Love Connection

"Love Connection" was an American television game show, where singles tried to find the best date and/or to have something in common with each other. This show debuted in syndication on September 19, 1983 and ended on June 30, 1995, after more than 2,000 shows. It was hosted by Chuck Woolery. The show returned during the 1998-1999 season, hosted by Pat Bullard.

Hosts

* Chuck Woolery (1983-1995)
* Pat Bullard (1998-1999)

Announcers

* Rod Roddy (1983-1985, 1986)
* Gene Wood (1985-1988)
* Johnny Gilbert (1988-1989)
* John Cervenka (1989-1995 and 1998-1999)

ub-Announcers

* Rich Jeffries (1987)

Format

The show was a variant of "The Dating Game" in which a bachelor or bachelorette would select from three potential dates of the opposite sex. A large majority of the contestants were in their 20s and looking for Mr. or Miss Right for the first time; however, there were plenty of older contestants who were single (officially listed as "never been married"), widowed or divorced (multiple times, in some cases). Daters were given $75 for the date (mentioned on a 1985 episode re-aired on GSN) during the show's initial run. This amount was increased to $100 for the 1998-1999 revival.

Following a short interview, the audience was shown video excerpts of the three potential dates (of which the contestant had screened in their entirety). The audience is then asked to vote on which date they believe was the right match for the bachelor(ette).

The contestant, who had already gone on the blind date, would introduce his/her choice. Since contestants were not permitted to see each other or make contact between the time they went on their date and when they appeared on the show, this was their first meeting since going out. The date is introduced, then appears on-screen via backstage hookup. Chuck then proceeds to interview both about what happened on their date.

Sometimes, the couple really hit it off and couldn't wait to see each other again, prompting Woolery to reunite the couple onstage. Other times, the dates went poorly and in extreme cases, were disastrous. Regardless of the outcome, Woolery then revealed the audience's vote. If the contestant's and the audience's (majority) choices agreed, Woolery would congratulate the couple for making a "love connection" and pay for their next date if they hit it off. If the audience vote favored another contestant, or if the date went badly, Woolery would offer to pay up to $75 for a date with the audience's choice; the contestant could choose the second date or elect to remain on his/her own. No matter how obvious a connection, Woolery always asked both parties if they wanted to see each other again. To the casual observer, it seemed to be a needless formality. But in rare instances, a couple appeared to have a good time on their first date, but for one reason or another one or both parties decided not to pursue a second date. On one occasion, a contestant actually got engaged to someone else between the time of the date and when the episode aired. Throughout the show's run, many bachelors or bachelorettes came back to share the story about their second date (for the date, the audience had already chose for him/her), after their falling attempt of their first date.

Usually, two or three segments aired per show. On Friday shows, a bachelor(ette) would have the audience determine their date, and he/she would report back several weeks later. If the couple hit it off, they were entitled to a second date at the show's expense. If not, the contestant could choose between the other two matches as before or stay on their own.

Of the roughly 22,000 couples who met on the show, 31 eventually married. One marriage resulted when a woman wrote a letter in care of the program to a gentleman that she saw on the show and wanted to meet him. He'd gone out on dates with two different women, both of which went badly. They were both featured on the show. There were at least two proposals on the air after the couples were reunited onstage.

Unlike "The Dating Game", where contestants only needed to be at least 18 years old, participants on the Woolery edition of "Love Connection" initally had to be at least 23; it was later lowered to 21.

While Chuck was hosting "Love Connection", he also hosted the daytime game show "Scrabble" on NBC.

This show was produced by Eric Lieber Productions in association with and distributed by: Telepictures (1983-86, 1998-99); Lorimar-Telepictures (1986-89); Lorimar Television (1989-90); Warner Bros. Television (1990-95).

"Two and two"

Chuck Woolery created his trademark phrase "Two and Two" on the show. The line referred to the fact that the program would return in two minutes and two seconds due to commercials (before, he just said either "in a couple minutes," or just simply "in two minutes;" initially, however, he said "two minutes (and) two seconds" prior to creating the catchphrase).

Episode status

Reruns of "Love Connection" previously aired on the USA Network and GSN. Before January 1, 2007, GSN aired 1988-1992 episodes; for Valentine's Day 2004, older episodes were shown. Near Valentine's Day 2008, 1986 episodes were shown. Currently, they are not airing the show.