1 9 6 9 – 1 9 7 4 (Australia)
1500 x 30 minutes
A Grundy Organisation production for Channel Seven Australia. Initially titled New World Temptation, for the show’s sponsor, the title was later shortened to simply Temptation and was aired during the day.
When Pick-A-Box ended in 1971, an hour-long nighttime version of the show was launched, this is when the “Great” was added (the daytime version continued until 1974).
The night-time show initially aired once a week, then twice, then five times. All the while, the daytime show was still running.
Contestants would compete in a beat-the-buzzer trivia competition, with scores equalling dollars which they could then use to buy gifts.
Australian game show king Tony Barber was the host with the glamorous and sexy Barbie Rogers (pictured at right) as his hostess.
Max Rowley was the announcer.
A huge success, Great Temptation netted Barber the 1973 Gold Logie award and the show only folded when it could not compete with Channel 10’s Number 96.
Reg Grundy cannily revived the show in 1980, using the original US name of Sale of the Century – which made yet another Australian comeback in 2005 with Ed Phillips and Livinia Nixon.