Trivia for seniors about the TV show Queen For A Day
What is “Queen for a Day”?
A: Queen for a Day is an American radio and television game show.
It helped to usher in American listeners' and viewers'
fascination with what?
A: Big-prize giveaway shows.
When and where did Queen for a Day originate?
A: On the Mutual Radio Network on April 30, 1945, in New York City.
Where did it move to a few months later?
A: To Los Angeles and ran until 1957.
When did the show then run?
A: On NBC Television from 1956 to 1960 and on ABC Television from 1960 to
1964.
The show became popular enough that NBC increased what?
A: Its running time from 30 to 45 minutes to sell more commercials, at a
then-premium rate of $4,000 per minute.
The show opened with host Jack Bailey doing what?
A: Asking the audience—mostly women—"Would YOU like to be Queen for a day?"
After this, the contestants were introduced and what?
A: Interviewed, one at a time, with commercials and
fashion commentary
interspersed in between.
Each contestant was asked to talk about what?
A: The recent financial and emotional hard times she had been through.
The interview would climax with Bailey asking the
contestant what?
A: What she needed most and why she wanted to win the title of Queen for a
Day.
Often the request was for what?
A: Medical care or therapeutic equipment to help a chronically ill child, or
might be for a hearing aid, a new washing machine, or a refrigerator.
Many women broke down sobbing as they what?
A: Described their plights.
The winning contestant was selected by the audience
using what?
A: An applause meter; the harsher the contestant's situation, the likelier
the studio audience was to ring the applause meter's highest level.
The winner, to the musical accompaniment of "Pomp and
Circumstance", would be what?
A: Draped in a sable-trimmed red velvet robe, given a glittering jeweled
crown to wear, placed on a velvet-upholstered throne, and handed a dozen
long-stemmed roses to hold while her list of prizes was announced.
The prizes began with what?
A: The help the woman had requested, and included a variety of extras, many
of which were donated by sponsoring companies.
What kind of prizes were they?
A: Prizes such as a vacation trip, a night on the town with her husband,
silver-plated flatware, an array of kitchen appliances, or a selection of
fashion clothing.
The losing contestants were each given whlat?
A: Smaller prizes.
What was Bailey's trademark sign-off?
A: It was: "This is Jack Bailey, wishing we could make every woman a queen,
for every single day!"
The show was not without its critics for doing what?
A: Exploiting people's hardships for profit.
Veteran television writer Mark Evanier has called the
program what?
A: "One of the ghastliest shows ever produced."
Who hosted the original radio version of the show on
the Mutual–Don Lee Radio Network?
A: Ken Murray.
When the series began, in New York City on April 30,
1945, it was titled what?
A: Queen for Today.
A few months later, the show moved to Hollywood and
acquired what more familiar title?
A: Queen for a Day.
Who was the host?
A: Jack Bailey, a former vaudeville musician and World's Fair barker.