We've discussed the clock before, but the difference here is the hosting style of Regis Philbin. Don't get me wrong, Regis is hands down the best Millionaire host we've ever had, but his tendency to chat with contestants and make jokes about some of the possible answers in the early stages, then try to help contestants when they get to the upper money levels, just doesn't work with the clock ticking away. The contestants are left with only a couple of seconds to lock in their answers after Regis is finished talking. We've already seen it happen a few times, and the show has only aired three episodes.
Last night we saw a contestant interrupt Regis to get an answer in, saving precious seconds on the clock. We're likely to see this happen again from savvy players who know the value of the timer.
What I'm wondering though, is if ABC/Embassy Row should have reconsidered the clock in the first place, knowing that Regis would be back to host the show. Would you rather have seen him able to carry on his usual commentary and encouragement, just like he used to, or do you prefer the faster pace of the game with the clock?
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The clock is in place only to speed up the taping time…not necessarily to speed up the game itself.
The monkey in the wrench isn’t the clock…it’s the funny answers in the first couple of questions.
Regis reading them is simply funnier than Meredith reading them, thus more laughter, thus more time eaten up.
While it’s clear that Regis is still getting used to the clock and the other rules changes, he successfully hosted Password…which was all ABOUT the clock. He’s a pro…he’ll get it.
I’m not in favor of giving players an unlimited amount of time to give an answer. While the home viewer may not feel it, thanks to editing, an extended amount of dead air can suck the life right out of a studio audience. A little pause can be dramatic…a pregnant pause is a killer.
That said…maybe they should have looked at longer time limits to accomodate Regis’ style a bit.
The only thing I would consider is revealing answers one at a time like before the clock, and then starting the clock after the last answer is read. That would solve most of the problems. Otherwise, keeping it the same makes sense for promotional reasons.
I do believe the audience is more to blame than Regis. However, the clock does not speed up the game, Carrie. The average episode of the syndicated show has actually had fewer questions than in previous seasons just because of the more time-wasting lifelines and all the time it takes to expain the clock—not to mention because of the clock and the banked time rule, they can no longer edit down the question at all.
Overall, Millionaire is able to give away more money per contestant since they are getting to fewer of them. There are pluses and minuses so I don’t really know what to think.
But Regis has been making so many mistakes, it is clear that over time Meredith has evolved into a better textbook gameshow host. Maybe it’s rust or the fact that Meredith has now been doing it for a longer consistant period of time. She’s just less likeable. I think we may see a new host in the near future because all of this.
Regis Philbin was the host of the original Who Wants to Be A Millionaire. This new show is, let’s be honest, nothing like the original Who Wants to Be A Millionaire. The clock simply kills the original drama and feel the game used to have. Regis’s hosting ability is stifled because of the clock.
For Millionaire to Continue in Prime Time (or perhaps even in syndicated for as long as it has) the clock must go.
I just DON’T GET IT, the show was doing so well for 9 years. NINE YEARS. And then all of a sudden they were like, “Let’s fundamentally change the format to a tried and true, time honored game show”. It makes no sense. It is completly unprecendented.
One more thing, I seem to remember that Prime Time Millionaire used to get contestants who usually managed to get to 32,000 dollar level (now 25,000). This time we aren’t seeing as many big money winners as we used to, why do you think that is? The answer is the clock. I noticed that because of that ticking nightmare it has forced people who would otherwise know the answer use a life line because they simply didn’t have enough time to reread the question and make sure they understand what it’s asking and then really think about whether they know it.
Millionaire has had a poverty of Million Dollar winners for 6 years, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if we don’t see another Million Dollar winner as long as the clock continues to be a part of the show.
The changes they made weren’t because of the show’s ratings or popularity…or lack thereof.
They had to institute a clock to keep taping times more consistant. Meredith is on a tighter schedule now. They can’t let players take an hour to answer a question. They had to set some sort of limit. As a producer, I’d have done it LONG ago.
The category names add little or nothing…but they don’t really detract from anything either. Though, as a viewer, if I see a category that sounds interesting, I do hope the player makes it far enough to see what that question was.
Wheel of Fortune is not the same show it was ten years ago, either…but their changes have all come gradually…one tweak every year. Millionaire made several changes at once.
I’ll just add that if you can’t answer one of those first 5 questions in 15 seconds, you don’t deserve to sit in that seat.
Yeah…that sounds bitchy.
The reason the contestants aren’t getting to $25,000 is because so far I think the contestants have been dumber than they used to be. I got the answers to the guy from yesterday who used 2 lifelines before $1,000 as soon as I saw them. They’re just blatantly obvious. The clock adds a new type of stress, it is different, but it is overall still the same show.
Stop the Hatin’
With all do respect Myke and Brandon, do you people have any idea what it’s like to sit in the hot seat with timer ticking, Million of people watching you, tons of distractions? Brandon, it’s so much easier when you are smuggly sitting on your sofa and yelling answers at your screen then it is to actually hear the clock ticking, and try to comprehend and be sure of your own knowledge in only 15 seconds
Also, with all due respect to Meredith and the Millionaire production team: Suck it up, a game show is about the contestants and the home audience not about YOU.
I love you Meredith but I really do hate the clock. (I know she won’t read this but on the off chance she does, lol)
Brandon, how dare you call the contestants dumb, you don’t even know them. You don’t know what it’s like!
I’ll make this short and sweet:
Dump the clock, Regis or no Regis.
I’m sorry, but having to ask the audience about which country has an igloo, Canada or Costa Rica, that person should never have been in the hot seat. I also distinctly remember people who did the same thing when there was no clock with similar questions. And then there are people like your John Carpenters or your Ken Jennings. Some trivia game show contestants are dumb, some have dumb luck, and some are smart.
And remember, my dream job is to host the Weakest Link. Have to get into practice!
And I’ve seem plenty of cases where contestants didn’t make blunders like that. Think about John Carpenter who really didn’t use a lifeline. The pressure was on him bigtime because noone had ever done what he did, and he did it. There’s just no excuse that can be made for not knowing that question.
No Jason…I never sat in the hot seat. I can only imagine the pressure.
But I have produced a show with a Million Dollar top prize…so I have helped create that pressure.
Performing under pressure is what you sign up for when you appear on a big money game show.
It’s not supposed to be easy.
And it can cost the production company quite a bit of money to let contestants ponder a decision endlessly. Most quiz shows have a time limit on questions. Why should Millionaire be any different?
I didn’t know you were a producer Myke… people hiding and stuff… do you use twitter?
Because Millionaire IS different, ever since it first debuted in 1999 (or in 1998 in the UK) there was really no other game show like it, it was unique. It was revolutionary, adding a clock makes it just like any other game show. It took that ineffable thing out of Millionaire that made it great.
Once Regis/Meredith is finished reading the answers you barely have time to give your answers let alone reread the question to be sure of your knowledge and make sure you understand the question. Especially at the 15 seconds levels
All I have to say about the return of MILLIONAIRE is to quote a line from a Bruce Springsteen song!”GLORY DAYS! THEY WILL PASS YOU BY”!
Brandon-
I’m hiding in Indiana. I produced the Hoosier Lottery TV show for a few years. Not a national show, but we made more Millionaires than Regis!
The show lasted for about 15 years. And we made some changes to the show that a lot of fans didn’t like.
But none of those changes were made lightly…just as I’m sure the producers feel the changes to Millionaire were necessary for the long-term health of the show.
Those changes don’t seem to have affected Millionaire’s daytime ratings significantly one way or another.
So maybe the Anniversary shows aren’t like the Millionaire some of you love…but it is the Millionaire you have. Clock and all.
Hmm. Lottery. I turn 18 in a month, I am going to buy one ticket and this will probably be the only one I ever buy. I’m hoping I’ll do better than become a millionaire XD
And I agree. WWTBAM is not fundamentally different. It does produce a different type of stress than it used to. Tell the woman who did take 52 minutes to answer a question about the clock and see what she thinks about it—I’m sure she would think it would increase the stress.
I am not saying I like the changes to WWTBAM. I just am not going to make a hissy fit about it, because the point did make sense. And I don’t think all the magic is gone from the show. I watched it every day I could before the change, and I watch it every day now.
Just to clarify, when I said that the clock speeds up the game, I meant the flow of the game as it appears to viewers. Maybe that’s a personal thing, but to me, the timer makes the game seem to flow better, with questions coming at more regular intervals rather than watching as someone hems and haws about his or her answer.
As a viewer, you know that an answer will come along within a given time frame, and then we’ll be moving on to the next question.
But yes, I do understand that the clock is necessary from a production standpoint.
Brandon, I think it might be a little harsh to say that contestants are “dumb.” A lot of them use lifelines early in the game because they’re second-guessing themselves. Look at the guy this week who used a lifeline for the Simon & Garfunkel question. He knew darned well that the answer was “parsley,” but in the hot seat it’s all about nerves. Better to use a lifeline and be sure than to go out at a small dollar amount, right?
I’m sure that a lot of people would be shouting answers out at home, but when you’re playing for the cash, the perspective is completely different.
I don’t see how the clock could be called “necessary” the show did just fine without it for 9 years.
With all due respect to Jason S.-
The clock saves production time, post-production time and overtime…that means it saves money.
And money drives everything.
Sometimes, producers have to make economic decisions that don’t necessarily benefit the players. They don’t make them just to p**s you off.
Game shows can be big money makers…but that doesn’t mean they can afford to bleed money.
The clock is a turniquet.
Could they make the time limits a bit longer to accommodate Regis’ style?…yes.
Could they wait until all four answers are revealed to start the clock?…yes.
But the bottom line is: the clock saves money. And the bottom line will always win.
No one’s asking you to like the clock. But can you at least understand why they felt they needed the clock?
Saving time means saving money…which also means saving jobs.
(Yes Jason, sometimes it IS about the production crew, too.)
You speak as though you’ve been a contestant on a game show. If so, which show and how did you do?
Saving money is an understandable motivator, but you should not sacrifice quality for money. This change is too radical, it would be like recasting Sarah Michelle Gellar on Buffy the Vampire Slayer or cutting the role of Frasier Crane on the show Frasier. It fundamentally changes the show and this change is not because they thought the fans would like it but because they wanted to save money. It disrespects not only the contestants but the fans. And when you disrespect your fans it will damage the show in the long run.
If I’m not mistaken, Regis Philin was against the addition of a clock.
One more thing, I’m almost certain that firing Pat Sajack and Vanna White and hiring Hedi Montag and Spencer Pratt would save Wheel of Fortune Millions but would they do it: No! because the fans wouldn’t like it.
Sorry to triple post, I usually would refrain but I seem to have accidentally neglected to answer Myke’s question.
I have been on a game show, Who Wants to Be A Millionaire actually, in 2008. I missed the 16,000 dollar question and dropped back down to 1,000. Yes I was playing under the new rules with the clock and everything
But, Wheel DID swap out the trilon puzzle board with monitors to save production time…and as a result, money.
They certainly didn’t have to do that…and its to their credit that they kept Vanna, even after making her job rather pointless.
They also eliminated the shopping after every round in order to work in more puzzles. That fundamentally changed the game. Don’t know how much money that saved…going all cash probably increased the budget.
A lot of television shows are being asked to reduce their budgets. Some shows are being canceled, while still popular, because they cost too much to produce. Just ask the producers of Without a Trace and Guiding Light what happens when your show costs too much.
If you are the producer, what do you do if you’re asked…and by “asked”, I mean “told”…to reduce Millionaire’s budget?
BTW: Congratulations on your win. If you don’t mind me asking…Was the clock a factor in you missing your question? Did the clock cost you a lifeline?
Um…Change the name of the game show to who wants to win 100,000 dollars
. I loved Without a Trace, they could have easily fired some of the unnecessary agents (cast I mean) if that was all that it would have taken to stay on the air.
Thanks, and yes I do feel as though the clock pressured me into making a decision before I had the chance to fully comprehend my options and be sure of what I knew. So I can’t say I don’t have a person objection to the clock, I know what it’s like to face it.
Maybe Millionaire could have cut it’s studio audience, that would have cut back on production costs, right? they could just use a back drop and laugh/applause tracks. People would barely notice I’m sure.
I thought about that too… but Ask the Audience is the most useful of the lifelines probably.
And I don’t think most people feel like the clock has fundamentally changed the show like cutting out Frasier from Frasier. It does feel to someone who has never been in the hotseat like the same general show—especially for the syndicated version which always had its questions edited really short.
I personally would have just liked to see the format reduced to 12 questions… although not how Britain did it.
And at least be glad they got rid of Switch the Question. Good lord, that hurt more than it helped.
I think this has really been good because Myke helped Jason understand the producer’s viewpoint and Jason helped Myke understand the contestant’s. And don’t bank on my word being gold, because as much as I would like to be a producer, fat chance.
I want to make two predictions about Milllionaire! 1. We will never see another primetime version with or without Regis again! 2. This will be the final season of the syndicated version also!
Brandon, Oh yeah, lol. I forgot about the Ask the Audience life line, they can’t cut the audience. And you’re right I do understand the producer’s viewpoint, even if I vehemently disagree with their decision.
Maybe I exaggerated just a little bit with the use of the phrase “fundamentally changed the show”.
Intresting prediction Walt Milos, If the clock is as universally despised as I hope it will be then maybe you will be right. However, if it does get cancled they could always bring it back under the classic format a couple years later. It happens all the time with game shows; family feud for example.