In 1971 he started as a featured panelist on "To Tell the Truth", which led to his being hired for "The Match Game" when Goodson-Todman Productions revived it two years later. He also served as panelist in 1968 on the syndicated version of "What's My Line?" Producer Bob Stewart featured him regularly as a panelist on "Pyramid" throughout its 1970s and 1980s runs. Russell would host two game show pilots: one was "Star Words" for Mark Goodson in 1983 and a revival of "Jackpot" for Bob Stewart in 1984. These pilots were shot for CBS, but neither pilot was picked up by the network. Russell went on to host two revivals of Jack Barry and Dan Enright's "Juvenile Jury" for BET from 1983 to 1984, then again for syndication from 1989 to 1991. In 1985 he hosted the short-lived 1985 NBC game show "Your Number's Up", which was produced by Sande Stewart.