Friday Nights Are Bingo Nights at ABC

May 18, 2007 — -- It's not your grandma's bingo.

At least that's what John Saade, ABC's senior vice president of alternative programs, told Daily Variety magazine about ABC's new game show, "National Bingo Night," airing Friday nights at 9 p.m.

"It's colorful and fast-moving," Saade said.

ABC first struck gold with "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" and now it's hoping it will have the same luck with another game show, one that gives viewers the chance to win major prizes on the set or from the living room sofa.

The word "bingo" may conjure up memories of summer club game nights, church fundraisers, red-checkered picnic tables or a senior citizen's routine at the local American Legion.

But according to Clyde Bock, the manager of one of the biggest bingo games in the state of Washington and someone who said he's been in the game since 1974, "longer than most people have been alive," the demographics of bingo players are changing.

"The demographics used to be where bingo was envisioned in a church basement with a lot of gray hair," Bock told ABC News. "Over the years, bingo has developed into a major industry."

Bock said computers have helped introduce the game to a broader, younger audience.

"In most areas of the country, electronics have been introduced," he said. "Bingo is being played on hand-held computers. … That has altered the demographic of who plays. We're seeing a much younger clientele who plays bingo."

Young or old, those playing bingo are contributing a lot of money to the gaming industry.

"Bingo, fundraising tickets, raffles and occasional casino nights, in terms of numbers, is about a $2 billion a year activity," Mary Magnuscon, legal counsel for the National Association of Fundraising Ticket Manufacturers, which manufactures bingo paper and related supplies for the North American charitable gaming industry, told ABC News.

"It's small compared to the commercial $250 billion, but it's significant nonetheless," she said. "And roughly $700 million is raised for charitable purposes. That's the good side of it."