Spring Break
Chuck Barris signs new book on campus
By: Chris Sannino
Issue date: 5/4/07 Section: News
Originally published: 5/4/07 at 3:26 AM EST
Last update: 5/4/07 at 3:29 AM EST
Originally published: 5/4/07 at 3:26 AM EST
Last update: 5/4/07 at 3:29 AM EST
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"This is the best book that I have ever written," Barris said, prefacing the night.
The Big Question is set in 2012 America where there is new government and barely any censorship. It is the story of an emerging game show in which contestants have only one question to answer. Their answer determines whether they will receive copious amounts of cash or kill themselves on national television.
"This is a commentary of mine," Barris said, "It's pointed at the networks, and cable companies, and national syndicators."
Barris went on to criticize television networks for dropping standards in order to boost their ratings. Barris also commented on a recent survey conducted by NBC which showed that that 45 percent of the Americans would watch a nationally broadcast execution.
Barris is best known for creating game shows like The Newlywed Game, The Dating Game and The Gong Show.
"I would like to be remembered as an author, but I don't stand a chance," Barris said. "The epitaph will read 'He finally got gonged.'"
A 1953 graduate of Drexel University, Chuck Barris was once a columnist for The Triangle.
"You could say I got my start writing at The Triangle," Barris said in an interview.
Also included in his writing credits is Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, his "unauthorized autobiography."
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind was turned into a major motion picture in which Barris' character is portrayed as an assassin for the CIA throughout the 1960s and 70s. While taking questions from the Drexel audience, he was asked whether he ever had any involvement in the CIA.
Barris refused to confirm an answer to the question which has been asked since the book's publication in 1984: Is he really an assassin?
Widely acclaimed as the father of reality television, Barris said, "What I brought to television was spontaneity. If I'm responsible for all of those reality shows, then I'm sorry."
Barris went on to talk about his distaste for reality television today and how he never watched other game shows, even during his career. He feared that they would influence his original thoughts. His delivery was laid back and he laughed with his audience about his experiences on his favorite creation, The Gong Show.
"I had a great time," Barris said. "It was five years of bliss."
After the presentation, Barris held a brief book signing session in the Bossone Lobby.
"Chuck has been able to have a tremendous amount of fun in television," said Allen Sabinson, dean of Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts and Design. "He shows that if you are going to work that hard at something throughout your life, it's important to have some fun in the process."
