Columbia TriStar Television
Maybe feeling like a game-show winner himself, Donny Osmond has snagged a second chance at hosting a syndicated strip. While it's not a done deal yet, Columbia TriStar Television Distribution is expected to green-light Osmond-hosted Pyramid, a $100,000 version of the classic $25,000Pyramid.
Osmond (of canceled CTTD talker Donny & Marie) will steer basically the same format as the original which could, in fact, help the show get off to a good start. The original Pyramid
ran on ABC and later CBS as $10,000Pyramid
from 1972 to 1980 and then on CBS as $25,000Pyramid
from 1982 to 1986. There was also a 1985-86 $100,000 Pyramid, which ran in syndication.
And, hey, the show nabbed the best-game-show Emmy seven times.
However, Osmond does have big shoes to fill, stepping in for TV perennial Dick Clark, who hosted all three past versions.
In contrast, Osmond's Donny & Marie
never got off the ground, getting yanked after two seasons. But "it wasn't that Donny didn't work out. People love him," insists one source. "Donny is meant to be a game-show host. He's a young Dick Clark."
The source adds, "Jon Stewart had failed shows [before finding success] with The Daily Show."
And, to its credit, CTTD can produce a game show. The studio is a key force behind syndicated long-term leaders, Wheel of Fortune
and Jeopardy.
Show: Pyramid
Studio/Distributor: Columbia TriStar Television Distribution
Barter: N/A
Clearance: N/A
Debut: Fall 2001
