In 1968, Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In debuted on NBC and became a groundbreaking hit that launched the career of many comedians. More than a year and a half after its debut, a spin off came to the network's daytime lineup Letters to Laugh-In, hosted by announcer Gary Owens. The show featured a panel of four comics )including two Laugh-In regulars) who read viewer-submitted jokes and the audience rated them. Thw winning joke won a prize and the lowest scoring joke earned the home viewer "seven days in Beautiful Downtown Burbank."
I remember watching the show when I came home from school and thought it was really funny.Unfortunately, the show suffered from low ratings, probably caused by viewer desertion after the abrupt cancellation of the show it replaced,the original Match Game. The show also went against tough competition,Dark Shadows and Gomer Pyle reruns. It wasn't much of a game, since there were no civilian contestants and relied more on comedic material. Owens wasn't a bad host, he kept the show moving and joined in the spirit of the festivities. But Letters to Laugh-In couldn't capitalize on the success of the prime time hit and after 13 weeks, it was out. You bet your bippy.
I remember watching the show when I came home from school and thought it was really funny.Unfortunately, the show suffered from low ratings, probably caused by viewer desertion after the abrupt cancellation of the show it replaced,the original Match Game. The show also went against tough competition,Dark Shadows and Gomer Pyle reruns. It wasn't much of a game, since there were no civilian contestants and relied more on comedic material. Owens wasn't a bad host, he kept the show moving and joined in the spirit of the festivities. But Letters to Laugh-In couldn't capitalize on the success of the prime time hit and after 13 weeks, it was out. You bet your bippy.
