Bullseye (U.S. game show)

For the British game show of the same name, see Bullseye (UK game show).

(Celebrity) Bullseye
Format	Game show
Created by	Jack Barry & Dan Enright
Presented by	Jim Lange
Narrated by	Jay Stewart Charlie O'Donnell
Theme music composer	Hal Hidey
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	~390[citation needed]
Production
Running time	30 Minutes
Broadcast
Original channel	Syndicated (daily)
Original run	September 29, 1980 – September 24, 1982

Bullseye is an American game show that aired in syndication from September 29, 1980 to September 24, 1982. Jim Lange was the host, and the program was produced by Jack Barry and Dan Enright. Jay Stewart was the announcer for the first season, and Charlie O'Donnell announced for the second season. The series' executive producer was Ron Greenberg.

Gameplay

Main Game

Two contestants, one a returning champion, competed. The game began with the champion stopping a star-shaped game board of three spinning windows by hitting a three-colored plunger in front of him. The first two windows contained eight different categories (four in each window) with dollar amounts ranging from $50 to $200 (representing the value of each question). The third window (below the two category windows) was the Contract window, and displayed numbers from one to five as well as a bullseye graphic.

When the windows stopped spinning, the player chose either of the displayed categories, and had to fulfill the contract by correctly answering the number of questions indicated in the Contract window. If the Contract window contained a bullseye, the contract was unlimited; the player could continue answering questions for as long as he wanted to. Each correct response added the value of the question to a pot. A missed question gave the opponent a chance to steal control of the contract with a right answer.

After the contract had been completed, the player who completed the contract could elect to either bank the money in the pot & pass control of the board to the opponent, or continue playing with a new contract; choosing the latter option would leave the accumulated money in the pot, up for grabs by either player.

The first player to bank $1,000 or more won the game. Beginning with a Nov. 1980 celebrity week, this was increased to $2,000, with question values increasing to $100–$400. Contestants kept any money banked during a game, regardless of the outcome, making Bullseye one of the few Barry & Enright shows to allow losing contestants to keep earnings from the game.

In the event of a champion winning the game without the challenger having an opportunity to play (for example, if the champion spun a bullseye in the contract window and answered several consecutive questions to win the game), the challenger would return in the next game to play again.

As is the case with most Barry & Enright game shows, a new automobile was awarded to any contestant who won five consecutive games.

Endgame—"Bonus Island"

Bonus Island game, now in progress.

The champion advanced to play the bonus round, referred to as "Bonus Island". Once again, the object for the player was to use their plunger to stop the spinning windows. However, this time the windows contained various dollar amounts ($100–$150–$200 originally, later $100–$200–$300). All three windows also contained bullseyes, and one also contained a lightning bolt.

The player's task was to spin three bullseyes, which resulted in an automatic win, or survive ten spins (later seven) without being "struck by lightning". With each spin, whatever money the contestant accumulated was added to their bank for the round. Bullseyes, when spun, were automatically frozen (a player originally had the option to freeze the window in which a bullseye appeared). A player could stop after any spin if they so chose, but if lightning came up in its assigned window (accompanied by a loud thunderclap) they automatically lost the round and whatever money they had won up to that point.

For winning the bonus round by spinning three bullseyes, the contestant's money bank was doubled, and they received that money as well as a prize package (a staple on Barry-Enright shows of this era), which usually was worth between $2,000 and $4,000. If a player spun three bullseyes in one spin, they won $10,000. Surviving the allotment of spins augmented a player's winnings to $5,000 unless they had accumulated more than that.

A player had no way of knowing whether or not the lightning was still in play until after the round ended and all the amounts in the windows were revealed.

Production information

The show featured a bombastic music package, including a main theme strongly reminiscent of the Santa Esmeralda disco hit "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood," which had been used itself on the pilot.

Bullseye first originated from NBC Studios in Burbank, California. In 1981, production of Bullseye moved to Studio 31 of CBS Television City in Los Angeles, California. Later that same year, production of Bullseye was moved to Television City's Studio 33; some episodes returned to 31 in early 1982.

Celebrity Bullseye

On December 7, 1981, the show changed its name to Celebrity Bullseye and featured celebrity contestants playing for their favorite charities. The celebrities played a best two-out-of-three game. A $500 value was added to the main game, the categories were no longer announced by Lange before the game began and most questions were multiple-choice, containing three possible answers.

Celebrities who played included Harvey Korman, Greg Morris, Doug Davidson, Roxie Roker, Rue McClanahan, Diane Ladd, Richard Kline, Gloria Loring, Patrick Wayne, Lynn Redgrave, Jerry Mathers, Meredith Baxter-Birney, Ernest Borgnine, and F. Lee Bailey.

Episode status

All episodes exist, with reruns airing on CBN Cable (1982–1983) and USA Network (April 1, 1985–June 26, 1987) with GSN doing so in more recent years (as recent as November 2007 for a "Viewers' Choice" marathon).