I got to thinking about the different game shows that were on NBC back in 1987. You had Wheel of Fortune, Super Password, Blockbusters, Classic Concentration, $ale of the Century, Scrabble, and Win, Lose, or Draw.
Out of curiosity, which game show had the bigger prize budget meaning that you had a greater opportunity to win more cash and/or prizes than the other shows?
Also, weren\'t champions allowed to stay on for 7 days on most of the NBC shows? My memory is fuzzy when it comes to Wheel of Fortune because I thought that on that show the rule was different in that the champion could stay on for 3 days?!?! Please correct me if I\'m wrong
Here\'s my attempt to break this down:
Even though the limit for 7 days seems to be the case for many NBC shows in the late 70\'s/Early 80\'s, the shows you\'ve mentioned didn\'t have such a limit.
Out of the maximum winnings, it would really depend what show and if there was a rollover jackpot. For example: On Sale, you had the opportunity to win over $100,000 if you won the 11-games (exception; O\'Brien, Tom). You\'re assured roughly $55K or $60K if you win 10-games (plus prizes and bargains).
Blockbusters allowed you to win 10 games. Assume 10 wins (at $200 a match), plus the $5,000 each time, you could stand to win $52,000 minimum (the rollover jackpot later) would\'ve given you the opportunity to win more than that but not by much.
Super Password would\'ve depended if the person (or people) goofed up in the bonus. So you could win $10,000 in your bonus, or only $5,000. Same with Scrabble. Your Sprint amount depended on previous attempts plus whatever bonuses you got in Crossword.
TL;DR: Sale of the Century gives you a high cashout rate.
What were the maximum limits on \"Wordplay\"? I want to say they added $2500/day to the end game jackpot whether it was won or not, starting at a $5K minimum pot?
Wheel had a three-day limit since the Woolery Era.
Well, it was initially five until sometime between June \'76 and December \'79. At least in the 1980s, tie games were only considered a \"day\" once somebody clearly won on a subsequent show.
What were the maximum limits on \"Wordplay\"? I want to say they added $2500/day to the end game jackpot whether it was won or not, starting at a $5K minimum pot?
Not sure about the limit (for some reason, \"five days\" popped into my head), but you\'re right on the jackpot structure. Not sure if said jackpot had a ceiling, though -- the highest I\'ve ever seen it go was $27,500.
I have no idea how you even budget for a game like $ale where someone will occasionally walk away with a comparatively huge payday once in a blue moon, short of taking out an insurance policy a la early Millionaire.
The way I look at Sale\'s budget, I usually count the number of sub-$1K prizes. Anything < 3 constitutes a \"budget-buster\" show IMO. At least 3 or > will counter that, somewhat. I think Sale also generates the greatest payouts based on the $50K Grand Prize for game 11. When WBMG came around, you still had the $50K, but you have to win the car in order to get a shot at the Big Fella in game 8 or it\'s audios.
audios.
but you have to win the car in order to get a shot at the Big Fella in game 8 or it\'s audios.
I hear ya!
How does \"anything < 3 constitute \"budget-buster\", and 3 what? Thousands? Prizes?
I want to say they added $2500/day to the end game jackpot whether it was won or not, starting at a $5K minimum pot?
I know it\'s me reading this wrong, but all I could think of is that this was probably the show\'s budgetary downfall. After all, thirteen weeks in and the bonus is around the $150,000 mark. Six months, and the bonus is worth more than $300,000 a shot. It\'s amazing they didn\'t bankrupt the network.
I know it\'s me reading this wrong, but all I could think of is that this was probably the show\'s budgetary downfall. After all, thirteen weeks in and the bonus is around the $150,000 mark. Six months, and the bonus is worth more than $300,000 a shot. It\'s amazing they didn\'t bankrupt the network.
I think the unwritten part is \"and it reset with a new champion.\" Even then I\'m not 100% sure it\'s right. (But I\'m also not 100% sure it\'s wrong, either.)
I don\'t think it reset. I remember seeing a screengrab of that $27,500 champion, which means that even if it started at $5K on her first day, she would\'ve been on the show 10 days.
I don\'t think it reset.
We\'re having WHM problems. It HAD to reset, the question is how and when.
We\'re having WHM problems. It HAD to reset, the question is how and when.
I\'m gonna go ahead and apply Occam\'s Razor: I remember it was an ascending jackpot, $2,500 per attempt sounds right (because that number always sticks in my craw when they use it, and I remember my craw being stuck, and based on Brandon\'s info it probably reset when someone won it.
(Although I find it interesting that there even was a $27,500 jackpot, because I don\'t remember the bonus game being so hard as to make it ten days without a win.)
I don\'t think it reset.
We\'re having WHM problems. It HAD to reset, the question is how and when.
Oops...I should clarify that I don\'t think it reset for each new champ. So yeah, Occam\'s Razor and WHM and all. :-P
And upping the ante $2,500 after an unsuccessful attempt sounds crazy to me (not a big fan of +$5,000 either). Adding $1,000 is just fine IMO.
/Or a flat $10K
//In 1987
Oops...I should clarify that I don\'t think it reset for each new champ.
No, it didn\'t, and I admittedly didn\'t see the \"whether it was won or not\" in Tim\'s post.
The episode with the $27,500 win (the third-to-last show) had a champ who was only on her second day, whereas the finale two days later had a $7,500 jackpot and no mention of a returning champ.
So the answer to Matt O.\'s question of how and when it reset is one and the same: when it was won.
I want to say they added $2500/day to the end game jackpot only if it was not wonwhether it was won or not, starting at a $5K minimum pot?
I know it\'s me reading this wrong, but all I could think of is that this was probably the show\'s budgetary downfall. After all, thirteen weeks in and the bonus is around the $150,000 mark. Six months, and the bonus is worth more than $300,000 a shot. It\'s amazing they didn\'t bankrupt the network.
My bad. Jackpot started at $5,000. Added $2,500 per day until won, then once the jackpot was won, they went back to the $5K minimum for the the next show, regardless of who was the champion du jour..
The only way that the show could go over budget is if the end game was won more on the opening $5,000 jackpot. $5,000 won five days in a row is $25K versus $15K if the jackpot would only be won every five days.
So in the case of the $27,500 win ($2500 x 10 days + initial $5,000), their budget was spared an additional $25,000 over those 10 days had the game been won each day instead.