By Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Before “The Bachelor,” “Dancing With the Stars,” “American Idol” or any of the other network competition shows, there was “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.” The game show was an immediate smash when it premiered in 1999, and was a precursor to the modern unscripted boom.
Soon, “Millionaire” was a regular part of the ABC schedule, attracting up to 30 million viewers and helping skyrocket the Alphabet network to No.
1. But the execs there got greedy, airing “Millionaire” as many as five nights a week. Audiences quickly burned out and by 2002, the primetime edition was canceled. “Millionaire” returned for ABC specials in 2004 and 2009, and lived on in a syndicated daytime version until last year.
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