Concentration

[tvrandywest]

... I used a blank plot sheet for the position of all prizes. In this way, I prevented two important clues from coming up in one match. Experience had shown me knew which numbers would be called first, therfore easier to remember, just like what was in the four corners.  More often than not, I used the blanks for the forfiet one gift cards -- there were six of them.

Brilliant!   ;-)

Randy
tvrandywest.com

[Bob Zager]

...I was most pleased with our middle break, audience pan music, "Puppet on a String".  I loved the mixture of all kinds of sound effects and the cutsie tune.

Any board members who grew up in Detroit, watching "Oopsy the Clown," every weekend, may recall an orchestral version of the song was used during a weekly segment, called their visit to the "Daisyville Art Gallery."  Daisyville was the fictional town setting, and the "Art Gallery," was a large display of drawings/sketches sent to the local station by children watching the show.

[geno57]

Mr. Norm, I assume you created the opening sequence, and the design of the classic logo.  Did you also handle the animation of it?

And ... At the end of a game, when the racks were full of prizes, how did the stagehands close all of the slides at once?

[Veejay7]

This has been touched-on in other posts, but I'd just like to emphasize the point.
Mr. Blumenthal has offered great detail on how he tried to extend the game-- or at least challenge the contestants and the viewers-- by designing the prize lay-out in such a way as to not give too much away, too quickly.  

But it should also be pointed out how Mr. Blumenthal used his grid to give away parts of the puzzle ever-so-slowly.

Take, for example, the last puzzle on the NBC run, "You've been more than kind".  

http://concentrationphotos.shutterfly.com/pictures/9

There's no pay-off at all for turning the numbers 1, 3, 4, 11, 14 (a killer), 17 (another killer), 26, 27, 29 and 30

As for the other trilons:
#2: Head of the bowilng pin. By itself: Could be anything
#5: Oar? Hoe? Wand?
#6: YU. (You won't get "You've" without #7
#7, #8: Part of the pin. Again-- could by anything
#9: The "M":Key reveal
#10: Another piece of a handle. No giveaways
#12: What a tease. a white triangle?  Almost mean!
#13: Body of the pin.  Alone-- not sure what you'd make of that. You might get the pin with 7, 8, and 13, But I bet most needed #2 as well.
#15: The paddle of the oar: Another key reveal
#16: the top of the "Th+" In lower case, just to confuse, I suspect. Is it a cross and a stick? Without 21, you're lost.
#17: "hen's" head. If you know the game-- you know what this is. Key reveal
#18: Top of the weird "k"- four parallel lines.  No help by itself
#20: An apostrophe and the top of the lower-case 'd".  Floating lines. No help
#21: "in" without #16... maybe the biggest red herring on the board
#22: Hen's body. Without the head, you might guess another bird, but that may be Mr. Blumenthal's make-up gift for #21
#23: You get the "+", but by itself-- B? R?
#24: The eye.  Love the eye. Key reveal
#25: Good chunk there two. nd is pretty clear.

Okay-- forgive me for the over-analysis. The point is, it is clear Mr. Blumenthal put that kind of thought into EVERY puzzle he designed.  That's the genius of it all.  And all great fun.

Here are some links to the Concentration set model I built, in tribute to Mr. Blumenthal's work and vision.

 
http://concentrationphotos.shutterfly.com/pictures/9#10
http://concentrationphotos.shutterfly.com/pictures/9#11
http://concentrationphotos.shutterfly.com/pictures/9#12

[normb]

...I was most pleased with our middle break, audience pan music, "Puppet on a String".  I loved the mixture of all kinds of sound effects and the cutsie tune.

Any board members who grew up in Detroit, watching "Oopsy the Clown," every weekend, may recall an orchestral version of the song was used during a weekly segment, called their visit to the "Daisyville Art Gallery."  Daisyville was the fictional town setting, and the "Art Gallery," was a large display of drawings/sketches sent to the local station by children watching the show.

Being a New Yorker, I never saw that show. Did I misunderstand your explanation of the song used on the Detroit show? Was the background music the same one we used at mid-show: "Puppet On A String."?

[JayDLewis]

"Oopsy" aired here in Atlantic Canada (on ASN IIRC). Loved that show as a kid.

[Bob Zager]

...I was most pleased with our middle break, audience pan music, "Puppet on a String".  I loved the mixture of all kinds of sound effects and the cutsie tune.

Any board members who grew up in Detroit, watching "Oopsy the Clown," every weekend, may recall an orchestral version of the song was used during a weekly segment, called their visit to the "Daisyville Art Gallery."  Daisyville was the fictional town setting, and the "Art Gallery," was a large display of drawings/sketches sent to the local station by children watching the show.

Being a New Yorker, I never saw that show. Did I misunderstand your explanation of the song used on the Detroit show? Was the background music the same one we used at mid-show: "Puppet On A String."?

Yes!  An instrumental version of "Puppet on a String," recorded by some orchestra, was used on the local kids show I was talking about.

[normb]

This has been touched-on in other posts, but I'd just like to emphasize the point.
Mr. Blumenthal has offered great detail on how he tried to extend the game-- or at least challenge the contestants and the viewers-- by designing the prize lay-out in such a way as to not give too much away, too quickly.  

But it should also be pointed out how Mr. Blumenthal used his grid to give away parts of the puzzle ever-so-slowly.

Take, for example, the last puzzle on the NBC run, "You've been more than kind".  

http://concentrationphotos.shutterfly.com/pictures/9

There's no pay-off at all for turning the numbers 1, 3, 4, 11, 14 (a killer), 17 (another killer), 26, 27, 29 and 30

As for the other trilons:
#2: Head of the bowilng pin. By itself: Could be anything
#5: Oar? Hoe? Wand?
#6: YU. (You won't get "You've" without #7
#7, #8: Part of the pin. Again-- could by anything
#9: The "M":Key reveal
#10: Another piece of a handle. No giveaways
#12: What a tease. a white triangle?  Almost mean!
#13: Body of the pin.  Alone-- not sure what you'd make of that. You might get the pin with 7, 8, and 13, But I bet most needed #2 as well.
#15: The paddle of the oar: Another key reveal
#16: the top of the "Th+" In lower case, just to confuse, I suspect. Is it a cross and a stick? Without 21, you're lost.
#17: "hen's" head. If you know the game-- you know what this is. Key reveal
#18: Top of the weird "k"- four parallel lines.  No help by itself
#20: An apostrophe and the top of the lower-case 'd".  Floating lines. No help
#21: "in" without #16... maybe the biggest red herring on the board
#22: Hen's body. Without the head, you might guess another bird, but that may be Mr. Blumenthal's make-up gift for #21
#23: You get the "+", but by itself-- B? R?
#24: The eye.  Love the eye. Key reveal
#25: Good chunk there two. nd is pretty clear.

Okay-- forgive me for the over-analysis. The point is, it is clear Mr. Blumenthal put that kind of thought into EVERY puzzle he designed.  That's the genius of it all.  And all great fun.

Here are some links to the Concentration set model I built, in tribute to Mr. Blumenthal's work and vision.

 
http://concentrationphotos.shutterfly.com/pictures/9#10
http://concentrationphotos.shutterfly.com/pictures/9#11
http://concentrationphotos.shutterfly.com/pictures/9#12

Wow!!!! That must have been a difficult job -- You hit the nail on the head. Now that the show is no longer on the air, I don't mind you're revealing my trickery.  I'm not annoyed, I'm grateful to you.I printed it to save for future explanation.   Thanks.  As always, the results of endeavors like these and that FANTASTIC model of our old set are sheer perfection.  You have my sincere gratification and admiration.

[normb]

Mr. Norm, I assume you created the opening sequence, and the design of the classic logo.  Did you also handle the animation of it?

And ... At the end of a game, when the racks were full of prizes, how did the stagehands close all of the slides at once?

The idea for that concept was mine.  I laid it out in storyboard fashion, and then got an oufit that specializes in this form of animation.  I couldn't do it. They did a great job.

Closing the sliders simultaneously, is hard to put into words.  So forgive me if I confuse you.
Backstage, there was a small drawer pull screwed into the end of each slat (that covered a prize)
When a match was made by a player, a stagehand used the drawer pull to slide that slat to the left or right players' scoreboard.  At the end of the game, with slats open, on cue, backstage, the stagehand slid what appeared to be the two verical sides of a picture frame, toward the middle (where the doors opened). As these two parts of the frame hit each drawer pull. it dragged it along with all the others.  From the front, the audience saw all sliders close in unison.  Hope you understand. Jokingly, like I always say, when you figure it out, exlain it to me.

[chris319]

Norm -

While we're on the subject of the slats, how were the prize names held in place so that the prize name would stay in place while the slider moved?

I once saw the back of the slider board on the set of Classic Concentration. The prize names were printed on a card which was attached to what amounted to a block which had cabinet magnets on either side. The block was held in place magnetically while the slider moved. I didn't get a chance to study it well enough to determine how the blocks were held in alignment so that the lettering would appear correctly within the opening.

Did your version have something along these lines? Do you recall the dimensions of the slat openings?

[normb]

Norm -

While we're on the subject of the slats, how were the prize names held in place so that the prize name would stay in place while the slider moved?

I once saw the back of the slider board on the set of Classic Concentration. The prize names were printed on a card which was attached to what amounted to a block which had cabinet magnets on either side. The block was held in place magnetically while the slider moved. I didn't get a chance to study it well enough to determine how the blocks were held in alignment so that the lettering would appear correctly within the opening.

Did your version have something along these lines? Do you recall the dimensions of the slat openings?

No -- cannot recall dimensions.  That was very long time ago.
There were no magnets.  Try to visualize the following:  
1. Outward plane (in closed position -- on each players' side of the doors they just entered through): One cut-out rectangular opening for each prize reveal.
2. Behind that a track for each prize COVER slat.  (this covered the prize -- which was slid into place behind that COVER slat -- not yet revealed to viewers).  People wondered how we could get it revealed so fast.  If a player called the first number, and it was a boat, backstage we slid a card with that word on it (without opening the COVER slat).  If the player did NOT make a match, the prize card was removed from behind the COVER slat.  If player made a match, the COVER slat was slid away to reveal the prize name.  It looked like magic -- but we had that first card in position on the first call to cue us into which card to "load" behind the COVER slat.  Even more fascinating -- If a player's first call was a FORFEIT ONE GIFT ---- we loaded the opponent's board with a duplicate card (in this case BOAT) which remained unrevealed. If the player  matched the FORFEIT -- simultaneously,we closed their COVER slat as we opened opened their opponent's COVER slat.  Again, it looked like a magic trick.  
This could not be done if the first card called was a WILD card, or a FORFEIT or TAKE 1 PRIZE.if  the p[layer had several prize cards racked up.  We simply had to work as quickly as possible to switch them from player to player.

[Matt Ottinger]

I just want to say:  Best thread ever.

The idea that we have a veteran producer willing to tell us the tiniest details about the show that so many of us remember so fondly?  Cool.

[geno57]

I just want to say:  Best thread ever.

Absolutely!

Hard to believe that the original Concentration has been off the air for nearly 40 years.  But for those of us who loved everything about the show, having Mr. B. here is re-living some of the magic.  It's a real privilege.

[Clay Zambo]

... We simply had to work as quickly as possible to switch them from player to player.

Y'all clearly had the fastest crew ever.  That's pretty amazing.  Thanks for sharing the details of something I've wondered about for years.

[TheLastResort]

I'm surprised the stage hands behind the prize board were able to work so quietly.  Or perhaps they weren't, and the noise just didn't get picked up by the microphones.