Treasure Hunt

Treasure Hunt
Premiere	September 7, 1956
Finale	September 10, 1982
Creator	Jan Murray
Network/Provider	ABC, NBC, Syndication
Style	30-minute game show
Company	Jantone Productions (1956-59) Chuck Barris Enterprises (1973-77, 1981-82)
Seasons	8
Origin	USA

Treasure Hunt was a game show that had three separate runs under two separate production companies. It aired on ABC nighttime, NBC daytime and in syndication.

The original, produced, created and hosted by comedian Jan Murray, had two contestants scoring money in a quiz. The top scorer went on to the Treasure Hunt, selecting one of 30 chests. One of the chests contained the top prize, $25,000 on the ABC nighttime show and $1000 on the NBC daytime show with $100 added each time it was not won. After selecting a chest, the contestant would be offered a set cash amount to take instead of the chest, as some chests contained worthless items. Home viewers were entreated to send in postcards selecting the chest where the top prize was.

Among the many substitute hosts on this version were Yankees play-by-play voice Mel Allen and kids' show host "Buffalo" Bob Smith.

Logo of the Barris revival.

Fourteen years later, Treasure Hunt returned. It eschewed the quiz portion and selected a contestant from the audience to select a gift-wrapped box from among 30 numbered boxes with one box containing $25,000. Here, cash prizes as well as hidden items behind doors were offered in exchange for the selected box. Some items were valuable items while others were worthless (called "clunks"). This edition ran four years and returned in 1981 with a modified contestant selection and a new cash prize structure. The top prizes started at $20,000 and went up $1000 each time it was not won (with a maximum of $50,000).

Cast

Person	Role	Duration
Main Cast
Jan Murray	Host	1	2	3
Geoff Edwards					4	5	6	7	8
Tom Reddy	Announcer	1
Bill Wendell			2	3
Bob Williams			2	3
Carl King			2
Johnny Jacobs					4	5	6	7	8

In-Depth

At a Glance: Additional information about the series