User:Mariacer Cervantes/Challenge

This article is about the American television channel. For other uses of the term, see Challenge (disambiguation).

Challenge

Country	United States
Ownership
Owner	Gannett Company

Challenge is a United States cable game show channel owned by Gannett Company, a subsidiary of Virgin Media.

Game Show Network was later re-branded as Challenge TV from January 18, 2000 and the channel now mainly focuses on gameshows taken from a variety of newer originals and popular classic game shows (among the few non-gameshows it has aired the shortlived U.S. drama Dr. Vegas and the 1995 crime drama film Casino).

The channel mostly transmits repeats of programmes acquired from UK terrestrial channel archives (e.g. CBS, NBC, and Syndication programming) and a few from around the world (e.g. - Channel 4 (UK), Nine Network (Australia), M-Net (South Africa)), with a few original productions commissioned by Challenge itself.

The channel also aired some poker game shows including World Poker Tour, Celebrity Blackjack and Casino Casino, this also launched a short-lived spin-off channel, Quiz TV, which mainly focused on poker game shows that Challenge had transmitted.

The channel only aired current programming in the Standard format (480i), but on 3 June 2008 it launched on High-definition on 1080i resolution along with all other Gannett Company channels. This was coupled with a revamped logo.

History

1995–1998

The channel was originally called Game Show Network from March 1, 1995 to January 17, 2000, which aired a mixture of classic game shows from the 50s through the 1990-era.

Game Show Network went live at 6:00 PM on March 1, 1995. The first aired game show was Match Game '73. From 1995 until about 1999, the network aired pre-1972 classics as well as post-1972 game shows, most from the Mark Goodson–Bill Todman library. The network aired game shows in a 24-hour cycle, and also used live interstitial programming to wrap around the shows. In the first few months, GSN's commercials consisted of public service announcements (PSAs), GSN promos and commercials related to Sony, the parent company of the network. Once the network became bigger, traditional commercials were added to the network as they gained new sponsors.

From October 11, 1997 to April 18, 1998 the network's Goodson-Todman library rights expired, with the exceptions of The Price Is Right and the 1994-1995 season of Family Feud, which were both on a separate contract. This was known to many fans as the "Dark Period".

With the other Goodson-Todman shows gone, lesser-known Sony properties such as Juvenile Jury, The Diamond Head Game, the 1976-1977 version of Break the Bank, and the Bill Cullen-hosted games Chain Reaction and Pass the Buck all found their ways onto the schedule.

On April 18, 1998, Game Show Network bought back the rights to the Goodson-Todman library. In late 1998, GSN eliminated all of its Live programming. GSN replaced the live shows with in-show ads like Win TV. In 1999, the network began a slate of original programming, including Inquizition, All New 3's a Crowd and Hollywood Showdown. They also created original shows Extreme Gong (a remake of the classic Gong Show) and Burt Luddin's Love Buffet.

Challenge TV (2000-2005)

Game Show Network was later re-branded as Challenge TV from January 18, 2000 and the channel now mainly focuses on gameshows taken from a variety of newer originals and popular classic game shows (among the few non-gameshows it has aired the shortlived U.S. drama Dr. Vegas and the 1995 crime drama film Casino).

In 2001, a massive change in both leadership and programming to the network took place. Liberty Media acquired half of the network and changed the leadership. President Michael Fleming and Vice President Jake Tauber were both fired and former FOX Family president Rich Cronin was hired to head the network. He and incoming Vice President Bob Boden began the biggest original programming venture since the network's inception.

On October 1, 2002 the channel was re-named again, becoming Challenge?.

In Fall 2003, Challenge? began airing Challenge Video Games, the first program to air on the network that had nothing to do with traditional game shows. Although the show - a repackaging of somewhat dated British video game review shows (mostly Gamer.tv) - was short-lived and considered a disaster, it was a sign of the network's change of format from Game Show Network's "all game shows, all the time" to what eventually became "Challenge: The Network for Games".

The Network for Games (2005-2008)

On March 1, 2005 at 10:00 PM, Challenge stopped using the "questionmark symbol" on-air and introduced the tagline "The Network for Games", a move in line with the network expanding its programming to include the genre of reality television and various other competitions. (However, the entity's corporate name remained Game Show Network, LLC.)

The newly-renamed Challenge also introduced the original series World Series of Blackjack, Celebrity Blackjack, Extreme Dodgeball, Poker Royale, and the short-lived Fake-a-Date, Vegas Weddings Unveiled, and Ballbreakers. GSN also added reruns of The Mole, Average Joe, Arsenio Hall's Star Search, Kenny vs. Spenny, and Spy TV - all of which were eventually removed from the schedule (though Kenny vs. Spenny was picked up for new episodes by Comedy Central in 2007).

Traditional game shows Win Ben Stein's Money and Street Smarts were also acquired around this time and aired in various time slots, though neither was regularly programmed as of mid-March 2008.

Blackjack and Poker Royale signified the beginnings of Challenge's attempts to cash in on the TV poker-craze at the time. In 2006, GSN introduced High Stakes Poker, a poker show with a private-game format among professional players, and also programmed additional series of World Series of Blackjack and a spinoff, Celebrity Blackjack. One of the most popular shows from the initial TV poker boom, the World Poker Tour, was slated to move from the Travel Channel to GSN on March 24, 2008.

Within a year after GSN's revamp, GSN has primarily began returning its focus to studio-based game shows.

Revamp and Format change (2008-2010)

thumb|right|Challenge Jackpot logo from 2008 to November 1, 2010. On February 25, 2008, Challenge was also launched a live television games and debuted Challenge Jackpot, a live interactive secondary digital cable channel, hosted by Heidi Bohay and Fred Roggin. The show was similar in format to Club A.M., a former Challenge program, and aired weekdays from 12pm-3pm Eastern/9am-12pm Pacific during breaks between the programming line-up at the time. The show featured calls from viewers, interviews with classic game show hosts and behind-the-scenes features of game shows.

At three separate points in each day, interactive games were played with at-home contestants. Contestants could win anything from jewelry to GSN merchandise, or during one month-long contest, a new car.

Coupled with some of these changes in an aggressive marketing campaign. GSN sent Ribiero on a promotional tour to local television stations to promote Catch 21, while they partnered with the ABC Television Network to create Play It Again! Game Show Reunion Week, a series of one-off episodes of classic game shows for the network's morning show, Good Morning America, in exchange for promotion of the September 2008 Play It Back programming blocks, which featured marathons of game shows from the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s.

Catch 21, debuted in July 2008. The game combines questions with the casino game of blackjack. Alfonso Ribeiro hosts the program and is assisted by his co-host and dealer Mikki Padilla. The original producer of Gambit, Merrill Heatter, returned in the same capacity. In October of that year, a second season of Bingo America premiered with former Family Feud host Richard Karn as the new host and Diane Mizota as the co-host, replacing Patrick Duffy.

Other programs added to the network in 2008 included the syndicated version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? (hosted by Meredith Vieira). Also in 2008, GSN aired Think Like a Cat, sponsored by Meow Mix cat food, hosted by Chuck Woolery.

200px|thumb|right|GSN new logo for November 1, 2010. The Game Show Network will term it's second chance after Challenge is shutting down. On September 6, 2010, it was announced that Challenge would removed the network until it replaced with a new improved channel called GSN (sometimes known as Game Show Network). GSN will be returned on November 1, 2010, following to take departure to move all newer game shows at once.

However, GSN will air new game shows in order to replace Challenge. Gannett Company will terminate to sold with News Corporation and all of the 3 remaining channels will resume on October 21, 2010. on September 29, 2010, Challenge Jackpot! announced will renamed BingoWatch on some cable systems (Comcast and Charter Communications only). the channel will be also removed as the last MSN channel, MSN World, but 2 channels will be replaced until November 1.

The network, was used for GSN will be set in Culver City, California, until the network takes controlled.

Programming

Syndicated programming

GSN's rerun programming comes primarily from two sources: FremantleMedia and GSN parent company Sony.

Before Liberty Media purchased 50% of the network, Challenge had unlimited access to the game shows owned by Sony Pictures subsidiary Columbia TriStar Television. Once Liberty purchased their stake in the venture, Sony began charging licensing fees for their shows, despite their half-ownership of the network.

From Fremantle, the network licenses Match Game (all except 1983-1984 and 1998–1999), Family Feud (all except the 1999-2002 Louie Anderson-hosted seasons), Password (all versions), and Card Sharks (all except 2001–2002 syndicated). Until March 2009, Challenge licensed the entire Mark Goodson-Bill Todman library. During two weeks in December 2009, GSN picked up the rights to I've Got a Secret again for a limited return.

In the network's infancy, Challenge regularly showcased vintage Goodson-Todman game and panel shows from the 1950s and 1960s, many of which were either originally broadcast or only preserved in black-and-white – such as What's My Line?, I've Got a Secret, To Tell the Truth, Beat the Clock, and others. These classic shows made up much of the channel's lineup at the outset, but have been gradually cut back in prominence since the late 1990s. On October 1, 2006, only What's My Line? had a regular spot on the schedule, late Sunday/early Monday at 3:00 AM Eastern; it was followed by a selection from various 1950s-1970s Goodson-Todman shows, usually another panel game. On December 31, GSN reinstated the Black and White Overnight to 7 days a week from 3:00-4:00 AM, showcasing What's My Line? and I've Got a Secret in the block; other shows, including Choose Up Sides, The Name's the Same, and the Bud Collyer-hosted primetime version of To Tell the Truth have been featured, with the latter currently airing following What's My Line?. Challenge cancelled Black and White Overnight, effective March 31, 2009.

Challenge, in addition to its Goodson-Todman library, features shows from other companies:

• NBC Universal Television Distribution: Twenty-One (2000), Weakest Link, Dog Eat Dog, Deal or No Deal, and 1 Vs. 100 (original version; a 2011 revival will be a GSN Original)
• Warner Bros. Television Distribution: Love Connection (Woolery) and Street Smarts
• 20th Television: Greed
• FremantleMedia: Press Your Luck and Let's Make a Deal (both of which were included in the Goodson-Todman license from the company, although made by other companies – Bill Carruthers and Hatos-Hall, respectively)
• CBS Television Distribution: Hollywood Squares (Bergeron version only in conjunction with Sony Pictures Television)

Challenge also airs, or has aired, the Sony Pictures library programming from the following examples:

• Barris Industries/The Guber-Peters Entertainment Company: The Newlywed Game, The Dating Game, The Gong Show (except the Gary Owens version), 3's a Crowd, and Quiz Kids Challenge.
• Barry & Enright Productions (except the pre-scandal owned by NBC Universal Television and those owned in partnership by StudioCanal and CBS Television Distribution): Tic-Tac-Dough (1978-1986 syndicated), The Joker's Wild (1972-1986 versions), Break the Bank (1976-1977 versions), and Bumper Stumpers.
• Merv Griffin Enterprises: Headline Chasers, Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune (for Wheel, exceptions are the Benirschke and Goen versions).
• Stewart Tele Enterprises (excepting the 1970s Jackpot!, The $50,000 Pyramid, shows owned by CBS Television Distribution, and the 1991 The $100,000 Pyramid {jointly owned by CTD and StudioCanal}): Jackpot!, Pass the Buck, Go, Chain Reaction, and the surviving Pyramid incarnations.
• Columbia Pictures Television: Dealer's Choice, The Diamond Head Game, and The Fun Factory (all were produced by Fishman-Freer Productions).
• 2waytraffic: That's the Question
• Columbia TriStar Television/Sony Pictures Television: Pyramid (Osmond), Russian Roulette, new incarnations and new series co-produced by Sony-owned Embassy Row, and post-1994 episodes of Wheel and Jeopardy!.

In October 2003, Challenge acquired the rerun rights to Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? (from Disney-ABC Domestic Television) and have added more episodes since, including the Super Millionaire spin-off in Spring 2005 and the Meredith Vieira-hosted syndicated series in Fall 2008.

Among the most well-known classic game shows previously aired regularly on the network are The Price Is Right, The Joker's Wild, Tattletales, Hollywood Squares, The Dating Game, and various versions of Pyramid. Some of these shows still continued to be aired occasionally as part of special events, such as Dick Clark's Pyramid in honor of New Year's Rockin' Eve on December 31.

The Price Is Right

The Price Is Right, Goodson-Todman's longest-running game show, did not appear on GSN's regular schedule until December 1996. Episodes that featured fur coats or other animal-related prizes were not aired, following Bob Barker's animal-rights wishes. The show's GSN premiere was delayed almost two years in order to remove such episodes from the rotation. The show originally appeared on GSN in occasional pre-emptions of regularly scheduled series such as Match Game or Family Feud, and earned a regular spot just ten months before the network's "Dark Period".

Various versions of the show were broadcast, specifically those hosted by Barker, Bill Cullen, and Tom Kennedy (plus one episode sub-hosted by 1972-1977 nighttime host Dennis James, aired on the day of his death in 1997). In December 1996, Price began airing regularly on the schedule, with half-hour Barker shows in the morning and hour-long episodes in the afternoon and evening, Kennedy shows in late-night, and the Cullen version as part of what was then billed as "Sentimental Sunday". No episodes from either the 1972-1980 or 1994-1995 syndicated versions aired during this time, the former mostly due to Barker's fur ban and the latter due to rights issues involving Paramount Television.

Challenge TV's contract to air Price expired in April 2000 and has not been renewed since. Most Price reruns are held not entirely by FremantleMedia, but also through CBS Television Distribution, as CBS currently licenses the American Price franchise from Fremantle. Challenge TV would have to pay royalties to both CBS and Fremantle to gain the rights to the show.

Slogans

• "You're Watching Game Show Network." (March 1, 1995-October 8, 1997)
• "Game Show Network, All Play. All Day." (October 9, 1997-January 18, 2000)
• "Whoo-Hoo! All Play, All Day!" (December 6, 1998-January 18, 2000, alternate)
• "Why Just Watch Television When You Can Play From Home" (January 18, 2000-March 1, 2005, standard)
• "Why Just Watch TV When You Can Play???" (October 1, 2002-March 1, 2005, alternate)
• "Challenge: The Network For Games" (March 1, 2005-October 22, 2006)
• "Challenge: watch. play. win." (October 23, 2006-December 8, 2008)
• "Challenge: Catch A Game" (March 21, 2007-November 6, 2007, alternate)
• "Challenge: Get in The Challenge. Get in the Game." (June 7, 2008-August 10, 2008, alternate)
• "Challenge: playeveryday." (December 9, 2008-Ending October 31, 2010)
• "GSN: The World Needs More Winners." (Coming November 1, 2010)

List of voiceover artists

• Gary Jackson (1995-1999)
• John Cramer (1997)
• Gene Wood (1995-1998)
• Mike Holland (1997-1998)
• Fred Anderson (1997-1998)
• Steve Shaffer (1998-2003)
• Jim Freeman (1998-1999)
• Bob Schultz (1999-2004)
• Chuck Woolery (2005-2007 lineup bumper)
• Mike Meehan (2005-2007)
• Roger Falls
• Susan Walker
• Jeff Bottoms

Music packages

• Total Groove (1995-March 16, 1997)
• Generation X (March 17, 1997-October 1997)
• Power Play (lineup, March 17, 1997-October 1997)
• Unplugged (October 1997-April 17, 1998)
• Heat Wave (April 18, 1998-1999)
• Challenge 2000 (1999-2004)