The Big Payoff

The Big Payoff
Robert Paige as the show host, 1957.
Directed by	Paul Alter
Presented by	Randy Merriman (1951-1957) Bob Paige (1957-1959, 1962) Bert Parks (1959) with Bess Myerson
Narrated by	Ralph Paul Mort Laurence
Country of origin	United States
Production
Running time	30 minutes
Original release
Network	NBC (Dec. 31, 1951 - Mar. 27, 1953) CBS (Mar. 30, 1953 - Oct. 23, 1959) Syndicated (daily, 1962)
Release	December 31, 1951 (1951-12-31) – 1962 (1962)

The Big Payoff is a daytime and primetime game show that premiered on NBC in 1951, and ended its network run on CBS in 1959. It had a brief syndication revival in 1962.^[1] NBC used The Big Payoff to replace the 15-minute show Miss Susan starring Susan Peters, which had gone off the air in December 1951.^{[citation needed]}

Over its eight-year run plus syndication, the show had three hosts. The first was Randy Merriman (from 1951-1957), who left after claiming that CBS was in breach of his contract. Bob Paige took his place from 1957-1959. He was followed by a short stint by Bert Parks (1959).^{[citation needed]} In October 1959 CBS removed the show along with all of its other quiz shows out of abundance of caution; it stated it could not ensure the shows were produced honestly in the wake of the quiz show scandals of the late 1950s.^[2]

Contestants were selected from men who mailed in letters explaining why the women in their lives deserved prizes. The men were asked four questions (delivered on a silver tray by "Question Girl" Susan Sayers) in order to win prizes like a mink coat or a vacation. Late in the network run, the format changed to three competing couples playing a guessing game. The couple with the highest score answered the Big Payoff question. For the 1962 revival, there were only two couples.^{[citation needed]}

On Tuesdays, the format changed to the "Little Big Payoff" in which children sent in a letter in which they voiced the reason that they should appear. Four questions were asked, and prizes awarded for each correct answer.^{[citation needed]}

Winning contestants (other than the children) had the opportunity to answer one final question. Getting this question correct, the individual was awarded the "big payoff" of a mink coat or a trip to Europe, or both.^{[citation needed]} Bess Myerson modeled the mink coat for several years.^[3]

The theme song was "A Pretty Girl Is Like a Melody" by Irving Berlin, and the sponsor was Revlon.^{[citation needed]}

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Transcription

Other cast

Models - Susan Sayers, Pat Conlon, Phyllis Hunt, Nancy Walters, Marion James, Beverly Bentley, Pat Conway, Fran Miller, Bess Myerson^[4]
Singers - Betty Ann Grove, Denise Lor,^[3] Judy Lynn ("The Burt Buhram Trio")

References

^ "Big Payoff To Return", Oakland Tribune, Sept. 9, 1962, p. 5-TV
^ "Name That Tune Goes Off Air After Tonight". Opelika Daily News. 1959-10-19. p. 1. Retrieved 2020-11-07.
^ ^a ^b McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television: the Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present (4th ed.). New York, New York: Penguin Books USA, Inc. pp. 94–95. ISBN 0-14-02-4916-8.
^ Nemy, Enid; et al. (5 January 2015). "Bess Myerson, Miss America and New York Official Tainted by Scandal, Dies at 90". The New York Times. Retrieved 5 January 2015.