Birthday of the game “What? Where? When?"

Intellectual game shows have always been a great success among viewers. While watching the program, you can learn a lot of new things and test your own knowledge. Of even greater interest are programs in which you can take part and do not even need to travel anywhere. It’s enough just to send a letter with a tricky question that real experts should answer. This principle of passive contact with the audience is used in the television program “What? Where? When?”, which over its almost half-century history has become legendary. Birthday "What? Where? When?" celebrated on September 4. It was on this day in 1975 that the first pilot episode was aired. That program only vaguely resembled the program we all know and love. It did not yet have the intensity of the intellectual battle that appeared later. There was no team of experts either. In the first editions, two teams played and families acted as opponents. Filming was carried out in a cozy home environment, and the footage was edited before being broadcast. Vladimir Voroshilov was the ideological inspirer of the program. In collaboration with Natalia Stetsenko, who later became his wife, he created this project, and later became the host of an intellectual game for almost 20 years. In the first years there was simply no need for a presenter, but time passed and the program changed. In 1976, the program changed its specifics and began to focus on a young audience. Students began to be invited to filming. A top with two arrows was introduced into the game. According to the rules, he indicated that he must answer the question. If the participant did not cope with the task, then a second player, pointed at by another arrow, came to his aid. The teams did not have time to think, so the game did not yet include live discussions. The prizes were not money, but books, but gradually new rules began to appear. In 1977, the players "What? Where? When?" began to answer questions from viewers. The top was now pointing at the envelopes containing them, rather than at the players. It was also decided to leave only one team of experts and add a minute for discussions. In the same year, the game acquired a symbol - an eagle owl nicknamed Fimka, who personified wisdom. In 1991, the club was again renamed “intellectual casino” and from that moment the game for money began. Initially, Vladimir Voroshilov himself came up with questions for the game. Letters from viewers began to arrive only a few years after the launch of the program. When the popularity of "What? Where? When?" took off sharply, Voroshilov received whole bags of envelopes, but it was impossible to take the first one he came across and use it in the game. First, the most interesting questions from TV viewers were selected. Then the answer to each of them was carefully checked for accuracy. The name of the presenter was not disclosed for many years. In the Ostankino cafe, where filming took place in the early years, only the crew was in the frame. The presenter remained invisible and the audience heard only his menacing voice. Only in 1980, at the end of the program, Voroshilov revealed himself. After his death in 2001, Boris Kryuk, the son of Natalia Stetsenko and the stepson of Vladimir Voroshilov, became the presenter. His identity was also kept secret for a long time. The film crew even used modern technology to subject his voice to special processing and change it beyond recognition. Although the intrigue was ultimately destroyed, experts still refer to him only as “Mr. Presenter.” That very living eagle owl Fomka inspired the creators to add a personal rating for each expert in order to determine the most productive among them. First, the winner received an honorary prize - a wooden pendant in the shape of a bird, which was later replaced by a “Crystal Owl”. To make the show even more popular, the creators added a musical break and began inviting famous performers. Initially, recordings of performances were used, but later the musicians began to sing live. The musical break has become another important tradition of the “What? Where? When?” club.