The idea that charisma can be boiled down to a simple mathematic formula seems like an insult to the people who have made a career out of being just that – charismatic – on TV. However, whenever there’s a history of something going well, there’ll be somebody who finds a way to break it apart, whether as a teaching moment or as a tribute to the people who have truly mastered a difficult craft.
Of course, one of the places where charisma is needed the most is on TV, specifically, on game shows – but is it really possible to reduce the art of hosting to a few key points?
Different Impressions
The game show attracts a lot of contradictory opinions. On the one hand, legendary hosts like Pat Sajak, Bob Barker, Alex Trebek, and Richard Dawson are known for their magnetism and ability to draw an audience into what might otherwise be quite a mundane spectacle. After all, without a timer or an opposition, the humble quiz isn’t always the most electrifying thing on TV.
On the other hand, the game show is also sometimes considered the death knell of a celebrity’s career, a place where the only people watching are doing so as they’ve got nothing better to do. Yet, both of these different impressions can be true. Not every game show is a Family Fortunes or Jeopardy!, and not every presenter has the appeal of The Newlywed Game’s Bob Eubanks.
As entertainment has evolved, the need for a spellbinding host has grown. In the world of bingo, for instance, the presenter or “caller” has long been the linchpin in each game. The pastime’s shift online did take this essential element out of the game but the online bingo live at Buzz Bingo has recently seen the return of human callers, in the shape of veteran hosts Roger and Devin.
Character Traits
In the latter case, Buzz Bingo’s presenters list their qualifications right on the page but an article from Rolling Stone recently insisted that the art of game show hosting is all about four “T”s. These are Tenderness, Temperament, the ability to perform as a Therapist, and the slightly more awkward (multi) Tasking. These four character traits combined should, in theory, create a game show titan like Pat Sajak.
While things are obviously a little more complicated than that, the four Ts ultimately mean that a presenter has to act as a kind of compassionate leader, able to manage the game seamlessly while keeping the contestants under control. As emotions can run high on game shows, hosts also need to be able to deal with the fallout of winning and losing, hence the third T, Therapy.
Arguably the most interesting (and difficult) aspect of presenting is represented by Tenderness. This doesn’t refer to some touchy-feely manner but rather the host’s skill at getting people to talk about themselves. In much the same way as a sob story works wonders on American Idol, a comedic or heartfelt tale can be entertaining for a game show audience too.
Overall, while the four Ts might offer a basic template for presenting Jeopardy! or Wheel of Fortune, the legends of the game show circuit may well have been born that way – not created in a corporate studio.
Image Credit: Photo by Austin Distel on Unsplash