Game Show

Let's meet our new players. Donny is a former teen idol who's a little bit rock 'n' roll. A father of five, he is married to the lovely Debbie and his hobbies include car racing and genealogy. Richard is a comedic actor who portrayed a handyman on "Home Improvement." Oddly enough, Richard managed an apartment building before landing the sitcom and hails from a long line of builders.

Because Sony and Liberty Media's purchase of Telemundo didn't become official until August--just weeks before the start of the new fall season--the network's inaugural lineup is filled with thinly disguised remakes of old Sony properties and low-cost studio shows. Telemundo executives nonetheless hope its nine "original" new shows will mark the network as an alternative to traditional Spanish-language programming.

What a match. Hordes of twisted college students hornswoggling their way through a break from school. And there to party with them: "Remote Control." That's MTV's satire of game shows that isn't even remotely in control. In fact, it's trying to be the sassiest series ever to appear on national TV. It asks college-age contestants to name such things as the Italian lubricant that's also Popeye's girlfriend (Olive Oyl/oil).

Dan Enright, pioneering producer of "Tic Tac Dough," "Twenty-One" and other TV game shows, and a central figure in the show-rigging scandals of the late 1950s, has died. He was 74. Enright died Friday of cancer in Santa Monica. His longtime companion, Susan Stafford, vice president of public relations for his company, Barry & Enright, was with him at his death.

Imagine being inside a video game! If it sounds like a kid's dream, the people at Nickelodeon are just the folks to make it come true. They've created "Nick Arcade," which uses TV technology to get as close as possible to "living a game." During the half-hour game show, two teams, led by host Phil Moore, try to gain control of a video game board by solving video puzzles and answering general-knowledge questions.

Bill Cullen, who served as host of "I've Got a Secret" and dozens of other game shows, is critically ill with cancer, his publicist said. "It's really a day-to-day thing" for the 69-year-old television veteran, publicist Bob Burton said Wednesday. Cullen has not been hospitalized for the illness. He receives doctor visits and round-the-clock medical care at his Los Angeles home, George Spota, his manager said.

I like it when they win trophies better than when they win other prizes like money! --Donovan Dobbins, 9 What game-show fan would want a gold-toned loving cup rather than a fistful of dollars? Only a kid. And so many kids want so many trophies so badly--and are so eager to watch other kids winning them--that kids' shows now are bigger bucks than ever for networks and cable. Game shows, especially those with families in mind, are on the rise.

Art James, 74, the host and announcer for a number of leading television game shows in the 1960s, including "Say When," "Fractured Phrases" and "Concentration," died Sunday during a visit to Palm Springs. According to his ex-wife, Sandra Pietron, James was stricken with a sudden illness. Born Arthur Efimchick in Dearborn, Mich., James graduated from Wayne State University and served two years with the Army in Germany as an announcer on the Armed Forces Network.

"Jeopardy!" returns from its summer break with original shows today. That means returning champion Ken Jennings will have to come up with the 39th way to write his name (he signs in differently each show), host Alex Trebek will have to find something new to ask Jennings during the interview segment, and chances are two more otherwise intelligent players will go home losers.