Every Game Show Should Have One

Thanks to the Game Show Network I have enjoyed rediscovering the guilty ‘70s pleasure that is "Match Game." With that in mind, I was saddened by the recent passing of Charles Nelson Reilly (May 25, 2007), the cornerstone of the show’s celebrity dais.

Nowadays (as I did three decades ago) I look forward to the petty arguments between Reilly and co-panelist Brett Somers. And I’m always disappointed when - following announcer Johnny Olson’s invitation to "Get ready to match the stars!" - the camera reveals some other celebrity in Charles’ seat; God forbid it’s that irritating Gary Burghoff from "M*A*S*H" again!

With his trademark oversize spectacles, ascots, yachtsman caps and penchant for not wearing socks (not to mention the toupee that was the subject of numerous jokes from his fellow celebrities), Charles Nelson Reilly was an anomaly on the face of ‘70s TV. Only now do I pick up on his often not-so-subtle gay-tinged double entendres that (a.) stretched the boundaries of 1970s television standards and (b.) tested the on-camera demeanor of host Gene Rayburn, a longtime friend of Reilly’s who often found himself in the uncomfortable position of quickly icing over the questionable repartee.

Back then, what did I know from gay? Offhand I can think of a half dozen references that first made me aware of an alternative lifestyle. . .

I remember a double-feature at the drive-in in the early ‘70s that included "The Sergeant," a turgid melodrama starring Rod Steiger as a troubled non-com struggling with a disturbing attraction to a young, handsome private. . .

I recall an episode from the first season of "All in the Family" in 1971 when Archie Bunker was floored by the revelation that a burly buddy of his is gay. . .

In the same year, there was that pair of male assassins in the 007 flick "Diamonds Are Forever" who seemed particularly peculiar. . .

"That Certain Summer," a 1972 Golden Globe-winning TV movie starring Hal Holbrook and Martin Sheen was considered the first made-for-television film to tackle the subject of homosexuality. . .

On PBS, the 1973 documentary "An American Family," now acknowledged as TV’s first reality show, introduced the nation to Lance Loud, a gay 20-year-old who would often wear lipstick and women’s clothes. . .

And then there was a certain female teacher of mine in high school who preferred to wear pantsuits and lived with a special friend.

It wasn’t until 1981 that we first heard about the HIV virus and AIDS. But that seemed long after Charles Nelson Reilly had left his singular, quirky mark on television.

He made it no secret that he was considered the oddest member of a decidedly odd family. Early in his career he was dismissed by a network producer who told him that "they don’t let queers on television."

That would have been news to Paul Lynde, the crowd-favorite center square from 1966 to 1979 on "The Hollywood Squares." Everybody on the show knew he was gay. Everyone in show business knew. But despite his flashy mannerisms and blatant double entendres, he never publicly declared his sexual orientation.

The oblivious viewing public sympathetically embraced him as "America’s Most Eligible Bachelor." He would explain his prolonged bachelor status by telling fans that his high school sweetheart had broken his heart, and he was still too hurt to love again. In one of Hollywood’s most mischievous inside jokes, he even appeared as a bachelor contestant on "The Dating Game."

Something inherent in the success of "The Hollywood Squares" must have cried out for the anchoring presence of a gay comic. When John Davidson hosted "The New Hollywood Squares" in the mid- to late-1980s, I remember a manic presence named JM (pronounced "Jim") J. Bullock, a co-star from the Ted Knight sitcom "Too Close for Comfort," who seemed to literally bounce off the walls of his game-show cubicle like a human Muppet.

He was diagnosed HIV-positive in 1985, but it was only in 1990 that he acknowledged his homosexuality. In the mid-1980s he had sent out engagement notices including pictures of himself with a pretty woman, but he later admitted she was just a friend and he was attempting to "beard" himself, hiding his true orientation. He is now a longtime survivor of the virus.

When Henry Winkler co-produced a revamped version of "The Hollywood Squares" in the late 1990s, hosted by Tom Bergeron and starring Whoopi Goldberg as the center square, Bruce Vilanch was brought onboard as the in-house gay wit. An openly gay comedy writer, recognizable by his long, unkempt hair, bushy beard, glasses, and offbeat T-shirts covering an obese physique, Vilanch has provided jokes for several hosts of the Academy Awards.

Another popular square on the latest reworking of the game show in the early 2000s was Ellen DeGeneres, who had outed herself on TV and in real life in April of 1997.

Comedy honors have to be paid here to another overtly gay guest panelist who frequently appeared on several games shows, including "The Hollywood Squares," "Match Game," "To Tell the Truth," "The Gong Show," and "The $1.98 Beauty Show" - Rip Taylor, of the walrus mustache, outrageously conspicuous toupee (which he famously discarded in mock indignation on "Super Password"), and trademark paper bag of confetti. Named Las Vegas Entertainer of the Year three times in a row in the 1970s, Taylor has donated a large part of his time to a number of charitable organizations, including AIDS causes.

Perhaps overplaying the queer card, in 2006 the Game Show Network launched a makeover of the game show chestnut "I’ve Got a Secret" featuring - surprise! - an all-gay panel, including humor columnist and onetime "Daily Show" movie critic Frank DeCaro, standup comedians Jermaine Taylor and Suzanne Westenhoefer, along with Billy Bean, a former Major League Baseball outfielder who came out in 1999. If viewers were at first slow on the uptake, the announcer tried to help by introducing host Bill Dwyer as "playing straight to the panel."

Going back to the network executive who told Charles Nelson Reilly, "They don’t let queers on television," Reilly later reportedly had the last laugh when he counted how many game show appearances he would make in the weekly TV Guide.

Reilly’s last laugh was and is shared by Paul Lynde, Rip Taylor. JM J. Bullock, Bruce Vilanch, Ellen DeGeneres, and any of a number of others whose gift for comedy transcends labels and who will forever continue to entertain us on reruns.