The Reel to Reel Picture Show

Last updated
The Reel to Reel Picture Show
Presented by Peter Marshall
Narrated by Bill Armstrong
Country of originUnited States
No. of episodes25
Production
Running timeapprox. 26 Minutes
Original release
Network PAX TV
ReleaseAugust 31 (1998-08-31) 
October 2, 1998 (1998-10-02)

The Reel-to-Reel Picture Show (also known as Reel-to-Reel) is an American game show that aired on PAX TV from August 31 to October 2, 1998. The show was taped at Universal Studios Florida, with Peter Marshall hosting. [1] Bill Armstrong was the announcer. It was the network's first game show, debuting the day the network launched.

Contents

The show was based on a Canadian board game, and the show was developed as a marketing tool to help sell it. [2]

Main game

Two teams, consisting of one noncelebrity and one celebrity, competed. The noncelebrity on the first team pushed a button, which randomly selected one of six categories and a point value (either 100, 250, or 500 depending on difficulty). Marshall would ask them a question in that category, getting it right won the points, with no penalty for an incorrect answer. The second team repeated the process.

Some of the questions were special "Take Two" questions. If the team got the first question right, they were then asked a second question related to the first for double the point value. If they were wrong, they lost the value of the first question.

The round ended with each team getting three questions worth 300 points apiece, with the third question being a true/false question about the opposing team's celebrity. After this, the team in the lead got a small prize.

Round 2 was called the "Director's Chair". Six categories were given, and the trailing team selected one. They were then asked six questions in that category (increasing in worth from 100 to 200, 400, 800, 1,000, and 2,000 points). The process was repeated with the second team. The team in the lead after this won the game, received a bonus prize, and advanced to the bonus round.

Bonus round

The winning team was asked six questions. Each answer was a clue to a famous person, movie character, or title. After the six questions were asked, they had ten seconds to solve the puzzle. A correct solve won a trip.

Cancellation

PAX ordered 200 episodes (40 weeks) of Reel-to-Reel, which would have taken the series through June 4, 1999. Despite the order, the production company TIL was having financial problems while tapings proceeded and ceased production after five weeks (25 episodes) had been filmed. Many contestants never received their winnings. [3]

Related Research Articles

<i>Supermarket Sweep</i> American television game show

Supermarket Sweep is an American television game show. The format combines an ordinary team-based quiz show with the novel concept of a live, timed race through a supermarket. In the timed race, cameras follow the teams with shopping carts through a large vacated supermarket with several aisles; the value of items thrown into the cart determine the winning team. The original show was broadcast on ABC from December 20, 1965, to July 14, 1967. Later seasons aired on Lifetime from February 5, 1990, to June 16, 1995, and later from April 3, 2000, to May 23, 2003, with reruns airing until March 26, 2004. Another version of the show aired from October 18, 2020, to January 30, 2022, also on ABC.

<i>SmartAsk</i> Canadian television quiz show

SmartAsk is a Canadian quiz show which ran for three seasons on CBC Television. The show was taped in front of a live audience, with the players sitting on a tiered set. The SmartAsk tournament was described by Ralph Benmergui, the show's executive producer, on TSN's Off The Record as being "Reach for the Top on acid," although in practice this largely involved crude humour, especially as the show went on and ratings sagged.

<i>Twenty-One</i> (game show) American quiz show

Twenty-One was an American game show originally hosted by Jack Barry that aired on NBC from 1956 to 1958. Produced by Jack Barry-Dan Enright Productions, two contestants competed against each other in separate isolation booths, answering general-knowledge questions to earn 21 total points. The program became notorious when it was found to be rigged as part of the 1950s quiz show scandals, which nearly caused the demise of the entire genre in the wake of United States Senate investigations. The 1994 film Quiz Show is based on these events. A new version of the show aired on NBC in 2000 with Maury Povich as host.

<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>The Cross-Wits</i> American television game show

The Cross-Wits is an American syndicated game show which premiered on December 15, 1975, and lasted for five seasons until its cancellation on September 12, 1980. The show was hosted by Jack Clark, with Jerri Fiala as hostess. Announcing duties were handled by John Harlan, Jay Stewart, and Jerry Bishop. The show was produced by Ralph Edwards Productions and distributed by Metromedia Producers Corporation.

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

Dream House is an American game show that saw contestants competing to win, as the title of the show indicates, a new house. The show originally premiered in primetime on ABC on March 27, 1968, with a daytime edition premiering on April 1, 1968. The primetime series aired weekly until September 19, 1968, and the daytime series aired daily until January 2, 1970, when it was replaced with All My Children. The daytime series was revived for NBC's daytime schedule and premiered on April 4, 1983, running until June 29, 1984.

<i>Play the Percentages</i> American TV series or program

Play the Percentages is an American game show hosted by Geoff Edwards which aired in syndication from January 7 to September 12, 1980. Jay Stewart announced for the first six weeks, after which Bob Hilton became the permanent announcer.

<i>Telly Addicts</i> British television game show (1985–1998)

Telly Addicts was a British television game show that aired on BBC One from 3 September 1985 to 29 July 1998, and hosted by Noel Edmonds. All questions were based on television programmes past and present, and generally took the form of a short clip being shown followed by a series of questions either specifically about the clip or more generally about the programme from which it had been taken. Two teams sat opposite each other on sofas. The final series in 1998 had three teams of two players.

<i>Shop til You Drop</i> American TV series or program

Shop 'til You Drop is an American game show that was on the air intermittently between 1991 and 2005. Four different series were produced during that time, with the first premiering on Lifetime on July 8, 1991, and the fourth series airing its final episode on May 27, 2005, on PAX TV.

Fandango is a country music-themed quiz show which aired on The Nashville Network from March 8, 1983 to August 26, 1988, with reruns airing through March 31, 1989, when it was replaced by Top Card. Fandango was the first TV game show to air on TNN and was one of the longest-running game shows on a cable network.

<i>2 Minute Drill</i> (game show) American TV series or program

2 Minute Drill is an ESPN game show based on the general knowledge UK game show Mastermind. The program aired from September 11, 2000 to December 28, 2001. ESPN Classic aired reruns of the series daily at 11:30 a.m. Eastern.

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.

<i>Wheel 2000</i> Childrens game show (1997–1998)

Wheel 2000 is a children's version of the American game show Wheel of Fortune, produced by Scott Sternberg Productions and Columbia TriStar Television. The show was created by Scott Sternberg and was hosted by David Sidoni, with Tanika Ray providing voice work and motion capture for a virtual reality hostess named "Cyber Lucy".

Couch Potatoes is an American game show which featured two teams competing in a television-centric quiz game. The program premiered in syndication on January 23, 1989. It aired in first-run until June 9, 1989, for a total of one hundred episodes, and reruns aired after that until September 8, 1989.

Mad Libs is an American children's game show based on the book/word game series. It aired on the Disney Channel from July 26, 1998 to mid-1999, and was hosted by David Sidoni. Dick Clark and J. D. Roth produced the show.

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

<i>Wheel of Fortune</i> (British game show) British television game show

Wheel of Fortune is a British television game show based on the American show of the same name created by Merv Griffin. Contestants compete to solve word puzzles, similar to those used in Hangman, to win cash and prizes. The title refers to the show's giant carnival wheel that contestants spin throughout the course of the game to determine their cash and/or prizes.

Sex Wars was an American television game show that pitted two teams, one consisting of men and one consisting of women, against each other; hence, the show's name was derived from that.

<i>People Puzzler</i> American game show

People Puzzler is an American television game show hosted by Leah Remini and broadcast by Game Show Network. It premiered on January 18, 2021. The show is inspired by the celebrity and pop-culture themed crosswords in People magazine.

References

  1. Paul Dillon (August 17, 1998). "Action! Reel to Reel begins shooting at Universal Studios". Orlando Business Journal. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
  2. "How a board game became a game show". The Orlando Sentinel. September 1, 1998. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  3. "Luck runs out for trivia champ". The Orlando Sentinel. December 10, 1998. pp. D1, D7. Retrieved May 8, 2022.