Claim: Home Run Derby (TV series) was previously a weekly televised event in the 1960s which ran for 26 episodes with the winner receiving $2,000.
Evidence: Filmed in December 1959, the series aired in syndication from January 9 to July 2, 1960, and helped inspire the Home Run Derby event that is now held the day before the annual Major League Baseball All-Star Game. 26 The winner received a check for $2,000 and was invited back for the next week's episode against a new opponent (a rarity in that era for syndicated games); the runner-up received a check for $1,000.