The Price Is Right will celebrate 50 years on the air with an upcoming anniversary special on CBS. Set to air on Thursday, Sept. 30, the upcoming special will delve into five decades of the hit game show and some of its most important moments over the years. This includes looking back at the biggest winners, revealing never before seen outtakes, and a salute to former longtime host Bob Barker.
“The show has the most enthusiastic and fun audience that one could ever ask for,” Barker, who hosted the show for its first 35 years, said in a statement. “They truly were and are the heart and soul of the show …. It was an incredibly memorable ride. Congratulations to The Price Is Right on 50 historic years. Here’s to 50 more!”
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These days, Drew Carey serves as the host after replacing Barker in 2007. In a statement of his own, Carey added, “Hosting The Price Is Right has been a dream job for me. I really never thought my safe space would be on a sound stage, wearing a mic, cameras on me constantly, and with millions of people watching. But that’s what The Price Is Right is for me. I love it.”
The Price Is Right in its current incarnation debuted on Sept. 4, 1972 with Bob Barker serving as the host. The idea of The Price Is Right is for contestants to compete for cash and other prizes by guessing the actual pricing of merchandise. Over the years, the game show has hosted more than 68,000 contestants with more than two million people watching the show live as a part of the studio audience. The first prize given away on the show was a Chevy Vega valued at $2,746, and more than 8,400 cars have been offered as prizes since.
“I was kind of semi-retired and I wasn’t on Whose Line Is It Anyway or The Drew Carey Show anymore,” said Carey last year of joining the series in 2007, via CBS. “I was just going to do small projects here and there that I thought were interesting and fun. I wasn’t looking for any kind of career thing anymore. I was going to live off the money I made and I was in a pretty good spot. The Price Is Right came along and stole my heart and now I can’t imagine doing anything else.”
Some changes are also coming to The Price Is Right heading into season 50. It will reportedly feature two new games, including “Back to ’72,” a limited-edition game that will only be played throughout the 50th season. Reminiscent of the game show’s early days, the game comes complete with a retro ’70s look. In the game, the contestants will guess the prices on actual items that appeared on the show in its earlier seasons.
Season 50 of The Price Is Right is set to premiere on Monday, September 13. You can also catch the 50th anniversary special when it airs on Thursday, Sept. 30, from 9-11 p.m. on CBS. This news comes to us from Deadline.
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