In North America, before there were cable, set-top boxes, satellite dishes, and 63 inch HDTV plasma monitors - people sat around a television set watching a 10 inch screen. Sometimes the black and white picture was a bit fuzzy as an airplane flew by or a pet cat jumped on top of the set because the television signal was received "through the air" by an antenna on the top of the set - an antenna which was known as "rabbit ears".
Commercial telecasting began in a few cities about 1946. Most of the programming was "live" and consisted primarily of variety entertainments, with a few programs for children, and a number of educational subjects for the first few years. Live coverage of baseball games were added in 1947. Many people at first viewed television in a bar or tavern, but by 1951 when nationwide network telecasting in the United States became a reality, the market for home television viewing began to be established. The next few years witnessed the introduction of color, 14 inch screens, filmed productions from Hollywood, a growth in program content, and the proliferation of television into Canada and eventually into Mexico and then Europe, Asia, and Africa.
As television program content grew, so did the number of hours - adults and children and families with their friends - spend each evening sitting with their attention focused on a television set. This new leisure pattern took away from many other popular activities, such as playing board and table games. Recognizing this, and rather than "fight" this trend, game manufacturers drew upon television programming content and began to market board games and playing card games based upon popular television shows. However, many of these games were no different from older games the public was familiar with - only the boxes, the internal graphics, and the advertising had the look of television programs. Through the foresight of a Board Member and major donor to the Museum, the Museum collection includes about a hundred different games based upon popular television programs though the years.
In their book, The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows (New York: Ballantine Books, 1999) Tim Brooks and Earle Marsh in analyzing television program content from 1946 through 1999 indicated that at different periods of time, content changed. While presentation of the games on this Website could be organized in relation to the content periods indicated by Brooks and Marsh, or in relation to television genre such as scifi, soap opera, adventure, etc., it seems more logical to just list the television program titles in alphabetical order. (In some instances the game name is a variation of the actual television program title.) Thus, below is an alphabetical list of the games presented on individual Web pages throughout this Section. CLICK on a letter across the top of the list to go down the alphabet. For example, if you're interested in a television program name that starts with the letter "P" - click on the "P" - then click on the name to be taken directly to the Webpage where information about the telecast and the game is presented. (Please note: If you are interested in The Price is Right, you'll find it under the letter "P", The Bionic Woman is under the letter "B", etc.)
A--B--
C--D--E--F--
G--H--I--J--
K--L--M--
N--
O--P--Q--R--
S--T--U--V--
W--X--Y--
Z
A
All In The Family
B
Banana Splits
Baretta
Barney Miller
Batman
Battlestar Galactica
Beat The Clock
Beverly Hillbillies, The
Bionic Woman, The
C
Charlie's Angels
Chips
Columbo
Concentration
D
Dallas
Dukes of Hazzard
Dynomutt
E
Emergency
F
Fall Guy, The
Family Feud
Fantasy Island
Flintstones, The
G
G.I. Joe
Great Grape Ape, The
Grizzly Adams (Life & Times of)
H
Happy Days
Hardy Boys
Hollywood Squares
I
J
Jeopardy
Joker's Wild, The
K
L
Leave It To Beaver
Let's Make A Deal
Love Boat, The
M
Man From Uncle, The
M*A*S*H
Masters of the Universe, The
Mating Game, The
Merv Griffen's Word For Word
Mork and Mindy
N
National Velvet
New Zoo Revue, The
O
P
Partridge Family, The
Password
Patty Duke Show, The
Perry Mason
Price Is Right, The
Q
R
Rifleman, The
S
Scoobydoo
Sesame Street
Six Million Dollar Man, The
Space 1999
Star Trek
T
Twelve O'clock High
U
V
Video Village
W
Wheel Of Fortune
Wonder Woman
X
Y
Z
Last update May 23, 2010