Mark Deetjen, recently promoted to Executive Vice President of Global Channels at Fremantle after helping build its game-show channel Buzzr, has died. He was 50 and passed away January 24.
Deetjen had a simultaneous kidney and pancreas transplant in 2013 to combat his Type I diabetes, and had survived a heart attack in 2020.
Deetjen joined Fremantle in 2015 as SVP Programming and Operations at Buzzr, a FAST network dedicated to vintage game shows, eventually being promoted to general manager. He helped expand partnerships with cable operators and Dish, and helped get Buzzr on OTT/FAST platforms. Buzzr is now available in more than 100 broadcast markets including all Top 30 DMAs.
In October, Fremantle promoted Deetjen to EVP.
“It’s an immense loss for all who knew him,” Buzzr posted on its Twitter feed Wednesday. “Mark was a dedicated family man, a supportive, thoughtful leader, and a game show fan who helped build Buzzr from the beginning. We will miss him greatly.”
With the master of Everything Buzz.....Pierre Kelly!
Me: Welcome to @ The buzzr.
March 19th is Nationa Let's Laugh day, so let's laugh away with more of TV's Funniest Game Show Moments plus some funny bloopers to go along with it. So get your laugh on March 19th.
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With the master of Everything Buzz.....Pierre Kelly!
Me: Welcome to @ The buzzr.
This February, Buzzr is slauting Black History Month with the african american greats who have been in all types of fields. From To Tell The Truth to Body Language, we'll be here to make sure your african american heritage is done on this channel. It'll be February 26th from 4-8 eastern on this channel.
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Let's make it a double date. Buzzr style. We got new episodes of Classic Concentration and Sale of The Century. All to celebrate Valentine's day. Now what's better than going out on a date? Make it a date to watch it on Buzzr.
That my friends, is it. anything you question or comment goes to me on social media or email and we'll explain. We will see you all @ The.....................
With the master of Everything Buzz.....Pierre Kelly!
Me: Welcome to @ The buzzr.
You wanted more Whew! you got it. Starting February 7th, Whew! comes back with new episodes, but with celebrities added to the mix and a whole new way of playing the game. This will be 10x more than the regular version. See it for yourself on February 7th.
That my friends, is it. anything you question or comment goes to me on social media or email and we'll explain. We will see you all @ The.....................
On the last day of 2022, we lost a game show legend.
Legendary actress, producer, animal-rights activist and all-around sweetheart Betty White died Friday at the age of 99, TMZ reports.
In this week’s People cover story celebrating White’s approaching centennial (she was to turn 100 on Jan. 17), the icon said, “I’m so lucky to be in such good health and feel so good at this age. It’s amazing.”
The Oak Park, Ill., native — best known for playing mantrap Sue Ann Nivens on The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1973-77) and ditzy Rose Nylund on The Golden Girls (1985-92) — got her big break on the small screen in 1949, when she began co-hosting Al Jarvis’ live variety show, Hollywood on Television. Just two years later, she was nominated for her first Primetime Emmy Award and co-founded her own production company, which, a year after that, created Life With Elizabeth, a syndicated comedy showcasing one of her Hollywood on Television characters.
Though White broke into feature films in 1962 and went on to appear in successful movies such as Lake Placid (1999) and The Proposal (2009), it was on the small screen that she found her greatest successes — often just by being herself. During her almost two-decade run as the hostess of the Tournament of Roses Parade, she became a fixture on both late-night talk shows and daytime game shows — in particular Password, whose host, Allen Ludden, she married in 1963.
After winning back-to-back Emmys in 1975 and ’76 for her portrayal of “The Happy Homemaker” on The Mary Tyler Moore Show, White starred in her own sitcom, the short-lived Betty White Show, and began a 10-year stint as the hostess of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. In 1983, she became the first woman to win a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Game Show Host (for Just Men!) and started recurring on Mama’s Family as Ellen Harper Jackson, the snooty character she’d originated on The Carol Burnett Show.
When The Golden Girls ended its run in 1992, White — who’d won the 1986 Emmy for Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series and earned six more nominations for her work as sunny Rose — joined Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty on the short-lived spin-off The Golden Palace.
But, whether she had a regular role, White never seemed to slow down. Between guest spots on everything from The John Larroquette Show (which netted her another Emmy in 1993) to Bones (2015), she tackled recurring parts on Boston Legal (2005-08) and The Bold and the Beautiful (2006), and scored another Emmy for hosting Saturday Night Live (2010). That same year, White turned a one-off appearance in the pilot for Hot in Cleveland into a five-year run as bawdy Elka Ostrovsky.
As if that wasn’t enough, from 2012-14, she also hosted and executive-produced Betty White’s Off Their Rockers, which allowed seniors to prank young whippersnappers, and earned a Grammy for the spoken-word recording of her best-seller, If You Ask Me (And of Course You Won’t).
Among her other accolades are a Lifetime Achievement Award (presented at the 2015 Daytime Emmys), a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (right next to Ludden’s) and inclusion (as of 2014) in the Guinness World Records book as the record-holder for Longest TV Career for an Entertainer (Female).
Throughout her life and career, White — who had no children (but was stepmother to Ludden’s three kids from his first marriage) — was a staunch animal-rights activist. Not only was she a sponsor of both the Farm Animal Reform Movement and Friends of Animals, but she wrote Betty White’s Pet-Love: How Pets Take Care of Us, and donated all the proceeds from her clothing line and 2011 calendar to animal charities.
In recent years, People’s cover story reported, White had been living a “quiet life” at home of crossword puzzles, playing card games, watching Jeopardy! and continuing her animal welfare advocacy.
In light of this tragedy, Buzzr has adjusted its upcoming celebration to include a tribute featuring episodes of "Match Game" and "Match Game PM" starting January 8. More details on what would have been her 100th birthday celebration as they become available.
With the master of Everything Buzz.....Pierre Kelly!
Me: Welcome to @ The buzzr.
Amazon announced today that they have partnered with Volley and Fremantle to release a voice-activated version of The Price Is Right. To help celebrate the game show's 50th Anniversary, they have created a new voice game available on Amazon Alexa-enabled devices, as players are given a series of real Amazon items when you'll need to guess the prices for without going over to earn points for the closest guess. The game also recreates some of the show's most popular games like Plinko, where you have to identify correct digits in the prices of small prizes to earn virtual Plinko chips. Eventually, there will be a visual version of the game for both Echo Show and Fire TV.
That my friends, is it. anything you question or comment goes to me on social media or email and we'll explain. We will see you all @ The.....................
