Love Connection
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Contents |
[edit] Hosts
- Chuck Woolery (1983-1995)
- Pat Bullard (1998-2000)
[edit] Announcers
- Rod Roddy (1983-1985)
- Rich Jeffries (1985-1986)
- Gene Wood (1986-1988)
- Johnny Gilbert (1988-1989)
- John Cervenka (1989-1995 & 1998-2000)
[edit] Crew
- Eric Lieber - executive producer and creator
[edit] 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 single, 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 (twice, in some cases). Daters were given $75 for the date (mentioned on a 1991 episode re-aired on GSN) during the show's initial run. This amount was increased to $100 for the 1998-2000 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 2nd 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.
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 LC'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.
This show was produced by Eric Lieber Productions in association with and distributed by: Telepictures (1983-86, 1998-2000); Lorimar-Telepictures (1986-89); Lorimar Television (1989-90); Warner Bros. Television (1990-95).
[edit] Notes
| Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones. |
- Reruns of Love Connection previously aired on the USA Network and can currently be seen daily on GSN. Before January 1, 2007, GSN aired 1988-1992 episodes; for Valentine's Day 2004, older episodes were shown. Currently, the network is airing episodes from 1984 and 1985.
- In Tone Loc's song Funky Cold Medina, the third verse describes his experiences after being on Love Connection.
- Chuck Woolery created his trademark phrase "Two and Two", meaning 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 2 minutes;" initially however, he said "two minutes (&) two seconds" prior to creating the catchphrase).
- The June 1994 issue of Mad Magazine depicted Alfred E. Neuman as a contestant on Love Connection.
- Love Connection is referenced in the episode My Cake of the show Scrubs.
- For most of Love Connection's run, Woolery also hosted the daytime game show Scrabble on NBC.
- In the Beavis and Butt-head episode Dream On, Butt-head dreams about being on the Love Connection.
- There was a Lesbian in one episode pretending to be a man, she was one of the 3 "guys" for the female contestant to choose from, the female contestant picked the "man" that was really another woman, and during the post-date interview they both just kept smiling and giggling. Chuck Woolery seemed to have no clue, but the two contestant seemed to be in on this joke.
Categories: Cleanup from January 2007 | All pages needing cleanup | Articles with trivia sections from June 2007 | American game shows | USA Network shows | Television series by Warner Bros. Television | First-run syndicated television programs | 1980s American television series | 1990s American television series | 1983 television series debuts | 1995 television series endings | 1998 television series debuts | 2000 television series endings
