"No Whammies…No Whammies…Stop!" Every Single Contestant; Press Your Luck- 1983-1986

Oh yes…The Game Show; the utopian lottery if there ever was one.

Recognized as one of the most popular television formats, the Game Show, which consists of contestants competing for prizes by playing games of knowledge or chance, has long been a pop culture staple. People far and wide would desperately apply to be contestants on one of the many Game Shows and take their chance at winning big. And why not…it truly was the most glamorous game of chance. You are whisked away to the likes of lovely Burbank, California, you get to be on television, you have a chance to win spectacular prizes, and even if you lose you still get those lovely parting gifts. Sounds like a win-win to me? Granted, back in the day the grand prizes were to the tune of "You are our 7 day champion and have amassed winnings of $3674". And though the sentiment was nice, Rice-a-Roni or the home version of the particular Game Show seemed to be the only parting gifts available. But that didn't stop people from clamoring to be contestants.

Now having reached the year 2001, Game Shows have finally come to their senses and are offering cash prizes that could literally change our lives. $25,000, $100,000 and even $1,000,000 bounties are now up for grabs. The contestant's time has truly come. However, modern prime time Game Shows have fallen into a peculiar rut. It seems now most are fixated on only having celebrities competing for charity. It seems ironic that when the prizes finally become prestigious, we the common folk are no longer able to play. Instead of Gary Wilson from Illinois we have Gary Coleman. Well I say this must stop. It is time to bring back the contestant and kick off Meshach Taylor.

The most guilty of this are two of the most popular current prime time Game Shows that offer the highest rewards. "The Weakest Link", which has 9 people competing against one another for a bank that can be as large as $1,000,000 seems to only have celebrity themed episodes now. Every time you turn it on it's the Star Trek rejects or Super Models. The Regis Philman hosted "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire" has long been obsessed with only inviting celebrities to compete. What happened to regular people playing on these shows? What happened to everyday men and women testing their mettle to win big? Now all we get is the cast of Spin City playing for charity? And what charities are they playing for really? "Well Regis, I will be playing for the out of work child actors foundation". Sure some play for legitimate organizations, but I am sure these charities can raise money through other means then just Tony Danza's Game Show appearances. You want to talk about charity? What about me…what about John Doe who has a family of 3? That's charity! Wasn't the point of these shows to spread the wealth with the common man?

I understand that these shows are a form of entertainment and need to draw ratings. If they do feel it is necessary to have celebrity appearances then use them as support to the contestants. Did we learn nothing from the old "Match Game"? Carol Burnett was there to assist us. Rip Taylor wasn't playing for charity on "Password" he was helping out Sally Jones from Minnesota to win big money!

It seems obvious that this turn of events came to be thanks to the current "Reality Shows" that have proven to be rating juggernauts. The traditional prime time Game Show is desperately trying to draw ratings to combat the likes of Survivor with appearances by celebrities at the expense of everyday contestants. (One has to question who is defining the word "celebrity" here, a recent episode of Fear Factor comes to mind that featured such "celebs" as David Hasselhoff, Coolio, Donny Osmond and the woman formerly known as Chyna?!?! But I digress). These shows need to remember that what made them special was the drama of watching regular people being put through trials and tribulations to reach a goal. That is what has made the Survivors and Big Brothers so popular. Game Shows are the original "Reality TV". Now there just seems to be a few more contestants competing in the showdown for reality TV ratings. The traditional Game Show needs to come up with a way to win big…unfortunately they think the answer is Erik Estrada.

…but that's just my opinion.

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