Jackpot (game show)
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Jackpot! was a television game show seen in three different run from the mid-1970s through 1990. NBC broadcast the original version from January 7, 1974 until September 26, 1975, with Geoff Edwards as host. A second version, produced in Canada, aired beginning in September 1985 on the USA Network in the U.S. and was hosted by Mike Darrow. That version ended in 1988, and a third version debuted in September 1989 in syndication, again hosted by Edwards and produced in Glendale, California. That version lasted one year, having been canceled when its distributor went bankrupt.
Jackpot was a Bob Stewart Production and was originally produced at the NBC Studios in New York City. Don Pardo first served as announcer, then was succeeded by fellow NBC staffer Wayne Howell.
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[edit] Gameplay
Sixteen contestants competed for one whole week, with one designated King of the Hill (Queen of the Hill for female contestants), who stood at a circular podium on the right-hand part of the stage. The other fifteen contestants were seated in three-tiered bleachers numbered 1 through 15; each had a special wallet containing a riddle and a varying cash amount. The King/Queen of the Hill selected a number, and the contestant with that number asked a riddle to this player. If answered correctly, the King of the Hill continued picking numbers; if answered incorrectly, the two contestants switched places, with the contestant who stumped him/her becoming the new King/Queen Of The Hill.
The value of the riddle increased the value of the Jackpot. If the King/Queen of the Hill selected the contestant holding the Jackpot Riddle (one per game) and answered it correctly, these two contestants split the Jackpot. If the last three digits of the Jackpot amount matched a pre-selected target number, the King/Queen of the Hill may have a chance to win a "Super Jackpot" by correctly solving a Super Jackpot Riddle, which the host asked. Either the King/Queen of the Hill or the bleacher contestant who asked the question that brought the Jackpot amount to the target number could respond. If either of them answered correctly, both split a four-to-five digit payoff.
[edit] The three versions
Although played the same way, each version was different in its own right.
[edit] NBC version, 1974-summer 1975
- In this version the King of the Hill is called the "Expert".
- The riddles ranged in value from $5 to $200. (Multiples of $5)
- The Target number could go no higher than $995. A number from 5 to 50 was chosen at random and was multiplied with the target number to make the Super Jackpot (Ex: $500 X 30 = $15,000); if the target number hit $995 and the multiplier read "50", the Super Jackpot was automatically set at $50,000; Bob Stewart Productions simply threw in the extra $250.
- The Super Jackpot could be played for one of three ways:
- 1. In the earliest episodes, if a player won a Jackpot whose last three digits matched the target number, the players (whoever asked the Jackpot riddle and whoever answered it) split the Super Jackpot; in later episodes, if a player answered a riddle correctly when the last three digits matched the target number, the host would ask a riddle, and if it was answered correctly, the two players split the Super Jackpot. Note that in the NBC version, only the "Expert" could try to answer the Super Jackpot riddle.
- 2. Choosing the player that has the Super Jackpot Riddle.
- 3. Choosing the player that has the Super Jackpot Wildcard.
There were two other changes made when the Super Jackpot rule changed. Originally, the player who answered the most riddles in the week won a car; this was dropped, and instead a car was given to anyone who answered all 15 riddles in the same game. Also, after a weeklong experiment around Valentine's Day in 1974 (when it was called "The Valentine Riddle"), most games had a "Double Bonus" riddle which, if answered correctly, won the two players involved a trip, usually to somewhere in Mexico or the Caribbean. Also, the randomness of the target number changed; each number from 5 to 50 had an equal chance, except that 15 and 20 were twice as likely as the others.
Visually, the NBC version of the show became most noteworthy for the casual style of dress worn by both contestants and host Edwards, who frequently wore leisure suits, turtleneck sweaters, and open-collared shirts. Edwards' clothing choices represented a radical departure from the typical attire of male television hosts, who almost always wore business suits previously.
Jackpot broke several stylistic conventions that had marked the genre since its inception in the early 1950s. Contestants on this show were more likely than not to embrace each other (in the center of the stage, regardless of gender) after winning, instead of the customary handshake on other shows. NBC and executive producer Stewart apparently also encouraged studio audience members to scream and applaud in a louder-than-normal fashion. Touches like these helped market the program to a demographic of younger women and teenagers.
[edit] NBC version, July-September 1975
For the last 13 weeks, the format was altered, with these changes:
- The Target number was dropped, and the Super Jackpot was established at random; it could be worth anywhere from $2,000 to $10,000.
- Riddles were dropped in favor of straight general-knowledge questions.
- When the Jackpot question was found, the Expert could either try to answer it, or go for the Super Jackpot by answering all remaining questions in the game, including the Jackpot question. If the player missed the Super Jackpot question, the Jackpot was wiped out, so it was hard to build a Jackpot. If, however, the Jackpot question was the last one found, the Super Jackpot was discarded.
[edit] 1985-88 Canadian/USA Network version
- The riddles and the Target number returned, but there was no multiplier; the Super Jackpot was created at random. The target number (as in the original) was notified by the last three digits of the current Jackpot total. The contestant whom had the riddle with the value that caused the target number to be hit, asked his/her own riddle instead of the host. Super jackpots ranged from $2,000-$9,950.
- The Jackpot started at $100.
- Riddles were valued anywhere from $50 to $300.
- If the Jackpot riddle was found and attempted, the King of the Hill and the person with the Jackpot riddle had to trade places regardless if the riddle was answered correctly or incorrectly.
- If the Jackpot riddle was not found until the last player, an extra $1,000 was added to the Jackpot.
- In the second season, there was a "$10,000 Riddler Contest" in which the player who answered the most riddles correctly over a period of ten weeks won a bonus of $10,000.
- In the final season of the Darrow version, there was a special riddle called "The $50,000 Riddle". These riddles were much harder than the ones usually asked, and all players who correctly answered them split $50,000. Three players shared the $50,000 prize. On one of the weeks episodes during that season only 1 contestant solved the $50,000 riddle correctly and walked away with the money all by themselves.
- Starting in season two (and just like the original), any player who ran the table (answered all fifteen riddles without a miss) won a new car.
[edit] 1989-90 syndicated version
- In this version, the value of the riddle could only be added to the Jackpot if the riddle was answered correctly.
- If the King of the Hill "ran the table" (answered all fifteen riddles without a miss), $1,000 was added to the Jackpot.
- Super Jackpots ranged on this version from $10,000 to $25,000.
- Riddles ranged from $100-200.
[edit] Special riddles
- One special riddle was a "Double Dollars" riddle; as the name implied, a correct answer to one of these riddles doubled the amount in the Jackpot at that time.
- There was also an "Instant Target Match" riddle; if this riddle was answered correctly, the Jackpot would be automatically increased to match the Target amount, thus giving the King/Queen of the Hill a chance to answer the Super Jackpot Riddle.
[edit] More special riddles
These appear in more than one version:
- Bonus Prize Riddles (all three versions) - A correct answer won the King or Queen of the Hill a prize.
- Return Trip (USA and Syndicated versions) - Correctly answering this riddle resulted in that player being allowed to compete in an extra week of shows.
[edit] Pilots
[edit] 1977 pilot (The Riddlers)
Two years after Jackpot! ended, Bob Stewart produced a pilot involving riddles called The Riddlers, with David Letterman, then still known as a stand-up comedian, as host. The basic format for The Riddlers had five civilian contestants who shared a common occupation compete against five celebrities for an entire week. Letterman would read the first riddle of the day to the team who lost the previous game (or if it was the first show of the week, the civilians). A correct answer allows the first player on that team to ask a riddle to the next person and then on down the line and back. If a mistake is made, control goes to the other team and the process is repeated. The first team to answer nine riddles wins the game, $500, and a chance for an additional $2,000. In the Crazy Quotes end game, the winning team has to answer increasingly difficult questions (which were all quotes supposedly said by famous people) for $100, $200, $300, $400, and $1,000 respectively.
The celebrities for the pilot were Jo Anne Worley, Robert Urich, Joyce Bulifant, Michael McKean and Debralee Scott. Game Show Network aired this unsold pilot on Thanksgiving Day 1998 and October 28, 2000.
[edit] 1984 pilot
In 1984, an unsold pilot was produced for CBS, with Nipsey Russell as host. In this version, the Jackpot started at $150, and that amount was added to the Jackpot for every correct answer to each riddle. There was no Super Jackpot in this version. If the King of the Hill found the Jackpot riddle last, an additional $5,000 was added to the Jackpot. The winning players (the King of the Hill and the player who posed the Jackpot riddle) played a bonus round called "Riddle-Grams", which was played like Bob Stewart's 1977 game show Shoot For The Stars (both the show and pilot bonus would later become the 1986 short-lived Bob Stewart-produced ABC game Double Talk). The winning players had 60 seconds to solve seven word puzzles known as "riddle-grams" (ex.: "Freezing Dollars", which would be a "riddle-gram" for "Cold Cash"). Each correct answer was worth $100, and successfully solving all seven split $5,000 between the two winners ($2,500 per player). This pilot episode was the only attempt to add a bonus round to the show's format.
The theme music used on the 1984 pilot was "Spring Rain," by Silvetti Ripple. Like many themes Stewart used on his shows, this one was recycled from an earlier program, 1978's The Love Experts, a one-season syndicated entry.
[edit] Miscellanea
Geoff Edwards commuted to New York every other weekend to tape 10 episodes of Jackpot!, returning on Sundays to Los Angeles in order to host his regular morning show on KMPC radio; during this period, he taped (on weekdays presumably) the syndicated Treasure Hunt. In a 2006 interview, Edwards stated that he would often sleep while in flight between L.A. and New York.
The first theme to the 1974-75 show was titled "Jet Set" by Mike Vickers, which is stock music from KPM records. It was later replaced by another Vickers entry, "Gathering Crowds," a piece used for some years on ABC's evening newscasts. Since 1977, both pieces have been used for the baseball highlights show This Week in Baseball. "Jet Set" (first the original recording, then later reworkings) has been the opening theme, and the original recording of "Gathering Crowds" has been the closing theme. The theme used for the 1980s versions was composed by composer Bob Cobert, who supplied packager Stewart with several other themes over the years. The theme was originally used on a 1977 NBC game packaged by Stewart, "Shoot for the Stars" (coincidentally also hosted by Edwards, who would make his last regular network television appearance on this program).
Jackpot! marked the final NBC game show announced by Don Pardo on a regular basis. His first was Winner Take All, an early TV game from the 1950s that saw a young Bill Cullen begin his storied television career. After resigning from Jackpot! in summer 1975, Pardo would next assume voiceover duties on a series that has turned to be his longest-running: Saturday Night Live. Pardo would not announce another game until Wheel of Fortune taped two weeks of shows in New York during the early 1990s.
[edit] Scheduling, 1974-75 version
Succeeding the four-year-old Who, What, or Where Game on NBC's daytime schedule, Jackpot! achieved some moderate success in the early months of its run. However, it premiered at 12 Noon Eastern/11 a.m. Central, where the venerable Jeopardy! had run for nearly a decade, and some longtime fans of the older show decried NBC's relocation of their favorite program. Some of those viewers began defecting to a relatively new soap opera on CBS, The Young and the Restless, which became a strong ratings sensation in part because of this rescheduling. In fact, one day in January 1975, when NBC broadcast a news conference by then-President Gerald Ford during "Jackpot!"'s timeslot, CBS declined to do so, and the two-year old serial got a foothold to steadily build an audience and eventually become a smash hit. For NBC's part, it would never be competitive again at that time of day, and by the mid-1990s, the network ceded the slot to its affiliates (it has since ceded all but two hours a day from its previous daytime schedule to them).
On many NBC stations in the Eastern time zone, local news would be broadcast weekdays at 12 Noon, resulting in "Jackpot!" being broadcast in another time period. on a tape-delayed basis. Quite a number of stations that had local Noon newscasts broadcast the show an hour later at 1 P.M. Eastern time, a time period when NBC did not feed programming to affiliated stations (in order to accommodate newscasts on Central time zone affiliates; of the three historic networks, only CBS continues that practice to this day).
Although Jackpot! had a good lead-in with Hollywood Squares and faced ABC's Password during its period of ratings slippage and eventually fatal move to an all-celebrity format, it never attained anything like the audience share Jeopardy! enjoyed. By mid-1975, NBC, in one of the first uses of focus groups for programming decisions, began adjusting the game (see above for Format #2 on the 1970s version); on July 7 the network moved the show down a half-hour to 12:30 P.M., and shaved five minutes off the end of the show in order to accommodate a five-minute newscast anchored by Edwin Newman. Not surprisingly, against CBS' Search for Tomorrow and ABC's All My Children, the show would raise the white flag in September. Three for the Money, a Stefan Hatos-Monty Hall-produced game hosted by sportscaster Dick Enberg, replaced it and ran for just two months.
[edit] Canadian/USA Network version, 1985-88
Unlike some U.S.-produced games recorded in Canada, "Jackpot!" did not require a Canadian citizen to accompany a U.S.-born host, because host Mike Darrow was a native Canadian himself.
All cash awards to contestants were paid in Canadian currency, which at the time was considerably weaker than the U.S. dollar. The resulting financial advantage lured packagers such as Stewart to produce games in Canada.
Ken Ryan and John Harris served as announcers on this version.
[edit] Syndicated version, 1989-90
This version was mainly seen on low-rated independent stations instead of network affiliates. As such, "Jackpot!" did not experience significant promotion by those stations, who usually consigned it to non-peak times, such as early afternoons and overnights.
However, the show met its demise before the end of a full season not because of low ratings, but because the syndicator had serious financial problems. As a ploy to try to generate sponsorship cash as quickly as possible, the company forced the staff to record over 10 episodes per day for a period of over two weeks. Normally, half-hour weekday "strip" shows like these taped only 3 to 5 times per day, depending on the studio's schedule. Ultimately, it was to no avail; by spring 1990, the company shut down its operations after declaring bankruptcy, and the remaining stations pulled "Jackpot!" from their schedules immediately.
Despite this, Geoff Edwards became the third game show host in the industry to simultaneously emcee a game show on both sides of the U.S./Canadian border, joining Jim Perry and Alex Trebek on this prestigious list. Edwards was also hosting The Big Spin, its weekly California Lottery program at that time as well.
Two veteran Hollywood announcers, John Harlan and Johnny Gilbert, provided the voiceover for this version.
[edit] Home version of the show
Milton Bradley made only one edition of the NBC version in 1974; however, the company created two covers for the game: one with just the logo, and one with a drawing of a female contestant on the cover. Other than that cosmetic difference, the game is the same in both boxes.
[edit] Episode Status
- NBC Version - every episode but two was destroyed by the network, according to host Geoff Edwards. A $38,750 Super Jackpot is won on one of them.
- USA and Syndicated versions - All episodes exist and have been aired on GSN.
[edit] External links
- Geoff Edwards Fan Page (includes Jackpot pages)
- Chuck Donegan's Jackpot page
- Tammy Warner's Jackpot page
- David's 70s Jackpot page
- Rules for Jackpot
- Another Jackpot Rules Page
[edit] Pilots
Categories: Bob Stewart game shows | Cable game shows | First-run syndicated television programs | Game shows | NBC network shows | USA Network shows | Television series by Sony Pictures Television | 1970s American television series | 1980s American television series | 1990s American television series
