Game Shows

Congratulations go out to Monica Thieu this morning! Monica, who attends the University of North Texas, took home the Jeopardy! College Championship title last night after entering the semi-finals as a wild card.

I have to admit that I was rooting for Monica throughout the tourney (which is usually a curse for any contestant) - her enthusiasm and obvious love for the game was contagious. She was thrilled to be there and to meet Alex Trebek, and it showed. Thieu won the $100,000 prize as well as a spot in the Tournament of Champions. In second place, Goucher College student Sarah Bart walked away with $50,000 and Zack Terrill from Vanderbilt came in third with $25,000 in winnings. Congratulations to all three students, who gave us an entertaining finale to the tournament.

For those of us who love the Jeopardy! tourneys there's more good news - tonight's show kicks off the second annual Teachers Tournament, which was a big success last season. Fifteen educators who teach classes from kindergarten to grade 12 will face off to win $100,000 and a coveted TOC slot.

Photo courtesy Jeopardy! Productions, Inc.

There's been a tendency lately, based almost entirely in prime time game shows, to get contestants who have a sympathetic back-story. Quite often the game tends to suffer because of the focus on these stories, which is of course an attempt to get viewers emotionally invested in the show. Leave it to Wheel of Fortune, however, to show us how it should be done!

Last night's episode, the fourth of five during Military Spouses Week, wrapped up with a huge surprise for one of the contestants. All contestants this week are, obviously, military spouses, which is a nice thing for the show to do in and of itself. Maryanne Rigor played a great game, winning cash and prizes (including a trip to Vegas), and at the end of the game Pat Sajak mentioned that Sony was also giving out tablets for contestants this week. Short-handed by one tablet, Sajak called for another to be brought onstage... and Maryanne was reunited with her husband whom she believed to be in Afghanistan.

It was a heart-warming moment and really lovely for the audience and viewers at home to witness. What I loved most about it though was that it was emotional, but not overplayed in the least. There was no inflated drama, just a simple and touching reunion that made the game a little sweeter.

If you missed the show, you can see the reunion at the official Wheel of Fortune website - it's worth a watch.



Photos courtesy Sony, by Carol Kaelson

We've been getting hundreds of nominations in the annual About.com Readers' Choice Awards! One of the hottest categories appears to be Best Game Show Host, which isn't much of a surprise.

The usual suspects are all represented as well as some new contenders. Last year all of the finalists were from large networks or syndicated shows, but this year some of the more niche networks and shows are making some waves. It's going to be a tough race to see who takes the five finalist spots.

Remember, you can nominate more than once (there's no limit). The finalists will be selected based on the number of nominations they receive, and then it will once again be up to you to choose the winners in each category by voting in polls. Nominations will be accepted through February 15th, so make sure you get yours in soon! All ten Game Show categories, along with links to make your nominations for each, can be found here.

Good luck to all of the nominees! I can't wait to see who you all choose as your finalists.

Wheel of Fortune is kicking off a brand new theme week on Monday, February 6th - "Military Spouses Week." There are some cool things in store too that you'll want to tune in for.

First Lady Michelle Obama provides the welcome to this special week of shows, and there's a big surprise in store for one contestant who believes that her husband is serving overseas. In fact, he's in the studio and their reunion guarantees to be heartwarming and emotional. All of the 15 contestants playing this week are military spouses, and all military branches will be represented.

Host Pat Sajak says that this week is meant to pay tribute to the families who support the troops: "It's a way to honor them and to remind all of America that there are a lot of people behind this effort."

Military Spouses Week runs from February 6th through 10th - check your local listings to find out where and when the show airs in your area.

Logo courtesy Sony Entertainment

We mentioned last week that the Hillstrand brothers from Deadliest Catch will be playing Who Wants to Be a Millionaire starting tomorrow (and carrying over to Friday's episode). We've posted a preview clip on Facebook if you're interested - it's a fun one.

Also, if you're a Millionaire fan and want to scoop some cool branded swag, there are a few giveaways going on around the web. Here are some sites where you can enter to win!

• Reality Shack
• Simply Stacie
• GoFishn
• Outnumbered Mama
• Savin' It Up

Also coming up on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire: Movie Week runs from February 20th to 24th, and then Mike Rowe (creator and host of Dirty Jobs) takes the stage to play for charity on February 27th and 28th. Set your Tivos!

Photo courtesy Valleycrest Productions Ltd.

With so much stuff going on this month (like the Readers' Choice Awards, for example!), there have been plenty of articles and updates happening that I haven't had a chance to highlight here in the blog. This month-end roundup will become a regular feature now so I can share some of my favorite game show finds, as well as the things I've been working on. Here are some links to check out when you get the chance:

• Our friends over at Game Show Newsnet call this "List Abuse," which is my second-favorite of their categories for stories (the first being "Why the Bleep is This News?") - The Huffington Post U.K. has a list of the "Rudest Game Show Moments" complete with video.


• Casey at Game Show Follies also posted about a game show list, this one from Screen Junkies. It's called "5 of the Weirdest Game Shows Ever." I find it a little suspect - how can you include Russian Roulette and Fear Factor and leave out stuff like The Chair?


• Speaking of Fear Factor, the Daily Mail wants us to meet the twins who completed the axed donkey-semen challenge on the show. I'm not sure why, however.


• There have been complaints about GSN adding Dancing With the Stars to the lineup, and of course we've already mentioned the upcoming American Bible Challenge, but there's some good news for the network. Buzzerblog reports that Baggage has been cleared for syndication in 70% of the country.


• What's been going on here at About.com Game Shows in January? Well, we've got a gallery from The Price is Right celebrity week from earlier in the month, a few glossaries of terms from popular game shows, and of course, the Readers' Choice Awards.

Don't forget that nominations are still being accepted for the Readers' Choice Awards, so make sure you hit that link above and show your favorite shows some love!

No need to check your calendars - you haven't slept through the rest of winter and awoken on April 1st. GSN is working on a pilot for The American Bible Challenge as a new, original game show in their lineup.

First, the details. The show will pit teams of contestants against each other and test their knowledge of the Bible. It will also focus on "personal stories of faith and community," and the teams will win money "to help support their faith communities." Executive Producers Michael Davies and Tom Forman are behind the show which claims to "celebrate the central role of The Bible in American society and culture." (All quotes from the official GSN press release.)

And now let's discuss why this is a very bad idea. Michael Davies has been looking at this type of game for a while now - back in 2009 Pat Kiernan hosted a pilot for National Bible Quiz which sounded a lot more inclusive. That show pitted teams based on their religion (or lack thereof) against each other and included members of all faiths or no faith at all. American Bible Challenge is clearly focusing on religion and the role of the Bible in American culture, which limits the target audience and contestant pool. If you don't belong to a "faith community," there's no point in playing.

The only conceivable reason I can come up with for this format is that GSN is getting tired of the backlash from people who think shows like Baggage and even Lingo are too racy for family viewing. This could be their attempt to draw the more conservative viewers back in.

A religion-based game show isn't a new concept - there have been a few in the past, though I can't recall any that really took off. No one (who isn't on the payroll) wants to see GSN take off with great original programming more than I do. Also, I have huge respect for Embassy Row and Michael Davies. But the American Bible Challenge is not the vehicle that is going to make great things happen for them.

Logo courtesy GSN

The 2012 About.com Readers' Choice Awards are underway, and we've been getting lots of great nominations coming in for your favorites in game shows. There are ten categories for you to nominate in, and one of the most popular is of course Best Game Show.

We didn't actually have this category last year, so it's been fun to see what shows are being nominated. The heavy-hitters, like Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy!, Family Feud, and The Price is Right have been common - that's no surprise. What's been interesting, however, is seeing some suprises! Other nominees so far have included Family Game Night, Splatalot, and even Only Connect from across the pond.

Nominations for this and all categories will continue through February 15th, so make sure you get yours in! After nominations close the results will be tallied and five nominees from each category will move on to the finals. Winners will be decided by reader/viewer voting.

February is going to be a fun month for Jeopardy! fans with two tournaments on the roster.

First up is the College Championship, which kicks off on Wednesday, February 1st and runs through the 14th. This year marks the 24th season for the college tournament.

The following day, on February 15th, the second Teacher's Tournament begins. This tourney started last season and was a resounding success, so we're really looking forward to seeing it again.

Finally, if you've been waiting to take the online test to be a Jeopardy! contestant, you may already have noticed that some of the tests have been delayed. The tests for the Teen and College tournaments are delayed and will be rescheduled, and another adult test is also coming up. Keep your eye on the official site's contestant page (linked above) for new dates and times.

Photo courtesy Jeopardy Productions, Inc.

Get ready for a couple more celebrity episodes on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire! When we first posted about the stars who would be showing up to play this season, many people were interested in finding out when the guys from Deadliest Catch would be appearing. Well, your wait is just about over.

Johnathan and Andy Hillstrand, captains of the Time Bandit, will play Millionaire next week, on February 2nd and 3rd. Their winnings will be donated the the Seattle Fishermen's Memorial.

Also coming up next month is Mike Rowe, who does the voice work for Deadliest Catch and, of course, stars on Dirty Jobs. Rowe will appear on Millionaire on February 27th and 28th, and his winnings will go to the mikeroweWORKS foundation. We'll post an additional reminder to tune in when his episode gets closer to airing.

Photo courtesy Valleycrest Productions Ltd.