Pyramid (game show)

(Redirected from The 5,000 Pyramid)

Categories: Game shows | CBS network shows | ABC network shows | 1970s TV shows in the United States | 1980s TV shows in the United States | 1990s TV shows in the United States | 2000s TV shows in the United States

Pyramid was an American television game show where contestants tried to guess a series of words or phrases, based on descriptions that were given to them, in the shortest amount of time. It has won nine Daytime Emmys for Outstanding Game Show, second only to Jeopardy!, which won its 10th in 2005.

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Broadcast history

Pyramid was created by Bob Stewart, the quiz-show producer who also invented To Tell the Truth, The Price Is Right and Password during his years at Goodson-Todman Productions before forming his own company. It went through several name changes over the years, with the title originally reflecting the top prize that contestants can win in that version.

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1970s editions

The show debuted as The $10,000 Pyramid on March 26, 1973. It ran for one year on CBS before it was canceled. ABC revived the show on May 6, 1974, and it became a hit. For three consecutive years, it was the number-three-rated game show on television. On January 19, 1976, the show was renamed The $20,000 Pyramid.

A once-a-week nighttime syndicated version, called The $25,000 Pyramid, ran from September 12, 1974, until September 1979.

A network primetime celebrity half hour special, The All-Star Junior Pyramid aired on Sunday, September 2, 1979, at 7:30pm (Eastern) and featuring Susan Richardson and Tony Danza playing the game for charity with young future stars from the new ABC shows debuting in the fall of that year (one of them on that particular episode was a youthful looking Rob Lowe). That led to the daytime version reverting to a full-time Junior Partner Pyramid format featuring civilian adult-children teams (with no celebrities at all) between Monday, October 1 and Friday, November 9 1979.

A special Celebrity Junior Pyramid week followed suit with celebrity guests Susan Richardson, LeVar Burton and Michael McKean, but, beginning with the Monday, November 19, 1979, telecast, the daytime show went back into its normal $20,000 Pyramid format.

ABC's daytime version ended its run on June 27, 1980. A total of 1,808 telecasts had aired on both CBS and ABC.

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1980s editions

After a short-lived syndicated revival, known as The $50,000 Pyramid, failed in 1981, the show returned to CBS as The $25,000 Pyramid on September 20, 1982. That meant a permanent move to CBS Television City in Los Angeles. The show had been based in New York City, first at the Ed Sullivan Theater (CBS Studio 50) and then the Elysee Theatre (ABC TV-15), since its 1973 premiere, save for a few weeks at the start of the 1973-74 season, during which tapings were done at Television City.

Within a few weeks of its CBS return, the show was retitled The New $25,000 Pyramid to avoid confusion with reruns of the syndicated 1974-79 Cullen version (the "New" was eventually dropped from the title on the January 28, 1985, episode [#608]).

During the updated Pyramid run on CBS, a second five-day-a-week version also aired in late-afternoon or nighttime syndication as The $100,000 Pyramid from September 9, 1985, to September 2, 1988--this became the most famous incarnation of all the versions of Pyramid produced. The gameplay was identical to the daytime version, except the three players with the fastest winning time in the end game returned to play for an additional $100,000 jackpot.

The updated Pyramid ran on CBS until the last episode on December 31, 1987, but viewer demand caused CBS to bring the show back to its daytime schedule on April 4, 1988, after the game show Blackout failed in Pyramid's time slot. The revival only lasted until July 1 of that year, as CBS premiered its new version of Family Feud the following week. GSN has aired this version.

Pyramid returned to syndication again from January 7 to December 6, 1991, as The $100,000 Pyramid.

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2002-2004 revival

In the fall of 2002 Pyramid — without any dollar amount in the title — returned in syndication. Sony Pictures (the production company that currently owns the format rights) has announced it will not return for its third season, and through 2004-2005, will do reruns of its previous two seasons. The PAX network, now renamed i, has picked up the show and is currently airing reruns.

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Hosts

Dick Clark, who is most associated with Pyramid, hosted all network versions, the syndicated $50,000 Pyramid, and the first $100,000 Pyramid. Bill Cullen hosted the 1974-79 version of The $25,000 Pyramid, and John Davidson hosted the 1991 revival of The $100,000 Pyramid. Donny Osmond hosted Pyramid from 2002-2004. Clark has appeared in all versions, either as a host or a celebrity player, except for the Davidson version.

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Main game

Two teams, consisting of one celebrity player and one contestant, competed against each other. Six categories, each of which had a name pertaining to what that category was about, were placed on the pyramid-shaped game board. A contestant chose one of those categories, and after the host explained the subject of that category, the contestant was given 30 seconds to guess seven words (originally eight), phrases, or names (20 seconds for six in the most recent version of Pyramid) using clues given by his/her celebrity partner. If any descriptions were deemed illegal by the judges -- usually when all or part of the word or phrase was given -- a cuckoo sound was played, the clue was immediately thrown out, and the contestant couldn't earn any points for it. If a word was passed, the giver could not go back to that word, but if the receiver knew the word later on and guessed it, the team still earned a point.

Once time had expired or the contestant guessed all of the necessary clues (whichever came first) the opposing team followed the same procedures.

Three rounds, with two categories per round, were played in the main game. While the celebrity gave the clues and the contestant received them in the first round, the roles were reversed in the second round -- the celebrity received the clues. In the third round the contestant had the option to give or receive, with the team trailing going first. If the score was tied after three rounds, tiebreaker rounds were played using words that begin with a letter of the alphabet. In the event of a 21-21 tie (perfect scores) after three rounds, the winner of the tie-breaker received a bonus cash prize.

The winner of the game played the Winner's Circle bonus round (see below).

In the daytime version, when a contestant lost the main game, he/she left with parting gifts. In the syndicated and 1980s version contestants played on the entire show, and in the 1980s version, whoever had the highest score at the Winner's Circle returned on the next show. If both players matched their Winner's Circle totals, both returned the next day.

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Bonuses

One randomly-chosen category in each game contained a hidden bonus, which allowed the contestant to win additional cash or prizes if all of the clues were guessed correctly.

The 1970s versions featured the "Big 7" where contestants could win $500 for seven correct answers. The 1982-88 versions featured the "7-11" in the first game, where contestants won $1,100 for seven correct answers in that subject, and the "Mystery 7" in the second game, where contestants won a prize (most of the time either a trip or a car) for seven correct answers without receiving the subject of that category from the host. The most recent version of Pyramid featured a "Super Six" in each game where contestants won a prize for guessing all six clues correctly within the 20-second time limit.

At any time the game ends in a 21-21 tie (perfect scores) the contestant who wins the tie breaker wins a cash bonus. From 1976-80 on the daytime version, it was $1,000. In the 1976-1977 season of the nighttime show, the bonus was $2,100. On the 1980s version starting in 1985 the contestant who wins the tie breaker wins a $5,000 cash bonus. In the $100,000 tournament both the "7-11" and the "Mystery 7" are out of play; only the 21-21 tie breaker is in play.

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The Winner's Circle

The Winner's Circle round, named for the circular structure around the chairs that the celebrity and contestant sat in, also featured a pyramid of six subjects: three on the bottom level, two in the middle, and one at the top. Each subject, however, was revealed one at a time, and whoever gave the clues (usually the celebrity, but the contestant always had the option of giving or receiving) had to give a list of objects that fit into that subject. The subjects increased in difficulty toward the top of the pyramid.

Any descriptions other than a list of items resulted in immediate disqualification of that category (signaled by a buzzer, which is also used to indicate that time expired). The strictness of the judging has varied over the years, but this generally included all of the following: using hand gestures (the cluegiver had arm straps to help discourage this), saying a key part of the answer (e.g. "a building" for "Things You Build"), using synonyms (e.g. clueing "Things That Are Attractive" with "a beautiful woman"), using long descriptive phrases (e.g. "the train on schedule" for "Things That Arrive"), and describing the category itself (e.g. "open your mouth I'll drill your teeth" for "Things A Dentist Uses" (However, this would have been a legal clue for "What a Dentist Might Say".) rather than naming items. Using hand gestures were allowed for a short time in the early CBS days and during special weeks in which the contestants were blind.

The start of the clock produced one of TV's (and Dick Clark's) most famous catch phrases: "Here is your first subject. GO!"

The contestant had 60 seconds to get to the top of the pyramid by guessing all six subjects correctly; doing so won the grand prize, which had changed with each incarnation of the show:

  • The original version offered $10,000 as its top prize. If won the contestant retires undefeated with the $10,000 and any other winnings to that point.
  • By 1976, the top prize offered was $20,000. The contestant who went to the Winner's Circle the first time played for $10,000; the second time for $15,000 and the third and subsequent times for $20,000. Players in this version continued up to five days or until defeated.
  • In the 1981 syndicated version the first trip to the Winner's Circle was worth $5,000 and the second time was worth $10,000.
  • From 1982 on, and during the syndicated 1974-79 version, the first trip to the Pyramid was worth $10,000 and the second $25,000.

The first Winner's Circle win occurred on the first broadcast in 1973, when Rob Reiner successfully used the clue "A doughnut" for "Things With A Hole". Interestingly, when Dick Clark was playing as a celebrity player on the syndicated $25,000 Pyramid, he had trouble with the same exact subject, and eventually came up with the same clue Reiner used earlier when time was running out, resulting in a $25,000 win.

If the top prize was not won, the contestant was awarded $50 for the bottom subjects, $100 for the middle subjects, and $200 for the top subject. The syndicated version's awards were $100, $200, and $300 respectively. From 1982 to 1991, the first subject was worth $50, and increased in value by $50 for each subject up to $300 for the top subject. In the 2002-2004 version, the bottom three subjects were worth $200, the middle two $300, and the top subject $500.

In most versions, each subject was displayed on a trilon that concealed the name of the subject, the dollar amount (if the contestant guessed that subject correctly), and a pyramid (if an illegal clue was given or if the subject was unused). The 2002-2004 version used television monitors instead.

In the early years on occasion, if there was no time for the second bonus round, it would be played at the top of the next show. On the week-ending Friday episode, if there was no winner from the main game, the celebrities would play the winner's circle themselves which, if won, would split $5,000 to both contestants.

On The $50,000 Pyramid, the player with the fastest time in the front game during that week qualified for the $50,000 tournament. The field started with eight contenders but was narrowed down to three by the end of the first week of the tournament.

Tournaments were frequently held on The $100,000 Pyramid where the three contestants who reached the top of the pyramid in the shortest amounts of time played until someone won the Winner's Circle, where $100,000 was awarded. The last version of Pyramid also held periodic tournaments where a contestant could win $100,000. Played like the tournaments on The $50,000 Pyramid, but without an elimination process.

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Other comments

When Pyramid first began in 1973, game play was slow at times, but as the ABC version progressed, the main game play became better. By the middle of the 1980s CBS version, both the civilians and celebs were more comfortable with the game, and the Winner's Circle rounds were won somewhat more often. (A similar phenomenon has been noticed in the NBC versions of the Password franchise, as opposed to the original CBS runs.)

Still, some of the toughest game play on TV came in the $100,000 versions of the 1980s and 90s, which resulted in the top prize not being won for days, if not weeks.

Originally, a team had to guess ten subjects in 60 seconds to win the top prize. Realizing that this was not going to work, Bob Stewart requested that the bottom four subjects be covered with plywood, which would hold up for the entire duration of its initial 1973-74 CBS run.

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Celebrities

William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy both guested on the ABC Pyramid in the 1970s, which was billed as Kirk vs. Spock. Shatner became famous in 1977 for throwing a chair across the stage when he misclued on the final clue, which cost his partner $10,000. On one episode two years earlier, in an unusual twist, Shatner played the Winner's Circle by himself (giving the clues in one chair then racing to the other and guessing the subject).

Several game show hosts (mostly those hosting Bob Stewart games) appeared as celebrity guests, most notably Bill Cullen and Geoff Edwards. Nipsey Russell, Betty White and Henry Polic II would eventually host a game show at one point and are also added to this list. Dick Clark himself appeared as a celebrity guest on the syndicated Pyramid on a few occassions, as well as on three episodes of the Donny Osmond-hosted Pyramid.

Celebrity partner Billy Crystal holds the record for the fastest Winner's Circle win at 26 seconds.

The 1980s CBS and 1985-88 $100,000 versions are often considered the best of the Pyramid franchise, for their production and gameplaying values. Guests like Nipsey Russell, Anita Gillette and Soupy Sales from the 70s versions showed great enthusiasm in resuming their panelist roles. And newer viewers got to see Vicki Lawrence, Markie Post and Henry Polic II shine just as brightly as Russell and the others did during the first runs.

Post and Polic were often brought back as panelists during tournament weeks on the mid-80s $100,000 versions.

Betty White also became a semi-regular during the 80s version, displaying the same word-game proficiency on Pyramid that she did for Stewart on Password. It was on a 1987 week of CBS Pyramid shows playing opposite White that Bill Cullen made his last network TV appearance. Her most recent Pyramid appearance was on November 25, 2002 on a special episode with former Pyramid host Dick Clark as the other celebrity guest.

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Announcers

Former Concentration announcer and host Bob Clayton handled the announcing chores on the 1970s Pyramid (and other Stewart-produced shows) until his death in 1979 after a heart attack. Other New York-based announcers, including Alan Kalter and Steve O'Brien rotated the announcing duties until its last New York broadcast in 1981.

When Pyramid moved back to CBS in 1982 -- relocating at Television City in Los Angeles -- LA-based announcers such as Jack Clark, Rod Roddy, Johnny Gilbert, Bob Hilton and Charlie Tuna rotated, with Clark and Gilbert credited as regular announcers. In 1985, Charlie O'Donnell, Dick Clark's announcer on American Bandstand, worked with Clark again on Pyramid -- mostly on the $100,000 version.

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Versions outside the USA

Foreign editions have been produced as well, among them, The Pyramid Game in the United Kingdom, Pyramide in France and Germany, which was later called Hast Du Worte?.

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References in popular culture

  • The $100,000 Pyramid was parodied in a 1992 episode of In Living Color, with Jim Carrey playing the role of Dick Clark.
  • An episode of The Simpsons, "Old Yeller Belly", featured a clip of Santa's Little Helper as "Suds McDuff" barking clues to a contestant on the Donny Osmond version of Pyramid.
  • A television commercial for Comcast in 2005 featured footage from an episode of The $20,000 Pyramid. The dialogue was dubbed and the subjects in the Winner's Circle were edited to relate to Comcast products (such as "Things You'd Give Your Right Arm For" and the clincher, "Things That Are Comcastic").
  • The $25,000 Pyramid was featured in the 1982 episode of VH1's I Love the 80s 3-D.
  • On an episode of Friends, Joey makes an appearance on the Pyramid show hosted by Donny Osmond. He fumbles over most of the answers, but somehow makes it to the winner's circle. There he stumbles his way to the top, where he jokingly makes fun of Chandler and time runs out.
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External links