Candid Camera is a long-running television series, created and produced by Allen Funt, which initially appeared on radio as Candid Microphone in the 1940s. After a series of theatrical film shorts, also titled Candid Microphone, Funt's concept came to television on August 10, 1948.
The premise of the show involved concealed cameras filming ordinary people being confronted with unusual situations, sometimes involving trick props, such as a desk with drawers that pop open when one is closed or a car with a hidden extra gas tank.
When the joke was revealed, victims would be told the show's famous catch phrase, "Smile, you're on Candid Camera." With humor based on putting real people in fabricated situations, the show was very much a precursor to the more recent wave of prank shows such as Punk'd and Girls Behaving Badly.
Do You Remember Candid Camera (USA)?
Do You Remember Candid Camera (USA)?