Regis to Host 'Million Dollar Password'

LOS ANGELES — A new version of the classic game show "Password" is coming to CBS with Regis Philbin as host and a big-money prize. The network said Thursday that it has ordered six episodes of "Million Dollar Password" and plans to show the program early next year.

"I'm thrilled to be part of this great show that I remember so well from a few years ago," Philbin said in a statement. "It was a very classy production, and Allen Ludden was so terrific."

Ludden, who died in 1981, was host of the original "Password," which debuted as a CBS daytime show in 1961 before moving to prime time. Later versions ran in syndication and on NBC through the 1980s with Tom Kennedy and then Bert Convy as host.

As with the original "Password," the updated version will feature two teams, each made up of a celebrity and a contestant. The teams will compete to guess a password revealed to the studio audience and viewers.

The team with the highest score can decide to keep its winnings or try to reach a final round with a $1 million grand prize, said producer FremantleMedia North America. The show will be taped in New York.

The new "Password" will bring Philbin back as a prime-time game show host after he hosted "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" for ABC from 2000-02. Last summer, he was host of NBC's "America's Got Talent." And he still has his daytime talk show, "Live with Regis and Kelly."

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