History Series / NameThatTune

** Here's how suspenseful the Mystery Tune was — a manila envelope selected from a lazy-susan placed in a safe backstage (by the producers in the 1976-77 season, by the contestants in 1977-78) was handed to Tom, containing the sheet music (with a piece of tape covering the title) and a smaller envelope containing the general info for the song and with the title. The player was placed in an isolation booth, and could only hear Tom and the piano. The pianist played the song for 20 seconds, then stopped; the player had to guess within the ten seconds that followed. They were then brought out of the booth, and Tom read the background information and any appropriate writing and performing credits for the tune. From there, he announced the title. If the title was an exact match for the contestant's answer, they won a huge (for the time) cash prize — $10,000 a year for a decade on the nighttime show, a flat $25,000 on the '77 daytime show.

After several failed attempts at a revival, Creator/{{Fox}} acquired a new primetime version in November 2020 for a January 2021 premiere, hosted by Creator/JaneKrakowski. Unusually, it is being filmed in Australia with Americans living in the country as contestants. It is stated to be based on the classic 1970's format, with a $100,000 top prize.

After several failed attempts at a revival, Creator/{{Fox}} acquired a new primetime version in November 2020 for a January 2021 premiere, hosted by Creator/JaneKrakowski. Unusually, it is being filmed in Australia with Americans living in the country as contestants.

Red Benson was the original host from 1952, replaced by Creator/BillCullen in 1954. Cullen was replaced in 1955 by George [=DeWitt=], who hosted until the end of the run in 1959. A short-lived revival was hosted by Richard Hayes in 1971, followed by Tom Kennedy hosting a nighttime version from 1974 to 1981. Jim Lange helmed a 1984-85 revival (produced by Sandy Frank, who had distributed the Kennedy run; yes, ''that'' Sandy Frank).

Notably, ''Tune'' was very rare among game shows in that its seven-year UsefulNotes/{{syndicat|ion}}ed run flourished in comparison to a pair of concurrent daytime runs on Creator/{{NBC}}; Dennis James hosted the first one from 1974 to 1975 (which began prior to the nighttime debut), and Kennedy hosted a short-lived one in 1977. In 2017, Creator/{{CBS}} ordered a new version, which will likely be [[DuelingWorks dueling]] with Fox's ''Series/BeatShazam''.

Red Benson was the original host from 1952, replaced by Creator/BillCullen in 1954. Cullen was replaced in 1955 by George [=DeWitt=], who hosted until the end of the run in 1959. A short-lived revival was hosted by Richard Hayes in 1971, followed by Tom Kennedy hosting a nighttime version from 1974 to 1981. Jim Lange helmed a 1984-85 revival.

* HomeGame: An electronic home game was released during the final season of the Kennedy era; uniquely for a game show, an ''arcade'' game was released in 1986 from Bally. A video game adaptation was released for the UsefulNotes/PhilipsCDI in 1994 hosted by Bob Goen, with a format based off the 1990 pilot.

* {{Auction}}: In "Bid-A-Note" the contestants had to do a reverse auction and bid on how ''few'' notes they needed to identify a tune and its clue, starting at seven notes. It ended when:
** A contestant was told "Name That Tune" by his opponent, or
** A contestant said "I can name that tune in one note."
*** If ''this'' was the case then the opponent could say "I can name that tune in NO notes," meaning he had to name it with just the clue alone if he felt he could.
** If notes were involved, though, the winning bidder got to hear the note or notes, then give an answer. If it was right, he won a tune. If not, the opponent did. Three tunes won Bid-A-Note.

** This was extended to a 1-1-2-4 setup in most tournament episodes during Lange's version. (Note that if the players split the first two rounds, the third round became absolutely meaningless, aside from the winner of the third round winning a prize.) At least one $100,000 finals episode had one contestant sweep the first three rounds, only to lose the final round and the tiebreaker question, giving the whole shebang to his opponent.

** GameShowHost: Red Benson, Creator/BillCullen, George [=DeWitt=], Richard Hayes, Dennis James, Tom Kennedy, Jim Lange. Peter Allen hosted an unsold pilot around 1990, and Bob Goen hosted the 1994 [=CDi=] game based off that pilot.

** And the "Name That Tune Orchestra", led by Tommy Oliver, Stan Worth, and Harry Salter.

[[caption-width-right:350:''The $100,000 Name That Tune'' version (1974–81). At center: producer Ralph Edwards and host Tom Kennedy. To the left is featured singer Steve March and to the right are featured singer Monica Burris and orchestra leader Stan Worth.]]

[[caption-width-right:350:''The $100,000 Name That Tune'' version (1974–81). At center: producer/creator Ralph Edwards and host Tom Kennedy. To the left is featured singer Steve March and to the right are featured singer Monica Burris and orchestra leader Stan Worth.]]

[[caption-width-right:350:''The $100,000 Name That Tune'' version (1974–81) with announcer John Harlan and host Tom Kennedy, and the featured performers to either side.]]

Notably, ''Tune'' was very rare among game shows in that its seven-year UsefulNotes/{{syndicat|ion}}ed run flourished in comparison to a pair of concurrent daytime runs on Creator/{{NBC}}; Dennis James hosted the first one from 1974 to 1975 (which began prior to the nighttime debut), and Kennedy hosted a short-lived one in 1977. In 2017, Creator/{{CBS}} ordered a new version, which will likely be [[DuelingShow dueling]] with Fox's ''Series/BeatShazam''.

** This was extended to a 1-1-2-4 setup in most tournament episodes during Lange's version. (Note that if the players split the first two rounds, the third round became absolutely meaningless.) At least one $100,000 finals episode had one contestant sweep the first three rounds, only to lose the final round and the tiebreaker question, giving the whole shebang to his opponent.

* MinigameGame: The 1974-85 versions turned the main game into one, with games such as Melody Roulette (where a two-part wheel was spun to determine a dollar amount and potential bonus), Bid-A-Note (the game ''everyone'' remembers), and the Money Tree ($100 in bills on a fake tree, the opponent plucked money off it while the player tried to guess, whoever had more left won the round; discontinued mainly because Kennedy thought it felt too greedy). The Dennis James version also had a game emulating the format of the 1950s and '71 versions, where players raced to ring a bell to get a chance to guess. The 1976 Kennedy daytime run, meanwhile, had a few exclusive to that run: Build-A-Note, where only one member of the orchestra would start playing the tune and gradually the rest would join in; Pick-A-Prize, where the contestants would compete to name tunes and pick different prizes; and Cassette Roulette, where Tom would pick music cassettes out of a rotating drum.

Notably, ''Tune'' was very rare among game shows in that its seven-year UsefulNotes/{{syndicat|ion}}ed run flourished in comparison to a pair of concurrent daytime runs on Creator/{{NBC}}; Dennis James hosted the first one from 1974 to 1975 (which began prior to the nighttime debut), and Kennedy hosted a short-lived one in 1977.

** TheAnnouncer: Johnny Olson during at least the tail end of the 1950s run, John Harlan from 1974 to 1985.

* AffectionateParody: The late-night talk show ''Series/{{Conan}}'' did an AudienceGame[=/=]sketch called ''Basic Cable Name That Tune'', where the show couldn't afford the rights to play the original songs, and the contestants had to guess the song that the band and homeless lounge singer Brian LaFontaine were performing a [[SuspiciouslySimilarSong suspiciously similar version]] of.

** And Conan O'Brien sometimes features a segment called ''Basic Cable Name That Tune''.

* MinigameGame: The 1974-85 versions turned the main game into one, with games such as Melody Roulette (where a two-part wheel was spun to determine a dollar amount and potential bonus), Bid-A-Note (the game ''everyone'' remembers), and the Money Tree ($100 in bills on a fake tree, the opponent plucked money off it while the player tried to guess, whoever had more left won the round; discontinued mainly because Kennedy thought it felt too greedy). The Dennis James version also had a game emulating the format of the 1950s and '71 versions, where players raced to ring a bell to get a chance to guess.

** Here's how suspenseful the Mystery Tune was — a manila envelope selected from a lazy-susan placed in a safe backstage (by the producers in the 1976-77 season, by the contestants in 1977-78) was handed to Tom, containing the sheet music (with a piece of tape covering the title) and a smaller envelope containing the general info for the song and with the title. The player was placed in an isolation booth, and could only hear Tom and the piano. The pianist played the song for 20 seconds, then stopped; the player had to guess within the ten seconds that followed. They were then brought out of the booth, and Tom read the background information and any appropriate writing and performing credits for the tune. From there, he announced the title. If the title was an exact match for the contestant's answer, s/he won a huge (for the time) cash prize — $10,000 a year for a decade on the nighttime show, a flat $25,000 on the '77 daytime show.

* HomeGame: A video game adaptation was released for the UsefulNotes/PhilipsCDI in 1994 hosted by Bob Goen, and a format based off the 1990 pilot.

** GameShowHost: Red Benson, Creator/BillCullen, George [=DeWitt=], Richard Hayes, Dennis James, Tom Kennedy, Jim Lange. Peter Allen hosted an unsold pilot around 1990.

Red Benson was the original host from 1952, replaced by Creator/BillCullen in 1954. Cullen was replaced in 1955 by George [=DeWitt=], who hosted until the end of the run in 1959. A short-lived revival was hosted by Richard Hayes from 1970 to 1971, followed by Tom Kennedy hosting a nighttime version from 1974 to 1981. Jim Lange helmed a 1984-85 revival.

** This was extended to a 1-1-2-4 setup in most tournament episodes during Jim Lange's version. (Note that if the players split the first two rounds, the third round became absolutely meaningless.) At least one $100,000 finals episode had one contestant sweep the first three rounds, only to lose the final round and the tiebreaker question, giving the whole shebang to his opponent.

** GameShowHost: Red Benson, Creator/BillCullen, George [=DeWitt=], Richard Hayes, Dennis James, Tom Kennedy and Jim Lange. Peter Allen hosted an unsold pilot from 1989/90.

** And the "Name That Tune Orchestra", led by Tommy Oliver, Stan Worth and Harry Salter

** If notes were involved, though, the winning bidder got to hear the note or notes, then give an answer. If it was right, he won a tune. If not, the opponent did. Three tunes won "Bid-A-Note."

* CurbStompBattle: The finals of a 1984 $100,000 Tournament of Champions had finalists Michael Langmay and Hap Trout in a head-to-head Golden Medley Showdown. The final score: 16 to 4! Michael simply destroyed Hap, often naming tunes after just one or two notes had been played. You could see Hap just giving up midway through, waiting for the whole thing to be over with.
* ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin: The show's title tells the contestants exactly what they're supposed to do. In the 1950s and 1974, one had to not only know the tune but also be the first to ring a bell at the opposite end of the stage.

* MinigameGame: The 1970s-80s versions turned the main game into one, with games such as Melody Roulette (where a two-part wheel was spun to determine a dollar amount and potential bonus), Bid-a-Note (the game ''everyone'' remembers), and the Money Tree ($100 in bills on a fake tree, the opponent plucked money off it while the player tried to guess, whoever had more left won the round. Discontinued mainly because Kennedy thought it felt too greedy) The Dennis James daytime version also had a game emulating the format of the original 50's version, where players raced to ring a bell to get a chance to guess.
* SelfDeprecation: After wrapping production on the 1976-77 season (the first with the $100,000 top prize), the staff produced an extra, 40-minute episode for showing at the annual Christmas party — either a very disturbing look at a television classic, or one of the most magnificent "gag reels" ever. Using the show's set and props, Kennedy and the staff poked fun at the quiz show scandals, made tons of [[RefugeInAudacity bawdy]] and [[CrossesTheLineTwice line-crossing jokes]], gave away wildly-fluctuating amounts of cash, and had men in drag modeling crappy prizes. Notable among the rampant anarchy are the Money Trees — this spoof was the absolute final time ''Tune'' used them, as they were removed from the format when tapings began for the 1977-78 season.
** The episode begins with Irma Crotch returning from "last time" to try for $100,000, and promptly gets locked in an isolation booth for the rest of the show; the day's two contestants are introduced — Tommy Schmucker (bandleader Tommy Oliver; musicologist Harvey Bacal led the band) and Teresa Tushie (production assistant Peggy Touchstone); Kennedy tries to begin the Money Tree round.
** The Money Tree round then begins, heavily skewed toward Teresa; Tom checks up on Irma Crotch ([[WhatHappenedToTheMouse this is the last time she appears]]); Melody Roulette is played (and Tom offers ''himself'' as the prize on the last tune), but quickly runs out of time!
** [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lbt7fj8w12A Part 3]]: John Harlan speeds through some prize plugs, after which the contestants (attempt to) play Bid-A-Note; Tommy wins the round, but the judges notify Tom that Teresa is in fact the big winner because she's got the biggest tits; John Harlan describes a ring being worn by a model on "her" '''middle finger''' — "she" then gets humped by Tommy, causing Harlan to laugh while trying to describe a broken watch.
** Teresa then plays an incredibly rigged Golden Medley for $15,000 in prizes (including an unseen car), then wins; Uncle Sam and Tommy come back out to essentially hump Teresa, and Tom decides to take off his pants — but hikes them right back up because the missus was in the audience.

* TransatlanticEquivalent: A British version produced by Creator/ThamesTelevision ran from 1976 to 1988; Channel 5 ran a revival from 1997-98. Other countries, like Germany, Brazil and Italy have also made their own adaptations.

* ConfettiDrop: Confetti, balloons and streamers were dropped after $100,000 wins on the Lange version. The massive amounts of them that dropped, however, meant that viewers couldn't see much of what was happening onstage.

** GameShowHost: Red Benson, Creator/BillCullen, George [=DeWitt=], Richard Hayes, Dennis James, Tom Kennedy and Jim Lange.

Notably, ''Tune'' was very rare among game shows in that its seven-year {{syndicat|ion}}ed run flourished in comparison to a pair of concurrent daytime runs on Creator/{{NBC}}; Dennis James hosted the first one from 1974 to 1975 (which began prior to the nighttime debut), and Kennedy hosted a short-lived one in 1977.