Gameshow Marathon (American game show)
| Gameshow Marathon | |
|---|---|
 Ricki Lake, host | |
| Starring | Host: Ricki Lake Announcer: Rich Fields Prize delivery host: Todd Newton Contestants: Lance Bass, Paige Davis, Tim Meadows, Kathy Najimy, Leslie Nielsen, Brande Roderick Panelists: Adam Carolla, Adrianne Curry, George Foreman, Kathy Griffin, Bruce Vilanch, Betty White |
| Country of origin | UK |
| No. of episodes | 7 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Original release | |
| Network | CBS, with simultaneous substitution on CTV in Canada |
| Release | May 31, 2006 – June 29, 2006 |
Gameshow Marathon is an American television program. The show was a retro-themed/celebrity game miniseries that debuted on American television network CBS and Canadian television network CTV on May 31, 2006 as a television special that aired through the entire month of June. The program is produced by FremantleMedia North America and Granada America and is based on Ant & Dec's Gameshow Marathon, which aired in 2005 on the UK's ITV as part of the network's 50th anniversary. The series is hosted by Ricki Lake, and the announcer is Rich Fields. Also, Todd Newton hosts the "Prize Delivery" segments, in which he appeared at the homes of the play-at-home winners.
Premise
Gameshow Marathon is a seven-episode game show tournament featuring celebrity contestants Leslie Nielsen, Tim Meadows, Lance Bass, Kathy Najimy, Paige Davis and Brande Roderick. The celebrities played The Price Is Right, Let's Make a Deal, Beat the Clock, Press Your Luck, Card Sharks, Match Game and Family Feud (in that order). The Match Game episode featured Betty White, George Foreman, Kathy Griffin, Bruce Vilanch, Adam Carolla and Adrianne Curry as panelists. "Barker's Beauties" from The Price Is Right also played a role in some of the episodes.
Formats
The format of each individual show is largely unchanged, though modifications were made due to time issues (each episode is 60 minutes long, compared to the usual 30-minute format of the component shows) and in order to conform with the overall game format of Gameshow Marathon.
The overall tournament format is as follows: All six player celebrities participate in the first game (in this case, The Price Is Right). The player who wins this game wins one of four seats in "Finalists' Row" and moves on to the next round of play. The remaining players after each game's play then participate in the next game (5 for Let's Make a Deal, 4 for Beat the Clock, and 3 for Press Your Luck) to win one of the remaining seats. After the fourth game, the remaining two players are eliminated.
The four players in "Finalists' Row" are then paired in a knockout competition--first against third and second against fourth--to play the fifth and sixth games (Card Sharks and Match Game, respectively). The winners of these two games then proceed to the "Championship Game", Family Feud.
For the finals, each celebrity has to assemble a 5-player team of family and friends to play Family Feud in the 1979 format, with the charity of the winning "family" receiving US$100,000.
The series uses replicas of the original sets from six of the seven gameshows with the exception of The Price Is Right, which used parts of the actual game set from Series 34 (2005-06), which was transported from Studio 33 to Studio 46. The Family Feud set featured a video screen instead of the huge trilon on the game board, similar to the present version. Much of the 1979 set's designs were included in the 2006 set of Feud.
Each episode begins with Rich Fields' narration of the night's featured show. He gives a short overview of the best-known versions of each show, complete with rules and highlights.
Home Viewers' Sweepstakes (US)
CBS is also sponsoring a Home Viewers' Sweepstakes in conjunction with series co-sponsor Harrah's Entertainment. During the first-run airing of each game episode, a multiple-choice trivia question will be asked relating to that episode's game. Viewers can submit their choice of what they think is the correct of the three given answers either by (a) text messaging their choice via their cell phone, or (b) registering on the CBS.com website and using the online entry form. Those entrants who answer correctly will be put into a random draw pot, from which the winner will be chosen. For the first six episodes, said winner wins the same prizes won by that evening's winning celebrity player, plus a "Harrah's VIP Vacation Package" trip. (Each of these prize packages is worth at least US$50,000.) The winner of the seventh night's drawing wins a flat US$50,000 cash, but no trip.
Winners of the sweepstakes are featured in the "Prize Delivery" segments, where Todd Newton introduces a semi-trailer truck, emblazoned with the Gameshow Marathon logo, delivering the prizes won by the lucky winners.
- Further details on the rules of this sweepstakes can be found here.
CTV aired the same viewer sweepstakes promotions as CBS despite the fact that Canadians were ineligible for the sweepstakes. No separate contest was held.
Tournament recap
- On The Price Is Right, Brande Roderick had the best bid in the Showcase and advanced to the semifinals.
- Lance Bass became the next semifinalist on Let's Make a Deal.
- Paige Davis won the Beat the Clock segment.
- Kathy Najimy won the last semifinal slot on Press Your Luck.
- In the first semifinal, Roderick defeated Davis on Card Sharks.
- In the second semifinal, Najimy defeated Bass on Match Game.
- Najimy and her family then beat Roderick and her family on Family Feud to capture the top prize. (Each had played the game before: Najimy with other relatives on a regular game in 1981; Roderick as part of the cast of Baywatch: Hawaii in 2000.)
Charities
The celebrities' charities are as follows:
- Paige Davis: Donate Life (an organ donation charity)
- Kathy Najimy: Girls' Best Friend (supports & empowers teen girls in their endeavors)
- Tim Meadows: The Chris Farley Foundation (educates youth on the negative aspects of drugs and alcohol)
- Lance Bass: Habitat for Humanity (specifically, to aid victims of Hurricane Katrina)
- Brande Roderick: City of Hope
- Leslie Nielsen: Foundation for Blind Children in Phoenix, Arizona
US Marathon in the UK
ITV2 in the UK has plans to show the US version of Game Show Marathon, starting Thursday August 31, 2006 at 8PM. This would, more or less, be a rare glimpse into the world of American game shows for British viewers although some shows such as The Price Is Right (The Price Is Right (UK)), Card Sharks (Play Your Cards Right), Match Game (Blankety Blank) and Family Feud (Family Fortunes) have been successful in the UK.[1] Although it has to be said that many US gameshows have been and are based on UK versions.
Trivia
- The only two game shows in the marathon that weren't previously Mark Goodson Productions were Let's Make a Deal and Press Your Luck. Both formats are now controlled by RTL Group, the successor to Goodson-Todman Productions, and the parent company of FremantleMedia.
- All of the shows in the marathon at one time or another were on CBS except for Let's Make a Deal.
- The shows used their most classic style of sets, rules, theme songs and sound effects, except for The Price Is Right, which used the current (Series 34, 2006) sets, rules, theme songs, and sound effects. The cash and prizes for all the shows were updated considerably for the marathon.
- Many people thought Kathy Najimy was only given one putt on the "Hole in One" segment during The Price Is Right episode. However, she was given two putts and since she missed both, they edited it to just show her miss once because of time constraints. Furthermore, the second putt was not added to the game until 1986.