RANKED: 'To Tell The Truth' best incarnations of the game show

3. 2000 - 2002 (Host: John O'Hurley)

The year 2000 was an interesting time for game shows. Who Wants To Be A Millionaire began in America the previous year and it seemed like every new game show being broadcast was trying to copycat the Millionaire magic. However, with the big money quiz shows making a return to television, it was nice to also see a truly classic game show return to television as well.

This incarnation of To Tell The Truth is probably not the most remembered, but a combination of elements put it in the top three.

First, the theme song. This version of To Tell The Truth may have had one of the best game show themes of all time, and certainly the best theme song in To Tell The Truth history. It was upbeat, catchy, and had a nice hit when host John O'Hurley made his entrance.

Speaking of John O'Hurley, what a kind, personable host he is. O'Hurley is someone that can really connect to the home audience with his warm voice, his easy-going charm, and his perfect smile. There is something about the way he can guide a show that is special and rarely seen in game show hosts of the 2000s on. This was his first try at hosting a game show, but from the poise he possessed, it seemed like John O'Hurley had been a host for years. In 2006, O'Hurley would go on to host Family Feud for four seasons and reunite with his To Tell The Truth announcer Burton Richardson.

One of the best elements of this version was the return of the audience vote. The members of the studio audience would get to weigh in on who the real person was. The challenger who the majority of the audience voted for would receive a vote. The audience vote was first used in the 1956 Mike Wallace pilot and was re-introduced during the last year and a half on the original Bud Collyer run.

Thankfully, the money values finally received an increase. It wasn't much, but with the way cash prizes were determined on previous versions, any jump was good enough. Contestants split $1,000 for each incorrect vote, which means a $5,000 total was up for grabs if the entire panel, as well as the audience, were wrong. For a short period, if all the votes were incorrect, a jackpot of $10,000 was awarded for the three challengers to split.

The second season was a bit of a letdown, and some of the minor changes possibly led to the show's downfall. At the beginning of each game, instead of host John O'Hurley reading the affidavit to the panel, announcer Burton Richardson would read it after the challengers said their names. In addition, during the questioning, background music played, which was often times distracting. Plus, the typical vote tallying desks were eliminated and simple chairs were used instead, so when the votes were made, there was no indication in front of the challengers of how many votes they received, which made it hard for the home viewer to keep track.

Overall though, for a show that had been around for over 40 years at this point, the 2000 incarnation of To Tell The Truth did a fine job of introducing the classic panel show into a new television era.