PlayMania
PlayMania | |
---|---|
Quiznation 100 Winners Midnight Money Madness |
PlayMania was a live interactive game show on GSN, hosted by Mel Peachey, Shandi Finnessey, Jessica York, Angelle Tymon, and Jeff Thisted. The two-hour program featured interactive games that the viewers could play to win cash prizes. On February 20, 2007, the show was replaced with two separate programs, quiznation and 100 Winners which were collectively known as the PlayMania Block.[1]
Format
The original PlayMania was a game show in which home viewers were the contestants. American residents 18 or older could enter the contest by
The PlayMania Block shows continued to use the same entry process.
Programming history
The original format of PlayMania was based on
On February 20, 2007, PlayMania was divided into two separate programs. Collectively, these shows,
By June 14, 2007, all scheduled airings of 100 Winners had been replaced with quiznation episodes.
On June 26, 2007, PlayMania gave away its one millionth dollar. The winning contestant, Bernice, received a $500 bonus in addition to the $400 she had won playing, as well as a personalized plaque commemorating the achievement.
On July 17, 2007, the Tuesday edition of quiznation ceased airing.[6] After September 2, 2007, the Sunday broadcast was removed as well, slightly over a year after it originally debuted.[7]
quiznation aired its last episode on October 31, 2007.[8] The network had made claims that it was improving upon its interactive participation for new concepts in the future, which came about with the premiere of GSN Live on February 25, 2008.[9]
Hosts and guest hosts
The debut episodes of PlayMania were hosted by Mel Peachey, a host of the U.K. edition of
In addition to the "official" hosts listed above, there have been several fill-in and guest hosts during PlayMania's run. Hannah Peckham hosted the June 15 and June 16 episodes in 2006, but did not become a permanent host.[11] On two occasions, regulars from I've Got a Secret served as guest co-hosts in charge of viewer e-mail. Comedian Jermaine Taylor appeared on June 17, 2006, and Bil Dwyer appeared on June 22 of that year.
The PlayMania week of August 24, 2006, which featured a timeslot shift and the debut of a Sunday broadcast, was a "Winner's Weekend." This week featured puzzles about
Games
PlayMania featured various mini-games that were played throughout the program. The rewards for the games were usually cash prizes ranging from $100–$500 in cash, sometimes reaching amounts as high as $2,000. Any games that were not completed before the end of a day's broadcast are normally carried over to the start of the next show.
During its ten-month run, the below twenty-one permanent games were played on the original PlayMania. Many carried over to be rotated on
Game | How it is Played |
---|---|
Alphabuck$ | Similar to Wheel of Fortune or Hangman , this game allows players to attempt to guess a letter that is in the puzzle of a given category. If the player's letters are in the puzzle, he/she will earn a small cash prize per letter, and receive an opportunity to guess the full puzzle. Correctly guessing the full puzzle earns the contestant an additional, larger cash prize.
|
Anagrams | A word, name or phrase with the letters mixed up will be given related to a specified category. The contestant must identify what the unscrambled phrase is. |
Category Game | Three items or names, all in interlocking circles (a Venn diagram in which each circle intersects the other two, but all three never overlap), are listed. The contestant must identify what all of the items have in common in the most specific manner. |
Conundrums | There are three variations on this game.
|
Crosswords | Similar to a crossword puzzle, Crosswords features four horizontal words with one letter in each word replaced with a question mark. Vertically, the letters behind the question marks make an actual word. The contestant must identify (and spell) the hidden word. The portion needed to be filled in may work with several choices; however, the host has an envelope containing the chosen word. |
Find the Missing Letters | A five-letter word is given with two consecutive letters replaced by a question mark. The contestant must identify (and spell) the displayed word. The portion revealed may fit into multiple words; however, the host has an envelope containing the chosen word. Sometimes, a four-letter word is used instead of a five-letter word. |
Lingo
|
Identical to the show of the same name, the object is to identify a five-letter word. The first letter is given, and as contestants continue to play, hints such as other letters in the word are given. The contestant must identify (and spell) the word. |
Microcosm | A picture of an everyday object is shown with a part largely zoomed in and magnified. The contestant must identify what the item is. |
Missing Link | A missing word precedes (or succeeds) three other words to form three separate a common words or phrases. The player must determine the missing word. |
Movie Quotes / Television Quotes / Ad Slogans | Three quotes, each from a famous American film, television program, or advertising campaign, are listed, each with a cash prize beside it. The contestant must pick a quote and guess where it comes from. |
Name the Catch Phrase | A rebus based on a popular, everyday phrase is given. (e.g., MEREPEAT would be "repeat after me", because the word "repeat" comes after the word "me.") The caller must identify what the "decoded" phrase is. |
Name the Celebrity | A pixilated photograph of a celebrity is shown. The contestant must identify who the celebrity is. |
Series Game | Three different series (which may be specially ordered numbers, letters, etc.) are shown, each with a cash value attached to it. The caller chooses one of the orders and must identify the next value. |
Shrink 'N Scramble | Three different-sized words are listed, each with a cash prize attached to it. The object is to take one of the words and make a smaller word based on the length requirement given and the letters contained in that word. Each word may appear to have multiple answers; however, the host has an envelope containing the chosen word for each larger word. This game was replaced by Word Slam. |
Things You'd Find... | The PlayMania crew picks three items you would commonly find in a designated location. The contestant must identify one of the items that would be found. |
Top 5 | Similar to Family Feud, a category is given. (e.g., "Top 5 Elton John Hits") The top five answers to the survey or fact-proven data are hidden, and it is the contestant's job to reveal one of them. Once all of the answers have been revealed, the game ends. A variation on a Top 5 is the PlayMania 5. The difference is that the PlayMania crew picks the five things on the list. |
Twisted Title | A title of a movie is described using synonyms for the words in the title (e.g., Deceased Verse Writers Club would be Dead Poets Society). The contestant must identify the original title. |
What's Missing? | A common symbol or image is shown, with an obvious part either missing or replaced with a question mark. The contestant must identify what should be in the image. |
Word Cuts | A word that has been cut in half is displayed. The contestant must identify (and spell) the displayed word. The portion revealed may appear to be multiple words; however, the host has an envelope containing the chosen word. |
Word $lam | Nine letters are listed in random order. Three three-letter words have been pre-chosen, each with a cash prize attached to it. The object is to take the nine letters and make a smaller word based on the length requirement given. Each word may appear to have multiple answers; however, the host has an envelope containing the chosen words. The game is also played with three different-sized word requirements, at three, five, and seven letters. This game has roots in the game Shrink 'N Scramble. |
Special games
For a special occasion or promotional opportunity, PlayMania often engaged in special, personalized games. Some of these included the celebration of
Other features
During its original tenure (and carrying over to quiznation afterward), PlayMania involved a second interactive feature,
There were featured sponsors for a number of PlayMania episodes, usually during the first hour only. On some occasions — for instance, during the first month of the show when the main sponsor was Dick's Sporting Goods — items provided by the sponsor were given away in addition to or instead of cash prizes.
PlayMania Block
PlayMania began to offer "new ways to play" on February 20, 2007. PlayMania expanded into the PlayMania Block, two separate shows under the PlayMania banner:
quiznation
Borrowing the title from
100 Winners
100 Winners offered a contestant the chance to answer the on-screen game. If he or she answered correctly, he or she then chose one of one hundred safe deposit boxes on the set with a prize inside. The program aired from 12 midnight - 2 AM Eastern every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Sunday night (technically early Wednesday, Thursday, and Monday morning in the Eastern Time zone).[13] Its final episode was aired on June 13, 2007.
See also
- Midnight Money Madness
- Take the Cake
- Quiz channel
References
- ^ Alex Davis (2007-02-14). "PlayMania becomes block of two shows". BuzzerBlog. Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-02-14.
- ^ "PlayMania FAQS". Archived from the original on 2007-02-03. Retrieved 2007-01-31.
- ^ "Zap2It quiznation listings". Retrieved 2007-06-15.
- ^ "Official Rules - Playmania Television Block". Archived from the original on 2007-05-16. Retrieved 2007-07-14.
- ^ "Optimistic goes into administration". Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-06-23.
- ^ "GSN Buzz Forums". Retrieved 2007-07-17.
- ^ "PlayMania listings". Zap2It. Archived from the original on 2011-05-20. Retrieved 2007-08-25.
- ^ "PlayMania Cancelled". BuzzerBlog. 2007-10-13. Archived from the original on 2007-11-15. Retrieved 2007-10-13..
- ^ "PlayMania GSN Makes Statement About quiznation Cancellation". BuzzerBlog. 2007-10-18. Archived from the original on 2007-10-23. Retrieved 2007-10-18..
- ^ "GSN salutes Bob Barker with a week of special programming". GSN. 2005-05-02. Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-05-03.
- ^ "Hannah Peckham resume on SueTerryVoices.com". Retrieved 2006-10-22.
- ^ "quiznation". GSN.com. Archived from the original on 2007-06-01. Retrieved 2007-08-03..
- ^ "100 Winners". GSN.com. Archived from the original on 2007-02-23. Retrieved 2007-02-14.
External links
- Official website
- PlayMania at IMDb