What's My Line?

One of the summer's most pleasant--and surprising--viewing experiences was the 1955 season of the long-running CBS quiz show What's My Line? My wife and I discovered this classic TV series on Amazon Prime and we were hooked after the third episode.

The premise is simple: Four panelists try to guess the occupation of a contestant by asking yes-no questions. The contestant earns $5 for every "no" answer and can make a maximum of $50 by stumping the panel after ten negative responses. The third contestant of the evening is a celebrity, which requires the panelists to wear blindfolds (and the guest to disguise his or her voice). If time permits, the show ends with a fourth contestant.

Part of the show's entertainment value is watching the panelists trying to guess unusual occupations like alligator breeder, human cannonball, wiretapper, and professional toe dancer. Then, there are the really unusual occupations such as the man who sells eyeglasses for chickens, the elderly woman who dives 90 feet into a a flaming pool, and the lady who burns money for the Federal Reserve.

Francis, Daly, Cerf, and Kilgallen.

Still, none of this would work if not for the panelists and the moderator. The regular panel consists of entertainment columnist Dorothy Kilgallen, comedian Fred Allen, TV personality Arlene Francis, and publisher Bennett Cerf. The best players are Dorothy and Bennett, although Arlene comes through on some tough occupations. Fred Allen, on the other hand, looks lost in most episodes and sometimes ask questions which his colleagues have already posed. Still, he often generates unintentional laughs from the studio audience, such as when he asked the maternity clothes model if men might wear the clothes in question.

My favorite is Dorothy Kilgallen, whose intelligence and wit are matched by her competitiveness. I knew very little about her prior to watching What's My Line. She began her column "The Voice of Broadway" in 1938 and it was carried in over 140 newspapers at one time. She and Frank Sinatra had a long-running feud after she published an unflattering series of articles called "The Real Frank Sinatra." 

Dorothy Kilgallen.

Kilgallen didn't always write about the entertainment business. She covered the Sam Sheppard murder trial in 1954 and is credited with helping secure a new trial for him. A friend of John F. Kennedy's, Kilgallen was investigating his death when she was found dead in her apartment in 1964. The official report was that she died from an overdose of prescription sleeping pills and alcohol. However, there are some, such as biographer Mark Shaw (The Reporter Who Knew Too Much), who claim her death may have been staged.

John Charles Daly.

The other "star" of What's My Line is moderator John Charles Daly. Smart and funny, Daly interprets panelists' questions and confers with the contestants to keep the game fair. Daly was a respected journalist before becoming a game show host. He is credited as being the first news correspondent to report on the Pearl Harbor attack (you can listen to that on YouTube) as well as FDR's death. He won an Emmy for Best News Reporter as well as a Peabody Award and Golden Globe. He comes across as immensely likable--I think he's the best game show host I've ever seen (sorry, Pat and Alex!).

The original version of What's My Line ran from 1950 to 1967. There were also revivals and syndicated versions. The original show's panel included Kilgallen (until her death), Cerf, and Francis. The fourth member changed several times. Plus, there were guest panelists when the regulars took time off, such as Johnny Carson, a befuddled Wally Cox, and Betty White.

Esther Williams confers with Daly.

The celebrity contestants in the Amazon Prime episodes include David Niven, Esther Williams, Tony Curtis, Marge and Gower Champion, Sammy Davis, Jr., and Rosemary Clooney.

If you don't have Amazon Prime, you can still watch a bunch of episodes for free on YouTube. Of course, I don't know if they include the vintage commercials for Remington Rand shavers and Stopette deodorant. I do know that Stopette lotion deodorant is soothing and when you use it: "Poof! There goes perspiration!"