I remember watching the syndicated version of Can You Top This when it aired in 1970. Wink Martindale was the host and Morey Amsterdam (who was also the executive producer) was a regular panelist on this brief revival of the radio comedy game show that was anchored by "Senator" Ed Ford.
On the plus side, the comedic talent was outstanding. In Martindale's biography "Winking at Life", he mentioned that Morey booked a number of his comedy friends on the show. Danny Thomas appeared on the show as well as Soupy Sales and The Ritz Brothers. Also contributing to the mayhem were joke tellers Dick Gautier and Richard Dawson. Like the radio show, audience responses were measured on a "Laugh Meter."
On the minus side, this adaptation of a long-running radio show didn't translate well to TV. The set as well as the prize money was low budget and it just wasn't visual enough. Can You Top This didn't exactly top the ratings and was canceled after only eight months. It's a show that would work a lot better on either satellite radio or Comedy Central.
