Squeeze Play (pricing game)
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Squeeze Play is a pricing game on the American television game show The Price Is Right. Debuting on September 13, 1977, this game is played for a prize with four digits in its price, worth more than $2,000. The game is occasionally played for prizes worth more than $10,000, such as an expensive trip, boat, trailer or car.
[edit] Gameplay
The contestant is shown a "wrong price" of five digits which is the actual price of the prize with one additional digit inserted somewhere in the middle (the end digits are always correct). The contestant must select what they believe to be the extraneous digit which is then removed, leaving the other four digits to squeeze together, closing the gap and forming a final price. If the resulting price is the actual price, they win the prize.
Since 2003, Squeeze Play has occasionally been played for cars and other prizes with five-digit prices. In this format, the contestant is shown six digits, with one of the middle four being the extraneous digit. The game otherwise plays exactly the same.
[edit] History and behind the scenes
Squeeze Play has not always been played on the Turntable; until 1982, it was played on the stage and was concealed by the Giant Price Tag. In 2001, the board's color scheme changed from blue to gray, and the white lines changed to gold.
The sound effect for the numbers squeezing together is the same one heard when the safe is opened and closed in Safe Crackers.
Squeeze Play has been fraught with mechanical problems throughout its history. Numbers have been stuck and misaligned, the "squeeze" has failed to operate promptly, and the door that opens the reveal has malfunctioned several times (usually resulting in Bob Barker kicking it).
[edit] Nighttime Appearances
On the Doug Davidson-hosted version in 1994, Squeeze Play was the only Turntable-staged game to be played on not only the stage (its original spot), but also in front of the Video Wall.
