CBS Makes A Deal for Guiding Light replacement

When Guiding Light ends its historic run in September, the soap opera will be replaced by a throwback to the golden age of daytime. CBS has announced that Let's Make A Deal will replace the long-running daytime drama series. Guiding Light airs its final episode September 18.

Fans of Guiding Light were never given a chance to choose between what see what was behind Door Number One and the curtain. On April 1, CBS announced that it was flipping the switch on Guiding Light and the 72-year-old program. Several days later, the network revealed that it was looking to replace the soap with either a talk show on game show, both of which can be produced for a fraction of the cost of a soap opera.

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CBS has now announced that it will replace Guiding Light with an updated revival of the classic game show, Let's Make A Deal. Emmy winning funny man -- and a former host of the Daytime Emmys -- Wayne Brady has been tapped as the series' new emcee. Monty Hall, the original host of the 1970s version of the show, will serve as a creative consultant for the show.

"Wayne Brady is a unique talent whose extraordinary skills in both hosting and improvisation make him the perfect choice to host this legendary and engaging show. We are thrilled to be adding him and Let's Make A Deal to the number one Daytime lineup," Barbara Bloom Senior Vice President, Daytime Programs, CBS, said in a statement.

For viewers unfamiliar with the format of the classic show, contestants, many of whom are dressed in outrageous costumes, battle their greed for a chance to win cash and prizes. There are no trivia questions involved, though contestants with a lot of luck can win cars, trips, and other prizes.

Soap fans feeling hurt by the network's decision to remove the longest-running scripted program in broadcast history from its lineup should know that they are not alone in their pain. Critics across the country has also expressed their disappointment with CBS's decision to replace Guiding Light with a game show.

Upon learning of CBS's decision to pick up Let's Make a Deal, Philadelphia Inquirer TV critic Jonathan Storm asked, "For this, they killed Guiding Light after 57 years?"

Guiding Light will air its final episode on September 18, while Let's Make A Deal first airs on October 5. There's no word on what will air in the two weeks between.

Photo: Monty Brinton/CBS

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