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The Price Is Right is a popular Americangame show largely centering around contestants guessing the retail prices of featured prizes and other promotional products. The modern United States version premiered on September 41972 on CBS and is hosted by Bob Barker. Although Barker announced on October 312006 that he would retire at the end of this season, the show will continue with a new host, who has yet to be determined. Off-air auditions for the future host began on December 82006.
TV Guide named The Price Is Right the "greatest game show of all time." The show is well-known for its signature line of "Come on down!" which the announcer implores new contestants to do when their names are called.
The current format is based on the original 1956–65 US version of the show, which aired on NBC and later ABC and was hosted by Bill Cullen. The show began its 35th season on September 18, 2006.
Overview
The 1972 daytime incarnation of The Price Is Right has the distinction of being the longest continuously running game show in North American television history. It has shattered the previous record of 17 years and seven months set by What's My Line?. Still airing today, it continues to extend its record and has aired more than 6,650 episodes.
The gameplay includes several distinct elements, beginning with Contestants' Row, in which one of four contestants qualifies to play one of 75 different pricing games. In the current format, this happens six times per episode, with players departing Contestants' Row being replaced by new contestants selected from the audience. Those six contestants are winnowed down in two Showcase Showdown rounds. The two remaining contestants vie for a Showcase of prizes worth tens of thousands of dollars.
Contestants' Row is the head-on competitive area of the show where the four contestants bid on an offered prize. The one who comes closest to guessing the actual retail price without going over it wins the prize and goes onstage to play a pricing game.
If a contestant guesses the exact price of the prize, a bell sounds, and the player wins a cash bonus. If all the contestants in a given round of bidding go over the price, a buzzer sounds, and the host asks the contestants to rebid.
Along with the Showcase, the Contestants' Row portion (also known formally off-air and in Internet fan groups as "One-Bid") is the one element of game play most identifiable as being retained from the original 1950s version, which was dominated by bidding.
Two well-known strategies for Contestants' Row are bidding only $1 (when a contestant thinks all opponents have overbid) or bidding a dollar more than another contestant (usually the one with the highest bid).
The pricing game is where the contestant can win a larger prize such as cash, home furnishings, or a motor vehicle. Six pricing games are played per episode, following each round in Contestants' Row.
The producers select from a long list of pricing games. These have various levels of complexity in their gameplay. The order of games is determined by the producer prior to the start of the episode. The selection of a particular game is based on the time available in an episode, staging concerns, prize availability and a fairly even rotation of all the games.
This is the only part of the program where a contestant plays alone and does not compete against another contestant.
The Showcase Showdown determines which contestants will play for the larger prize package at the end of the show called the Showcase. The Showdown appears twice in the program, once after the third pricing game and again after the sixth pricing game. Each of the three contestants who have played a pricing game leading up to the Showdown spin a large wheel, consisting of twenty sections, each with a various amount of money ranging from 5¢ to $1.00. The player's goal is to come as close to $1.00 as possible without going over in one spin or a combination of two spins. If the player's total reaches exactly $1.00 in one or two spins, they receive a cash bonus as well as an additional bonus spin to win a further cash bonus. In the event of a tie, a spin-off is held with the goal of coming closest to $1.00 in one spin, with the same bonuses still in play.
In the final round of the program, the two contestants who won their Showcase Showdowns compete for a Showcase, a large set of prizes. The prizes tend to be themed, and a small pantomime story often relates the prizes in at least one of the two packages. Each contestant bids on one of the prize packages, with the contestant with the greater winnings up to that point having the option to bid on the first showcase presented or force the other contestant to bid on it.
The contestant whose bid is closer to – but does not exceed – the price of his own showcase wins that showcase. If a contestant succeeds at underbidding his showcase; bidding $250 or less away from the price of his showcase; and having a closer bid than his opponent, that contestant is awarded both showcases.
In the event that neither contestant bids less than his showcase, it is called a Double Overbid, and neither one is awarded the grand prize.
The show's host, Bob Barker, has hosted every episode of the CBS daytime version except three — Dennis James subbed for him briefly in December 1974 because of an illness. Today, a scheduled taping is postponed in the event that Barker is unavailable. As well as hosting the program, Barker is also credited as the executive producer of the show.
Bob Barker began hosting duties on Price while he was also in a long run on the game show Truth or Consequences. Barker had hosted Truth since 1956, save for a one-year break when the show moved from NBC to first-run syndication. The last of Barker's Truth first-run episodes ran in 1975, though reruns continued to air in syndication afterward, and because of the bicycling of tapes used in syndication at the time, many markets continued to receive new episodes through 1977.
For most of the program's run, Barker has signed off of each broadcast with a public-service message to "help control the pet population; have your pet spayed or neutered." Barker is a noted animal-rights advocate.
Barker has announced that he will retire from the show after the 35th season, with his final show scheduled to air on Friday, June 15, 2007. CBS will air an edition of The Price Is Right Million Dollar Spectacular and a special devoted to Barker's career on May 16 and May 17, 2007.
Host Auditions
CBS and RTL are in the process of auditioning for a new host.
All past contestants may participate in the host audition tapings, and only cash bonuses will be paid. If a player was eligible to be a contestant at the time of these tapings appears on these special tapings, they remain eligible to be on the regular show. Ineligible players who have appeared on the show in the past may participate and win the cash bonuses.
Announcers
The Price Is Right has had three permanent announcers over the course of its run on CBS: Johnny Olson (1972–1985); Rod Roddy (1986–2003); and Rich Fields (2004–present). They have generally enjoyed greater exposure than most shows' announcers, serving as Barker's sidekick, frequently appearing on-camera in Showcase skits (although this is rare now), and of course, calling contestants to "Come on down!"
Several announcers have also subbed on the show over the years. In late 1985 and early 1986, in the wake of Johnny Olson's death, Gene Wood (of Family Feud fame) lent his voice to both the daytime show and the Kennedy version, and Rod Roddy, Rich Jeffries, and Bob Hilton also tried out on the air; Hilton was actually offered the job permanently but turned it down due to a commitment to a game show pilot he was working on, thus leading to Rod Roddy being hired.
Though Fields does not participate in Showcase skits, he is usually seen at the end of the show, joining Barker and the models onstage with the winner of the Showcase.
The show has also featured several models to show off its many prizes who have collectively come to be known as "Barker's Beauties." Some of the long-tenured Barker's Beauties included Kathleen Bradley (1990–2000), Holly Hallstrom (1977–1995), Dian Parkinson (1975–1993), and Janice Pennington (1972–2000).
In 2000, the senior employees of the modeling staff were fired, and the program has used a rotating set of models since 2002.
Other production staff
Roger Dobkowitz is the program's producer, having worked with the program as a production staffer since the show's first season. Occasionally, Dobkowitz will appear on camera to answer questions from Barker.
Many audience members arrive early on the day of a taping. Most have already received tickets for that day's show, although some hope to get same-day tickets. Audience members are then given the famous name tags with a temporary identification number. The ID number is also written on the person's ticket. Audience members are eventually brought through in groups of twelve for brief interviews with the production staff. Social Security Numbers are also checked for tax reporting of potential prize winners.
Contrary to popular belief, contestant names are not chosen at random; rather, the interviews determine possible selections for the nine contestants per taping from among the pool of approximately 325 audience members.
With few exceptions (including previous contestants, political candidates, and people affiliated with the production of the show), anyone at least 18 years old who attends a taping of the show has the potential to become a contestant on The Price Is Right.
Taping
The program is usually produced in exactly one hour, with carefully timed commercial breaks, even though it is taped well in advance (for example, the morning taping of November 16, 1983, was aired on January 10, 1984—a poster tells the audience when the show will be broadcast). The airing schedule is now also available on the show's page at CBS.com under "Ticket Information." As with many other shows that start production in the summer, the lead time varies during the season. For example, while some shows airing in October 2005 had been taped the previous July, the gap closed enough so that episodes taped in the second week of November 2005 aired just before Christmas. Towards the end of the season, the gap can be as little as three or four days.
The audience is entertained for several minutes by the announcer before taping begins; after the taping session, there is a drawing for a door prize.
Production company
The current version of the series was originally a Mark Goodson/Bill Todman production in association with CBS. After Todman died in 1979, the unit became known as simply Mark Goodson Productions, and was announced as such on The Price Is Right beginning in 1984. Today, the series is produced by The Price Is Right Productions, a joint venture of RTL Group and CBS.
For the sake of tradition, and through special permission from RTL's subsidiary FremantleMedia North America, the show continues to use the Mark Goodson Productions name, logo, and announcement at the end of each episode, even though the company no longer exists. (The current production of Family Feud, also a former Goodson-Todman property, no longer follows this practice.)
The Price Is Right has been taped at Studio 33 in CBS Television City for its entire run. The studio, which is used for other television productions, was renamed "the Bob Barker Studio" in the host's honor.
The basic permanent set prominently includes the audience seating area in the production as well as the stage.
Contestants' Row is placed at the front of the audience, with the scoring displays located on the edge of the stage deck. Stairs on either side of Contestants' Row provide access to the stage to advancing contestants.
On stage are three sets of large, paneled, sliding doors (the Big Doors), as well as a platform with a rotating wall (the Turntable). Pricing games and prizes are typically placed in these areas. There are also a Giant Price Tag prop, a fly curtain known as the Race Game Curtain, and a red curtain on wheels to conceal prizes and games; the Race Game Curtain is also lowered during commercial breaks to conceal the staging of the next act from the audience.
The announcer sits at an off-camera podium stage left, while the production crew is in an area stage right.
Broadcast history
The most recognized incarnation of the show premiered September 4, 1972 on CBS and has been hosted by Bob Barker through its entire broadcast run. The show was first called The New Price Is Right to distinguish itself from the earlier Bill Cullen version (1956–65), but the show proved so popular that by mid-1973, the producers decided to drop the word "New."
The revival of The Price Is Right began as a half-hour show. It featured three pricing games and the Showcase, with the top two winners of the day participating in the Showcase.
During the week of September 8-12, 1975, CBS experimented with a one-hour version of the show to celebrate its third anniversary. The ratings for the week were strong enough to convince the network that the arrangement would work well permanently. CBS made the move on November 3, fitting the show to its current six pricing game/two Showcase Showdown format.
The longevity of the program is nearly unmatched in its genre. It is one of only two game shows to be seen nationally in first-run network and/or syndication airings in every decade from the 1950s onward; the other is To Tell the Truth. Since the January 1994 cancellation of Caesars Challenge, The Price Is Right has been the only daytime game show airing on any U.S. television network.
Syndicated productions
A weekly syndicated version of the show aired from 1972 through 1980. Distributed by Viacom, the nighttime Price was hosted by Dennis James from 1972 to 1977 and by Bob Barker from 1977 to 1980. James, a figure from the early days of TV, was originally intended to host both versions of the program; Barker only entered the picture at the behest of executives at CBS. It was only when James' contract expired and the long-running Truth or Consequences ended production that Barker added the evening version to his duties.
In most of the U.S., stations carried the syndicated Price Is Right as one of a variety of five different programs every night of the week in one of the available timeslots created by the 1971FCCPrime Time Access Rule. Usually, the slots were one of two half-hour slots between 7-8 p.m. in the Eastern and Pacific time zones and 6:30-7 p.m. in the Central Time Zone (Mountain Time Zone stations' practices varied).
Two daily nighttime syndicated versions were attempted: In 1985, veteran host Tom Kennedy starred in a version called The Nighttime Price Is Right, which was faithful to the traditional half-hour format; and in 1994, The Young and the Restless stalwart Doug Davidson's The New Price Is Right attempted more esoteric elements in the gameplay. Neither version was successful; Kennedy's version was canceled after a year, and Davidson's after five months.
CBS primetime specials
A series of six nighttime specials aired on Thursday nights during the summer of 1986. Up against the powerhouse NBC sitcom The Cosby Show, the program fared relatively poorly. In these episodes, host Barker and announcer Roddy wore tuxedos, and colored spotlights surrounded the Big Doors.
In 1996, CBS aired an hour-long 25th Anniversary Special, using the half-hour gameplay format and featuring a number of retrospective clips. Ratings were markedly better, but it would be another five years before The Price Is Right returned to primetime again. A 30th anniversary special was recorded at Harrah's Rio in Las Vegas.
More primetime shows were planned back at CBS Television City. Six nighttime specials saluting various branches of the United States armed forces, police officers, and firefighters aired during the summer of 2002, as a tribute to the heroes of the terrorist attacks of 2001. During the Military Specials, a $1 on the bonus spin in the Showcase Showdown would have been worth $100,000 instead of the usual $10,000; this prize went unclaimed.
Since 2003, fifteen nighttime "$1,000,000 Spectaculars" have aired, with the most recent one airing on February 14, 2006; the next such program is scheduled to air on May 16, 2007.
On the $1,000,000 Spectaculars, the bonus spin payoff was again increased, this time to one million dollars. Beginning on the fourth $1,000,000 Spectacular, the winner of the Showcase earns a million-dollar spin if there was no bonus spin during either of the episode's Showcase Showdowns; during these post-Showcase spins, hitting a green section does not earn any money.
Bigger and better prizes are generally offered on the $1,000,000 Spectaculars: Contestants' Row frequently offers pricing game-caliber prizes; many pricing games, including those played for money, offer larger prizes than on the daytime show; and the Showcase will frequently offer multiple or very expensive cars.
The Price Is Right was the first of seven classic game show formats set to be played on the CBSGameshow Marathon; its episode aired May 31, 2006. Ricki Lake served as host, while celebrities played as contestants. The show did not take place on the current set, but on a specially-designed smaller set in CBS Television City's Studio 46; however, the episode did use props from the current The Price Is Right, such as the Big Wheel and the Plinko board, and featured appearances by the Barker's Beauties and announcer Rich Fields.
Bloopers and other memorable moments
The Price Is Right has had many memorable moments over its four-decade history, owing in part to the show rarely being edited and the contestant pool producing a variety of lively personalities. Many times, an incident of embarrassment or a blooper — which would ordinarily be edited from scripted television series — has been intact in the aired program. This has led to a long list of clips, many of which have been immortalized by being replayed in special episodes.
Some memorable moments from the more than 6,000 episodes include the following:
File:TPiR yolanda.jpgYolanda shows the audience a little too much "The most talked about incident in the history of the show," according to Bob Barker, involved a contestant named Yolanda on September 14, 1977. While running down to Contestants' Row, she failed to notice that her tube top had slipped off, exposing her breasts. Upon recalling the incident, Barker explained, "She came on down, and they came on out!" TV Guide ranked it as the 19th most unexpected moment in television history.
Occasionally, April Fool's Day shows will present practical joke showcases. Such stunts have included showcases of ridiculously cheap prizes, such as paper plates and an eggbeater; one in which all of the prizes got broken; one with trips to obscure locales; and one that contained nothing but toy cars. Contestants were offered a simple, yet extravagant, replacement showcase to bid on afterwards, generally consisting of either multiple cars or a Cadillac.
On four occasions, a contestant was called to "Come on down," yet no one stood up. In one of those instances, the called contestant was in the bathroom, leading her husband to swiftly exit the studio to call his wife.
Two contestants have fainted upon winning the Showcase.
Numerous times, the mechanics of the pricing games failed, often while the contestants were playing or before the contestant had a chance to play. In many cases, this has resulted in a price being revealed, rendering the play of the game moot; in these cases, the contestant is awarded the prize. A particularly memorable moment occurred with Master Key when one of the keys got stuck in one of the locks; Bob gave the key a karate kick, breaking it off in the lock.
A few times in the show's history, players have exploited the game play and attained an advantage, although the program has never publicly alleged that any contestants have cheated. Documented incidents (which are explained in each pricing game's article) occurred during 3 Strikes, Shell Game, Flip Flop, and Pathfinder.
Contestants, in their spontaneous exuberance, have been known to cause injury to themselves or the host. Barker often recalls he was hugged by a Samoan contestant so hard that he was literally lifted off his feet and his ribs were bruised.
Production statistics
6. Number of Daytime Emmys won by the program and its staff.
75. Number of perfect shows (all six pricing games won, as of March 22, 2007)
325. Approximate number of audience members per show. Of those, only nine will be selected as contestants.
$2,746. Price of the Chevrolet Vega offered in the first pricing game (Any Number) of the first show. It was won.
$86,743. The most expensive single prize ever offered on the daytime show (Golden Road, Sept. 28, 2006.): a Dodge Viper SRT-10
$147,517. Single-contestant record winnings, daytime (September 18, 2006).
$183,688. Single-contestant record winnings, primetime (April 16, 2005 $1,000,000 Spectacular).
$297,708. Record winnings for all contestants in a single daytime show, including seven automobiles.
$600,000,000. Estimated total prize winnings in the show's history
Price in other media
The Price Is Right has expanded beyond television to home and casino-based games.
Board Games
Eight board games have been produced. One of them was a variation of a card game, using prizes and price tags from the original version. The second was based more closely on the original version of the show.
Three games were produced during the 1970s, by Milton Bradley, with Contestants' Row; a small number of pricing games; and, in the case of the third version, a spinner for the Big Wheel, albeit with the numbers in the wrong order. In the first two versions, several decks of cards had various grocery items, small prizes and larger prizes; the third version simply had cards for each game that included ten sets of "right" answers, all using the same price choices. The instruction book would tell the "host" for the round what color cards would be necessary.
The 1986 version, again by Milton Bradley, was similar in scope to the earlier version, with new prizes and more games, but strangely lacking the Big Wheel. The 1998 version of the game, this time by Endless Games, was virtually identical to the 1986 release, with the same games, the same prizes, and even the same prices; the only changes were the number tiles being changed to cardboard bits.
The 2004 edition, again by Endless Games, was a complete departure. Instead of different prize cards and background games, the game consisted of everything you would need to play over 40 pricing games, and enough materials to create all the games not technically included if the "host" wished to and knew their rules; the Big Wheel spinner was also restored, this time with the numbers in the correct order. Additionally, the prices, instead of being random numbers that could change each time the game was played, were actual prices taken from episodes of the TV show. To fit everything in the box, grocery items and prizes were listed in the instruction book, and games were played on dry erase boards. A spinner would determine what game would be played next, although its use was not necessarily required if the "host" wished to build his own game lineup.
Computer Games
In 1990, GameTek created a "The Price Is Right" computer game for the Commodore 64 and other systems to fit in their line of other game show games. Significant issues affected playability, such as game rule incompatibility with the network game show and prizes inconsistent with the games they are played in (like first being asked to bid on a car in Cliff Hangers, and then not being able to enter a five digit price). GameTek's game did not sell well and was quickly removed from the market.
Likewise, a planned version for the Nintendo Entertainment System was never released, and it is unknown if a prototype is in existence.
A hand-held Tiger game was made in 1998 with four pricing games, and a DVD game with 12 pricing games and prizes taken directly from the show was produced by Endless Games in 2005.
Slot Machines
A series of popular video slot machines, all based on the current version of The Price Is Right, were manufactured for North American casinos by International Game Technology. Rod Roddy's voice and cartoon persona are part of the game, even after his death.
The most common machines recreate the Showcase Showdown as a bonus feature, with a wheel built into the game above the main video screen. At least four different versions of this machine exist as of 2006, each featuring additional bonus rounds based on popular pricing games: Plinko, Cliff Hangers, Punch a Bunch, and Dice Game. The Cliff Hangers game also exists as a mechanical reel slot machine, with a video screen positioned above the reels for the bonus.
In addition, a Money Game slot machine exists, albeit in limited release. This game has a potential top prize of a new car, and has a different bonus round than the other The Price Is Right slot machines in service.
Another slot machine called The Price Is Right Fishing Game has been created by IGT, but it isn't clear if the machine has been released to casinos. The game features a fishing-themed bonus and is not based on any pricing game featured on the program. IGT has also released a game called The Price Is Right Fort Knox Progressives, but the game play doesn't appear to be related to the show in any way.
"Q&A with the Producers". "The Price Is Right" official site. CBS Daytime. Retrieved 2007-04-30.
^ "Community: Q&A". "The Price Is Right" official site. CBS Daytime. Retrieved 2007-04-14.
Double showcase margin is the current rule since 1998. From 1974—98 the margin was "less than $100"(exactly $100 away didn't count), and prior to that the program had no such bonus.
United States
