What a great way to go out. Richard Dawson is and will always be a class act in whatever he does. I can't help but tear up every time I watch Richard's final speech, especially about the part of his mentioning D-Day & World War II in England. When I heard the part about Richard mentioning his mother giving him a lecture about "God creating people people of all creeds", I chocked up & just about cried! Richard, if you ever read this, there will be a place reserved for you in Heaven for sure!
Richard Dawson was one of the kindest, sweetest, nicest game show hosts of all time. I've heard that several people that he worked with had their differences with him, but he was still a class act. Rest in peace, Richard. You will be missed.
I was IN LOVE with Richard Dawson growing up. For some reason, I missed this final episode. If I'm not mistaken, I was in summer school retaking 8th grade science at the time;-) Watching this is so emotional. It really tears me up. I still miss him doing the Feud, but greatly treasure the years he was a part of my daily life.
Indeed, Thanks for everything Richard! The great thing is we can still watch you here on UA-cam as well as in all the reruns on GSN. Yes, there will always be reruns.
All I can say is , I am a 45 year old man and Ive never met Richard, But seeing the Beauty inside him coming out has made a difference in my heart and I am crying as I am typing for all o0f our loss of him in this world. I hope his family can smile when they know how his kindness has truly made people happy. I Love you Richard and Gary and all of you.
Probably the epitome of game show sendoffs right here. Richard really put his heat into this show, and it shows right. Definitely one of the top moments of television history.
I wholeheartedly agree with you.I watch a few minutes of it here and there every once in a while,but it definitely doesn't have the same heart and vibe that both Richard Dawson's & Ray Combs' had.
This speech and the last episode made me cry a lot,but when he returned in 1994,it made me cry a lot harder,but with happy tears. Dawson has been the best host of Family Feud,and no one can outdo him,and no one can replace his legacy on the show.
wow he makes you think doesnt he ? like he said its so simple just a little gesture from YOUR part made to some one else would change this world over and make it a better place.wow! richard THANK'S for those beautifull words.
Seldom you see and hear somebody speaking is heart out on tv. Thank you Mr dawson. today the people on tv suffer of ''give good impression'' and the ''look perfect'' symdrome.
Family Feud was 1 of my favorite game shows OF ALL TIME and btw is still is because John O'Hurley is so cool . . . Richard Dawson was a goofball and that's why I loved the show so much as a kid when it was on ABC. But words cannot express for me how much wisdom and how much heart I could sense when Richard said all that on the final show in 85--and when I watched this video tonight. This is an INSTANT FAVORITE.--ks :)
Amazing... I was only a year old when this was on. Though i never saw the reruns of this episode of GSN. Gives me a bit of hope for the world hearing about his mother's words and the sick child.
What a special show the original Feud was. And thats the legacy that it leaves and why its unarguably one of the most successful franchises in TV history. The fact that this finale aired in 85 (25 years ago) and it still lives on, on GSN and UA-cam in this age. The fact that a currently popular show can spoof something 25 or 30 years old and we all laught over it. It really speaks volumes of just how beloved the Feud is. The Feud proves even in the TV industry: you cant fix whats not broken.
We've heard things about how Richard had a big ego, but this last send-off demonstrates, without a shadow of doubt, that he also had a big heart. The last part--the studio master that was unaired--almost makes me cry every time I watch it. So I'm now starting to give "lollipop bouquets"--five lollipops with black stems--as get well tokens. Thank you Richard, and Nicole, wherever you are, we hope you are at peace.
This is without a doubt one of the most touching game show finales I've ever witnessed. The part where Richard mentions "people of all races, creeds & colors" was emotionally heartfelt. To hear Richard mention "World War II" when he left his native England was equally touching. Was that his wife Cathy he was hugging @ the end, & was that Gene Wood who handed Richard tissues @ the end as well? I doubt Howard Felsher would do that, as he was happy to see Richard leave, which was sad.
Best "Feud" Host of all-time? You best mention Richard Dawson! He, as the host, made "Family Feud" what it was. Thank God they didn't change the format much.
The format of "Family Feud" didn't allow for Richard to say his goodbyes either, but he MADE the time - that's the biggest difference. Also, he should have said, 'thank you for watching me and the cast and crew from "TPIR", but he didn't - so there's where my remarks fit the scene of the crime, so to speak.
Wow. I don't think I should bother to try and put into words how this affected me. Just wanted to say THANK YOU so very much for putting this up - truly - as Richard would say. :) And yes, that Rainbow comment, everything, just...wow. I wish he would have been able to talk longer. Any video quality and other game show host dislike comments aside, he really is one of a kind in the best of ways. I don't get why GSN doesn't show this more often. It was beautiful to see/hear the program master.
Next to Mr. Dawson's farewell on Family Feud, one of the classiest sign-offs I'd ever seen (and it is long-gone, but I still remember it from when I was 9-years old) was Bill Cullen's last show on the "The Price is Right." By that time, he was also producing the show, as Bob Stewart had left Goodson-Todman to start his own company. Typical of Mr. Cullen, it was a celebration of the show's staff, contestants, and audiences, past and present, a cavernous cry from Bob Barker's self-love fest.
This is great, and Bob Barker's was great too. It wasn't long, it was indeed short, but it was Bob. And this was the second best game show host of all time Richard Dawson!!
Richard Dawson was INDEED a Class Act along with other Game Show Greats: Peter Marshall, Jim Lange, Jim Perry, the late Gene Rayburn, Tom Kennedy, the late Jack Narz, Dick Clark, Chuck Woolery, Bob Goen, the late Bill Cullen, Wink Martindale, Pat Sajak, Vanna White, Meredith Vieira, Vicki Lawrence, Summer Sanders, Ahmad Rashad, Howie Mandel, Mark L. Walberg, Marc Summers, JD Roth and of course Crystal Wallasch. God Bless Richard Dawson, he will foreve be known as Mr. Family Feud.
Same reason most TV stations crunch the credits of most shows, abbreviate some show's openings, and cut parts out of old show reruns: To get more commercials on the screen.
Makes me cry i loved him he was the best host ever. Has he been on GSN at all in the past years???? Bye Bye Richard. You were my favorite host! I liked the alligator thing!!!!
The ABC affiliate I got access to at the time(WVII-TV)out of Bangor,Maine didn't air Family Feud during it's final few months,so I naturally didn't get to see this then.As I recall,they aired reruns of Bewitched & I forget what else in that time slot.
All good things have to come to an end eventually.The Jeffersons,Dukes Of Hazzard,& Alice all had amazingly long runs for their era,although they'd be relatively short runs by today's standards.
@tnawcwvictoria You got that one right, and no one can argue that Betty White is 'the queen of game shows', which makes Barker 'the king of egomaniacs' on the game show scene! I've never heard a bad thing said about Betty White - can't say the same about Barker though!
I also agree. The only thing Barker made his farewell about was him thanking everyone for watching him for 50 years. He made it more about himself than anything. I still liked him on the Price is Right, though!
Dorvell Stewart you know what i'd say about that! if you're a WWE fan, you know where i'm going with this, GSN, and they've had this coming, you know what happens when you do it wrong? You know what happens when you don't pay this guy the propper respect? GSN, you just made the list!
If you don't like him, fine, just say that. If it's not your opinion, which you ARE entitled to, that he is the BEST of all time, firstly you won't find many who will agree with you. Secondly, people went to see that show because of Bob, and I've been to a taping and was honored to be a contestant, he spent every minute of the hour with the audience. The audiences LOVED him. But surely he is ONE of the BEST to you? If not, then just admit you don't like him and don't reprimand me for liking him.
At least Richard recognized the people that worked for him - didn't hear that out of Barker on his last episode! It was more of a "This Is Your Life, Bob Barker", and no mention of the past, including models or announcers!
Richard Dawson was a game show icon. If Mount Rushmore consisted of game show hosts, Richard would have been one of them, along with Garry Moore, Wink Martindale, and Bud Colyer.
I will say that Cathy Dawson is a really nice lady - i got to meet her at The Price Is Right Live show in Las Vegas - got to ask about Richard and she said he was doing great - Still a pretty lady today!
The last unseen part was extremely touching and moving. I'm 31 and I'm not ashamed to say I have tears in my eyes as I type this. By the way, Richard's daughter born in 1990 is named Shannon Nicole. I wonder if her middle name is in honor of the girl Richard was talking about.
Scratch that, I've gone back and read some of your other comments about Bob, so I figure you won't have anything good to say. But I will say this, he thanked people in his special for prime time. For the AM show, and you can deny this all you want, but the format of the show didn't allow for him to say anymore that a minute of a send-off. And regardless of any problems he had, 50 successful years in anything is an accomplishment, and I don't find it egotistical to say THANK YOU for watching me.
The last part of the episode was not aired. Probably taken from a U-Matic tape format that the user could not transfer into his PC. Really rare stuff here.
Barker blew it when he became EP of "TPIR" because his ego and activism both went overboard after that, and the show never recovered from all of the scandals he caused.
Bob Barker often told the audience (in his last 5-6 years on Price) he would "call security" when they got too loud. I swear Barker said on air a few times he had to have audience members booted from the studio.
Richard Dawson would eventually return, albeit briefly, during the 1994-95 season, but by 1995, the second incarnation of Family Feud was kaput. Since 1999, the third incarnation of Family Feud is the longest-running of the three with four different hosts: Louie Anderson for its first three years, Richard Karn and John O'Hurley both for four years (Karn from 2002-06 and O'Hurley from 2006-2010), and since 2010, Steve Harvey.
Too bad Bob Barker couldn't have had a better send off on "TPIR" - if he wasn't so full of his ego, he would have had the original staff with him who made the show successful instead of the remains of what he destroyed with his lawsuits.
Richard Dawson was fabulous! I grew up watching him on FAMILY FEUD. I'll forever miss him.
What a great way to go out. Richard Dawson is and will always be a class act in whatever he does. I can't help but tear up every time I watch Richard's final speech, especially about the part of his mentioning D-Day & World War II in England. When I heard the part about Richard mentioning his mother giving him a lecture about "God creating people people of all creeds", I chocked up & just about cried! Richard, if you ever read this, there will be a place reserved for you in Heaven for sure!
Richard Dawson was one of the kindest, sweetest, nicest game show hosts of all time. I've heard that several people that he worked with had their differences with him, but he was still a class act. Rest in peace, Richard. You will be missed.
I was IN LOVE with Richard Dawson growing up. For some reason, I missed this final episode. If I'm not mistaken, I was in summer school retaking 8th grade science at the time;-)
Watching this is so emotional. It really tears me up. I still miss him doing the Feud, but greatly treasure the years he was a part of my daily life.
Me too.
He was a beautiful human being. May God bless his family. Rest in peace and thank you Richard.
I have a whole new respect for Richard Dawson.
Indeed, Thanks for everything Richard!
The great thing is we can still watch you here on UA-cam as well as in all the reruns on GSN. Yes, there will always be reruns.
All I can say is , I am a 45 year old man and Ive never met Richard, But seeing the Beauty inside him coming out has made a difference in my heart and I am crying as I am typing for all o0f our loss of him in this world. I hope his family can smile when they know how his kindness has truly made people happy. I Love you Richard and Gary and all of you.
Nobody will replace Dawson.
Words cannot describe how much I care and feel for Richard Dawson. He is one of my most favorite people on the planet.
Richard Dawson - a great game show host with a sense of humour and a heart of gold to match.
This was so touching. I remained quiet for a while when I first saw this.
Best. Family. Feud. Host. Ever. Thank you Richard Dawson. You Will Be Missed. Rest in Paradise.
AMEN!
This is one of the best moments ever on Television. Family Feud deserves to live on and on, and I hope it continues long after I'm gone.
He's certainly was a true gentleman and always will be. It puts me into tears everytime I watch this segment.
i remember this! what an emotional day!
Probably the epitome of game show sendoffs right here. Richard really put his heat into this show, and it shows right. Definitely one of the top moments of television history.
I wholeheartedly agree with you.I watch a few minutes of it here and there every once in a while,but it definitely doesn't have the same heart and vibe that both Richard Dawson's & Ray Combs' had.
This speech and the last episode made me cry a lot,but when he returned in 1994,it made me cry a lot harder,but with happy tears. Dawson has been the best host of Family Feud,and no one can outdo him,and no one can replace his legacy on the show.
wow he makes you think doesnt he ? like he said its so simple just a little gesture from YOUR part made to some one else would change this world over and make it a better place.wow! richard THANK'S for those beautifull words.
I used to Love Family Feud. Richard was a great guy. A real people person. R.I.P.
Seldom you see and hear somebody speaking is heart out on tv. Thank you Mr dawson. today the people on tv suffer of ''give good impression'' and the ''look perfect'' symdrome.
How true; I didn't even get to see any of the 2nd Dawson run until I started using UA-cam.
Family Feud was 1 of my favorite game shows OF ALL TIME and btw is still is because John O'Hurley is so cool . . . Richard Dawson was a goofball and that's why I loved the show so much as a kid when it was on ABC. But words cannot express for me how much wisdom and how much heart I could sense when Richard said all that on the final show in 85--and when I watched this video tonight. This is an INSTANT FAVORITE.--ks :)
Amazing... I was only a year old when this was on. Though i never saw the reruns of this episode of GSN.
Gives me a bit of hope for the world hearing about his mother's words and the sick child.
What a special show the original Feud was. And thats the legacy that it leaves and why its unarguably one of the most successful franchises in TV history. The fact that this finale aired in 85 (25 years ago) and it still lives on, on GSN and UA-cam in this age. The fact that a currently popular show can spoof something 25 or 30 years old and we all laught over it. It really speaks volumes of just how beloved the Feud is. The Feud proves even in the TV industry: you cant fix whats not broken.
Touching ending.I hope Richard is happy where he is now of days.
Dawson is a class act... I wish more people were like him
He was my favorite gameshow guy in teh 80's, nobody will ever surpass the magic of Richard Dawson.
We've heard things about how Richard had a big ego, but this last send-off demonstrates, without a shadow of doubt, that he also had a big heart.
The last part--the studio master that was unaired--almost makes me cry every time I watch it. So I'm now starting to give "lollipop bouquets"--five lollipops with black stems--as get well tokens.
Thank you Richard, and Nicole, wherever you are, we hope you are at peace.
This was depressing before today but now it's even more depressing now that Richard is gone.
Fair enough. I can't argue with you, you have reason to feel the way you do.
it's so hard to believe that he's dead. This is so inspirational. Thank you, Richard.
This is without a doubt one of the most touching game show finales I've ever witnessed. The part where Richard mentions "people of all races, creeds & colors" was emotionally heartfelt. To hear Richard mention "World War II" when he left his native England was equally touching. Was that his wife Cathy he was hugging @ the end, & was that Gene Wood who handed Richard tissues @ the end as well? I doubt Howard Felsher would do that, as he was happy to see Richard leave, which was sad.
Truly a class act! RIP Richard.
The Original ABC Family Feud episode first aired on my last day of preschool at Huron Elementary School and it was my day of lasts.
Best "Feud" Host of all-time? You best mention Richard Dawson! He, as the host, made "Family Feud" what it was. Thank God they didn't change the format much.
The format of "Family Feud" didn't allow for Richard to say his goodbyes either, but he MADE the time - that's the biggest difference. Also, he should have said, 'thank you for watching me and the cast and crew from "TPIR", but he didn't - so there's where my remarks fit the scene of the crime, so to speak.
Dawson is such a class act. What a great person.
Richard Dawson is my hero, more now than ever
Indeed! Dawson is class all the way!
Wow. I don't think I should bother to try and put into words how this affected me. Just wanted to say THANK YOU so very much for putting this up - truly - as Richard would say. :) And yes, that Rainbow comment, everything, just...wow. I wish he would have been able to talk longer.
Any video quality and other game show host dislike comments aside, he really is one of a kind in the best of ways. I don't get why GSN doesn't show this more often. It was beautiful to see/hear the program master.
It seemed like he was a great dad to have. Looked as though he loved his sons,daughter and daughter in law a lot.
richard dawson will always be the REAL host of FAMILY FEUD!!
R.I.P. Richard Dawson, you will always be the greatest host of "Family Feud".
Don't forget that "Feud" also had special buzzers for people like Jim Backus and Bill Cullen, who had problems walking to the podium.
What a beautiful speech..
I love him.
I was in the audience for that episode. Not a dry eye in the house. Rest in Peace, Richard.
Next to Mr. Dawson's farewell on Family Feud, one of the classiest sign-offs I'd ever seen (and it is long-gone, but I still remember it from when I was 9-years old) was Bill Cullen's last show on the "The Price is Right." By that time, he was also producing the show, as Bob Stewart had left Goodson-Todman to start his own company. Typical of Mr. Cullen, it was a celebration of the show's staff, contestants, and audiences, past and present, a cavernous cry from Bob Barker's self-love fest.
This show not ending with the theme...it just fit.
#DawsonisFeud
so did i. even though i'm only 19, i watched those shows while i was growing up
RIP, Mr. Dawson. Thanks for the memories.
This is great, and Bob Barker's was great too. It wasn't long, it was indeed short, but it was Bob. And this was the second best game show host of all time Richard Dawson!!
What a wonderful send-off.
Richard Dawson was INDEED a Class Act along with other Game Show Greats:
Peter Marshall, Jim Lange, Jim Perry, the late Gene Rayburn, Tom Kennedy, the late Jack Narz, Dick Clark, Chuck Woolery, Bob Goen, the late Bill Cullen, Wink Martindale, Pat Sajak, Vanna White, Meredith Vieira, Vicki Lawrence, Summer Sanders, Ahmad Rashad, Howie Mandel, Mark L. Walberg, Marc Summers, JD Roth and of course Crystal Wallasch.
God Bless Richard Dawson, he will foreve be known as Mr. Family Feud.
If only everyone could have had such a mother as Richard Dawson's mother.
Easily the best host of any game show ever - /cheers Richard
Same reason most TV stations crunch the credits of most shows, abbreviate some show's openings, and cut parts out of old show reruns: To get more commercials on the screen.
Wow - I'm speechless -
I vote Richard for president!
Makes me cry i loved him he was the best host ever. Has he been on GSN at all in the past years???? Bye Bye Richard. You were my favorite host! I liked the alligator thing!!!!
richard IS/WAS/and will ALWAYS be MR feud
The ABC affiliate I got access to at the time(WVII-TV)out of Bangor,Maine didn't air Family Feud during it's final few months,so I naturally didn't get to see this then.As I recall,they aired reruns of Bewitched & I forget what else in that time slot.
It's apropos to hear Gene Wood say, "Thank you, Richard, thank you, America."
All good things have to come to an end eventually.The Jeffersons,Dukes Of Hazzard,& Alice all had amazingly long runs for their era,although they'd be relatively short runs by today's standards.
The jeffersons was cancelled without even a series finale, damn shame ua-cam.com/video/sTbv-ls2KFA/v-deo.html.
I have to agree that I didn't like FF's revamped set in 1994 as well as one less family member on each team.
@tnawcwvictoria You got that one right, and no one can argue that Betty White is 'the queen of game shows', which makes Barker 'the king of egomaniacs' on the game show scene! I've never heard a bad thing said about Betty White - can't say the same about Barker though!
Bob Barker is the LeBron James of Game Shows, the Vince McMahon of Game Shows and the Matt Lauer of Game Shows
Richard is a complex person...he was hard on his crew and his producer but apparently a very caring man as well.
Right after that last part, Gene Wood announced when the show would air. He broke down in tears before he could get the final words out.
I also agree. The only thing Barker made his farewell about was him thanking everyone for watching him for 50 years. He made it more about himself than anything. I still liked him on the Price is Right, though!
I can't believe GSN isn't including this episode in their tribute to Richard Dawson! That's just... I can't even find the right words.
Dorvell Stewart you know what i'd say about that! if you're a WWE fan, you know where i'm going with this, GSN, and they've had this coming, you know what happens when you do it wrong? You know what happens when you don't pay this guy the propper respect? GSN, you just made the list!
The bonus footage explains why Richard named his daughter, Shannon Nicole Dawson. It was to continually remember the girl that meant the world to him.
What a good guy.
RIP Richard Dawson 1932-2012. :-(
What a wonderful man...RIP
If you don't like him, fine, just say that. If it's not your opinion, which you ARE entitled to, that he is the BEST of all time, firstly you won't find many who will agree with you. Secondly, people went to see that show because of Bob, and I've been to a taping and was honored to be a contestant, he spent every minute of the hour with the audience. The audiences LOVED him. But surely he is ONE of the BEST to you? If not, then just admit you don't like him and don't reprimand me for liking him.
I cried...
At least Richard recognized the people that worked for him - didn't hear that out of Barker on his last episode! It was more of a "This Is Your Life, Bob Barker", and no mention of the past, including models or announcers!
i couldnt agree more!
There were times - even on the Combs Version of Feud.
Yes, he did, and Dawson came back in August of 1994 to host a third reincarnation from 1994 to 1995.
Richard Dawson was a game show icon. If Mount Rushmore consisted of game show hosts, Richard would have been one of them, along with Garry Moore, Wink Martindale, and Bud Colyer.
I will say that Cathy Dawson is a really nice lady - i got to meet her at The Price Is Right Live show in Las Vegas - got to ask about Richard and she said he was doing great - Still a pretty lady today!
aww sweet guy.
The last unseen part was extremely touching and moving. I'm 31 and I'm not ashamed to say I have tears in my eyes as I type this.
By the way, Richard's daughter born in 1990 is named Shannon Nicole. I wonder if her middle name is in honor of the girl Richard was talking about.
gsn did play this episode last sunday, i didnt watch though, i wonder if they did cut gene's message at the end credits?
RIP to an American Icon.
Richard Dawson is in my Top 3 hosts, with Bob Barker and Bob Eubanks.
Scratch that, I've gone back and read some of your other comments about Bob, so I figure you won't have anything good to say. But I will say this, he thanked people in his special for prime time. For the AM show, and you can deny this all you want, but the format of the show didn't allow for him to say anymore that a minute of a send-off. And regardless of any problems he had, 50 successful years in anything is an accomplishment, and I don't find it egotistical to say THANK YOU for watching me.
The last part of the episode was not aired. Probably taken from a U-Matic tape format that the user could not transfer into his PC. Really rare stuff here.
Barker blew it when he became EP of "TPIR" because his ego and activism both went overboard after that, and the show never recovered from all of the scandals he caused.
Bob Barker often told the audience (in his last 5-6 years on Price) he would "call security" when they got too loud. I swear Barker said on air a few times he had to have audience members booted from the studio.
I heard that on the THS of Family Feud, Richard wanted some of his closing remarks edited out.
RIP Richard
@ghlusam I'm REALLY unsure there, but I'll take a guess, Gretchen, her wife whom he met on the set when the was a contestant.
TOO COOL!
Hi! I agree with you 100% about that! Game shows need a sense of humor, especially if some of the contestants give stupid answers.
Not to mention the departure of ray combs and all american buying the show.
That was when the show REALLY jumped the shark.
Richard Dawson would eventually return, albeit briefly, during the 1994-95 season, but by 1995, the second incarnation of Family Feud was kaput. Since 1999, the third incarnation of Family Feud is the longest-running of the three with four different hosts: Louie Anderson for its first three years, Richard Karn and John O'Hurley both for four years (Karn from 2002-06 and O'Hurley from 2006-2010), and since 2010, Steve Harvey.
Too bad Bob Barker couldn't have had a better send off on "TPIR" - if he wasn't so full of his ego, he would have had the original staff with him who made the show successful instead of the remains of what he destroyed with his lawsuits.
@Mikez4 Richard Dawnson's given name was Colin Emm.