Game Show University

[Dbacksfan12]

If you were running a "school" to a game show producer, what core bits of advice from things you've picked up would you pass along?

I'll start by saying spontaneity on a game show is a good thing--the thing they do on Price currently where they run over and grab that vanity(?) plate from the model after winning a car looks cheesy, forced, and rehearsed.  Some of the greatest moments on Price (such as the Samoan lady chasing Barker around the stage) came from truly happy contestants enjoying the moment.

[Thunder]

Considering that I've heard Drew Carey say "run over and see your car" and the model seems to hand the vanity plate to the winner, I'm saying it is quite cheesy, forced and rehearsed.

That being said, the general public who watch the show occasionally probably think that's spontaneous and awesome to watch.

[TLEberle]

The more of our population who realize that for the most part American game shows aren't made for us but for the viewership at large, the better off we'll be.

To branch off from Mark's comment, I would say that contestant coordination is a lost art. Watching the various game shows from the mid 1980s shows what a science it was and how much it contributed to the final product. In all the time I've been watching $25,000 Pyramid, Scrabble or Sale of the Century I don't think I've seen a single contestant that triggered in me a thought of "Now how on earth did that jabroni run the gauntlet and get on?" The batting average is that high.

Since I'm here I'll also throw in that it looks silly to ask "the computer" or the graphics guy to reveal whether the answer to a trivia question is correct or not. If we can read the question and see it, the host should be able to say (after a reasonable pause--the delayed reveal needs to die in a fire) whether the answer is right or wrong.

[Adam Nedeff]

Considering that I've heard Drew Carey say "run over and see your car" and the model seems to hand the vanity plate to the winner, I'm saying it is quite cheesy, forced and rehearsed.

The audience is explicitly told during the warm-up to run over to the car if they win.

[TLEberle]

Considering that I've heard Drew Carey say "run over and see your car" and the model seems to hand the vanity plate to the winner, I'm saying it is quite cheesy, forced and rehearsed.

The audience is explicitly told during the warm-up to run over to the car if they win.

Disappointing but unsurprising.

Another thing: there are people out there who do enjoy the challenge of playing along and testing themselves against the on-screen contestants. Questions and puzzles can be difficult as long as the viewers have an idea of the subject matter even if they don't know the answers. Notice that for all the $1 million questions on the primetime show were always about something familiar.

[BrandonFG]

1. Loud =/= exciting, quiet =/= boring. It's okay if your audience doesn't cheer over mundane, regular things like a contestant mentioning his or her hometown/college, or what category they decide to play. Could you imagine how tedious Jeopardy! would be if the audience clapped every time someone said "Potpourri for $400", "English Literature for $1200"?

2. Youtube is a great place to promote your show with clips or episodes, but let silly moments or bloopers just "happen". You don't have to rig the show* to manufacture or force a good/dramatic Youtube moment. Sooner or later, a funny will happen naturally.

2a. Phrasing the question to get a dirty answer is okay (see Game, Match), but keep in mind mentioning the nether regions on TV isn't as shocking as it was 40 years ago (see Feud, Family). In other words, don't try too hard.

3. I dunno if they still do it now, but Wayne's LMAD would have contestants run over to their prizes, no matter what it was. Seeing someone run to their car made sense, and dates back to Monty's era(s). A college student running over to check out his or her patio furniture just looks awkward.

4. Clueless or loud contestants do not make for good TV.

5. Pregnant pauses when revealing an answer is not dramatic, and should never be done. Yes, that's a broad statement, and I'm standing by it. That trend is now used on HGTV reality shows and it makes me want to Elvis my TV.

6. Have fun, don't take yourself too seriously and don't force the wackiness. That said, if you're offering a million dollars, you might want to take things a little more seriously and not offer a dog-and-pony show.

ETA: 7. When revamping an older show, at least watch a few episodes to see what worked in the original or prior versions. Don't just make changes with no true rhyme or reason.

To Mark's point about spontaneity, during one of the audience deals on LMaD, one of the audience members won $500 for whatever she brought in. She mentioned that she saw the item on the show's Twitter page. It's not as much fun when you tell people what to bring in.


*Rig as in "jury rig"...not the other rigging that brought about court hearings 60 years ago.

[Jeremy Nelson]

Considering that I've heard Drew Carey say "run over and see your car" and the model seems to hand the vanity plate to the winner, I'm saying it is quite cheesy, forced and rehearsed.

That being said, the general public who watch the show occasionally probably think that's spontaneous and awesome to watch.

I just think at this point, you let the excited contestant do whatever it is they're going to do- run to the car, hug the model, maul Drew, etc- I'm not sure what the show is hoping to gain from forcing the contestant to their car versus allowing them to have a human moment.

[TLEberle]

I just think at this point, you let the excited contestant do whatever it is they're going to do- run to the car, hug the model, maul Drew, etc- I'm not sure what the show is hoping to gain from forcing the contestant to their car versus allowing them to have a human moment.

They seek to homogenize the excitement.

Could you imagine how tedious Jeopardy! would be if the audience clapped every time someone said "Potpourri for $400", "English Literature for $1200"?

We absolutely can--it's why 500 Questions only got a third of the way home in the original flight of episodes.

*Rig as in "jury rig"...not the other rigging that brought about court hearings 60 years ago.

The phrase "jerry rig" has an interesting history that goes back to WW2. Fascinating ready. Jury rigging should only happen in a John Grisham novel.

[TimK2003]

5. Pregnant pauses when revealing an answer is not dramatic, and should never be done. Yes, that's a broad statement, and I'm standing by it.

Take out all the pregnant pauses in some one hour game shows, and you pretty much still have enough material to fill in a 30-minute show, with probably 2 or 3 minutes of "stretch" time to fill.


I also want to add:

8. When going into a break, don't show a "Cliff Note" version of the next segment.  You are pretty much telling the viewer it's OK to change channels, leave the sofa, take an extra long dump, etc... and they may not come back.

[Fedya]

And when you come back from break, don't show the last 10-15 seconds of what was on before the break.

[BrandonFG]

Could you imagine how tedious Jeopardy! would be if the audience clapped every time someone said "Potpourri for $400", "English Literature for $1200"?

We absolutely can--it's why 500 Questions only got a third of the way home in the original flight of episodes.

I was also thinking of Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader? Made me wonder what's so exciting about 2nd Grade Math.

To Tim and Ted's points, I could also do without the cliffhangers going to commercial, whether it's suddenly interrupting the moment or the host saying "We'll find out..............after the break!"

/Hard to believe a lot of this has been going on for more than a decade and seems like the norm now

[BillCullen1]

The host should:

1 Know all the rules
2 Act like he/she wants to be there

To see what happens if you stray from these - for 1, see John Davidson hosting Pyramid, for 2, see Louie Anderson hosting Family Feud.

[TimK2003]

I can't remember where I saw it, but it was within the past two weeks in some chat room where a poster said something to the effect that they prefer the newer game shows over the old because the new were professionally done and had fewer mistakes.

Obviously they don't know the world of re-takes or post-production editing.

[jjman920]

3. I dunno if they still do it now, but Wayne's LMAD would have contestants run over to their prizes, no matter what it was. Seeing someone run to their car made sense, and dates back to Monty's era(s). A college student running over to check out his or her patio furniture just looks awkward.

This is probably a Mike Richards thing because they also do it on The Price is Right as well. Although, while they do prompt contestants to go to the car on Price, it seems that some of the other "running over" instances are due to excitement and proximity. Sometime for games played at the door, the contestant might run in to say hello to one of the models. But other times it seems like they're running over to check out their sauna, hot tub, stuff for a year or living room. At least they can sit in a living room though.

To Mark's point about spontaneity, during one of the audience deals on LMaD, one of the audience members won $500 for whatever she brought in. She mentioned that she saw the item on the show's Twitter page. It's not as much fun when you tell people what to bring in.

It's something the show uses to accrue followers on Twitter in this world where likes and followers are king. To be fair, only one of the quickie deals they do require one of the Twitter items, which is why they make it so expensive. However, plenty of the other quickie deals are just as spontanious as before. Such as how many of this or that thing is on your outfit without looking. Do you have this? What was the name of the person playing the Big Deal? And so on.

[BrandonFG]

It's something the show uses to accrue followers on Twitter in this world where likes and followers are king. To be fair, only one of the quickie deals they do require one of the Twitter items, which is why they make it so expensive. However, plenty of the other quickie deals are just as spontanious as before. Such as how many of this or that thing is on your outfit without looking. Do you have this? What was the name of the person playing the Big Deal? And so on.

I stand (or sit) corrected, thanks.