Bowling for Dollars

1972–2008· 30 min★ 6.5·

Bowling for Dollars is a television game show on which people could play the sport of bowling to win cash and sometimes prizes based on how well they bowled. Unlike most TV game shows of the time, which were taped in New York or Hollywood and broadcast nationally, Bowling for Dollars was produced by local TV stations and only had contestants from the immediate area. The show was actually a franchise, created by Bert Claster of Claster Television, also the creator of Romper Room. Episodes of Bowling for Dollars were taped either in a local bowling alley, or on a pair of bowling lanes constructed right inside the TV studio. The show reached its heyday in the 1970s. The most recent station to air the format was Buffalo, New York's WGRZ, in an abbreviated format from January to February 2008. Detroit, Michigan independent station WADL has plans on relaunching Bowling for Dollars in September 2013.