Hey BC......In answer to your host question..........
The one, the only, Groucho Marx.....as Fenneman said it. Poor George.
Although I love the harder game shows, they are all basically just entertainment and You Bet Your Life was for me the most entertaining by far since I am a Marx fan. The game was silly to say the least and simply a platform for Groucho. The contestants were chosen mainly for their use as foils and not for any serious knowledge. With George Fenneman fulfilling the Margaret Dumont role, Groucho was all set!
The book about the show is really wonderful and filled with funny stories. Although some of Groucho's ad libs were scripted, most were not. However, he knew the set-up going in which gave him a leg up to be sure. The show was also filmed and edited so Groucho could work a set-up as long as he needed to get the joke in. It did make for some great stuff!!!
A personal favorite.........Groucho has two contestants each named Heidi on the show at the same time. He says, "I'll call you Heidi-Hi and I'll call you Heidi-Ho and you can call me Cab Calloway."