Eubanks, a former DJ and concert promoter, wrote in thoughtful terms about how much the show’s tone had shifted as the culture shifted around it. A couple of decades into The Newlywed Game, the couples became more affectionate, more like teammates, in the wake of feminism. They had bickered more in the late ’60s—possibly, Eubanks theorized, because they were mimicking sitcoms like The Honeymooners. Marital meltdowns made good TV, but they depressed the host.
