Chuck Barris was a TV visionary, developing shows in the 70s that were decades ahead of their time. But was he also a covert assassin for the CIA?
AI Summary
# Chuck Barris: The King of Schlock Television
This episode dives into the wild life of Chuck Barris, the legendary game show producer and host who created some of television's most outrageous and innovative programming in the 1960s and 70s. From inventing the dating game format to hosting the bizarre and beloved Gong Show, Barris revolutionized TV entertainment—though often in controversial and deeply misogynistic ways. But here's where it gets really weird: decades after his TV career ended, Barris wrote an autobiography claiming he was secretly a CIA assassin who carried out 33 contract killings while producing hit shows, a wild story that inspired George Clooney's directorial debut film and still leaves people guessing whether it was truth, fiction, or just an elaborate prank.
Movies Discussed
30 Rock
"He started out like Kenneth from 30 Rock, didn't last. — Josh makes a comparison to a character from 30 Rock when discussing Chuck Barris's early career path."
— Josh
America's Got Talent
"I thought this would be basically what we see now with like America's Got Talent, like a real talent show with real amateur talent. — Josh uses America's Got Talent as a modern comparison to what Chuck Barris initially envisioned The Gong Show to be."
— Josh
American Bandstand
"His sole job was to go babysit Dick Clark to make sure that he wasn't accepting bribes on American Bandstand. — Dick Clark hosted American Bandstand, and Chuck Barris was assigned to watch him during the payola scandal."
— Josh
Autofocus
"The Bob Crane movie. What was that one? Autofocus, right? Yes. — Josh and Chuck discuss Autofocus as an example of early 2000s polished filmmaking."
— Chuck
Back to School
"They probably played at a party in Back to School. — Chuck speculates that Oingo Boingo's 'Dead Man's Party' was used in the 1986 movie Back to School."
— Chuck
Batman
"He also did Batman. — Danny Elfman composed the score for Tim Burton's Batman films."
— Chuck
Catch Me If You Can
"Catch Me If You Can, I think, is the pinnacle example of this, where these movies are so refined and so polished. — Chuck cites Catch Me If You Can as the ultimate example of overly polished early 2000s filmmaking."
— Chuck
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind
"That was a book called Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, also made into a film of that same name. — Chuck Barris's autobiography was adapted into a film, which is a key focus of the episode."
— Josh
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Little Orphan Annie
"Andrea McCardell was a 12-year-old who performed on the Gong Show, and she would get cast as the Broadway lead in Annie. — A young Andrea McCardell was discovered on The Gong Show and cast in the Broadway production of Annie."
— Josh
Mystery Men
"But he did a great turn in Mystery Men as the Spleen, remember? — Paul Reubens had a role in the 1999 superhero comedy Mystery Men."
— Josh
Oingo Boingo: Halloween '87
"The band Oingo Boingo, when they were the Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo...appeared on The Gong Show. — Oingo Boingo performed on The Gong Show early in their career."
— Josh
Pee-wee's Big Adventure
"Certainly Pee Wee's Big Adventure he composed. — Danny Elfman composed the theme for Pee-wee's Big Adventure."
— Josh
Pee-wee's Playhouse
"He composed the theme to Pee Wee Herman's Pee Wee's Playhouse. — Danny Elfman composed the theme for Pee-wee's Playhouse."
— Josh
Ringmaster
"Have you ever seen Ringmaster, the Jerry Springer movie? — Josh compares Ringmaster to The Gong Show movie as another example of a TV personality playing themselves in a fictionalized film."
— Josh
Sherman Oaks
"Sherman Oaks in the 90s. I never watched that. — Mentioned as a cult classic created by Chris Beard, who also created The Gong Show."
— Chuck
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The $1.98 Beauty Show
"The only one I will mention is the only one from this list that I really watched, which was the $1.98 beauty show hosted by the late great Rip Taylor. — Josh mentions this as one of the shows he watched that came from Chuck Barris Productions."
— Josh
The Dating Game
"In 1965, he developed the dating game, turned around and sold it to his former employer, ABC. — The Dating Game was one of Chuck Barris's most successful creations."
— Josh
The Gong Show
"If this were the Gong Show, we would have been Gong a very long time ago. — Josh opens the episode by making a reference to The Gong Show, the main subject of the episode."
— Josh
The Gong Show Movie
"Before he made one final mistake, which was in 1980, The Gong Show movie, pretty much universally known as one of the worst movies ever made. — Chuck Barris directed and starred in a movie adaptation of The Gong Show in 1980."
— Josh
The Match Game
"They were game show celebrities. Kind of like match game level stuff. — Chuck uses Match Game as a reference point for the level of celebrities who appeared on The Gong Show."
— Chuck
The Newlywed Game
"He followed up the dating game with the Newlywed game. — The Newlywed Game was another major game show created by Chuck Barris."
— Josh
The Simpsons
"One of which was the Simpsons theme. — Danny Elfman, former lead singer of Oingo Boingo, composed the theme for The Simpsons."
— Josh
Three Hours in the Life of a Woman
"Anna Kendrick's directorial debut, she knocked it out of the park, I think. It's a really effective movie about the true story of a dating game bachelor, Rodney Alcala. — Josh plugs Anna Kendrick's directorial debut film about a serial killer who appeared on The Dating Game."
— Josh
Weird Science
"Their biggest hit was Weird Science. — Chuck refers to Oingo Boingo's biggest hit, which was the song from the 1985 movie."
— Chuck
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