Liar's Club

Infobox_television
show_name = The Liar's Club
format = Game Show
runtime = 30 Minutes
creator = Ralph Andrews (1969-1979)
Blair Murdoch (1988-1989)
starring = Rod Serling (1969)
Bill Armstrong (1976-1979)
Allen Ludden (1976-1979)
Eric Boardman (1988-1989)
narrated = Bill Berry (1976-1979)
Joe Seiter (1976-1979)
Bill Armstrong (1988-1989)
country = USA
(1969-1979)
CAN
(1988-1989)
network = Syndication (1969)
Syndication (1976-1979)
Global (1988-1989)
first_aired =1969
last_aired =1989|

"This article is about the Liar's Club TV game show. You may be looking for the band of the same name."

Liar's Club was an American comedy game show, produced by Ralph Andrews. It was first seen in 1969 with Rod Serling as host, and returned for a three-season syndicated run from 1976 to 1979. Bill Armstrong was the original host, soon succeeded by Allen Ludden, with Bill Berry and Joe Seiter sharing the announcing duties. It was later revived for almost one year from 1988 - 1989 as "The New Liar's Club"; Eric Boardman was the host, and former emcee Bill Armstrong was announcer. This version was produced by Blair Murdoch at CKVU-TV in Vancouver, with Stan Litke as the director for the first half of its run (though he didn't direct from CKVU, as he worked at CFAC/CKKX in Calgary), later replaced by Dave Stewart. The title is a spin on the Friars Club.

Gameplay

The show featured a panel of celebrity guests, who would be presented with an unusual object; each would give a ridiculous explanation of what the object was used for. Contestants (there were two on the 60s version, four on the 80s version and the first season of the 70s version, and three during the Ludden era) would place wagers on which star was telling the true story. They played for money in the 70s version; but they played for points in the 80s version. They started at 100 dollars/points at the beginning of the game and were allowed to bet in $10 increments up to $100 during the first season of the 70s version, half of their earnings during the Ludden era, and the 80s version's betting range was 10 to 50 points.

The Odds

The odds increase for each round:
Round 1 - 1-1
Round 2 - 2-1
Round 3 - 5-1
Round 4 - 10-1

The Liar's Club Gallery / The Art Corner

This was always the last round of the game in which artwork was presented before the panel and contestants. Each celebrity would each offer their own title for the art. Each player would then make one last wager on which star gave the right title. Correct answers from the contestants won the wager at a 10-1 payoff. The player with the highest score won the game and a bonus prize (during the Ludden era of the 70s version and the 80s revival, a correct bet in all 4 rounds was also worth an additional prize). If there was a tie, the player who bet the most in the final round wins. If there was still a tie, the player who who got the most right throughout the game wins. If there was still a tie, whoever came closest to their pregame score selection without going over wins.

The Liar of the Day

During the Ludden era, a different format was used for the final round: each celebrity was given his/her own unusual item to describe, three of whom were giving correct descriptions while one was lying; it was up to the contestants to predict which celebrity was the liar.

Panelists

Frequent panelists on the '70s version included Joey Bishop, Betty White, Dick Gautier, Fannie Flagg, David Letterman and Larry Hovis. Canadian comedian John Barbour was a regular panelist throughout the 80s version. The three other panelists initially changed from week to week. Later tapings had the same set of celebrities throughout.

Celebrity attorney/actress/producer Vicki Roberts was a regular researcher on the show who brought in many of the strange objects that were used on the show by scouring local antique shops in the Los Angeles area.

Celebrities who appeared, with John Barbour, during the rotation tapings included:

Jed Allan
Rebecca Arthur
Pete Barbutti
Heidi Bohay
Jim Byrnes
Teri Copley
Abby Dalton
James Doohan
Leslie Easterbrook
Teresa Ganzel
Beverly Garland
Bryan Genesse
Arlene Golonka
Dody Goodman
Jane Higginson
Lisa Howard
Anne-Marie Johnson
Bill Kirchenbauer
Paul Kreppel
Alison LaPlaca
Kate Linder
Alaina Reed-Hall
Stella Stevens
Marc Summers
Betty Thomas
Deborah Tranelli
Shannon Tweed
Jimmie Walker
Tonja Walker
Fred Willard
Jo Anne Worley
Don Yesso

Shannon Tweed, Jimmie Walker and Pete Barbutti would later join Barbour as the show's permanent celebrity panelists.

The Next Line

In 1991, a Canadian game show called The Next Line, hosted by Kevin Frank, was produced. It had many similarities to "the New Liar's Club": both shows were taped at the same studio, and both used the same props with a few changes. The rules are very similar to "Liar's Club" in terms of the game and scoring, only rather than determine the correct description of an unusual item, players had to find which celebrity was giving the correct line to a cut-off video clip or song. Like "The New Liar's Club", the show was also produced by Blair Murdoch and featured Pete Barbutti as a regular panelist.

External links

* [http://www.xanfan.com/othergrabs/lc.htm Screengrabs of the 80s New Liar's Club]
* [http://www.timstvshowcase.com/liarclub.html Tim's TV Showcase - Liar's Club]