

The Match Game  

(Gene Rayburn)

  • December 20-24, 1965 with Joan Rivers           

  • May 15-19, 1967 with Phyllis Newman           

  • December 18-22, 1967 with Bess Myerson           

  • February 12-16, 1968 with Fannie Flagg           

  • February 17-21, 1969 with Hugh Downs    
     

Alan Sues Dody Goodman Bill Cullen Larry Hovis Liars Club game show

Match Game '7x 

(Gene Rayburn)

  • Nov 12-16, 1973 with Brett Somers, Jack Klugman, Cass Elliot, Richard Dawson and Loretta Swit     

  • March 28-April 3, 1974 with Brett Somers, Charles Nelson Reilly, Patti Deutsch, Richard Dawson and Betty White      

  • *April 14-20, 1976 with Brett Somers, Charles Nelson Reilly, Janice Pennington, Richard Dawson and Fannie Flagg     

  • *September 26-30, 1977 with Brett Somers, Charles Nelson Reilly, Debralee Scott, Richard Dawson and Fannie Flagg     

  • *April 18-20, 1979 with Fred Grandy, Brett Somers, Charles Nelson Reilly, Connie Stevens and Marcia Wallace [final aired week of series]
     

Bill Cullen Gene Rayburn Brett Somers Match Game show

Match Game (Gene Rayburn)

Syndicated.  Specific dates varied.          

  • *1979-80 week with Brett Somers, Charles Nelson Reilly, Lee Meriwether, Bill Daily and Betty White            

  • *1980-81 week with Peter Marshall, Brett Somers, Dick Martin, Elaine Joyce and Betty White            

  • 1981-82 week with Jimmie Walker, Brett Somers, Charles Nelson Reilly, Lilibet Stern and Elaine Joyce            

  • 1981-82 week with Brett Somers, Charles Nelson Reilly, Sharon Farrell, McLean Stevenson and Edie McClurg   
     

*Weeks with an asterisk indicate a sixth episode was taped for the syndicated Match Game PM.
 

The Match Game/Hollywood Squares Hour  (Gene Rayburn & Jon Bauman)

  • January 16-20, 1984 with Brian Mitchell, Jay Leno, Linda Dano, Ellen Bry, Richard Kline, Lyle Waggoner, and Phyllis Diller.  
     

Mindreaders (Dick Martin)

  • August 20-24, 1979 with Brett Somers
     

Bill appeared on The Match Game/ Hollywood Squares Hour with two little-known young celebrities who would go on to become much more famous.  In 1984, Jay Leno was a rising stand-up comic and Brian Mitchell was a supporting actor in a medical series. Leno went on to be host of The Tonight Show and Mitchell is a Tony Award winning Broadway performer.

The Missus Goes A-Shopping (CBS Radio, August 1948)

This venerable radio game show (1941-1951!) hosted by John Reed King was adapted for television in November 1947 and became the network's first regularly scheduled TV series. King hosted the TV version, too. During the summer of 1948, King took a vacation, and Bill stepped in to guest-host the radio show. The TV show was guest-hosted by Gil Fates, who later served as executive producer of I've Got a Secret.

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Password (Allen Ludden) [1960s CBS]  

  • January 30, 1962 with Dorothy Collins             

  • August 21, 1962 with Rita Moreno (Jack Clark hosts)             

  • March 10, 1963 with Jane Fonda             

  • July 8, 1963 with Susan Strasberg             

  • November 1-5, 1965 daytime week with Florence Henderson  
        

Password (Allen Ludden) [1970s ABC]  

  • July 12-16, 1971 with Florence Henderson

  • July 23-27, 1973 with Ruta Lee

  • November 12-16, 1973 with Helen Reddy           

  • May 6-10, 1974 with Susan Oliver    
     

Password Plus (Allen Ludden) 

  • March 12-16, 1979 with Mary Tyler Moore            

  • July 9-13, 1979 with Patty Duke            

  • October 29-November 2, 1979 with Marcia Wallace            

  • March 3-7, 1980 with Peggy Cass 

  • May 12-16, 1980 with Susan Richardson            

  • July 29-August 4, 1980 with Betty White            

  • October 14-20, 1980 with Karen Morrow   
     

Password Plus (Bill Cullen)            

(Bill hosted Password Plus for four weeks during Allen Ludden's illness.)            

  • April 14-18, 1980 with Elaine Joyce and Bill Anderson            

  • April 21-25, 1980 with Nanette Fabray and Skip Stephenson            

  • April 28-May 2, 1980 with Vicki Lawrence and Dick Gautier            

  • May 5-9, 1980 with Betty White and Greg Morris          
     

Password Plus (Tom Kennedy)            

  • November 11-17, 1980 with Barbara Rhoades            

  • December 31, 1980-January 7, 1981 with Susan Richardson            

  • February 11-17, 1982 with Patty Duke Astin  
     

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Personality (Larry Blyden)            

  • July 10-14, 1967 with Joan Rivers and Henry Morgan (Second week of series)    

  • August 21-25, 1967 with Phyllis Newman and Sheila MacRae      

  • October 30-November 3, 1967 with Joan Fontaine and Betsy Palmer    

  • December 4-8, 1967 with Florence Henderson and Selma Diamond    

  • January 8-12, 1968 with Joan Bennett and Joan Rivers    

  • February 26-March 1, 1968 with Totie Fields and Gig Young      

  • April 15-19, 1968 with Sheila MacRae and Betsy Palmer      

  • May 13-17, 1968 with Eva Gabor and Pat Carroll      

  • June 24-28, 1968 with Carol Lawrence and Dick Shawn    

  • October 21-25, 1968 with Pat Carroll and Lainie Kazan    

  • March 24-28, 1969 with Betsy Palmer and Selma Diamond    

  • August 18-22, 1969 with Julia Meade and Sheila MacRae  
     

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The Price is Right (Bob Barker)            

  • Bill appeared in 1982 to plug Child's Play.  No mention was made in his brief visit of his own history with The Price Is Right. 
     

Rhyme and Reason (Bob Eubanks)            

  • August 4-8, 1975 with Jaye P. Morgan, Mitzi McCall, Meredith MacRae, Pat Harrington and Nipsey Russell     
     

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Shoot for the Stars (Geoff Edwards)            

  • January 10-14, 1977 with Penny Peyser           

  • April 4-8, 1977 with Adrienne Barbeau           

  • July 25-29, 1977 with Barbara Feldon           

  • September 26-30, 1977 with Adrienne Barbeau (final week) 
     

Snap Judgment (Ed McMahon)           

  • April 20-24, 1967 with Diana Sands           

  • March 19-23, 1968 with Phyllis Kirk           

  • November 28-December 2, 1968 with Jayne Meadows           

  • March 17-21, 1969 with Dina Merrill  
     

Strike It Rich (Warren Hull)    

  • 1954 Guest Host    

Found in only one source and not confirmed, though Hull used a number of guest hosts for his series (including Robert Alda, Monty Hall and Dom Ameche) so why not Bill?  Bill is also credited with participating in the radio version of the series.   
 

Super Password (Bert Convy)  

  • October 22-26, 1984 with Marcia Wallace           

  • February 4-8, 1985 with Marcia Wallace (Tournament of Champions)           

  • September 16-20, 1985 with Tom Poston           

  • January 27-31, 1986 with Kim Miyori      
     

Tattletales (Bert Convy)  

  • March 25-29, 1974 with Allen Ludden & Betty White and Jo Ann Pflug & Chuck Woolery

  • September 2-6. 1974 with Bill Macy and Bobby Van & Elaine Joyce      

  • August 14-20, 1975 with Joan Collins and Zsa Zsa Gabor  

  • July 12-16, 1976 with Judy Norton & Doug Taylor and Don & Susan Stewart  

  • 1977 week with Bob Barker, Patty Weaver   

  • Aug 29-Sept 2, 1977 with Gary Collins & Mary Ann Mobley and Ray Buktenica & Joyce DeWitt  

  • March 1-5, 1982 with Conrad Janis and Irlene Mandrell   

  • September 9-13, 1982 with Stuart Damon and Christopher Norris  

  • April 12-18, 1983 with Maureen Reagan and Phyllis Diller  
     

Though both men became iconic as hosts of The Price is Right, Bill and Bob Barker both noted that their 1977 appearance together on Tattletales was the first time they ever met.

To Tell the Truth (Bud Collyer)  

  • October 19, 1964 with Peggy Cass, Kitty Carlisle and Tom Poston   

  • January 18, 1965 with I've Got a Secret panelists Betsy Palmer, Henry Morgan and Bess Myerson.   (Part of a special week on CBS in which To Tell the Truth and I've Got a Secret swapped regular panelists)
     

To Tell the Truth (Robin Ward)  

Syndicated.  Specific dates varied.  The week numbers are the production weeks of the 39-week season.            

  • Week 6 with Fannie Flagg, Soupy Sales and Peggy Cass  

  • Week 7 with John Wade, Susan Lucci and Polly Bergen  

  • Week 13 with John Wade, Tiiu Leek and Peggy Cass  

  • Week 14 with Pat Collins, Dick Clark and Polly Bergen  

Bill was a regular on the 70s version of To Tell The Truth.     
 

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Trivia Trap (Bob Eubanks)  

  • 1984 celebrity week with Jamie Farr, Tom Poston, Vicki Lawrence, Betty White and Jayne Meadows.   
     

What's My Line? (John Charles Daly)  

  • April 1, 1956 with fellow I've Got A Secret panelists Henry Morgan, Jayne Meadows and Faye Emerson collectively as Mystery Guests           

  • July 9, 1961 as a solo Mystery Guest.  The panel (Dorothy Kilgallen, Bennett Cerf, Steve Allen and Jayne Meadows) failed to identify him.    
     

What's My Line? (Wally Bruner)  

  • Episode #180, taped March 11, 1969; Bill was Mystery Guest. The panelists for Bill's appearance were Arlene Francis, Soupy Sales, Phyllis Newman, and Bert Convy.
     

Wheel of Fortune (Chuck Woolery)  

  • Single appearance in 1980 as part of a special game show hosts week  Bill's episode does not survive (as far as we know), but the following day's with Tom Kennedy does.  At the end of Kennedy's show, he, Woolery and Susan Stafford comment on how well Bill performed the day before.
     

The Who, What, or Where Game (Art James)  

  • July 27, 1971 appearance to promote Three on a Match, which premiered the following week

  • September 10, 1971 appearance to promote Three on a Match again
     

You Don't Say! (Tom Kennedy) [1960s NBC daytime]

  • April 8-12, 1968 with Pat Carroll           

  • Summer 1968 unaired episode with Pearl Bailey; hosted by Mickey Manners

  • November 11-15, 1968 with Barbara Bain   
     

You Don't Say! (Tom Kennedy) [1970s ABC daytime]

  •  July 21-25, 1975 with Ann Elder, Joyce Bulifant, and Larry Hovis

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When Tom Kennedy was renegotiating his contract in 1968, Ralph Andrews Productions, to hedge their bets, taped a single episode of You Don't Say!, not intended for broadcast, as an audition for comedian Mickey Manners to potentially become the new host. Bill was a guest on this episode. The two most remarkable things about this episode are that not only does the video survive, but it's the only video we've ever seen of Bill with his hair parted on the right.

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