Do your hands itch for Plinko? Have you always wanted to be a Card Shark? Did you wish that you got to open the wallet and say "Jackpot!" and read your riddle?

What game show did you always want to be a contestant on?

(or have you already tried to be on Who Wants to be a Millionaire?)

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

Answers

We had Who Wants to Be a Millionare on TV over here last year, and it was the most watched show for at least a hundred years. We had a dreadful host over here, too. You'd deserve a million pounds just for being in the same room as him.

I always thought Wheel of Fortune looked too easy for words. The funniest thing happened a few years back ... New Zealand had 'Celebrity Wheel of Fortune', and one of the guests was David Tua, a boxer (if you're a boxing kind of person you may have heard of him, I think he boxes in America now). He was asked to choose a letter, and following the usual 'I'll take a t for table, please!' he said 'I'll take an O for awesome!'.

How embarrassing.

If anyone chose me as their friend on the call a friend bit of Who Wants to be a Millionare, I'd force them to promise to split half the money with me before I'd help.

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

What I need is one friend I can phone who knows sports inside and out. The other is BArb, who WOULD know Johnny Depp's middle name, and all things entertainment wise. I can handle the rest (history, science, literature, I'm okay there.) Then I can be a millionaire (albeit split with the others....)--Al

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

I grew up watching "The Price is Right" and I am the all time champion player. I know every game but I know if I were to actually get on stage I'd have to play Plinko or Hole in One or Two, some sucky game. There is this game show on The Food Network where you answer questions about....food and then at the end you have to eat this stuff and you have to out guess your opponent about what the stuff is made of. I would kick some ass on that show I tell you. See what happens when you're laid off for 6 weeks? Your priorities really go to hell.

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

I don't think the questions are consistant on Who Wants to be a Millionaire? After naming the first 16 elements on the Periodic Table, they'll ask the guy to pick the Zodiac sign of the four that occurs the latest in the calander year. Then he'll do the 50/50, and pick Aquarius over Sagitarius, and Regis will ask, "Are. You. SURE. You want to go with that as your final answer?" Not picking up that it took Regis 3 minutes to ask him if he was sure.

There is no guy who is going to be able to name the first 9 digits of Pi, and give any order to any 3 zodiacal signs, AND beat out the other guy, who can call in Pi faster. The only reason a guy knows anything about astrology in the first place is because, when he is stalking someone, he's checking her horoscope for any sign that she's really, really ready to be included in the next level of their relationship. He certainly can't do that if he's memorizing Roman emperors.

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

...oh pamie, if you had only asked, i would have told you regis is the devil a week ago...

...i've been tempted by the millionaire gig, but i'd never get past that pressure-cooker-10-second-put-these-in-order-or-suffer first question they ask the potential contestants...the only other thing i've ever been good at is jeopardy --- especially if you watch the celebrity version; you're a genius...

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

Rock and Roll Jeopardy. I kick ass every time I watch it. But I would probably not do so well if I knew I was gonna be on tv. sheesh.

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

I always end up loving the game shows that go nowhere.

My favorite was one that was only on for a year. It was called "Whew!" and had possibly the most complicated rules of any game show ever.

The opponenets were "Blockers" and "Chargers," who had to use strategy to move around a game board. the Charger tried to answer three questions on the board, while the Blocker's goal was to set up roadblocks to stop the Charger.

Got it yet? It gets better!!

The winner of the board round would be sent to the GAUNTLET OF VILLAINS, these huge cardboard cutouts of history's worst villains (Nero, Frankenstein), and had to answer a "blooper" (answer with one of the words incorrect) for each villain. If they got past them all, it would mean a $25,000 jackpot.

Utterly complicated. Weirdly psychotronic, and a complete failure. One of the most surreal game shows out there. I remember one contestant who, after winning, jumped up and down so hard that he broke his leg and they had to cut away, with a rather solemn announcement.

http://www.geocities.com/~randy_amasia/whew/

For a long time, I thought I had made this one up.

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

I want to be one of the dates on Change of Heart and make the people break up. I'd totally sully the girl's reputation and tell the guy that his girlfriend talked about how bad his breath was and that his hair was thinning. The idea of being on that show is the only thing that makes me want to even get near LA.

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

oh oh oh press your luck! no whammies no whammies.

(i loved that show. thanks, pamie)

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

First of all Pamie, I'm glad things went well at the Lillith Wake. I'm sure she still is lingering around, just to make sure you're going to be alright.

I also love Rock and Roll Jeopardy. there are some tuffies, but if we got to play at home and send in our answers, that would kick ass. I get nervous in big crowds of people and I would forget the answers I'm sure.

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

Sale of the Century was a show that I whipped major ass at. You'll remember that this was one of the first shows that used a lucite brife case full of cash to show you what $25,000 looked like.

Any show with Chuck Woolery.. I would love to be on because not only is he da' shit but he's so dreamy.

Bob Eubanks can kiss my ass though, I'd love to be on his show just to kick his ass back stage.

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

First of all, "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" has, like Taebo before it, become a instantaneous cultural phenom, one of those things that really seems to prove the whole collective consciousness thing (as in maybe Guiness's moss growth isn't the largest living organism after all...could be WE'RE all just one, big, happy being). I mean, how is it that I just happened to watch "Millionaire" this past Sunday (I'd never even heard of it...it just caught my eye as I was flicking channels)? And, just as Pamie was struck by its sheer brilliance (both pop culturally and money-makingly--did anyone else notice the AT&T hook?), I was so moved by it, that I brought it up at work ("Hey, did any of you see that Millionaire thing on Sunday?"), and everyone had seen it! And we talked about it for like half an hour. And once something becomes office banter fodder, then it's officially a phenomenon.

In any case, my favorite old-school game show is Joker's Wild. Remember "Joker. Joker! JOKER!...Thatsatripple!"? And how, when you made it to the final round, you had to pull the really big lever with the huge handle (a la the stereo volume button in Quiet Riot's "Cum on Feel the Noize" video)? That was totally awesome.

I also liked Twenty Thousand Dollar Pyramid. Oh and what was that Wink show where college kids could play to have their debt irradiated? That was also good.

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

When I was younger I was a sucker for "The Joker is Wild". I loved it and was always really good. These days it's "Jeopardy", hands down. The more I watch it, the better I get, and when I get the question right with an educated guess, I'm a happy, happy girl.

I've even tried out for it twice. I haven't gotten past the first level (yet), but since I have no idea how many I missed, I might have been just one answer (excuse me, *question*) from moving on.

But "Taste Test" on Food TV is fun, too (I think David Rosengarten is cute) and "Win Ben Stein's Money" or "Vs." would be great to play (my best friend's dad was on the ventriloquist/sex phone operator ep).

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

The Price is Right, no doubt. When I was in high school, I'd tape it while I was in class. In college, I planned my schedule after 11 am so I could sleep in and watch it with my friends. I'm a BADASS at the games on that show, don't even try to compete with my stuff.

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

Wheel of Fortune, definitely. I know what they say about freezing up when you're on television and everything, but some of those folks just come out of left field with dumb answers, or worse dumb looks. When the buzzer goes off, and there are only vowels left, HOW HARD CAN THAT BE? It brings to mind, "Why Johnny Can't Read" and other manuscripts about phonetics, intelligence, and the development of problem-solving skills.

Then again, here I sit comfortably on my metaphorical couch without an audience in sight.

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

Let's Make a Deal. I loved that show when I was growing up. Now I carry this huge bag with all kinds of crap in it. You never know when you might need an antibacterial wipe or a bobbie pin... only in my dreams will I get to spill my purse on TV.

My 9 year old daughter on the other hand is in love with Wheel of Fortune. She even made her own glittery wheel for at home fun. She called her Grandma in southern California to see if they could go when we go down there. Sigh... the whims of a 9 year old girl.

Another note... my parents are going to a taping of Price is Right next month and we are crossing our fingers one of them gets on although I think that the shock of it will give them a heart attack. We'll have to wait and see.

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

For me and my dad, it's all about "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?"! Five minutes before the show starts he calls me to make sure I'm watching it, and then we call each other back and forth during the commercials to check up on how the other is doing and make fun of the contestants and Regis. Unfortunately, my dad and I are both too shy to ever go on TV, even for a million dollars.

In fact, my dad had a dream earlier in the week that he was on the show and they asked him a question that he knew I knew the answer to, but when they called the line was busy because I was on the phone with my mom. I, too, have been having similar dreams.

Along those same lines, there's a game called, I believe, "QuizMaster" on the Game Show Network that's very similar to WWTBM?, but if your guess is incorrect, the QuizMaster berates and belittles you.

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

Hi Pamie!

Glad the party for Lillith went well. To answer your forum, I would have to say Rock N Roll Jeopardy is pretty much my sport right now. Like you, I kicked ass at Remote Control and couldn't BELIEVE what idiots made it on that show. I couldn't stand Kari Wuhrer, and can stand her even less now that she has those enormous fake breasts, but I couldn't stay away from a show that was all about useless trivia. I mean, Brady Bunch questions? Come on, that's my specialty!

Now, I sit at home and whip a little Rock N Roll Jeopardy butt. I would consider going on the show, only I don't know who I would want to be paired up with, and I don't really feel comfortable giving high-fives EVERY time I get a right answer, so I doubt I would qualify.

There was also some show that you had to beat out 2 other people answering useless trivia with $ amounts attached depending on level of difficulty, and if you blew it, one of the others could steal the category. I can't remember the name of it, but if you made it to the final round, then you told them what your "Specialty Category" was and they would ask you a question directly related. I decided I would be too embarassed to admit on national television that I know all there is to know about the Brady Bunch and Gilligan's Island. Granted, these were shows I watched as a child, but I remember each episode more clearly that what I had for dinner last night. How sad...

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

Wow, I can't believe anyone else remembers Joker's Wild, I thought it was only in LA. What was the host's name? Wasn't it creepy how he looked just like the Devil that came up? (When you pulled the giant lever, it was like a slot machine and if you got the devil, you lost instantly). I must've been 8 or 9 at the time and really wanted to be on the kid's version, Joker Joker Joker.

Then there was my Hollywood Squares obsession in high school...I never made it to a taping, but I wrote all sorts of (now, clearly misguided) fan letters to JM J. Bullock, who just cracked me up.

-Sub2RainEN

P.S. Pamie, my favorite "Whammie" on Press Your Luck was the one in the shirt dress and dreadlocks, like Boy George in 1983, who sang "Do You Really Wanna Whammie?" to the tune of Culture Club's "Do You Really Wanna Hurt Me." That was brilliant!

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

I grew up on Press Your Luck and thought it was the single best thing every. After a while though, I kept seeing the same Whammies over and over and it lost its appeal. but it had this great Mad Magazine feel to it (the Whammies, at least). I mean it's one thing to lose, but quite another to be belittled by a little red animated character who dances in front of your face on national television. That is twisted and brilliant!

I'd be good at Jeopardy. I store so much useless trivia it's a wonder I can learn anything new.

Does anyone remember Liar's Club? i think it's what it was called. They had people on there like Betty White who would tell a story and you'd have to figure out if they were telling the truth, or pulling your lame little contestant leg. Really, REALLY bad game show.

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

Oh Pamie.. Its ALL about Press Your Luck and the Whammies. I'd watch that show religiously. I think it was very well done.. amusing to watch and worth while to play because of the fabulous prizes. "NO WHAMMIES!!" and there was always that ONE annoying contestant.. who I would pray would lose.. but of course she never did... sigh. wow, memories.. i had a friend on my softball team who went on Card Sharks on that special kids day and she lost, but she got an agent out of the deal and ended up doing Barbie and Bubblicious commercials and landed the part of Ben Seivers' annoying and bossy girlfriend on Growing Pains. So even if you dont win.. you can still win. sabrina

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

I was born to play the "Match Game". Such a dumb game, I know, but it sucks me in. Most of the questions are just begging for a dirty, nasty, "mind in the gutter" answer. Michael Burger(the host)loves the dirty answers. And you know the freaking celebrities are going to say something nasty. I get so pissed when they get these little shy proper people for contestants. Of course they don't answer anything interesting or funny, they answer logical. Meanwhile I'm on the floor screaming "You should have said DICK!!!" "THEY MAY BLEEP YOU BUT YOU KNOW THAT'S WHAT THEY WANT!!!" Vicki Lawrence and Judy Tenuta????? Give me a break....like they aren't on the show just to stir up the dirty talk. Anyway my mind must be in the gutter...I always correctly match the dirty answers.

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

Jeopardy. Of course, it seems like it has gotten easier over the years. Either it has been dumbed down, or I have gotten a lot smarter. I kick major ass on Rock 'n' Roll Jeopardy. Let's see... I love Win Ben Stein's Money. That's a nice, challenging game.

Hmmm... I too loved Press Your Luck and Sale of the Century. Of course, I'd love to go on The Price is Right. They tell the audience if you get to play, NOT to jump all over Bob Barker. I, of course, would be all over Bob, just for kicks.

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

Someone asked me today if I was good at Jeopardy, and the answer is yes - I am good at TEEN Jeopardy and CELEBRITY Jeopardy. Regular Jeopardy, I'm not so good at, unless it's a spelling or entertainment category.

But if I could be on a game show, I'd want to be on Wheel Of Fortune. I agree with those who think it's simple - that's why I'd like it! I'd win tons of cash!

P.S. My favorite game show ever is one I will never be smart enough for - Win Ben Stein's Money. Unless they had a Teen Tournament...

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

I've become addicted to "Throut and Neck" (and no, it's not throat.) It's these two computer animated real-time guys with really really funny commentators behind the computer animation. People call in, and they compete in races or shooting sheep or various other games by pressing numbers on their phone.

The hostess is a tawdry woman who wears ridiculous clothing; I'm guessing that half of the show's viewerbase tunes in solely to see what she's (not) wearing.

I'd really like to see the show sober and see if it's still interesting.

--stasi
http://www.sweetpeas.org

-- Anonymous, August 24, 1999

hi pamie. i am happy the wake for Lilith went well. my favorite game show is one called 'Catch Phrase'. you have to guess the common phrase from the cartoon shown. it's cool fun. my goal is to beat the contestant. mostly i do. i like sale of the century as well.

Take care pamie

-- Anonymous, August 25, 1999

a celebrity jeopardy moment: alex trebek: "this is the only continent that is also a country" that girl from "sliders" on the sci-fi channel: "what is south america?"

-- Anonymous, August 25, 1999

High Rollers, with Alex Trebek.

-- Anonymous, August 25, 1999

Bowling for dollars.

-- Anonymous, August 25, 1999

I would be great on Win Ben Stein's Money except that I could never be on it, for two reasons.

#1: I would blank out on something fundamentally obvious, and then for the rest of my life whenever I saw a reference to the answer, I would kick myself all over again. (Trust me. In high school I misspelled "expatriate" on some national competition test and I still remember it, every single time.)

#2: my dad went on the show and won some money so I think I'm ineligible.

The only "game show" I was ever on was at the high school where I work--faculty against the Scholastic Bowl team. We got whupped.

-- Anonymous, August 27, 1999

Whoever mentioned the collective consciousness was on to something. I never heard of "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" once before this thread. Now I've seen commercials, articles, newspaper ads and even overheard people talking about it...how have I been missing out on this cultural phenomenon? It rivals only Britney Spears.

-- Anonymous, August 27, 1999

Omar Said: << I mean it's one thing to lose, but quite another to be belittled by a little red animated character who dances in front of your face on national television. That is twisted and brilliant! >>

If I ever get that high-paying hollywood producer/media mogul job, I am going to put new episodes of Press Your Luck on the air, and sneak myself on one show as a contestant. With as many of the original Whammies as possible, and some new, even more twisted ones. I'm too young to have seen the originals, but I watched the game show repeats on the USA network religiously: Press Your Luck at 3 right as I got home from school, then eiter two episodes of The $25,000 Pyramid afterwards or one of $25,000 and one of $100,000.

That's another thing I'd bring back, the $100,000 pyramid. For those of you who don't remember, it was the same as regular Pyramid for a few weeks, then they'd bring back the three people who made it to the top in the bonus round in the shortest times, and round-robin them until someone got all of them and won $100,000.

I would love to host "The Price Is Right" for a day, just to make the contestants squirm. Like if they were playing Punchboard and they give back some cheap prize like $50 and get ten thousand. "You have done better than $50. Would you keep it if there were two more digits in the number? (Contestant says yes) Okay. (Long Pause) What if it were three digits more? (Pause, then reveal prize.) 'Cause there are!"

In terms of playing...

I'd love to be on Hollywoood Squares, because you know that there's much dirtier stuff going on that they have to edit out for time or content. I'd like it even more if Donny and Marie Osmond were on. What's funnier than some of the sick jokes is watching Donny and Marie not get them. :-)

I'm smart enough to do well on "Jeopardy", but I'd rather be on "Win Ben Stein's Money" and beat the living intellectual crap out of him. $5,000 is enough for a new computer, which is all I need at the moment.

Sub2RainEN said: <>

I saw him on "Match Game" this summer, and he's an even bigger queen then than he was then. What's sad about that show is that everyone KNOWS the answers are going to be sick, but then the contestant says something wholesome. The only answers where the contestant matches everyone are when they both have a sick answer. And they have too many possible answers on the final question. (Like "Betty ___", or something.)

-- Anonymous, August 28, 1999

I hope this clears up the italics.

Wow, this is a fun thread. I can't seem to escape Who Wants to Be A Millionaire and even saw a skeevy commercial with "Reeg" in slo-mo last night. What a wanker!

I also liked, was it Concentration? With Alex Trebek. I've never seen one of those ahl things in my life before or since that game and I'm glad, because it looks like some sort of heinous torture device.

What I used to love was to watch Jeopardy on the East Coast channels (we had a satellite dish) and then my friends thought I was a freakin' genius when we watched the West Coast feed later. hee hee

-- Anonymous, August 30, 1999

What about Scrabble? It was just a shorter version of Wheel of Fortune (words instead of phrases) with crappy tiles instead of a wheel, and yet I loved it. It came on right about the same time as Classic Concentration (Trebek had to take a little mental breather every now and then) where at the end people would have a limited amount of time to win any one of a variety of economy class cars.

The Match game is highly annoying.

The Comedy Central shows (excluding Make Me Laugh) are good, both in their hosts and in the trivia, but the prices are a little skimpy. I guess you have to go to the networks for the big bucks.

-- Anonymous, August 31, 1999

Well, I rule at Teen Jeopardy. The problem is I'm 31. I always liked "Card Sharks" back in the day because I knew the secret: if it's a high card you say "lower" if it's a low card you say "higher."

But I think I would kick major ass on Matchgame, especially now that there's only five celebrities to match.

-- Anonymous, September 13, 1999

Ah, love to see that "Press Your Luck" is a fave with you all as well as me. Reading Pamie's praise of it made me smile. No one's mentioned "Family Feud". I loved that show! I don't know why.

-- Anonymous, January 21, 2000

wouldn't it be obnoxious if there was a game show that was really just like a verbal SAT competition, and the winner got to go to the college of their choice? oh course, i'd totally lose, as i'm really not good at SAT-type questions, but i'd love to cheer the people on. myabe there could be a "real life" section for people like me, asking stuff about how long it takes to cook an egg and what temperature setting a striped white and red t-shirt would be washed in. i would RULE at that part. maybe i could then realize my dream to go to beauty school.

-- Anonymous, January 21, 2000