TVSquad

If you go by all of the various stories in the media, it would seem that TV viewers just aren't into award shows anymore. The ratings are often down year to year, and if people are tuning in it seems to be more for the fashions, the red carpet, and maybe to see a particular category/performance by someone on the show.

So it's interesting that there are so many new genre award shows popping up. TV Land has had their own awards (The TV Land Awards) for a number of years now (the latest airs next week with Neil Patrick Harris hosting), and Bravo has The A-List Awards, whatever they are (it aired earlier this week). Now GSN is getting into the game (no pun intended) with The Game Show Awards, a show dedicated to giving awards to game shows, game show hosts, even game show sponsors!

OK, so this is juvenile, but being juvenile is fun, isn't it?

I've often wondered why we don't see more of what happens in the video after the jump. It's a clip from a Wheel of Fortune episode from Sea World. The contestants are spinning the wheel and picking letters for the puzzle, and during the game, the last word in the puzzle is revealed to have the letters S, H, I, and T in it. Of course, there's a letter in between those letters so it's not like the show has gone scatological all of the sudden, but for a few moments, the biggest game show in the world had that word on its puzzle board for all to see. Pat and Vanna and the players don't say anything about it (though I'm sure it was in their minds), and if anyone in the audience laughed you can't hear it.

Funny that the category is "Before & After." I guess that word would be the "after."

Would you say that Arsenio Hall's show was a bomb? Yeah, neither would I.

But The St. Peterburg Times lumps Hall's show into a group that includes Magic Johnson, Chevy Chase, Pat Sajak, and Alan Thicke. They all hosted late night talk shows that never quite made it. And when I say never quite I made it, I mean they were gone in the blink of an eye. But Hall's show lasted about 6 seasons, and if I remember correctly was quite popular with younger viewers and gave Carson, Leno and Letterman some good competition in that demographic. I also don't agree with another statement, that Jon Stewart's talk show "sucked." I kinda liked it.

So will Jimmy Fallon's show be another short-lived show that couldn't compete? Or is it a different time now? A lot of people thought that another Jimmy, Kimmel, wouldn't last that long either. But it looks like he's here for the long haul.

The way that game show fans feel about Wheel of Fortune is so well-documented it has sort of become a cliche. Wheel of Fortune is for a certain type of person, and shows like Jeopardy are for another type. I don't know if I agree with that.

There's something for game show fans in each show, whether you're solving a letter puzzle or trying to answer a question about ancient Rome or literature, though I can certainly see why one would appeal to a person and the other wouldn't. But I have to admit that I drifted away from Wheel of Fortune for many years because of contestants such as the one from last night's episode.

Oh, the humanity! Wheel of Fortune is not all frivolity and fun. Merv Griffin knew what he was doing when he created this venerable game show. Drama, ensues! You think it's so easy spinning the wheel, buying a vowel, laughing at Pat Sajak's jokes and ogling Vanna's gorgeous gait? Well, it's not. Under all that pressure you'd be surprised -- or maybe you wouldn't -- to see how some people simply come up short in the solution department. The letters all float together and instead of spelling a word you know as well as your own name, you pick the wrong consonant and you're WAH-WAHed in shame and regret. The fortune goes to the next player and you're left with egg on your face.

Watch these great examples and you'll see what I mean (a sample is after the jump). Like Jay Leno's simple "man in the street" questions about common knowledge, you see that there's no telling how stupid people can be, especially with a camera and microphone in their face.

[via digg]

Here's a question I got that should be easy for all you game show fans...

Jamie writes, "Can you help me figure out the name of a game show that I watched about 20 years ago? It was like a board with words on it and you had to win to get to pick the covers off the board and it would like reveal for instance a needle + N + (then a pile of hay) with the answer to the puzzle would be a needle in the haystack!!! PLEASE HELP ME!!!!"

Well, I am hardly a game show expert but that sounds like Concentration to me. Although if you watched it twenty years ago then you were probably watching the relaunched version called Classic Concentration hosted by Alex Trebek.

The Game Show Network will have a special tribute to Merv Griffin, who died earlier this week of cancer at age 82.

On Saturday and Sunday, August 18 and 19, GSN will run two different Griffin marathons, from 10am to 3pm. The shows included in the marathons will include a Chuck Woolery-hosted episode of Wheel Of Fortune and the first episode that featured Vanna White. We'll also see the first NYC-based episode of Wheel (not sure why this is so special, but I guess I'll wait and see) and a Jeopardy Masters Tournament of Champions. On Sunday night we'll see a 1960 episode of Play Your Hunch, a game show Griffin hosted, and then at 3:30am we'll see a To Tell The Truth episode that Griffin guest hosted.

That's a lot better than their tribute to Kitty Carlisle earlier this year, when they ran her game show appearances in the wee hours of the morning and that was it.

With the popularity of shows like Deal or No Deal and Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader it has become clear that the days of Ken Jennings are over. It is no longer necessary to be educated to be on a gameshow. All you need is a personality or at least the appearance of one.

Time was, ratings for a gameshow spiked considerably whenever someone got on a winning streak. Now all producers have to do is manufacture a load of tension and viewers become glued to the set, even when the tension stems from whether or not they should open a briefcase.

Now, I am the first to admit that I love seeing idiots blow their big chance on a gameshow. One of the best parts of Beat the Geeks was being able to laugh out loud when a contestant missed an easy question, but some of these contestants are so stupid that I can't see how they even made it on the show in the first place.

Regis Philbin, the iron man of daytime television and entertainment in general, looks to be on the mend after having triple-bypass surgery last month. The New York Post reports that not only is he walking again, but he's actually taking shopping trips with wife Joy, and told reporters that he was feeling well.

Originally he was supposed to be out for five weeks, but it's possible he could be back a little earlier than that (though it's already been three weeks, so I doubt he'll be back until the five weeks are up). He didn't ask me, but Regis? Take your time coming back. We know you're in great shape and a workhorse and all that, but really, you're 75 years old and just had major surgery. You don't need to be all excited listening to Kelly's stories about her kids and all those screaming fans.

On Monday, Martin Short will be the guest host on Live with Regis & Kelly, and then Pat Sajak takes over for the rest of the week. The following week, Jeff Probst is the guest host.

Anna told you yesterday about Regis Philbin's surprise announcement that he will undergo a heart bypass procedure this week. Philbin's last day for at least five weeks was yesterday, and the show has announced who will fill in for him while he's recuperating.

Today and tomorrow, CNN's Anderson Cooper, who has guest-hosted the show before, will take over for Regis in the chair next to Kelly Ripa. Then on Thursday and Friday, MTV's Damien Fahey will fill in. Then there will be a rotating group of celebs who will take over, and that list includes Jeff Probst, Martin Short, Donald Trump, Neil Patrick Harris, Howie Mandel, and Pat Sajak.

Wait a sec...no women? I know they like to have that male/female dynamic on the show, but come, who wouldn't watch Kathie Lee Gifford sit next to Kelly Ripa for a few days?

What probably comes as no surprise to anyone, both Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune have been renewed for two more years. That means that the two top-ranked syndicated game shows will remain on the air through the 2011-2012 season.

Currently, Wheel is the number one show in syndication, averaging 8.3 million households. Jeopardy is number three with an average viewing audience of 6.5 million households. By the time the 2012 season ends Wheel will have been on the air for an impressive 29 seasons while Jeopardy will have been on for an equally impressive 28.

One can only assume that Alex Trebek, Pat Sajak and Vanna White will remain with their respective shows. Then again, assuming is a bad thing. Heck, for all I know Howard Stern could be hosting the final two seasons of Jeopardy. Ratings may pick up then if the 'Daily Double' features half-naked lesbians giving out answers.

Now, before you get mad at me, those are his words, not mine.

I'm a fan of Esquire's monthly "What I've Learned" feature, where they have celebrities, politicians, and other people of note explain what they've learned in life. Griffin, the creator of both Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy, starts off by saying he's "just plain nosy," and goes on to explain, among other things, that he smokes, he drinks, doesn't exercise, why he'll never retire, what he thinks of American Idol, and what diet doctors he has outlived.

He also names the only guest he had on his talk show that intimidated him.

Alex Tebek and Pat Sajak in Hi-Def. That's a scary thought, isn't it? Well, if you think it is, then don't bother to watch Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune this season, because both will be offered in HD for the first time ever. According to TV Week, the sets of both shows have undergone extensive renovations in preparation, making them wider, more detailed, and more colorful, and episodes for fall have begun to be shot by both King World-distributed shows. Also, the signature J! gameboard of individual video screens has been replaced by a video wall, similar to what's used when the show goes on the road. They are both the first syndicated and first game shows to go HD.

I still think they should follow Ken Jennings' suggestion and add physical challenges to J! But that's just a personal preference. Oh, and what are the odds Vanna White had some "work" done in preparation for the more-detailed broadcast this season?

While you're watching CBS' summer show, Game Show Marathon, think of this funny list over at McSweeneys: Less Popular Game Show Catchphrases.

The most disturbing might be "So...do you want to pump it, lick it, or tickle it?" I don't ever want to hear Bob Barker or Pat Sajak or Alex Trebek say those words. Though if that girl who types things on Lingo wants to say them...

My favorite? "TIME TO FIND THE CASHEW!" I think I'd watch that game show.