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This photo from the CTV version of Fractured Phrases is actually from the show's second season when Les Lye took over from Jim as the host.
This photo from the CTV version of Fractured Phrases is actually from the show's second season when Les Lye took over from Jim as the host.
Fractured Phrases was created by Art Baer and Ben Joelson. Baer and Joelson actually put the pilot episode of the show together in Canada and asked Jim to come up from the U.S. to host it. The duo then planned to sell the pilot in the United States. NBC picked up the series for its daytime schedule in September 1965 but Art James landed the hosting job. However, the CTV network in Canada was also interested in the series so Jim got the nod and landed his first game show. In fact, the CTV version premiered two weeks before the NBC series.
Fractured Phrases was created by Art Baer and Ben Joelson. Baer and Joelson actually put the pilot episode of the show together in Canada and asked Jim to come up from the U.S. to host it. The duo then planned to sell the pilot in the United States. NBC picked up the series for its daytime schedule in September 1965 but Art James landed the hosting job. However, the CTV network in Canada was also interested in the series so Jim got the nod and landed his first game show. In fact, the CTV version premiered two weeks before the NBC series.
Two teams consisting of two contestants each competed to guess phonetic versions of well-known phrases. To get a general idea of how Fractured Phrases was played, think of the box game Mad Gab. The host read a phrase shown on the game board (ex: Inner Santa's Abe Abe). One team member repeated the phrase to his/her partner in a designated time limit while the other player tried to guess the actual phrase. In our example, the phrase was "Innocent as a babe." If the team correctly guessed the phrase within the time limit, they scored two points. If the player did not guess the word, the team received a second chance at the word with the guesser repeating the phrase to the first player. If the phrase was guessed, the team still scored two points. If both team members failed to guess the phrase, the opposing team got a crack at the phrase for one point. The first team to score ten points won the game.
Two teams consisting of two contestants each competed to guess phonetic versions of well-known phrases. To get a general idea of how Fractured Phrases was played, think of the box game Mad Gab. The host read a phrase shown on the game board (ex: Inner Santa's Abe Abe). One team member repeated the phrase to his/her partner in a designated time limit while the other player tried to guess the actual phrase. In our example, the phrase was "Innocent as a babe." If the team correctly guessed the phrase within the time limit, they scored two points. If the player did not guess the word, the team received a second chance at the word with the guesser repeating the phrase to the first player. If the phrase was guessed, the team still scored two points. If both team members failed to guess the phrase, the opposing team got a crack at the phrase for one point. The first team to score ten points won the game.
While the U.S. version of the show only lasted 14 weeks, the CTV version lasted two years. The show was initially produced at station CFCF-TV in Toronto. At the end of the show's first season in 1966, the CTV network shifted production of Fractured Phrases to Ottawa. Meanwhile, the network had another game show ready to go on the air in the same CFCF-TV studios called Words and Music. The network wanted Jim to remain in Toronto and host that show. When Fractured Phrases moved to Ottowa, Les Lye (pictured above), the local announcer at CJOH-TV, became the new host and remained until its cancellation in 1967.
While the U.S. version of the show only lasted 14 weeks, the CTV version lasted two years. The show was initially produced at station CFCF-TV in Toronto. At the end of the show's first season in 1966, the CTV network shifted production of Fractured Phrases to Ottawa. Meanwhile, the network had another game show ready to go on the air in the same CFCF-TV studios called Words and Music. The network wanted Jim to remain in Toronto and host that show. When Fractured Phrases moved to Ottowa, Les Lye (pictured above), the local announcer at CJOH-TV, became the new host and remained until its cancellation in 1967.
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