Brains & Brawn

Last updated
Brains & Brawn
Genre Game show
Presented by Jack Lescoulie
Fred Davis
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
Production
Camera setup Multi-camera
Running time30 minutes
Original release
Network NBC
ReleaseSeptember 13 (1958-09-13) 
December 27, 1958 (1958-12-27)

Brains & Brawn is the name of two similar NBC game shows aired on Saturdays (in different slots) in 1958 and 1993 respectively.

Contents

First version

The first version of the show premiered in September 13, 1958, on the NBC system airing Saturdays at 10:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. It was hosted by Jack Lescoulie and Fred Davis and directed by Paul Bogart. There were two teams comprising two contestants each; two celebrity guests formed the "Brain" portion (hosted by Davis) and two other contestants formed the "Brawn" portion (hosted by Lescoulie). The complex structure of the show puzzled audiences and sponsors (it ran as a sustaining program) and was cancelled after just three or four months.

Second version

Brains & Brawn
Genre Game show
Presented by Mark-Paul Gosselaar
Danielle Harris
Tatyana M. Ali
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
Production
Camera setup Multi-camera
Running time2224 minutes
Original release
Network NBC
ReleaseJuly 10 (1993-07-10) 
October 16, 1993 (1993-10-16)

A second and final version was hosted by Mark-Paul Gosselaar, shown as part of NBC's teen-oriented Saturday morning programming and ran from July 10 to October 16, 1993.

Gosselaar's co-host in early episodes was Danielle Harris; she was replaced by Tatyana M. Ali, who was a team captain on a previous episode. "From the backlot of Universal Studios in Hollywood", the show pit two teams of teens against each other in fast-paced rounds of academic and physical challenges accompanied by music and special effects.

Format

Two teams of three teenagers, one of whom was a celebrity captain, competed. They competed in five events for points, which they would use in the Obstacle Course at the end of the show.

Games played include:

After five events, both teams went to the Obstacle Course. First, the contestants had to run through tires, then climb a fire escape ladder. Then, they had to slide into a large air cushion. After that, they cross a balance beam to reach a zip line. Then they enter a three-seater, pedal-driven buggy to pedal to the finish line. The first team to cross the line won the course and the game. The team in the lead received a head start; for every 10 points the team had scored over their opponents, they would receive one second.

Each member of the winning team received a Bushnell telescope.

Related Research Articles

<i>Password</i> (American game show) American television game show

Password is an American television game show in which two teams, each composed of a celebrity player and a contestant, attempt to convey mystery words to each other using only single-word clues, in order to win cash prizes.

<i>Win, Lose or Draw</i> American television game show

Win, Lose or Draw is an American television game show that aired from 1987 to 1990 in syndication and on NBC. It was taped at CBS Television City, often in Studios 31, 33, and 43 at various times. It was co-produced by Burt & Bert Productions and Kline & Friends for Disney's Buena Vista Television. It has also had two versions on The Disney Channel: Teen Win, Lose or Draw from 1989 to 1992, and a revived version known as Disney's Win, Lose or Draw which aired in 2014. New York described Win, Lose or Draw as "a knockoff" of the board game Pictionary, however, Burt Reynolds and Ed McMahon referred to playing the game at Burt's home during the August 2, 1978 episode of The Tonight Show, with Johnny Carson, three years before Pictionary was created.

<i>Chain Reaction</i> (game show) American television game show

Chain Reaction is an American television game show created by Bob Stewart, in which players compete to form chains composed of two-word phrases.

<i>Think Fast</i> (1989 game show) American TV series or program

Think Fast is an American children's game show which aired on Nickelodeon from May 1, 1989, to March 30, 1990, with reruns airing weekly until June 29, 1991.

<i>The Magnificent Marble Machine</i> American game show

The Magnificent Marble Machine is an American television game show. Contestants partnered with celebrities to answer trivia questions and gain control of an oversized pinball machine. The program premiered on NBC on July 7, 1975 at 12:00 pm ET, replacing the short-lived game show Blank Check.

A*mazing is an Australian children's television game show that aired between 16 May 1994 until 1998 on the Seven Network. It was famous for a relatively large and elaborate maze/obstacle course that was part of the show's studio set. A*mazing was hosted by James Sherry for the entire run of the series. A*mazing was produced at Channel 7 in Brisbane from 1994 to 1996 and then at Channel 7 in Perth from 1997 to 1998.

That's My Dog is an American game show aired on The Family Channel from September 1, 1991 to September 30, 1995. Two families and their dogs competed for prizes in games and stunts oriented toward the dogs.

Trashed is a television game show that ran on MTV from February 14 to July 23, 1994, with Chris Hardwick as host.

PDQ and Baffle are American television game shows created by Heatter-Quigley Productions. Both shows' objective was for contestant/celebrity teams to guess a given word or phrase in the shortest amount of time with the fewest letters given as possible.

<i>Uh Oh!</i> (game show) Canadian TV series aired from 1998 to 2003

Uh Oh! is a Canadian television game show that was created by Rick Watts and Frank Young. Following a sneak preview at YTV Psykoblast on August 16, Uh Oh! aired from August 22, 1997 to April 19, 2003 on YTV, and was a spin-off of the popular variety show It's Alive!, which also aired on YTV. Uh Oh! was part of It's Alive's game show segment during its third season, but existed as a parody during its second season. As of 2023, Uh Oh! is the third longest-running show on YTV, behind Hit List and Video & Arcade Top 10, both of which aired for 14 and 15 years respectively. For its entire run, Uh Oh! was taped at Global Television in Toronto, Ontario. The series ended on April 19, 2003.

<i>Stumpers</i> (game show) American TV series or program

Stumpers! is a game show hosted by Allen Ludden that aired on NBC from October 4 to December 31, 1976. Lin Bolen, former head of NBC Daytime Programming, developed the show. Bill Armstrong was the program's regular announcer, with Charlie O'Donnell filling in for several episodes. The show featured game play similar to Password, with two teams attempting to guess the subject of puzzles based on clues provided by their opponents.

Turn It Up! is a musical game show that aired on MTV from June 30 to December 7, 1990. It was the second game show to be produced and broadcast on the network after Remote Control, produced by Albie Hecht, Alan Goodman, and Fred Seibert, of Chauncey Street Productions in New York City.

<i>My Dad Is Better than Your Dad</i> Reality sports television series

My Dad Is Better than Your Dad is a reality sports TV show on NBC that premiered on February 18, 2008. The show was produced by Mark Burnett, producer of other shows like Survivor, The Apprentice, and Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?, and was hosted by actor Dan Cortese. Four teams of children and their fathers competed in each episode, with the winning team having the chance to win up to $50,000.

<i>Hole in the Wall</i> (American game show) American game show

Hole in the Wall is an American game show that has aired in two versions on American television.

Challenger was an Australian children's game show that aired on the Nine Network in 1997 and 1998. The first host was Diarmid Heidenreich, famous for playing Dougie the pizza delivery guy in Pizza Hut commercials in the mid-1990s. After he left the show in early 1998 he was replaced by hosts Adrian DeVito and Zoe Sheridan. They filmed 265 episodes before the show was superseded by the return of Now You See It.

Tokyo Friend Park 2 is a Japanese game show that premiered in April 1994 on the Tokyo Broadcasting Station (TBS). TFP2 airs on Monday nights roughly from 6:55 - 7:54 JST in Japan.

<i>The Challenge: Free Agents</i> Season of television series

The Challenge: Free Agents is the 25th season of the MTV reality game show The Challenge. The season is located in Uruguay and Chile, with former cast members from MTV's The Real World and The Challenge competing. This season marks the first since season 11 that does not include any cast members from The Real World: Austin or the first Fresh Meat challenge. The season follows a new format, featuring each contestant competing in either teams, pairs, or for themselves, for a share of $350,000 in prize money.

<i>Ellens Game of Games</i> American TV series or program

Ellen's Game of Games, also known as Game of Games and stylized as ellen's GAME OF GAMES, is an American television game show that aired on NBC. In March 2017, NBC ordered six hour-long episodes of the series. Ellen DeGeneres serves as host, while Stephen "tWitch" Boss appears as announcer/sidekick. The series is based on game segments from DeGeneres' daytime talk show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show. The series premiered on December 18, 2017. On February 18, 2020, DeGeneres announced on The Ellen DeGeneres Show that the series was renewed for a fourth season, which began airing on October 6, 2020. In January 2022, the series was canceled after four seasons.

<i>Game of Games</i> Australian TV series or program

Game of Games is an Australian TV game show hosted by Grant Denyer based on the American game show Ellen's Game of Games. It premiered on Network Ten on Sunday, 7 October 2018 at 7:30pm and on 24 November 2018 Channel Ten changed its timeslot to 7:00pm every Saturday. The first season concluded on 15 December 2018.

Game of Games Suomi is a Finnish version of the American game show Ellen's Game of Games. The show premiered in November 2021 on TV channel MTV3, and will be hosted by Aku Hirviniemi and Janne Kataja, with the show being first to have two official hosts.