Win the game and still win nothing?

[TLEberle]

I'm just surprised nobody mentioned Pitfall until now.

/Yes, it's a technicality, but it counts in my book.

By the same logic, you could also include Reel-To-Reel.

I see--he was attempting to be funny.

[Argo]

Narz Concentration too, but he did go on to win Double Play.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oka8S-im3JU&t=18m00s

[whewfan]

This is veering from the original poster's question, but there was a contestant on TPIR that won by DOING nothing. (Well, sort of.) This contestant won his one bid, then played 10 Chances, but someone didn't load the board right, and all three prices for all three prizes were exposed when Bob removed the prize cards. So, for the only time in the show's history, the contestant won all three prizes without having to write anything. (I want to say I saw one playing with ONE price accidentally exposed, but I can't swear to it.) During the Showcase Showdown, he was the third to spin, and the other two went over, so he got into the showcase automatically (with Bob quick to point out he got this far doing NOTHING) I believe he also won his showcase.

[bscripps]

This is veering from the original poster's question, but there was a contestant on TPIR that won by DOING nothing. (Well, sort of.) This contestant won his one bid, then played 10 Chances, but someone didn't load the board right, and all three prices for all three prizes were exposed when Bob removed the prize cards. So, for the only time in the show's history, the contestant won all three prizes without having to write anything. (I want to say I saw one playing with ONE price accidentally exposed, but I can't swear to it.) During the Showcase Showdown, he was the third to spin, and the other two went over, so he got into the showcase automatically (with Bob quick to point out he got this far doing NOTHING) I believe he also won his showcase.

He did not win the showcase.  He was last to bid on a one-bid and bid a dollar higher than the highest bid.  In the showcase, he overbid.

The full episode for your viewing pleasure (sorry about the bad tracking at the top...damn Magnavox VHS):

[JakeT]

This is veering from the original poster's question, but there was a contestant on TPIR that won by DOING nothing. (Well, sort of.) This contestant won his one bid, then played 10 Chances, but someone didn't load the board right, and all three prices for all three prizes were exposed when Bob removed the prize cards. So, for the only time in the show's history, the contestant won all three prizes without having to write anything. (I want to say I saw one playing with ONE price accidentally exposed, but I can't swear to it.) During the Showcase Showdown, he was the third to spin, and the other two went over, so he got into the showcase automatically (with Bob quick to point out he got this far doing NOTHING) I believe he also won his showcase.

Why wouldn't they have been smart enough to do a stopdown after the first reveal to make sure that this didn't end up this way?  Clearly, Bob suspected it was going to happen...it was even more ridiculous that they didn't intervene and do a stopdown after the second reveal...

Wasn't even remotely entertaining to watch...yay...clean-cut goofy-grin Joe College gets a bunch of loot for standing there...how fun...

JakeT

[Kevin Prather]

Why wouldn't they have been smart enough to do a stopdown after the first reveal to make sure that this didn't end up this way? 

One of the staff members (director, producer, I don't remember) once said in an interview that stopdowns are often more expensive than the prize, so it's more cost-effective to just say "Give them the car".

[JakeT]

Why wouldn't they have been smart enough to do a stopdown after the first reveal to make sure that this didn't end up this way? 

One of the staff members (director, producer, I don't remember) once said in an interview that stopdowns are often more expensive than the prize, so it's more cost-effective to just say "Give them the car".

I'd really like to hear how a simple two-minute corrective stopdown could cost them $20,000...

JakeT

[TLEberle]

Studio time by the hour ain't cheap.

[JakeT]

Studio time by the hour ain't cheap.

I'm well aware of that...but $20,000 for a two-minute correction?  Let's be real here...

Plus we know they've done tons of stopdowns for many other reasons...

Can we try to apply a little logic here and inject a dose of reality?  Maybe some facts as well?

JakeT

[JasonA1]

Why wouldn't they have been smart enough to do a stopdown after the first reveal to make sure that this didn't end up this way? 

One of the staff members (director, producer, I don't remember) once said in an interview that stopdowns are often more expensive than the prize, so it's more cost-effective to just say "Give them the car".

I imagine the bigger stopdowns that require a new prize to come in could possibly fit that bill. If you realize halfway through Money Game that the wrong car copy was read, it's easier to let the game go, resolve the situation in the break, and have the host mention it at the top of the next act...or tell the host during the act to say "give them the car." Because the only fix in that case would be to reset the game for the real car at stake (which requires selecting & retrieving graphics for 9 new pairs of numbers, resetting the board, etc.) or getting a new car in the studio, which is far less practical.

But in this specific case, after you see the first price in Ten Chances has been accidentally revealed, throwing up a curtain (or dropping the Race Game flat) while you double check the other 2 prizes would be far lest costly. I think Bob was making a statement to the staff.

As I had it explained to me some time ago, even when the sliding of the numbers became manual, Ten Chances still had electricity running through it. When the contestant wrote the correct number, they would engage the button, so when Bob pressed it, it would actually work. Apparently, a short had run through the game and dropped all the prices. Since it happened between when the game was set up and when the game was played, nobody caught it.

-Jason

[JakeT]

But in this specific case, after you see the first price in Ten Chances has been accidentally revealed, throwing up a curtain (or dropping the Race Game flat) while you double check the other 2 prizes would be far lest costly. I think Bob was making a statement to the staff.

As I had it explained to me some time ago, even when the sliding of the numbers became manual, Ten Chances still had electricity running through it. When the contestant wrote the correct number, they would engage the button, so when Bob pressed it, it would actually work. Apparently, a short had run through the game and dropped all the prices. Since it happened between when the game was set up and when the game was played, nobody caught it.

So, suffice it to say, this was likely nothing more than a technical error beyond anyone's control and, in his capacity as Grand Poobah Executive Producer, Barker decided to needlessly poke someone in the eye while costing CBS and the production company $20,000...

Thanks for injecting the logic and reality I was seeking...much appreciated...

JakeT

[Loogaroo]

...While at the same time creating an interesting moment on the show that would most certainly ultimately give it some good PR by demonstrating that they understand that the contestant wasn't at fault and thus gets the benefit of any mistake the production makes.

I can think of at least two other prop-related mishaps on TPIR that maybe could have been fixed by a stopdown and reset (the Punch-a-Bunch game where the slip was missing, the Race Game playing where the reader incorrectly flashed 0 instead of 2) but instead they opted to just give the prizes away. Even decades after the fact, they're still memorable moments, and they're remembered fondly because they showed the host giving the prize to a happy contestant and making a fun moment out of it. That's all the evidence I need to know that that's the way to go. Especially since TPIR is a show that literally involves hundreds of props and something is bound to malfunction once in a while.

[BrandonFG]

...While at the same time creating an interesting moment on the show that would most certainly ultimately give it some good PR by demonstrating that they understand that the contestant wasn't at fault and thus gets the benefit of any mistake the production makes.

Looking at the Welcome to New York promo in the beginning, I'm pinpointing this around 2001 or so, well into Barker's manufactured "historic moments" era, where he declares anything to be a big deal or gives away the prize just for the hell of it. In addition to the PR, he knows it makes for a good clip on the next prime time retrospective*. I don't know how much it cost the show, I simply see Barker being Barker here.

*Although I don't think they ever used this one.

[Mr. Armadillo]

Besides, it only costs them something if the contestant would have lost the game.  Obviously we have no way of knowing, but if the contestant otherwise would have won, then the show lost nothing by giving away the prize up front (and even likely gained a couple minutes of air time to fill the rest of the way).

[Denials]

But in this specific case, after you see the first price in Ten Chances has been accidentally revealed, throwing up a curtain (or dropping the Race Game flat) while you double check the other 2 prizes would be far lest costly. I think Bob was making a statement to the staff.

As I had it explained to me some time ago, even when the sliding of the numbers became manual, Ten Chances still had electricity running through it. When the contestant wrote the correct number, they would engage the button, so when Bob pressed it, it would actually work. Apparently, a short had run through the game and dropped all the prices. Since it happened between when the game was set up and when the game was played, nobody caught it.

So, suffice it to say, this was likely nothing more than a technical error beyond anyone's control and, in his capacity as Grand Poobah Executive Producer, Barker decided to needlessly poke someone in the eye while costing CBS and the production company $20,000...

Thanks for injecting the logic and reality I was seeking...much appreciated...

JakeT

Jake, I'm pretty sure CBS wasn't out anything.  The production company, on the other hand, was.

I'm also pretty sure you're simplifying things by calling it a "2-minute" stopdown.  I'm not an expert on this, but I suspect that anything involving changing a game once a contestant is engaged in the game probably requires a standards and practices review to ensure that nothing improper is happening.  Networks and production companies take that kind of thing VERY seriously.  Given the cost of studio time, extra labor, etc., I can imagine that one quickly gets to where "just moving on" is the right move if more than a simple stopdown is required.

Plus, there is some likelihood that the contestant would have won the game if it had been played normally.  So the cost to the production company ISN'T $20,000, it's a probabilistic amount based on the probability that the contestant would have won anyway.   [EDIT: Sorry, Army - I didn't see your post when I wrote this.  Full credit to you for this.]

Also, keep in mind that the show was pretty much done live to tape at the time, unlike now with more edits and stopdowns.  So a stopdown would have been more out of the ordinary for an issue as opposed to just continuing on.

I think you're over-exaggerating the issue significantly with your word choice and tone.