Indeed it is an unspoken rule about not spinning the big wheel backwards, although a few times when contestants tried doing just that, Barker immediately stopped the proceedings and reprimanded the contestant for doing so.

As for Classic Concentration, it would drive me absolutely bonkers when the contestants would jibber jabber or worse, when Alex would jibber jabber for a while during the game.  I even recall once a contestant snapped at Alex semi-playfully when he was asking "Can so and so remember where that match was?  We just say it a moment ago" and she said something like "I could if you'd allow me to just pick already..." or something to that effect.

I suppose there were three logical points though with that going on...

First, indeed the show would be rather dry if they used the same method used during the 50s - 70s, just picking 2 numbers, the host saying "Not a match, the board goes back"...so to avoid monotony I suppose that's why the chattering was more prevalent on C.C.

Second, I suppose the show wanted to try to not have two huge potential payoffs during the rebus rounds since back in the late 80s, sometimes single game totals were even higher than the lower priced automobiles up for grabs during the Winner's Circle bonus game.

Third, if players were truly outstanding at concentration skills, no amount of jibber jabber would distract them from remembering where matches were on the board.

I for one whenever I play along always try to associate the number selected with the prize shown... (e.g. Luggage under # 14, I think "Luggage needed for a 14 day vacation", or "Refrigerator under #23, I associate 23 degrees being cold, freezing even, like a Refrigerator...of course that logic could work with all 25 numbers on the board!

Also, I just re-watched the 50th anniversary playing of Card Game and Drew specifically told the contestant that he had to pick at least one card from the standard deck. I don't watch TPIR often enough anymore to know whether he says that with every playing nowadays. Does he? And has that always been the rule, at least since it became New Card Game (not that a contestant with even the slightest concept of car pricing wouldn't)?

I think we asked Roger about this once, and the answer was no -- you don't have to draw any cards, although not doing so is generally pretty stupid.

Honestly, I question whether or not it's even really a rule now that you do have to draw one, rather than something Drew just assumed because it seemed like common sense that no one bothered to tell him was wrong (or even knew was wrong).

Seems like, by around season 32 of TPIR, in Card Game, if you drew an ace, the unwritten rule became "give me your total bid on the car" rather than being given the option of playing it immediately or holding it for later. Bob still said they were wild and that you could make them any amount you wish, but by that point I rarely heard him discuss holding the ace. Time constraints surely had something to do with that.

I think the "use it later" rule was a holdover from the original rule when the Ace could only be worth up to $1000. Once it became truly wild, that rule became useless unless you're gonna allow the Ace to be negative, which I'm pretty sure is not allowed.

EDIT: I didn't realize there was a whole 'nother page of posts where this was already mentioned. Hat tip to Jason.

Not sure if this fits but on High Rollers, did Alex or Wink ever mention that leaving the 1 unattended is an automatic L? For instance, if it comes down to the 7 and the 1 you obviously want an 8, but did that scenario ever happen?

I distinctly recall Wink's referring to "that pesky one" but not whether he explained why it was "pesky."

It took me entirely too long to realize that holding the ace was a carryover from the pre-New Card Game format, in which the ace was capped at $1,000. In that version, it made sense to use it in the way Nick describes. When the maximum value of an ace became uncapped, they should have tossed out the ability to hold onto it.

-Jason