Password (American game show)

Password
Also known asPassword All-Stars (1974–75)
GenreGame show
Created byBob Stewart
Directed by
  • Lou Tedesco (1961–67)
  • Mike Gargiulo (1961–67)
  • Stuart W. Phelps (1971–75)
  • Ira Skutch (1971–75)
  • Tony McCuin (2022–)
Presented by
Announcer
Theme music composer
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons
  • 6 (CBS)
  • 5 (ABC)
  • 2 (NBC)
No. of episodes
  • 1,555 (CBS Daytime)
  • 201 (CBS Primetime)
  • 1,099 (ABC)
  • 17 (NBC)
Production
Executive producers
Producer
Production locations
Running time
  • 22–23 minutes (1961–75)
  • 25–26 minutes (1962–67; primetime)
  • 43 minutes (2022–)
Production companies
Original release
NetworkCBS
ReleaseOctober 2, 1961 (1961-10-02) –
September 15, 1967 (1967-09-15)
NetworkABC
ReleaseApril 5, 1971 (1971-04-05) –
June 27, 1975 (1975-06-27)
NetworkNBC
ReleaseAugust 9, 2022 (2022-08-09) –
present
Related
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Password is an American television game show. Two teams, each composed of a celebrity and contestant, attempt to convey mystery words to each other using single-word clues, in order to win cash prizes. Various incarnations of the show have aired on television since the 1960s.

The show was created by Bob Stewart and originally produced by Mark Goodson-Bill Todman Productions. It aired on CBS from 1961 to 1967, and ABC from 1971 to 1975. Versions of the show in the 1970s added a number of gameplay variations, among them a switch to a format with celebrities playing for charity. Allen Ludden was the host of every version aired between 1961 and 1975. Two revivals later aired on NBC: Password Plus from 1979 to 1982, and Super Password from 1984 to 1989. CBS aired a primetime version, Million Dollar Password, from 2008 to 2009. All three of these versions introduced new variations in gameplay. In 2022, NBC premiered another primetime revival of Password hosted by Keke Palmer, with Jimmy Fallon serving as one of the celebrity partners as well as executive producer.