1/3/2009 - The Price is Right, Showcase Showdown PERFECT BID!

Have you ever watched the movie "Rain Man"? You know, the one with Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman, where Dustin Hoffman plays the title character who is an autistic savant that can barely function in society, but has extraordinary recall abilities that allow him to count cards to win at blackjack and even count toothpicks. Well, I think this Price is Right clip features a real life Rain Man:



What's extraordinary is how close Terry's competitor was as well in her bid. But what will blow your mind is what you didn't see: that Terry had another perfect bid on the opening item that led to him being in the Showcase Showdown! Unless he cheated, he should go down in the Price is Right as their greatest contestant.

11/8/2008 - Gameshow Fail

One of the guiltiest of guilty pleasures on TV is probably MXC or Most Extreme Elimination Challenge, the American translation of the Japanese gameshow Takeshi's Castle. It's one of those "extreme" gameshows where contestants traverse ridiculous obstacle courses and usually fail by falling in muddy water. It's popularity on the Spike TV cable channel was probably not lost on the ABC network, so they created the show Wipeout. The shows are very similar, down to the choice of contestants who weren't picked for their ability for critical thinking. This is probably best illustrated by the following clip:

2/28/2008 - Funniest Moment On A Game Show Ever !!

It's amazing how the mind plays tricks on you... take this clip from a British game show, for example:



Now if you were laughing along with the audience, then your mind is in the gutter, too! :)

6/26/2007 - Ode to Bob Barker with Adam Sandler

The Price is Right was my grandfather's favorite show, bar none. I'm pretty sure it was the show that taught him the English language. It was appointment television for him even more so than The People's Court was for the Dustin Hoffman character in Rain Man. Although I think I could do okay on the trivia game shows, I would still like to be a contestant on the Price is Right. I'd really like to try my hand at that golf game and go for a Hole in One... OR TWO!

No one can deny that the Price is Right is like most other successful games shows in that it's really the host that makes the show what it is... and Bob Barker is indeed THE MAN. Even when the contestants are going nuts or being idiots, Barker was always the gentleman and brought some real class to the show. Even though he was getting up there in age, it was sad to see him retire this past month.

Today's video is a tribute to Bob Barker by none other than Adam Sandler, whom he co-starred with in the hilarious golf movie, Happy Gilmore:

6/22/2007 - "You Fool!"

Hollywood Squares was one of the lamer game shows out there. It did have a simple premise, though. Complete a tic-tac-toe grid filled with mostly has-been actors or celebrities by agreeing or disagreeing with their answers to inane trivia questions. The problem is that everything is scripted down to their jokes, so you can't really tell if the "celebrities" are lying or not. To be truly successful, you'd pretty much have to actually know the answer to the question.

In this episode of Hollywood Squares, all either contestant has to do is judge whether or not comedian Gilbert Gottfried is telling the truth when answering the trivia questions. The score is tied 4-4, so this is all for the win. Here's the problem: Gilbert Gottfried is an excellent liar. If you think you recognize his voice it's because he's done so many voice overs. He's probably most famous for being the AFLAC duck. He's also on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno a lot, often "impersonating" other celebrities. I said "impersonating" in quotes because he doesn't even make an attempt to change his voice.

6/20/2007 - Japanese Tetris

Well, it's not exactly Tetris, but it looks just as fun. It's another one of those wacky Japanese game shows that puts its contestants into strange and hilarious situations. This particular game tests your...flexibility, I guess. If you manage to contort yourself into the shape of the opening in the oncoming wall to let it pass you, you win. It would be pretty easy if the shapes weren't so darn abnormal!

Now, why can't we have gameshows like this here in the States? Seriously, instead of all these stupid talent shows, reality shows, and trivia game shows, why can't we have something more eccentric like this? Are the networks worried that some of the more outrageous stuff gets copied at home? Perhaps they don't think there are contestants out there that are as daring as the Japanese ones. I guess they've never met college frat boys...