Deal or No Deal (U.S. syndicated game show)

Deal or No Deal
Deal or No Deal logo.
Created by	John de Mol
Starring	Howie Mandel (host) Patricia Kara (model) Tameka Jacobs (model) The Banker
Narrated by	Joe Cipriano
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	120 (as of 1/16/09)
Production
Executive producers	Scott St. John, Endemol
Running time	22 Minutes
Original release
Network	syndicated
Release	September 8, 2008 – present

A daytime version of Deal or No Deal, syndicated by NBC Universal Television Distribution, premiered on September 8, 2008; taping of these episodes started on May 21, 2008. The host of the primetime NBC version, Howie Mandel, is also host of the weekday version, which is seen either once or twice a day, depending on market. The format is similar to the UK version of the show (and other versions in Spain, Italy, France, and India).

Gameplay

Deal or No Deal is played by one contestant at a time. Prior to each game, 22 dollar amounts ranging from $.01 to $500,000 are distributed by a third-party among 22 briefcases, the values unknown by the host or the Banker. The cases are then randomly presented to 22 contestants..

The game begins with models Patricia Kara and Tameka Jacobs spinning a wheel with 22 numbers on it, which corresponds to the numbers on the cases. A gold ball is also used, and as the wheel spins the ball bounces around inside (à la The Big Spin). After the spin, whatever the number the ball lands on is the case number selected. The contestant's case is then placed on a podium. The player has the opportunity to swap cases before the game begins. To date, the only exception to this rule has been when Evian has been a sponsor on the show and the models would spin a bottle of Evian water to determine the contestants for that particular week.

Through a series of rounds, the contestant is asked to select a number of the other cases still in play; each case is opened and the value revealed before it is taken out of play, and a large electronic board is used to track which dollar amounts still remain in the game. After completing the selection of cases for that round, the Banker, a silhouette figure lit only dimly from behind in a box overlooking the stage, will call down to the host using a phone on the podium. The host will then tell the player of the Banker's "deal": a cash value that depends on of the values of the cases remaining in play, in exchange for leaving the game. The host opens a plexiglass case on the podium containing a button; if the player accepts the deal, he or she presses the button to end the game, otherwise, he or she closes the case and declares "No Deal," requiring the player to continue into the next round.

Each round progressively removes fewer cases from the game; the first round begins with five cases to be removed, the second round with five more, then four, two, two, and subsequently down to removing one case at a time (during the first five episodes taped, three cases are opened in Round 4 instead of two). The Banker's offers typically depend on the interaction between the player and himself. Sometimes, they represent a small percentage of the average value of all the remaining cases. From round to round, that percentrage generally increases, sometimes exceeding 100% toward the end of the game. Should the player make it to the final round, with the selected case and one other case left in play, they win whatever case they end up keeping at that point. If the player takes a deal prior to the final round, the host usually encourages the player to play through to the end to see what would have happened.

Case Values

$.01 $1 $5 $10 $25 $50 $100 $200 $300 $400 $500

$1,000 $2,500 $5,000 $7,500 $10,000 $25,000 $50,000 $75,000 $100,000 $250,000 $500,000

Deal's $10K Giveaway

The syndicated version also has a "Lucky Case Game" variant called Deal's $10K Giveaway, playing for $10,000 cash. Unlike the prime-time version, the contest lasts all week (with one winner per week), and viewers participate by calling a toll-free number. The contest is designed mainly as an advertisement for the Deal or No Deal Club, a club where shoppers could get special discounts for a monthly fee.

History

Originally, Mandel planned not to host the syndicated version, as his asking price to host it, in addition to the prime time NBC version, was considered to be outside of the production budget. Arsenio Hall was first considered to be the host, and even taped a pilot for the syndicated version, but was later passed over. According to rumors, Mark Curry and Frank Nicotero were also among the candidates. NBC also had concerns that the syndicated show would harm the primetime show, as Who Wants To Be A Millionaire had suffered from overexposure. However, the syndicated version debuted September 8, 2008, with Mandel as host.

Initially, NBC planned to package this program with the Program Partners-produced Merv Griffin's Crosswords for its first season; however, that program is currently on hiatus and the packaging plans have not been announced as of yet.

Sponsors

There have been a few times where the week would be sponsored by a company, and the $10,000 would be themed like the company that sponsors it. hp, Sears, and Splenda have all sponsored a week. The contestant that opens the case will win items from that company. The exception is with Splenda; when the Splenda case is opened, the next offer after that would be "sweetened" by $10,000, thus automatically giving the contestant that money plus the offer if all cases $25,000 or higher have been removed from play. If the playing contestant went home with the Splenda case, they would win $20,000; the only way that the contestant would receive neither situation is if the Splenda was the last case in the gallery. Also Evian sponsored one week, where the contestant holding the company's case received $1,000. During the Halloween 2008 week of episodes, the Mars candy company sponsored the show. The contestant's cases were covered with the logo of a Mars candy company, and the show's two models, Patricia and Tameka handed candy to audience members.

Top Prize Winners

To date, no one has won the $500,000 grand prize. The highest winner, named Chelsea Drake (one of the 22 pregnant mothers seen on Baby on Board Week) took the game down to three of the top four prizes, which were $75,000, $100,000 and $500,000; she then refused $176,000 and finally dealt at $275,000 with the latter two amounts, but gave up an easy $500,000 win by doing so.

In addition to this large safety net, two of the other four $500,000 sales to date have been from a hypothetical final two cases of either $100,000 or $250,000 accompanying the big prize.

There has also been a second recorded instance of the $500,000 being in active play all the way to the end; Reggie Miller reached the final two cases of $300 and $500,000, winning $202,000 for the $300 case on the podium

External links

• Official website for syndicated Deal or No Deal