Just talked about this today:
Q: Over the many years I have watched TPIR, I have noticed that all of the contestants are addressed by their proper first names, i.e., Christopher instead of Chris, Judith instead of Judy, Kimberly instead of Kim, etc. Is this a deliberate requirement, that all contestants must be called by their birth names without regard to what they want to be called?
A: Unless they request otherwise, an audience member's name will be written on his or her name tag as it appears on their driver's license. This results in a majority of formal names being used. If, however, they ask for their initials or a shortened version of their name to be used, the pages at the studio will be happy to accommodate them.
The 2nd to last line is funny:
Q: All my life I've seen television game shows that say \"Contestants must meet eligibility requirements.\" What are those \"eligibility requirements?\"
Thank you,
Robert
A: Contestants on THE PRICE IS RIGHT must be at least 18 years old, may not be related to or have any affiliation with anyone who works for CBS, the production company or Viacom, and may not have appeared on any other game shows within the last year. A person may only be a contestant on THE PRICE IS RIGHT once in a lifetime. Also, contestants must present valid photo ID and proof of Social Security Number. They must also speak English and be competent enough to play the games. Other than that, it's up to the discretion of the producer who interviews the entire audience en route into the studio in order to select the 10 contestants for each show.
Sounds like a response from Stan Blits:
Q: I've noticed lately that when Plinko has been played lately, the reveal has not been the same as it has been in the past. Rod would say \"You're going to play Plinko!...\" and the camera would show the cool Plinko sign on the turntable. Then the sign would flip around and Rod would finish by saying \"...for a chance to win up to $50,000 (previously $25,000) in cash!\" The whole time, a peppy, upbeat theme plays in the background. Lately the sign and music haven't been used, instead being replaced by an on-screen graphic and harp music. The classic Plinko reveal has been used for as long as I can remember, it always gets me very excited (as Plinko is one of my favorite pricing games). Why has this changed, and are there any plans to revert to the classic Plinko reveal? The new opening doesn't have the same energy as the old one does. Also, I was wondering if any of the TPIR music cues (besides the main theme song) have ever been published on tape or CD. If so, where can I get a CD? If not, are there any plans to produce such a CD? I believe it would be a great addition to any game show lovers music library. Thank you for your time, and for the years of great entertainment.
LJ Johnson
A: The show producers decided to eliminate the Plinko reveal to focus more on the contestant's reaction. There are no plans to bring it back. Thank you for your letter and your interest in \"The Price Is Right\" music. In reference to your first comment about Plinko, I decided to eliminate the \"sting\" music cue because when we got rid of the large Plinko board and used a graphic instead, there didn't seem to be enough time to use the both the harp gliss and the music sting. Since I was not using that gliss on any other game, for variety, I decided to keep it as the only music that is played (similar to the \"Grand Game\" gliss in presentation). As far as your request for our show music, you are not alone! I've had many people ask us for a CD. There have been no plans to release our music at this time, although that may change some day. There are hundreds and hundreds of music cues and putting out an album would be quite a project