The Match Game Pilot was taped on MAY 19,1973 at CBS Television City in Hollywood. It is the same Match Game we all love, but there were some minor differences. So for the first time on the internet, here are the actual pictures from the pilot. So now you can see what stayed, and what went.

TIME FOR ROUND ONE.

You can see that the contestant podium is different than the one they had on Match Game 73-77. Some of the questions asked were either fill in the blank, or name something. Here is an example: Name some thing a baby does more than an adult. Some celebrities put down "wet the bed" or "cries".

The winner after two rounds would go on to play the JACKPOT MATCH which could pay off over $5,000.

This is the JACKPOT MATCH, which later became the SUPER MATCH. The Jackpot Match was played exactly the same way as the Super Match. Whatever the contestant won on the Jackpot Match, they would then play for ten times that amount.

This contestant would play for $5,000. There was not a neon display that read $5000. Instead, $5000 was flashed on the screen.

When the celebrity matched a contestant's answer, the green triangle or the red circle would turn off from the panel and light up at the contestant's podium instead of lighting up at the panel and the contestants podium.

This has been a look at the pilot that started one of America's favorite game show, Match Game. About two months after the taping of the pilot, Match Game 73 aired on CBS and would soon become the number one daytime game show until 1978. I hope you enjoyed this special tour of the Match Game Pilot.