50 Grand Slam
50 Grand Slam was NBC's attempt to bring big money back to the game show genre. Contestants with the courage to go for broke could win all the way up to $50,000!
50 Grand Slam lasted for 13 weeks, from Octber 4, 1976, to December 31, 1976. During its run, five contestants won the top prize of $50,000. All total, contestants won over $385,000.
Tom Kennedy hosted 50 Grand Slam between stints with Break The Bank, which ended its run earlier that summer, and Name That Tune, which premiered the following Monday after the cancellation of 50 Grand Slam. On the final show, Tom said, "I'll see you Monday on Name That Tune."
Interestingly enough during this time in 1976 on NBC, Tom Kennedy and Allen Ludden once again had game shows on back-to-back time slots. Who could ever forget their earlier successful runs on ABC with Split Second and Password? Ludden's Stumpers premiered and was cancelled on the exact same dates as 50 Grand Slam.
On both of their premieres, Tom and Allen appeared on each other's shows to plug their new shows and wish each other good luck.
Successful contestants moved up the following money levels to the final prize of $50,000:
