Follow Us on Tumblr

troperville

tools

toys

SubpagesGameBreaker
Headscratchers
Main
Memes
ThatOneLevel

main index

Narrative

Genre

Media

Topical Tropes

Other Categories

TV Tropes Org
random
Game Show
aka: Game Shows
One of the oldest TV show types, and the granddaddy of Reality TV; individuals or teams compete for cash and prizes. Descended from radio quiz shows (which are also covered here), they have fluctuated in popularity.

Game shows were enormously popular in America during the 1950s, until several of the most popular ones * turned out to be rigged. The 1960s and early 1970s had many low-stakes games, with big-ticket ones (especially quizzes) generally falling out of favor...until 1973 and The $10,000 Pyramid. The 1970s and 1980s brought flashy sets and Ear Worm music, with 1975, 1985, and 1987 being particularly good years for the genre.

The 1990s brought with it a sense that ideas were running out, as networks and cable stations dropped games left and right (the last Big Three victim being Caesars Challenge in January 1994). Only The Price Is Right, Wheel of Fortune, and Jeopardy! remained through the entire decade, with a few other games briefly popping up here and there. GSN began in December 1994, giving fans a constant home for classic games.

In 1998, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? gave the genre a shot in the arm and brought a new age of Follow the Leader games.

For the celebrity-oriented variant, see Panel Game. See also Game Show Tropes.

Examples:


Producers:

  • Ralph Andrews (You Don't Say!, I'll Bet/It's Your Bet, Liars Club, the original It Takes Two, Celebrity Sweepstakes, 50 Grand Slam, 1980s Lingo, Yahtzee)
  • Chuck Barris
  • Jack Barry
  • Mark Burnett
  • Stephen J Cannell (Caesars Challenge)
  • Bill Carruthers (Give-N-Take, Second Chance, Press Your Luck)
  • Carsey Werner (Bill Cosby version of You Bet Your Life)
  • Desilu Studios (By The Numbers, Show Me, Zoom)
  • Ralph Edwards (Truth Or Consequences, 1970s-81 Name That Tune, The Cross-Wits, Knockout, Bzzz!)
  • Fremantle Media
  • Mark Goodson
  • Merv Griffin
  • Reg Grundy (Hot Streak, Scrabble, 1980s Sale Of The Century, almost every Australian adaptation of an American game)
  • Merrill Heatter
  • Wink Martindale (Headline Chasers, Bumper Stumpers, Family Channel's interactive games of 1993-94)
  • Allan Sherman (creator/producer of I've Got A Secret, 1952-58)
  • Bob Stewart
  • Talent Associates (1960s Supermarket Sweep, among others)
  • Jay Wolpert (Whew!, Hit Man, Blackout, Shopping Spree)

Experiment ShowNon FictionGearhead Show
Reality TV TropesGenre TropesRomance Novel Tropes
Gag SeriesFictionGovernment Conspiracy
Show GenresTelevisionNews Broadcast
Crime and Punishment TropesMediaNews Broadcast
Crime and Punishment SeriesTV/SeriesHistorical Series
America's Got TalentMulti National ShowsThe Honeymooners
Gag SeriesShow GenresGekiga
Long RunnersThe FortiesNBC

alternative title(s): Quiz Show; Game Shows
random
52197
0