[quote name=\'Matt Ottinger\' date=\'Oct 24 2003, 09:12 AM\']I have two memories that may have been from different eras of the show. I'm remembering they would replace the old rebus with a new one, so the next episode would start with the same squares revealed, but a new rebus underneath. But I'm also remembering an explanation from Downs (or maybe Clayton) after the show had gone to tape that they would be finishing the game immediately and we viewers would see the conclusion at the beginning of the next show. Some of our even older members (or those my age with better memories) might be able to confirm or deny any of this.[/quote]
I remember Bob Clayton saying frequently "We'll finish the game here in the studio and show you what happened tomorrow [next time]." This is, of course, after they'd switched to five-a-day taping, so it was a carryover from the old days. You'd see the game straddle to the next day and pick up where it left off.
Usually, the next day, after the animation, instead of hyping the top prize or theme in the first game, Wayne Howell, would say over the tymp roll "We're in the middle of an exciting game and you'll see who wins today--now, here's your host, Bob Clayton!"
I don't remember any special prizes except for the Cash Wheel and The Envelope. There were probably others over the years, but those two were the most popular. As Chris says above, the Cash Wheel and The Envelope weren't regular features, so it was always a big deal to see them come up.
Near the end, they brought out the "Double Wheel," which was basically the Cash Wheel with prizes on it, ranging from a Hebrew National salami to A NEW CAR! I forget whether the contestant got two spins and kept both prizes or spun once and had the option of spinning again for a better prize. Like the Cash Wheel and Envelope, it popped up maybe every few weeks or so. I believe all three prizes remained available until a contestant won them, the Envelope for sure (and they even played up The Envelope spaces by ringing a 70s "Pyramid" correct answer bell several times and having the camera zoom in on the space every time it turned over).
Other specials on "Concentration" were theme games, where all of the prizes had something in common, the most noteworthy being the various international games. These would usually have a name like "Scandinavian Spectacular" and begin with a brief travelogue with film clips narrated by the announcer. Then, model Paola Diva, decked in a native costume, would bring out the appropriate funny hats for the contestants--and the host--to wear. (When they did once an Italian game, the contestant desks had red-and-white-checked tablecloths and chianti bottles on them like an Italian restaurant and Bob Clayton went through make-up and wardrobe to look like a stereotypical Italian restaurant owner, complete with moustache and bald head wig on top with sideburns.) The top prize in the game was always a trip to the country featured and the other prizes were either imported from that country or something associated with that country.
They also did other theme games like a Gay 90s (that's 1890s, kids, and we mean "gay" as in "happy") game, with Milt Kaye on camera banging out ragtime on a ricky-tick piano (the better to keep him away from that tacky organ of "Concentration"'s last years).
And there was the home viewer game, which was played at least once a week for the last several years of the run (often after an unsolved rebus, with Norm Blumenthal saying over the PA "Bob, why don't we give our friends at home a chance to win?"). Postcards were in a bin, Clayton would spin the bin around a few times and pull out a card. The first letter of your last name was keyed into the game board (A=1, B=2, etc.) and whatever was behind that number was what you won. If it was a gag prize or a Forfeit, you won $100. If it was a Take, you won $250. If it was a Wild Card, you won $500. Anything else, you won it.
