If you watch The Price is Right, you may have noticed a very interesting name as the credits rolled. Both programs are directed and produced by Adam Sandler. It’s true! But… there’s one small caveat. Find out the real story behind the Adam Sandler/Price is Right connection.
Videos by Suggest
‘The Price Is Right’ Has Been On The Air Since 1972
Adam Sandler may be a comedy legend, but The Price is Right has been around long before he was even alive. The iconic game show debuted in 1955 on ABC (Sandler was born in 1966), then made NBC home until 1965.
CBS revived the show, in the format as we know it today, on September 4, 1972. Host Bob Barker earned a number of accolades during his almost 35-year tenure on the show, including a dozen Daytime Emmys and a Lifetime Achievement Award. But as he reached his 50th year of working in television, he announced his retirement and as of 2022, Barker is in good health at almost 100 years of age!
“I’ve been on national TV for half a century—that seems like the appropriate time to do it,” Barker told Variety in 2006. “I’ve been so busy for so long I look forward to being bored … but to get up one morning and not do a show, I’m not sure how I’ll be able to do that.”
Current host Drew Carey took the reins on October 12, 2007. “It’s like meeting the right girl,” Carey told CBS News in 2009. “This is a really good fit. I’m really comfortable here and it seems like I should have been doing this a long time ago.”
Carey sounded confident but humble about stepping into such big shoes: “You can’t replace Bob Barker,” he continued. “I don’t compare myself to anybody… It’s only about what you’re doing and supposed to do, and I feel like I’m supposed to be doing this.”
Barker returned the love, telling CBS, “Of course, I’m going to watch. I’m curious just like everybody else. I hope he gets a huge rating.”
To date, The Price is Right is the longest-running game show in TV history. And in 2013, TV Guide named it Number 5 on its list of “The 60 Greatest Game Shows of All Time.”
Is Adam Sandler A Producer On The Show?
It’s true that Adam Sandler is a director and producer on The Price is Right—it’s just not the Adam Sandler most of us are thinking of.
This particular Sandler has worn countless hats for the show’s production since as far back as 1995. According to IMDb, his jobs with the retail guessing game show have included stage manager, editorial consultant, and associate producer. He is currently director and co-executive producer of the star-studded Price is Right at Night.
Unfortunately, his credits have caused some confusion among casual fans. In 2016, a Reddit user raised a question about Sandler’s identity. Was he the same man who starred in The Wedding Singer?
“Nah. One of the prizes would have been a Jack and Jill DVD,” one snarky commenter wrote. Another remarked, “Don’t ya think that if you are even remotely involved in the entertainment industry and you share a name with a Mega-Star, you should change your name, at least for professional purposes…weird.”
Still not convinced? For visual proof that this Sandler is not the same guy who played Billy Madison, check out the beginning of this clip from an old episode. In it, he greets viewers from the control room.
Comedian Adam Sandler Made An Appearance On ‘The Price Is Right’ In 1996
Perhaps it’s a letdown to learn that The Waterboy’s Bobby Boucher doesn’t have a secret side gig with a network game show. But Adam Sandler the comedian does in fact have ties to The Price is Right! In 1996, Sandler made a surprise appearance to promote the film Happy Gilmore, which featured an appearance from Bob Barker himself. Sandler brought his flavor to the Showcase Showdown by disrupting the presentation of prizes. He also offered a private screening of the film to the winning contestant.
Sandler’s cameo scored some laughs; however, it paled in comparison to Barker’s performance in Happy Gilmore. Sandler and Barker’s fistfight scene was epically funny, and no Sandler fan could ever forget the line, “The Price is wrong, b—-.”
We’re all for fun trivia, but this one is just an interesting coincidence. Adam Sandler, the entertainer, is probably too busy—or too filthy rich—to work for a game show that airs five days a week.