The Price Is Right
 |
| The Price Is Right | |
|---|---|
| File:TPiRlogo.jpg TPiR's 35th season logo. | |
| Created by | Bob Stewart |
| Developed by | Mark Goodson Bill Todman |
| Starring | Bob Barker |
| Country of origin |  United States |
| No. of episodes | 6,648 as of February 2, 2007 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 42 minutes (without commercials); 60 minutes (with commercials) |
| Original release | |
| Network | CBS |
| Release | September 4, 1972 – Present |
The Price Is Right is a popular American game show based on contestants guessing the retail prices of featured prizes and other promotional products. The modern United States version premiered on September 4, 1972 on CBS and is hosted by Bob Barker, although Barker announced on October 31, 2006, that he would retire at the end of this season; the show will continue with a new host, who has yet to be determined. Off-air auditions for the future host began on December 8. The show began its 35th season on September 18, 2006.
It is based on the original US version of the show, which aired on NBC and later ABC from 1956 to 1965 and was hosted by Bill Cullen.
TV Guide named The Price Is Right the "greatest game show of all time."[1] It is only one of two game-show franchises to be seen nationally in either first-run network or syndication airings in every decade from the 1950s onward; the other is To Tell the Truth.
Overview
The 1972 daytime incarnation of The Price Is Right has the distinction of being the longest continuously running game show in North American television history. It has surpassed the previous record of 17 years and seven months set by What's My Line?. Still airing today, it continues to extend its record and has aired more than 6,650 episodes. Notably, it is also the only daytime game show that has aired regularly on United States network television since January 1994.
The gameplay includes several distinct elements: the Contestants' Row, in which one of four contestants qualify to play one of 74 different pricing games. In the current format, this happens six times per episode, with players departing Contestants' Row being replaced. Those six contestants are winnowed down in two Showcase Showdown rounds. The two remaining contestants vie for a Showcase of prizes worth tens of thousands of dollars.
Contestants' Row
Contestants' Row is the head on competitive area of the show where the four contestants bid on an offered prize. The one who comes closest to guessing the actual retail price without going over it is the winner and goes on to play a pricing game.
If a contestant guesses the exact price of the prize, a bell sounds, and the player wins a cash bonus. However, if all the contestants in a given round of bidding go over the price, a buzzer sounds and the host asks the contestants to rebid.
Along with the Showcase, the Contestants' Row portion (also known as One-Bid) is the one element of game play most identifiable as being retained from the original Cullen version, which was dominated by bidding.
Pricing games
The pricing game is where the contestant can win a larger prize such as cash, home furnishings, or a motor vehicle. Six pricing games are played per episode, and a variety of games are played, some more elaborate than others.
The Showcase Showdown
The Showcase Showdown determines the contestants that will play for the larger prize package at the end of the show called the Showcase. The Showdown appears twice in the program, once after the third pricing game and again after the sixth pricing game. The goal is to spin a large, twenty-section wheel with various amounts of money ranging from 5¢ to $1.00. The player's goal is to attempt to come as close to $1.00 as possible without going over in one or two spins. If the player's total reaches exactly $1.00 in one or two spins, they receive a cash bonus as well as an additional bonus spin to win a further cash bonus. In the event of a tie, a spin-off is held with the goal of coming closest to $1.00 in one spin, with the same bonuses still in play.
The Showcase
The two showcases are part of the final round of the program and offer the largest prizes. The prizes tend to be themed and for at least one a small pantomime story relates the prizes. Each contestant bids on one of the prize packages, with the contestant with the most winnings until that point having the option to bid on the first showcase presented or force the other contestant to bid on it. The contestant whose bid is closer to the price of their own showcase wins that showcase; if the winner's bid is $250 or less (originally less than $100; being exactly $100 away didn't count) away from the price of their showcase, they win both showcases.
Production information
Timeline
Every episode that is taped requires the following:[2]
- First morning production meeting: the director, associate director, models, and announcer go over the show's script to verify each prize's description and display is accurate.
- Second morning production meeting: occurs 30 minutes after the first meeting, with the entire production staff expected to attend.
- One hour rehearsal to go over the games, prizes, and announcements in a dry run.
- The show taping itself.
Audience and contestant selection
Many audience members arrive early on the day of a taping. Most have already received tickets for that day's show, although some hope to get same-day tickets. Audience members are then given the famous name tags with a temporary identification number. The ID number is also written on the person's ticket. Audience members are eventually brought through in groups of twelve for brief interviews with Stan Blits, the show's music director/contestant coordinator. (Until partway through Season 32, these interviews were conducted by one of the producers.) Social Security Numbers are also checked for tax reporting of potential prize winners.
Contrary to popular belief, contestant names are not chosen at random. Rather, the interviews determine possible selections for the nine contestants per taping from among the pool of 332 audience members.
With few exceptions (including previous contestants, political candidates, and people affiliated with the production of the show), anyone at least 18 years old who attends a taping of the show has the potential to become a contestant on The Price Is Right.
Bob Barker, emcee
The show's host, Bob Barker, has hosted every episode of the CBS daytime version except three — Dennis James subbed for him briefly in December 1974 because of an illness. Today, a scheduled taping is postponed in the event Barker is unavailable. Bob Barker has announced that he will retire from the show after the 35th season, with his final show airing sometime in June 2007.
Bob Barker began hosting duties on Price while he was also in a long run on the game show Truth or Consequences. Barker had hosted Truth since 1956, save for a one-year break when the show moved from NBC to first-run syndication. The last of Barker's Truth first-run episodes ran in 1975, though reruns continued to air in syndication afterward, and due to the bicycling of tapes used in syndication at the time, many markets continued to receive new episodes through 1977.
Host Auditions
CBS and RTL are in the process of auditioning for a new host.
On December 8, 2006, CBS began official host auditions, as CBS weatherman Dave Price from The Early Show became the first candidate auditioned. Two additional sessions were held in January 2007, with one hosted alternately by Todd Newton and John O'Hurley and the other emceed by Doug Davidson. As of right now, no further auditions have been scheduled.
All past contestants may participate in the host audition tapings, and only cash bonuses will be paid. If a player was eligible to be a contestant at the time of these tapings appears on these special tapings, they remain eligible to be on the regular show. Ineligible players who have appeared on the show in the past may participate and win the cash bonuses.
Announcers
The Price Is Right has had three permanent announcers over the course of its run on CBS: Johnny Olson (1972–1985); Rod Roddy (1986–2003); and Rich Fields (2004–present). They have generally enjoyed greater exposure than most shows' announcers, serving as Barker's sidekick, frequently appearing on-camera in Showcase skits (although this is rare now), and of course, calling contestants to "Come on down!"
Several announcers have also subbed on the show over the years. In late 1985 and early 1986, in the wake of Johnny Olson's death, Gene Wood (of Family Feud fame) lent his voice to both the daytime show and the Kennedy version, and Rod Roddy, Rich Jeffries, and Bob Hilton also tried out on the air; Hilton was actually offered the job permanently but turned it down due to a commitment to a game show pilot he was working on, thus leading to Rod Roddy being hired.
From 2001–2004, during Rod Roddy's illness and after his death, a number of announcers filled in on the show; Burton Richardson, Paul Boland, Randy West, Daniel Rosen, Art Sanders, Roger Rose, Rich Fields, Don Bishop and Jim Thornton were all featured at various times until Fields was given the job in April 2004. Richardson also announced the December 22, 2006 episode when Rich Fields came down with laryngitis.
Though Fields does not participate in Showcase skits, he is usually seen at the end of the show, joining Barker and the models onstage with the winner of the Showcase.
Barker's Beauties
The daily show featured models who became known as Barker's Beauties. From the mid-1970s through most of the 1980s these were Dian Parkinson (1975–1993), Holly Hallstrom (1977–1995), and Janice Pennington (1972–2000).
Controversy erupted in 1993 when Parkinson sued host Bob Barker for sexual harassment. Barker admitted that he had sexual relations with Parkinson but stated, "As God is my witness I never asked her to do anything she didn't want to do" and that everything was indeed consensual. Parkinson declared herself no financial match to Barker and his resources and gave up her legal fight with him in 1995.
Barker was involved in more legal trouble with a Price model in 1995. Holly Hallstrom, a model from 1977 to 1995, stated that she had gained 14 pounds due to a prescription medication and that Barker used the weight gain as an excuse to fire her, which Barker denied. Hallstrom alleged that the real reason Barker fired her was because she had refused to support Barker when Parkinson sued him for sexual harassment. Barker responded with a lawsuit for slander and libel, Barker v. Hallstrom, claiming Hallstrom was lying, but the court declared Hallstrom the prevailing party and ordered Plaintiff Barker to pay all Hallstrom's legal fees. Hallstrom countersued Barker and in October 2005 Hallstrom received a multi-million-dollar out-of-court settlement.
Janice Pennington and Kathleen Bradley (1990-2000)were both let go from the show in 2000 after testifying in Hallstrom's favor during Barker's lawsuit against her.
In 2003 model Claudia Jordan(2001-2003), was dismissed from the show. In 2004 Jordan filed suit against Barker and the show for charges that included Racial Discrimination, Sexual Harassment and Wrongful Termination. In 2005 Jordan received an out-of-court financial settlement.
Other permanent models over the years include Anitra Ford (1972–1976), Gena Lee Nolin (1994–1995), Chantel Dubay (1996–1999), Nikki Ziering (1999–2002), Heather Kozar (2001–2002).
Since Heather, Nikki, and later Claudia have no longer been on the show, there has been a Barker's Beauty rotation. Some of the rotating models include Lanisha Cole, Brandi Sherwood, Rachel Reynolds, Shane Stirling, Gabrielle Tuite, Gwendolyn Osbourne, and Phire Dawson.
Other production staff
Bob Barker serves as the show's host and executive producer; Roger Dobkowitz produces, while Kathy "Fingers" Greco is associate producer. (Dobkowitz occasionally appears on air when Barker needs a question answered.) Frank Wayne, a Goodson-Todman staffer since the 1950s, was the revival's original executive producer; previous producers include Jay Wolpert, Barbara Hunter, and Frank Wayne's son, Phil Wayne Rossi.
The show's main theme was written by Sheila Cole; some sources incorrectly list Edd Kalehoff as a co-composer (though Kalehoff did redo the theme for the 1994 Davidson version). Much of the prize music, written by Kalehoff, has been around since 1972, with additional pieces from 1976, 1983, 2003, and music transplanted from the 1994 syndicated version in the rotation as well.
Production company
The current version of the series was originally a Mark Goodson/Bill Todman production in association with CBS. After Todman died in 1979, the unit became known as simply Mark Goodson Productions, and was announced as such on The Price Is Right beginning in 1984. Today, the series is produced by The Price Is Right Productions, a joint venture of RTL Group and CBS.
For the sake of tradition, and through special permission from FremantleMedia (a subsidiary of RTL), the show continues to use the Mark Goodson Productions name, logo, and announcement at the end of each episode, even though the company no longer exists. (The current production of Family Feud, also a former Goodson-Todman property, does not follow this practice.)
Set features
The basic permanent set includes the audience seating and the stage. Contestants' Row is built into the center of the front of that stage, with steps on each end, although it is preferred, due to camera positioning, that the contestants use the steps closest to stage right.
On stage are three sets of large, paneled, sliding doors (the Big Doors), as well as a platform with a rotating wall (the Turntable). Pricing games and prizes are typically placed in these areas. There are also a Giant Price Tag prop, a fly curtain known as the Race Game Curtain, and a red curtain on wheels to conceal prizes and games; the Race Game Curtain is also lowered during commercial breaks to conceal the staging of the next act from the audience.
The announcer sits at a station stage left, while the production crew is in an area stage right.
Taping
The program is usually produced in exactly one hour, with carefully timed commercial breaks, even though it is taped well in advance (for example, the morning taping of November 16, 1983, was aired on January 10, 1984—a poster tells the audience when the show will be broadcast, so they can send postcards to friends). The airing schedule is now also available on the show's page at CBS.com under Ticket Information. As with many other shows that start production in the summer, the lead time varies during the season. For example, while some shows airing in October 2005 had been taped the previous July, the gap closed enough so that episodes taped in the second week of November 2005 aired just before Christmas. Towards the end of the season, the gap can be as little as three or four days.
The audience is entertained for several minutes by the announcer before taping begins; after the taping session, there is a drawing for a door prize.
Versions
CBS Daytime
The most recognized version of the show premiered September 4, 1972 on CBS and has been hosted by Bob Barker through its entire broadcast run. The show was first called The New Price is Right to distinguish itself from the earlier Bill Cullen version (1956-65), but within months, the show became so popular that producers decided to drop the word "New;" this occurred sometime in mid-1973.
The revival of The Price Is Right began as a half-hour long show. It featured three pricing games and the Showcase, with the top two winners of the day participating in the Showcase. CBS first scheduled the game at 10:30 a.m./9:30 Central, where it ran until March 1973. Price was one of three game show entries onto CBS's morning schedule, replacing a block of situation comedy reruns which had run for many years; Gambit and The Joker's Wild were the two others. Immediately, it began to wear down NBC's aging Concentration in the ratings; by spring 1973, NBC cancelled the long-running game, and, ironically enough, sold the production rights (but not the show's intellectual property itself) to Goodson-Todman Productions, who produced a syndicated version of Concentration from 1973 through 1978.
On March 26, 1973, to make way for the new $10,000 Pyramid, Price made an unusual move to 3/2 p.m., facing the highly rated soap Another World on NBC and muscling its way into a ratings tie, squeezing out the then-hapless General Hospital on ABC. Later in the year, it began to greatly benefit from the huge success of the show airing after it on the schedule, Match Game, also a Goodson-Todman property. However, in summer 1975, NBC's new Wheel of Fortune, along with Celebrity Sweepstakes and High Rollers, began trouncing CBS's block of mid-morning games. In response, the network quickly dispatched Price back to its original timeslot on August 18, shuffling several other shows throughout the next several months to tweak its attack on NBC (During that period, ABC did not begin its daytime lineup until 11:30/10:30).
During the week of September 8-12, 1975, CBS experimented with a one-hour version of the show for one week, to celebrate the show's third anniversary. Apparently, the ratings were so strong that the network was convinced that the arrangement would work well permanently. CBS made the move on November 3, fitting the show to its current six-pricing-game, two-Showcase-Showdown format. For the next several years, CBS would alternate the timeslot between 10-11 a.m. (11/3/75-1/28/77; 11/7/77-12/16/77) and 10:30-11:30 a.m. (1/31/77-11/4/77; 12/19/77-4/20/79), depending on the strength of the NBC shows opposing it. On April 23, 1979, however, CBS finally settled the show into its present timeslot of 11 a.m.-12 Noon, displacing the long-running soap Love of Life, which moved to 4 p.m./3 Central, where it was cancelled the following year.
Since the early 1980s, Price has beaten numerous NBC and ABC games, talk shows, and reruns in the ratings, with only the NBC Wheel of Fortune, the ABC Family Feud, and, more recently, ABC's The View, putting up anything like a fight against the legendary game. In fact, Price has been the only daytime network game show in production since 1994, when NBC cancelled its last remaining daytime game, Caesar's Challenge.
Syndication
Other versions of the show have aired as well since the revival began on CBS in 1972:
- A weekly syndicated version of the show aired from 1972 through 1980. Distributed by Viacom, the nighttime Price was hosted by Dennis James from 1972 to 1977, then Bob Barker from 1977 to 1980. James, a figure from the early days of TV, was originally intended to host both versions of the program; Barker only entered the picture at the behest of executives at CBS. It was only when James' contract expired and the long-running Truth or Consequences ended production that Barker added the evening version to his chores.
In most of the U.S., stations carried the syndicated Price as one of a variety of five different programs every night of the week in one of the available timeslots created by the 1971 FCC Prime Time Access Rule. Usually, the slots were one of two between 7-8 p.m. in the Eastern and Pacific time zones and 6:30-7 p.m. in the Central Time Zone; Mountain Time Zone stations broadcast this and other shows in a more scattered pattern. Strangely enough, although one would think that Barker taking over in 1977 should have boosted ratings, stations began to drop the show after 1978 because of the increasing popularity of the nighttime Family Feud, which eventually expanded from weekly to nightly, unlike Price. With Feud's favor among stations (as well as Tic Tac Dough), the "checkerboard" Access variety pattern became mostly history by 1980, when G-T quietly ended syndicated production of Price.
Although all of the episodes are believed to exist[citation needed], the 1972-80 syndie Price has never been aired as part of any rerun package[citation needed], reportedly because the shows usually featured furs being given away[citation needed], something anathema to Barker, an ardent animal rights activist.
- Two daily nighttime syndicated versions were attempted: in 1985 with veteran host Tom Kennedy (The Nighttime Price Is Right), and in 1994 with The Young and the Restless stalwart Doug Davidson (The New Price Is Right). Neither version was successful; Kennedy's version was cancelled after a year, Davidson's after five months. This probably happened because, by that time, established syndicated favorites like Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy, and Entertainment Tonight had largely locked newer programs out of the evening Access timeslots, forcing stations to place those shows in lower-rated daytime (in some cases, even overnight) periods, with the shows receiving little or no station promotion as a result. Since CBS forbade stations from running it before 6 p.m. (4 p.m. with the Davidson version), many prospective stations simply passed on Price.
The 1985 version was played exactly the same way as the first three CBS seasons and the original syndicated run, with the two highest winners advancing to the Showcase. This version experimented with a $500 perfect bid bonus, which the daytime show adopted in 1998. Some of the 1994 version's concepts (notably the main theme and the "Come on down" music) became part of European versions, starting with Bruce Forsyth's British version in 1995, and the production's Big Doors were brought the daytime version starting in September 1996, albeit repainted with the patterns from the daytime doors, after the original doors began to wear out.
Prime time specials
A series of six nighttime specials aired on Thursday nights during the summer of 1986. Up against the powerhouse NBC sitcom The Cosby Show, the show fared relatively poorly. In these episodes, host Barker wore a tuxedo, and colored spotlights surrounded the Big Doors.
In 1996, CBS aired an hour-long 25th Anniversary Special, using the half-hour gameplay format and featuring a number of retrospective clips. Ratings were markedly better, but it would be another five years before TPiR returned to primetime. A 30th anniversary special was recorded at Harrah's Rio in Las Vegas and was plagued with problems. The situation with potential audience members before the Vegas show started with confusion, then quickly degraded almost to chaos; as such, another road trip is unlikely.
Despite the production problems, more primetime shows were planned, albeit back at CBS Television City. Six nighttime specials saluting various branches of the United States armed forces and for police officers & firefighters aired during the summer of 2002, as a tribute to the heroes of the terrorist attacks of 2001. During the Military Specials, a $1 on the bonus spin in the Showcase Showdown would have been worth $100,000 instead of the usual $10,000; this prize went unclaimed.
The "Million Dollar Spectaculars"
Since 2003, fifteen nighttime "Million Dollar Spectaculars" have been aired, with the most recent one, originally intended for May 6, 2005, airing on February 14, 2006.
On the Million Dollar Spectaculars, the bonus spin payoff was again increased, to $1,000,000. Beginning on the fourth Million Dollar Spectacular, the winner of the Showcase earns a million-dollar spin if there was no bonus spin during either of the episode's Showcase Showdowns; during these post-Showcase spins, hitting a green section does not earn any money.
The rule in place for the fourth through 12th specials in case of a Showcase double-overbid was that a random audience member would be called onstage for a million-dollar spin; such a spinner would retain their eligibility to be called as a regular contestant on a future episode. Sometime during the fifth set of Million Dollar Spectaculars, the double overbid rule was changed to award the spin to the contestant who made the smaller overbid; it is unclear which rules were in place on the 13th and 14th episodes.
No one has claimed the million dollar prize through the first fifteen MDS shows; seven contestants (as of this writing) have had the wheel stop on .05, one wedge away from the $1 million jackpot; two of these seven contestants have had the wheel stop on the peg that separates the .05 wedge from the jackpot. The lack of big wins is notable given the relative frequency of $10,000 wins on the daytime show.
Only one primetime bonus spin, on one of the '86 specials, has actually stopped on the dollar.
Bigger and better prizes are generally offered on the Million Dollar Spectaculars: Contestants' Row frequently offers pricing game-calibre prizes; many pricing games, including those played for money, offer larger prizes than on the daytime show; and the Showcase will frequently offer multiple or very expensive cars.
"Gameshow Marathon"
TPIR was the first of seven classic game show formats set to be played on the CBS Gameshow Marathon, whose episode aired May 31, 2006. Ricki Lake served as host, while celebrities played as contestants. The show did not take place on the current set, but on a specially-designed smaller set in CBS Television City's Studio 46; however, the episode did use props from the current The Price Is Right, such as the Big Wheel and the Plinko board, and featured appearances by the Barker's Beauties and announcer Rich Fields.
The Gameshow Marathon episode for the most part used Price's half-hour gameplay format; however, due to the popularity of the Big Wheel, a Showcase Showdown was inserted after the third game, with two of its participants advancing to the Showcase, as used on the German version of the show, although Germany had a rule that contestants could not spin twice, making the rules less confusing than GSM's. The Showcase Showdown split-screen, with arrow, as seen on The Price Is Right from 1976 until the mid-1990s, was also included, albeit in a different color setup.
Bloopers and other memorable moments
 | This article contains a list of miscellaneous information. |
- The most frequently mentioned blooper happened in 1977 when at the beginning of the show, a woman named Yolanda Bowsley was called to come on down. Bowsley ran so hard to Contestants' Row and failed to notice her tube top slipped off, exposing her breasts. Bob Barker has often introduced the clip of the incident with the phrase, "she came on down, and they came on out!" TV Guide ranked it as the 19th most unexpected moment in television history.[3]
- Another wardrobe malfunction occurred when a woman named Sandra Hallisay ran down to Contestants' Row so quickly that she broke her bra in the process. Hallisay screamed and grabbed her chest upon reaching the Row, leaving Barker to determine her dilemma for the audience.
- A contestant named Patricia Bernard was called to come on down to Contestants' Row ... while she was in the ladies' room. Her husband lumbered out of the studio to get her. Barker joked, "She can't come to us, let's all go to her!" while starting to march up the aisle. They both came out shortly after.
- A number of times over the years on April 1 shows, the Showcase round has featured an "April Fool's showcase," which generally involves the contestants being shown a fake showcase in which absurd things happen. These include an "Every Room in the House" showcase with ridiculously cheap prizes, such as paper plates and an eggbeater; a showcase in which all of the prizes get broken; a showcase with trips to obscure locales; and a showcase that contains nothing but toy cars. The real showcase always features either multiple cars or a luxury car. One of the most notable "April Fools Showcases" from 1983 featured a grandfather clock which fell over and broke when it was wheeled out, a painting on the turntable that would not stop turning, a dining room group with a chandelier falling through the table, and a 1964 Plymouth Valiant crashing into the dining room group. The real showcase was two new Chevy Camaros.
- On three occasions, a contestant was called to "Come on down," yet no one stood up.[4] The first was expecting to hear her future husband's last name, the second's last name had been written down incorrectly by a page, and the third had not been brought into the studio yet due to a delay in processing the day's audience.
- Two contestants have fainted upon winning the Showcase.
- On three or four occasions in the show's long run, the wrong contestant has accidentally been declared the winner of a One-Bid round, with the mistake not being discovered until the commercial break. This is generally dealt with by returning the contestant who went onstage to Contestants' Row, allowing them to keep any prizes he had been awarded, but not counting those prizes toward their total winnings while calculating scores going into Showcase Showdowns or the Showcase; removing the actual winner from Contestants' Row, awarding him the One-Bid prize and the maximum winnings that he could have received from the pricing game, and advancing them to the Showcase Showdown; and proceeding from there as if nothing had happened. On at least two of these occasions, this has resulted in one person playing two pricing games.
- On the October 28, 2003 show, such a situation was handled differently. The wrong contestant was declared the winner of the first One-Bid; he went onstage, played Triple Play, and lost on the first car. When the mistake was discovered during the commercial break, it was decided to scrap the entire first act beyond the opening; a new Item up for Bids was presented, and its winner played Money Game for Triple Play's second car. The actual winner of the original One-Bid eventually won $5,000 playing Punch a Bunch. Whether or not anyone was awarded the original first Item up for Bids is unknown.
- Numerous times, the mechanics of the pricing games failed, often while the contestants were playing, or before the contestant had a chance to play them. In many cases, a price is revealed, rendering the play of the game moot; in these cases, the contestant is awarded the prize. A most memorable moment occurred with Master Key, in which the key got stuck in one of the locks. Bob gave the key a karate kick, breaking it off in the lock.
- A few times in the show's history, a player ended up cheating one way or another during a pricing game, but Bob would let them get away with it if they didn't do it again. Two were during 3 Strikes, both involving a contestant trying to drop a strike chip before Bob saw it; one was a memorable gaffe in Shell Game; another was a highly controversial moment in Flip Flop; and the last was a contestant attempting to trigger the lights in Pathfinder by touching adjacent squares with his foot.
- Bob was hugged by a Samoan contestant so hard he was literally lifted off his feet and his ribs were bruised. Holly Hallstrom later lampooned this incident in a Showcase skit.
- There have been a few times over the show's history where the show has been "skunked", meaning that no pricing games were won during an entire episode. At least three times, all six games were lost and the Showcase ended in a Double Overbid.
- There have been at least three marriage proposals during the show's run. One of those occurred during a contestant's spin on the Big Wheel. As the contestant made his proposal, the wheel stopped at $1.00, earning him a thousand dollars plus a bonus spin. Bob quipped moments later, "If this were in a movie, people would scoff, you know? It's unbelievable!" [1]
Trivia
| This article contains a list of miscellaneous information. |
- On the first five shows taped, Johnny Olson announced the names of the first four contestants and told them to "stand up," and then said, "And all four of you, come on down; you're the first contestants on The New Price Is Right!" (on the premiere) or, "Come on down and play The New Price Is Right!"[5]
- On a 1982 episode, Bill Cullen, who previously hosted the original version, made a one-time only return to the show to plug Child's Play. No mention was made of Cullen's past run as host of Price, however.[citation needed]
- Only once has a contestant in the Showcase ever gotten the price exactly right. There is no special bonus for getting a showcase bid exactly right, and since that contestant appeared on the show prior to the institution of the rule where a contestant could win both showcases if he or she bid within $250 or less (originally less than $100), he or she only won his or her own showcase.[citation needed]
- As of January 19, 2007, there have been 73 perfect shows (all contestants winning their respective pricing games that episode). On the other hand, as of November 3, 2006, there have been approximately 73 winless shows (none of the contestants winning their respective games that episode).[citation needed]
- A repeat episode that aired shortly after Hurricane Katrina offered a trip to New Orleans as a prize. After discovering this on the Eastern and Central time zone feed, CBS replaced the episode with another to air in other time zones that day. Two unaired episodes that were taped prior to Katrina were rescheduled to air several months later.[6]
- The most expensive single prize ever offered on the daytime show appeared in Golden Road on September 28, 2006. The prize, which was won, was a Dodge Viper SRT10 valued at $86,743.[citation needed]
- The 35th season-opener also set a record for the highest amount of prizes ever awarded on any daytime game show: $297,708 in cash and prizes ($12,600 of it in cash) were won during this historic episode, including a record seven automobiles (three of which were awarded on the sixth and final pricing game, which was Most Expensive).[citation needed]
- The show's biggest winner overall was college student Sheena Lindholm, who won $183,688 in cash and prizes during an April 2005 $1,000,000 Spectacular.[citation needed]
Episode status
Not all episodes of the Cullen run are believed to exist, although many of them do. All episodes of the other versions are believed to exist. The Cullen, Barker, and Kennedy versions aired on Game Show Network from 1996 to 2000. After 2000, GSN's rights to air the show expired, and the contract has not been renewed since then, as CBS President Les Moonves presently won't allow reruns to air anywhere due to fear of a ratings decrease. Even when GSN did have the rights, reruns of all '70s nighttime episodes, as well as some daytime episodes, were vetoed by Barker due to fur coats being given away as prizes. GSN was unable to air the Davidson episodes, as that run falls under different ownership (CBS Paramount).
It has recently come to light that there is an episode of the CBS daytime show from 1972 that has never been aired.[citation needed] After the program's third episode was taped, it was discovered that one of the contestants was ineligible because she was related to one of the cameramen at that time; the episode was shelved, and a "new third episode" with different games, contestants, and prizes was taped to replace it. The discovery of this episode is believed to explain the irregular taping and airing order of the first week of shows. It is not known whether the original third episode exists, although efforts are being made to find out.
Another episode from the end of Season 28 (1999-2000) has been recently discovered as unaired as well;[citation needed] it is not known why, although the situation was handled the same as before.
Price in other media
The Price Is Right has expanded beyond television to home and casino-based games:
Board Games
Eight board games have been produced. One of them was a version of the card game "GOPS", using prizes and price tags from the original version. The second was based more closely on the original version of the show.
Three games were produced during the 1970s, by Milton Bradley, with Contestants' Row; a small number of pricing games; and, in the case of the third version, a spinner for the Big Wheel, albeit with the numbers in the wrong order. In the first two versions, several decks of cards had various grocery items, small prizes and larger prizes; the third version simply had cards for each game that included ten sets of "right" answers, all using the same price choices. The instruction book would tell the 'host' for the round what color cards would be necessary.
The 1986 version, again by Milton Bradley, was similar in scope to the earlier version, with new prizes and more games, but strangely lacking the Big Wheel. The 1998 version, this time by Endless Games, of the game was virtually identical to the 1986 release, with the same games, the same prizes, and even the same prices; the only changes were the number tiles being changed to cardboard bits.
The 2004 edition, again by Endless Games, was a complete departure. Instead of different prize cards and background games, the game consisted of everything you would need to play over 40 pricing games, and enough materials to create all the games not technically included if the "host" wished to and knew their rules; the Big Wheel spinner was also restored, this time with the numbers in the correct order. To fit everything in the box, grocery items and prizes were listed in the instruction book, and games were played on dry erase boards. A spinner would determine what game would be played next, although its use was not necessarily required if the "host" wished to build his own game lineup.
Computer Games
In 1990, GameTek created a "The Price is Right" computer game for the Commodore 64 and other systems to fit in their line of other game show games. Significant issues affected playability, such as game rule incompatibility with the network game show, and prizes inconsistent with the games they are played in (like first being asked to bid on a car in Cliff Hangers, and then not being able to enter a five digit price). GameTek's game did not sell well and was quickly removed from the market.
Likewise, a planned version for the Nintendo Entertainment System was never released, and it is unknown if a prototype is in existence.
A hand-held Tiger game was made in 1998 with four pricing games, and a DVD game with 12 pricing games and prizes taken directly from the show was produced by Endless Games in 2005.
Slot Machines
A series of popular video slot machines, all based on the current version of The Price Is Right, were manufactured for North American casinos by International Game Technology. Rod Roddy's voice and cartoon persona are part of the game, even after his death.
The most common machines recreate the Showcase Showdown as a bonus feature, with a wheel built into the game above the main video screen. At least four different versions of this machine exist as of 2006, each featuring additional bonus rounds based on popular pricing games: Plinko, Cliff Hangers, Punch a Bunch, and Dice Game. The Cliff Hangers game also exists as a mechanical reel slot machine, with a video screen positioned above the reels for the bonus.
In addition, a Money Game slot machine exists, albeit in limited release. This game has a potential top prize of a new car, and has a different bonus round than the other The Price Is Right slot machines in service.
Another slot machine called The Price Is Right Fishing Game has been created by IGT,[7] but it isn't clear if the machine has been released to casinos. The game features a fishing-themed bonus, and is not based on any pricing game featured on the program. IGT has also released a game called The Price Is Right Fort Knox Progressives, but the game play doesn't appear to be related to the show in any way.[8]
Live casino game
Harrah's and the television show producers have agreed to do live licensed shows (dubbed The Price Is Right - LIVE) at their venues, with several performers (including Roger Lodge and Todd Newton) hosting and Randy West, Daniel Rosen, or Dave Walls announcing.
Credits
- Executive Producers: Frank Wayne (1972-1988), Bob Barker (1988-)
- Producers: Jay Wolpert (1972-?), Phillip Wayne Rossi (1975-2003), Barbara Hunter (?-?), Roger Dobkowitz (1984-)
- Directors: Marc Breslow (1972-1986), Paul Alter (1986-2001), Bart Eskander (2000-)
- Music by: Edd Kalehoff for Score Productions (credited 1972-2004, uncredited 2004-)
- Showcase Writer: Mark Dawson, Stan Blits, Adam Sandler
- Editorial Staff: Mark Dawson (1976-1977)
- Production Executive: Sue MacIntyre
See also
- The Price Is Right (1956), the original
- The New Price Is Right (1994), a short lived half hour version
- The Price Is Right (UK) - Various British versions of the program
- The Price Is Right (Australia) Price is Right in Australia
- The Price is Right around the world - Other international versions of the show
- The Price Is Right in Popular Culture
External links
- The Price Is Right official website
- Rich Fields's official website
- Golden-Road.net (an extensive Price Is Right site with forums, episode recaps, and a show FAQ; the webmasters are frequently in contact with Price's production staff)
- The nighttime version starring Tom Kennedy (a page about the mid 80s nighttime version of The Price Is Right starring Tom Kennedy)
References
- ^ CBS Daytime: The Price Is Right
- ^ Description of production timeline from an interview with TPIR announcer Rich Fields
- ^ TV Guide and TV Land Join Forces To Count Down The 100 Most Unexpected TV Moments
- ^ TPIR, January 10, 1984, June 3, 1998, and January 18, 2007 episodes
- ^ Video of first five episodes on TPIR.tv fan site
- ^ Two U.S. Senators Appear In PSAs for New Orleans Tourism
- ^ The Price Is Right Video Slots Featuring Fishing Game
- ^ The Price Is Right® Fort Knox® Mystery Progressives
- Articles lacking sources from February 2007
- American game shows
- NBC network shows
- ABC network shows
- CBS network shows
- First-run syndicated television programs
- Goodson-Todman game shows
- The Price is Right
- Gameshow Marathon
- 1950s American television series
- 1960s American television series
- 1970s American television series
- 1980s American television series
- 1990s American television series
- 2000s American television series
- 1972 television program debuts