Some posts from My Blog, with Screenshots of Tom Kennedy on those shows.

Tom's Turn

Well, yesterday I just got some tapes in a giveaway contest. In one of those tapes it contained the France/French Blooper of Password Plus with my 2nd favorite permanent host, Tom Kennedy. I also got a couple other episodes from early in his run. Yes, I thought Allen Ludden was the best host of this series, but Tom was an excellent replacement. He seemed to settle in just fine. Although something happened on that France/French blooper with Dick Martin and Betty White. No human or game show host is perfect, and that was an exception of the best having an occasional screw up. He did really well on the show. He was also the first host I saw host Password Plus when I began watching in 2005 when GSN brought the show back (I started watching Ludden 2 months later when GSN ran it on a Saturday night marathon). There were many memorable moments on this run, such as when his brother Jack Narz hosted an episode of the show, and others. If Allen were still alive, I bet he would say that Tom did a good job succeeding him. I would have to agree with that. Also ironic on an episode when he played when Allen Ludden hosted, Ludden asked him if he would rather be a participant than an emcee. Kennedy said participant. Little did we know about a year and a half later he would be the emcee.

The Kennedy Administration

So, I might as well give more praise to Tom Kennedy. In another tape I got, it had 5 episodes of Tom Kennedy The Price is Right. It was a special syndicated half hour edition of the show that ran from 1985-1986. The show had the format of the first few years of the show, 3 pricing games, and the top 2 winners compete in the showcase. I saw Tom's hosting. Man, he can go into any show that someone else had hosted, and could make it great in his own way, and his style would just settle right in comfortably. Yeah, he's no Bob Barker or Drew Carey, but he's good enough. The way he handled it was just great all round. Personally, I scratch my head wondering, why didn't this show last into the 1986-1987 season. I think it should've. Although part of the show was taped during a rough period of the show after Johnny Olson passed away in 1985. It was a good run, which could've (and should've) been longer. Hey, GSN aired it from 1996-1998, so it's not that bad. It beat the other syndicated version that followed a few years later.