I've Got a Secret (abbreviated as IGAS) was a weekly panel game show produced by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman for CBS television and was created by Allan Sherman as essentially a knockoff of What's My Line?. The original version of the show premiered in June 1952 and ran until April 1967. It was then revived for the 1972-73 season in once-a-week syndication and then again in 1976 for a summer run. It is currently running on the Oxygen) cable channel in a daily version.
Hosts and Panelists
This show was a production of Mark Goodson and Bill Todman and was created by comedian Allan Sherman. The show was originally hosted by radio and television personality Garry Moore. After several months of an ever changing the panel, the panel settled down to include game show host Bill Cullen, acerbic comedian Henry Morgan, tv hostess Faye Emerson and actress Jayne Meadows. In 1958, Emerson left the show to star in a play. She was replaced by actress Betsy Palmer. The following year, Meadows moved to the West Coast to live with her husband Steve Allen. She was replaced by former Miss America Bess Myerson. In addition, Moore was replaced by guest hosts off and on throughout the run of the show (usually, but not always, in the summer). These guest hosts included panelists Henry Morgan and Betsy Palmer, among others.
In the fall of 1964, Garry Moore left the show and was replaced by Steve Allen, who also hosted the show during the 1972-1973 season. Former panelist Bill Cullen hosted the show during the brief 1976 CBS summer revival. The current Oxygen channel is version is being hosted by Stephanie Miller.
Game Play
Standard Rounds
Each show contained two regular contestant rounds. Occasionally (but far less often than sister show What's My Line?, an extra contestant would appear after the guest round. A round was basically a guessing game where a panel tried to ascertain the "secret" held by the contestant. A contestant (often more than one) would enter. The host would introduce the contestant and ask their name. He would then say "OK whisper your secret to me and we'll show it to the folks at home" and then the contestant would lean in and whisper his secret to Moore. When the show first started and up until the middle of 1954, each panelist would have 15 seconds of questioning time. When that finished, the contestant was awarded $10 and 2 times around the panel would end the game. Later on, they merely went once around the panel. The contestant received $20 each time ran out on the panelist for a total of $80. They would also often receive a carton of Winston cigarettes or a supply of whatever product was sponsoring the show at that time. Unlike the big money "quiz shows" which were soon to follow and then become a major scandal, the money and prizes were always secondary by far to the play of the game and the interaction between the panelists.
Guest rounds
Once a show, a celebrity came on with a secret. At the beginning of the show, the celebrity had opened the show with "My name is ______ and I've Got a Secret!". Early on, the celebrities' secrets were real or made up by the staff, such as "I am afraid of mice!" (for Boris Karloff). Eventually, however, this segment really wasn't a game at all. Instead, the celebrity would be there to demonstrate something, such as how men and women react to each other or the panel discussing their first dates. They even went so far as the panel putting on a mini play or singing a song. Until the end of the series, however, real secrets were sometimes done. Sometimes, the secret was that the panelists were being sent to some far off location to film a news report, which whould be shown the next week.
Style of the Show
As opposed to its sister show, I've Got a Secret was played mostly for laughs. Yes, they did occasionally have serious secrets, such as a pilot who was saved from drowning by a civilian, but more often than not, the game was not played seriously. The panel was always referred to by their first names and everything was done informally. Also, demonstrations were often done after each secret, which was strictly taboo on What's My Line?. Also, Garry was much more likely than John Daly was to throw the towel in if the panel was very far off the secret. What was important was the entertainment value, not the game itself, which is also why often the celebrity "secret" really wasn't a secret at all.
Super Secrets
Most of the best remembered secrets were segments where things just got out of control. One memorable secret had actor/comedian Wally Cox using a box full of wood funiture to make an entire bedroom set. Chaos ensued when everything started to fall apart, despite the lengthy rehearsals that they had done before the show. On another occasion, one of the contestants was supposed to be able to blow up an inner tube to the point of explosion just by blowing into it. Great idea, but it took him so long that celebrity Andy Griffith finally just came out and watched the spectacle with everyone else. Other well remembered secrets included actor Paul Newman serving a hot dog at a Brooklyn Dodgers baseball game at Ebbets Field to Henry Morgan. Another one had then-actor Ronald Reagan making multiple different entrances, each to thunderous applause. There was also a memorable stunt for Easter which ended with children chasing rabbits all over the stage. They also sometimes had historical secrets, such as the contestant who appeared in 1956 who had been at the Ford's Theatre when Lincoln was assassinated in 1865.
External Links
Last updated: 08-04-2005 16:46:43
