Allen Ludden was an asshole. Eva Gabor? National treasure

Eva Gabor was anything but ditzy. In fact, until she put on her 'Eva Gabor' make-up and fake hair, she didn't even really look like 'Eva Gabor.' The accent was real. I give you that. I had occasion to meet her in the 1980s and work on a project in which she was involved. She was a total pro and well liked by everyone involved. She was terrific.

Zsa Zsa, on the other hand....

Yeah, Allen Ludden was definitely not nearly as intelligent as he thought he was.

Another thing you notice when watching 70s/80s game shows is that the male hosts were all jackasses. I like Alex Trebek now, but he was insufferable on earlier shows.

Was Allen Funt an asshole or a National Treasure?

I've never noticed how queeny Allen Ludden was until seeing the '70s Password Plus when he'd wear those brown leather jackets.

Oh, my gosh, Eva Gabor was hilarious in that episode! She made the show fun. I like her a little bit more after watching that.

Allen Ludden was a big Queen. Betty White is gay. Eva Gabor was gay - Merv's beard. All these poor bastards lived their entire lives in the closet.

Allen Ludden and Betty White I've always heard where gay. But never Eva Gabor! Is that so??

*were

What's up with the female contestants being asked "what does your husband do?" not what do you do or what or your interests.

R9, are you really not familiar with how life was different in the past?

R10 I'm familiar but it's just jarring. Here is this woman, her one chance in the spotlight on national tv which had to have been a big fucking deal in the '60s, and she's reduced to "what does your husband do?"

R11, that's why Betty Friedan's head exploded and the feminist movement was born.

Allen only married Betty because he was a sex addict. He used to make her do filthy things in his car on their way home.

I love watching these old game shows on Buzzr.

I was watching Tattletales last week, and Jack Carter and his wife were on. They clearly hated each other; they could barely disguise their contempt for each other. At the part of the show where the couples change places and they greet each other with a kiss before they switch seats, Jack and his wife totally ignored each other and passed by each other without saying a word. It was hilarious.

So I looked them up and saw that they got divorced the same year those Tattletales episodes aired. Interestingly, though, they ended up remarrying 15 years later and stayed married until he died.

I think technically, she's a Hungarian national treasure.

If you watch the 1960s Password episodes, Allen Ludden takes way too long to acknowledge the audience's applause when he enters — not just once, but every damn episode.

Then he whips his microphone cord in a queenly fashion and sashays to the podium.

R16 Speaking of...

Patty Duke was a game show star!

I watched an episode of Password Plus with Robert Urich and Bart Braverman. Was Bart Braverman considered hot?

R19 No. Absolutely not.

I have an online friend who was an actress ages ago that had some minor roles in TV and Film who later turn to writing (in porn no less) who worked as secretary for Eva and she said she was awful. The whole family was nasty and arrogant. She also worked for Jane Russell, who she said was very nice.

Thanks OP. I loved all of them, even Alan Ludden. Eva was delightful, much less full of herself than her cunty sister Zsa Zsa.

Hugh O'Brian was handsome as ever, and Allan Ludden tried hard to contain his drool over our handsome Hugh.

R21 Are you speaking of Raven Touchstone, aka Penny Antine?

R23 Yes, that would be her.

R24 I didn't know she worked for Eva Gabor. She's had quite a fascinating life.

R25 She has. She's a sharp lady, too. Even at now at age 80. She should really put out a book.

Eva might have been online those people who's a cunt to the "help" and generally nice to most other people and have a good public image. Zsa Zsa couldn't even bother to do that, most of the time.

I forgot to mention in my above post Penny/Raven decided to go with the porn script writer gig so she could quit her job as Eva's secretary. This was around 1984.

Allen Ludden originally the host of the GE College Bowl, which was a much more "high class" game show. So e probably thought "Password" was beneath him.

R27 That would make a great book title - "Eva Gabor Forced me into Porn."

No one else finds Hugh attractive?

R30 Oh, hell, yes! He was one hot man!

"Allen Ludden certainly seemed to act like he was smarter than the room"

He was.

Hugh, may I see you naked?

Was Allen Ludden really gay? I hadn't heard this rumor.

[quote]Was Allen Ludden really gay? I hadn't heard this rumor.

Allen, sizing up which lucky young student would have the pleasure of coming in his College Bowl that night.

R4 damn everyone in the 70s seemed queeny, esp game show hosts. But I agree I’ve always found something humorless and insufferable about him. Betty never took herself seriously at all, and he always took himself way too seriously. They were kind of annoying as a couple tbh — she was better off without him.

Hugh O'Brien seemed like a genuinely nice guy.

Who cares about Eva Gabor?Hugh O’Brien was smokin’ hot!

[quote] Who cares about Eva Gabor?Hugh O’Brien was smokin’ hot!

Yes, Hugh was very hot here in his tight suit. But Eva was funny with her "puff" = "poof".

R18, the nice thing about Patty Duke showing up as a game show celebrity is, you never know which of her personalities you are gonna get.

During a visit to LA as a gaying the most glamorous thing I saw in my life was Eva Gabor driving her silver Rolls on Sunset in BH, all windows down with two silver Russian Wolfhounds leaning out the back window, their long fur flowing in the wind I was 8.

I let out a gay gasp and my mother said "Oh, that's Eva Gabor" which meant nothing to me, but I knew I was in the presence of a Goddess.

R41, you are thinking of Zsa Zsa.

No, it was Eva.

Why does no one ever talk about Magda?

Magda bowled 280 at the Lanes in Palm Springs. The Gabors loved to bowl. True story.

You know, the three Gabor sisters, Magda, Zsa-Zsa, and Eva, were Princesses in their native Hungary, before being forced to flee to America during the troubles of the last century.

They were born royal, unlike some people *cough* MM *cough*

Yes, indeed. Hugh O'Brian was very, very nice.

spank me, Hugh

[quote]You know, the three Gabor sisters, Magda, Zsa-Zsa, and Eva, were Princesses in their native Hungary, before being forced to flee to America during the troubles of the last century.

The Other version of their story is that they weren't sisters at all, but whores who worked at the same Hungarian brothel for the "mother", Madam Jolie

Madam Jolie brought them to Hollywood as a "Sister Act" and gave them enough cosmetic surgery to pass them off as biological sisters.

Whatever version of their story is true - I'm surprised Hollywood hasn't mined their story for retelling. What a great visual image, R41 - that story alone should be enough to get a Production Deal for the Gabor Story.

But I suppose Ryan Murphy will run out of material and fvck it up eventually

“Is it Miss or Mrs?”

Eva Gabor is funny.

But Carol Channing puts the whole thing in her pocket.

R52 She was upstaged by Lucy's dentures.

Was anyone in the Password studio audience under the age of 55?

Or non-white?

When I first moved to West Hollywood in the mid 70s I joined the Beverly Hills Health club on Santa Monica Blvd. It had a great sundeck on the roof where all the hot guys would go to relax in the sun after they finished working out. It was towel optional. Much cruising. I have a clear memory of seeing Alan Ludden lurking around there several times a week. Just by following where his eyes landed you could tell he was totally gay.

Eva and Zsa Zsa looked too much alike to not be related. My grandmother knew too much about them and whispered into my ear that Whore Magda was their real mother.

[quote]Allen Ludden and Betty White I've always heard were gay. But never Eva Gabor! Is that so??

And who was Eva's best friend???

Suzanne Pleshette!

Or non-white?

Are you new here?

Carol Channing was Colored, honey

R55, they were all under 35. People just looked older then.

Zsa-Zsa really was the beauty in that family.

R62 makes a living sucking shit out of old mens' assholes. Dick Van Patten and Jerry Stiller were very pleased with his services,

[Quote]Eva, the real beauty of the family as described by the author, did volunteer work for the March of Dimes, the Polio Fund, City of Hope, raising money for New York's Bravest and Finest.

Quote]she was married five times but also a lesbian, Zsa Zsa's daughter, Francesca told the author.

Quote]Eva had a liaison with Marlene Dietrich and later served as a beard for TV personality Merv Griffin who was gay.

^^ Fail. No idea why this didn't work. Info is from the DM

I've told this story before but it bears repeating.

A gay uncle who was a UCLA student at the time was picked up by Allen Ludden while hitch hiking home from classes.

Ludden asked my uncle if he was free-balling. When my uncle said yes Ludden said he couldn't do so because his cock would be down to his knees.

Ludden gave my uncle his business card and told him to call anytime. Before handing over the card he wrote his home number on the back. He was married to Betty White at this time. I doubt those two homos even lived together

R16, On the older shows, he used to look into the camera during his hammy entrance and say "Hi, doll".

Viewers assumed he was saying it to Betty until it was revealed he was speaking to his mother-in-law and faithful viewer, Tess White.

Judging from the vintage Password episodes on YouTube, Carol Burnett was on more often than any other celebrity.

Peter Lawford held the show's record for the quickest Lightning Round.

Hiding in plain sight

R66 I don't think the term "free balling" was a thing back then.

^^pedantic incel

R66 Why was your uncle hitch hiking home from UCLA? Did he live in Fullerton?

R67 fuck anyone who is that chummy with their MIL has to be gay.

Fun fact: Betty White is half Greek. (Not Lebanese, but Greek)

Which half?

The bottom half

Who the fuck are these people?

I loved Password and Allen Ludden when I was a kid in the 1970s. I thought he did great. Also, check out Alex Trebek on "The Wizard of Odds" he was smokin' hot and had a pornstache.

r77 Don't forget High Roller with DL fave Miss Ruta Lee!

I've seen Alex Trebek on some of the old reruns of Classic Concentration and he's big time hitting on the attractive female contestants. Giving Richard Dawson a run for his money, only with no Kissing Bandit shenanigans. Just lewd come ons and leering.

Alex was hot as hell back in the day.

Hold your tongues, ladies. If Betty White sees this thread, they’ll be hell to pay.

Thanks to this thread, I'll never be able to unsee Ludden's weird microphone-whipping entrance.

He looks as if he had impeccable anal hygiene.

He looks like a vicious queen.

Nice pic R83. I had really forgotten what a good look the leisure suit was.

Any chance it will come back in style soon?

[quote]Was Bart Braverman considered hot?

That's why I gave him a job

It's sad to see ol' Lucy as a celebrity on some of these shows. She's not all that funny nor is she all that great at game play. In fact sometimes there seems to be an undercurrent of almost meanness.

Lucy had a flask on her lap on every on of those shows.

R88, she did these shows to take her mind off of Desi's whoring, if only for 1/2 hour.

I need a cigarette.

Come on DL! All this talk of celebrity guests from the '60s, including Lucy, and not one "Vivian Vance" comment yet. I'm disappointed.

Allen Ludden gave David Letterman his card too.