CBS Brings Back “Password” in Million Dollar Form
I’m not a big classics fan. I really enjoy the more modern shows to the old rusty ones. However, there are three shows which I really adore from the old days: Pyramid (Not Donny Osmond’s version), Match Game, and Password. A long time ago we first reported that a remake of Password was in the works, which excited us. However, we just got three words about the new Password revival which is making us really afraid: Primetime, Fremantle, and $1,000,000.
Yes, the production company that brought you amazing US formats like Temptation somehow think that they can mask the fact that people are guessing words at a relatively slow speed by throwing Password in primetime on CBS for $1,000,000. Hosted by Regis Philbin, the show, now called Million Dollar Password, has been picked up and will probably air in midseason. This new edition will combine all three editions, meaning the classic version and the puzzles. It’s still the two teams of contestant/celebrity, but the winner can risk their money in the bonus for $1,000,000.
Sorry for judging a show before it airs, but this just downright scares me. I really enjoy Password and think it would work fine as a syndicated daytime show, for like $10,000 to $20,000, paired with Family Feud. However, a $1,000,000 version? I do enjoy big money some times, don’t get me wrong, but this is a simple guess the word game. Some word game shows can easily pull off a $1,000,000 version, like Pyramid. However, Password? What this means is that they are going to make a simple, fun word game extremely hard to win and drawn out. I’ll hold out some hope and who knows, this may work out. However, I just have a horrible feeling. Is it just me?
Alex, you know more than most of my love for “Password” and “Pyramid” and games of that ilk. I honestly want to hold out hope for this. I mean, it’s PASSWORD. How could even Fremantle screw this up?
Seriously, at its core, Password is an insanely simple game, and is slow-paced. The only way it works as a million-dollar show is to have returning champions, and award the million (or a try at a Million Dollar Alphabetics) after a set number of wins. I mapped out a version of Pyramid long ago that featured progressive dollar amounts in the Winners’ Circle, going up after each win. If they did that here, say $10k on the first win, $20k on the next, and so on so that maybe 7 consecutive wins gets a shot at the million, it could build suspense, interest in the players, and frankly, if you can win seven straight games of Password against decent competition, then win Alphabetics with that much money on the line…well, to me that’s pretty compelling television, as game shows go.
But see, it’s not multiple wins, and that bugs me. If it was, I’d be fine. You have to risk your money to play for the $1M. We have the Deal or No Deal situation rising up in a word game, and with one such as this, that does not sit well with me
I don’t know how she truly feels about this, but if I were a certain Mrs. Elizabeth White Ludden, here’s what I might be thinking (cue Lee Vines):
“The Password is…sacrilege.”
DING!
hahahaa $1m…it’s the new $100,000. Soon enough $1m just won’t be shocking enough… but still, for $1m, the alphabetics passwords better be the likes of “conflaguration” and “obdiplostemonous” ;D
LObs
Why can’t FremantleMedia (and their predecessors) leave the Mark Goodson classics alone? Look at the disaster that was “Match Game ’98″ (Judy Tenuta, anyone!) “Feud” has never been as good as the original Richard Dawson version, and “TPIR” was run into the ground by a power-hungry host/executive producer who made the lives of people behind the scenes a living hell for the last seven years the show was on! Granted, the clones of the original “Password” (“Password Plus”, and for me “Super Password”) were great remakes, but another new version? Haven’t we learned from the past mistakes yet?
Fremantle, I seriously hope you know what you are doing. Regis Philbin as host is the only thing that sounds good about this- at least we have someone with experience.
If anyone from fremantle is reading this, here is my suggestion for the game…
* Play with the old school rules. Play or pass option is in, “No opposites” rule is out.
* First puzzle is $1000, each following one is $1000 more than the last. Include cashword for a bonus that starts at $10000. $5000 wins the game.
* bonus round: Keep the old alphabetics style round. How much it is played for depends on how many times you played before: First time is $50,000, second time is $100,000, third time is $150,000, fourth time is $200,000. If you fail, it’s $2,500 a word regardless. After each bonus round, the winnings are deposited into a bank. They can take the amount won, or come back next week. A loss means you leave only with main game winnings. If they win 4 games in a row, they can come back for one final game; if they win their 5th game, their bank is doubled. Therefore, if they play Alphabetics perfectly each of the 4 times, then win their 5th game, they’ll get a million dollars.
I just hope they keep to the original. If this becomes another Temptation, the Game Show World will never forgive Fremantle for ruining a game show Classic.
Are Fremantle trying to create a warped perversion of what the game show fandom wants or something?
If you must do big-money Password, do it with the Super Password format and have an escalating jackpot: start at $250,000 and go up $25,000 each time it’s not won? THAT would be fun, because you could get a multi-million win but it wouldn’t break the network because the only way to get it is a long sequence of losses! (A similar rolling jackpot was used on the Spanish show ‘Pasapalabra’, which also had an endgame with answers of different letters of the alphabet, except it was general knowledge. And it was such a hard endgame that it went over 350 shows (!) without being won, and when it did eventually get won it stood at €2,190,000 – unless I’m severely mistaken, the biggest win ever outside the United States.)
“How could even Fremantle screw this up?”
You’re kidding me, right?
at least, they grabbed a good host in Regis. I’ll be glad to see him back on a game show after millionaire and America’s got talent (which I really think wa sout of his element btw).
I agree with ucb about the increasing bonus rounds, that would work. why can’t they modify the twenty-one ladder and have it something like this:
1 win: $25,000
2 wins: $50,000
3 wins: $100,000
4 wins: $250,000
5 wins: $500,000
6 wins: $1,000,000
This works since not that many people won 6 games of password in a row let alone 6 bonus gamesand the money is enough to still be exciting. The main game could be played for points, the bonus is the same as super password/password plus and you need to win the bonus round to up your total, a bonus loss means you win nothing extra you stay at that level for the next game, a main game loss means you go home with nothing but you can stop after each bonus game win and take the money. I’d even settle for cbs throwing in some sort of safety net like the $100,000 is safe after the 3rd win or offering a contestant who lost the first bonus round $10,000 to quit.
I don’t know how you do this unless you really make the show intelligent and make the words very tough for Alphabetics. Since you are playing with celebrities, you will have to get some bright ones for this to work.
Regis is a good choice, but the game mechanics will be crucial here. If Embassy Row were doing this, I’d feel better, but Fremantle’s track record is very bad as of late. Fingers crossed…
Marc Power-
Get out of my head! That’s the ladder I think would work with a Pyramid revival. :)
What worries me about the prospect for any $1M Celebrity game show is that the celebrity HAS to be as good at the game as the civilian for it to work. Betty White can’t be on every week! How many times did Password and Pyramid players lose a shot at the jackpot because the celebrity screwed up? What happens when a player loses $1M because a D-List cable show celebrity gives an illegal clue? (I’m looking at YOU, Kathy Griffin!) That’s a lawsuit waiting to happen…no matter how many waivers a civilian signs. I say, lose the celebrities…make it all civilians, whether it’s a team of friends or family members. At least that way, the teams have a better chance at being good at the game. They can practice at home until they are really polished. That’ll make for better games, too.
If there were any two shows I could bring back with them being well done, they’d probably be “Password” and “Pyramid.” But we all know how Donny Osmond’s “Pyramid” turned out (bless his heart,) so I’m awfully worried about this. I trust Regis, but I don’t trust Fremantle at this point. I think “Password” truly belongs in daytime (even if that means I won’t se it as much). The saving grace for me in this announcement was reading “CBS.” While they’re on my bad side now with “KidNation,” I know that they can do a good big money game show with “Power of 10.” My wish would be that they take “Million Dollar” out of the name, so that the show isn’t always automatically about the “top prize.” With “Millionaire” back in the day (2000?) t was fine, but now, nearly everything primetime is worth a million or more – I don’t think we need to be reminded!
It’s great to hear that it’s coming back. I know that back on the final episode of “Super Password” in 1989 Betty White said something like “The phoenix will rise again”. I agree that it’s high time that this show was brought back, but playing for a million? Give me a break. They made a good choice picking Regis to host it, but a million is high for a game show with celebrities and civilians in the same show. $100,000 I could see, but I don’t know about this. They should just launch it into syndication. Airing million dollar episodes of “Password” will make Allen Ludden turn over in his grave.
I was hoping they would call it Super Password Plus. :(
I guess I’m the lone dissenting voice for their choice of host. I bet it took the executives all of a minute (after settling on the prize) to say “who has hosted a successful game show for a million?” and pick Regis. WWTBAM and Password couldn’t be more different, and this just seems sloppy.
ITA that this revival is long overdue, and it should be in daytime syndication. Better yet, have it in reserve for CBS daytime if Drew’s TPiR bombs or they want a (gasp) second game show on network daytime.
Password returns to CBS for the time in, what…..40 YEARS?!
YES! I knew PASSWORD would come back eventually. Look, I realize we don’t look to kindly on Freemantle right now, but it is still exciting news to see one of the greatest games ever created come back after so many years. It’s been loooooooooooooooong overdue for a revival, and I hope it’s a good one.
The money chain bonus is a good idea, but we’ll see how they do it. Regis is a great choice for host. As for the Celebs, well, just get anyone who played Celebrity Jeopardy who didn’t suck.
And, for the record……….
“Conflaguration” (NOUN)
1. A large and destructive fire; a general burning.
2. Something like a conflagration; conflict; war.
“Obdiplostemonous” (Adj.)
Having twice as many stamens as petals, those of the outer set being opposite the petals; said of flowers.
And in a curious bit of serendipity, this clip pretty much shares my reactions:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Y1rBBAFeO80
Watch at the :20, 1:11 and 2:13 marks.
As I’ve said elsewhere, if nothing else, it makes me happy that Password is coming back in some form, it’s long overdue.
I’m hopeful for Regis, because I like him as a GS host, and he knows how to build tension and keep a game running smoothly (provided his synapses are still connecting). This is the one assured thing that is keeping me optimistic about it all.
Fremantle scares me to death, If we had the people at Po10 (Embassy Row) or 1vs100 handling $1 million PW, I’d be very optimistic, but with how much Temptation has been a major disappointment, I’m suspicious…
I suspected that if PW ever came around again, whoever was would try to do some sort of combo of the past formats, but I have no clue how they could do so and make it worth $1 million, and have it not jump the shark.
A possibility would be to have contestants play regular PW to 50 points, winning them 1k, for a semi-final. Due this for two rounds, then have the semi-winners face each other in a final match, 1st to 10k (or 5k). Then, play a classic lightning round, get as many words as you can in 60 secs, 10 max (or 20 with 5k target), to multiply by your in-game winnings (for 100k max) that you could keep or risk. Take the risk, you play the FINAL Bonus round, a 60 second Alphabetics, for a chance at ten times what you risked.
I think with the trend of GS’s lately, that even if this is a just moderate success, that it could just truly be meant to be a springboard for a lower stakes, more classically styled version to be put into syndication. We have 3 potential candidates for 2008-2009 already. I see no reason if PW takes off, why there couldn’t be 4 (and we could make Pyramid 5, minus Donny)… :)
I’m cautiously optimistic. Yes, it could be terrible, but they might do it right and it could be great. I’m willing to give them a shot. And while Regis ain’t Allen Ludden, I think he’s right for this show.
I wonder how much raunchiness they’ll allow. For example, if (cue John Harlan) the PASSWORD is “vitamin”, will they allow Viagra? I hope to God that Fremantle doesn’t FUDGE IT UP!
I want to correct the earlier statement about Fremantle screwing up Match Game in 1998—Fremantle had NOTHING to do with MG98, it was PEARSON. Fremantle didn’t come in until 2001, and even then they were only saddled with Card Sharks 2001 because Pearson had already sold it before being bought out. If anything, Fremantle’s last known attempt at a serious MG revival—”What the Blank!” back in 2004—was MUCH better… I would trust Randy West, who’s as big a game show fan as any of us, to be a good indicator on that.
Million Dollar Password could be either really, really good, or terrible. They made a good choice in Regis to host it.
Since they say the winning team will have to risk money to go for the million, and the game will be a blend of CBS/ABC Password and Password Plus/Super Password, I predict that the front game will be standard 1962-1975 style Password, then the endgame will be a series of progressively more-difficult puzzles of rising value.
I do like a few things about this
1) Regis is the host- that makes me feel a bit better about this
2) Password Puzzles- I enjoy Password Plus and Super Password and the fact they are using the puzzles makes me think this could be enjoyable although am not sure about $1,000,000 unless you have this kind of win
1st win- $50,000
2nd win- $100,000
3rd win- $250,000
4th win- $500,000
5th win- $1,000,000
after each win starts back at the beginning meaning 6th win is worth $50,000 7th win worth $100,00 ( if a player doesn’t get all ten each word worth $2,500
3) CBS is running this show- Not that i don’t have faith in the other networks but i look at The Power of 10 and how well that show is doing a top 20 show.
there are some things that worry me about this though
1) Celebrities- I personally think it should be two civilians whether it be best friends, married couples, or once in a while not all the time a celebrity special.
2) Million dollar- that bugs me a bit but if it is does like i listed before where you have to win 5 games to win $1,000,000 if you do well in alphabetics
Overall i think this will turn out average but i hope i’m wrong and it turns out super. While were on it I would love to see a password plus or super password dvd or pc game to play.
The Great Butler:
You forgot about Fremantle’s take on “Game Show Marathon” back in June 2006. They killed so many game show classics with the one stone known as Ricky Lake. And then, of course, there’s “Temptation” (rot in hell, Ginger Simpson), but looking at how they’ve put a ton of care into “TPIR” with Drew, I have a feeling it may not turn out so bad… provided they get celebs with at least some degree of intelligence.
I’d like to see a major-network daytime game show other than TPiR, and that doesn’t give away ONE MILLION DOLLARS!!!!!!!111
If Fremantle, once Pearson, can screw up new versions of Card Sharks, and Match Game, To Tell the Truth, and Temptation, believe me they can screw up Password.
Oh I don’t know…they might be afraid to invite Kathy Griffin. Remembering the last time she won something, every time her team wins a game, she might offend another religion or two.
Remember when revivals and remakes were GOOD news? Now that we’ve had so many awful ones since the late 90s (when pop culture in general jumped the shark, IMO), both on TV and in the movies (which sadly makes up about 95% of what comes out every year now), that is not so true.
Anyway, choice comments from my GSN posting:
First I don’t know why having a $1M prize is so bad. Unless
1) It’s simply a case of Mo’ Money Syndrome Haters/”yawn…another $1M game show” syndrome, (EDIT: I now wonder if Password having a $1M prize is being seen as the show’s “Poochie”; i.e. just an add-on to make it gratuitously modern and edgy. I still don’t think it’s that bad). Orrrrrrrrr….
2) They actually meant one million *TEMPTATION* dollars. I bet they’ll have a lot of those left over by then. They can keep them by the Clip Chips in Fremantle’s pit in hell :-)
Personally my thoughts (T)/worries (W) are:
1) T: At least they got someone who is a good host, and not A) just a comedian or B) a random pretty boy. I actually liked Regis on WWTBAM and hope he can bring quality as a PW host.
2) W: Remakes or reimaginings from the late ’90s on usually suck. I’m not one of those “raped my childhood” Cry Wolf types, but mostly no one in the movies and on TV seem to “get” it. And of course that goes double for our good friends at Fremantle. With Temptation (Dollars, oops, reflex), I am wondering if Feud being on the rebound these last 2 seasons was the nut the blind squirrel finally found. They came close to said nut when they did Gameshow Marathon though, but it fell in the (Ricki) lake, unfortunately. :-)
3) W: Mainstream celebrities nowadays aren’t known for their brains. Definitely not their class. Two things PW needs. They need to be careful when they pick guests, but not be too obscure or too beyond the C-list, if that makes sense. (the latter was one of GSMarathon’s weaknesses)
4) T: Being on networks does sometimes cause Fremantle to step up their game. They at least TRY when it comes to That Show on Fox, and despite my complaints, GSMarathon on CBS was mostly everything the respective revivals of each show should have been (OK, so the host could’ve been better AND not have been the icon of why game shows got replaced in daytime TV in the ’90s. And the all-”celeb” format wasn’t the bee’s knees).
5) T/W: The Gameplay. If it’s the same we all know and love, I couldn’t care if this was a…TEN MILLION DOLLAR (insert Dr. Evil pose here) show. But remember who we’re talking about here. And there’s the fear we’ve all had…bringing the show to the lowest common denominator. Not just how easy or hard the words are, but what words they’ll use. You know, a Perfesser-type LMAD/IGAS revival kvetch.
6) W: Contestants. Aiming for a certain look rather than talent is a big problem not just in game shows (it’s killing Chain Reaction, and you can say the same for WOF if it just being WOF didn’t keep it popular) but in entertainment in general.
7) T: If done right, having a big top prize could make for a pretty good dramatic bonus game, if anything.
Hope it’ll work out somehow…they REALLY need to make up for the anemic Temptation. (and we still have TPIDrew to pass judgment on, worst case scenario….Fremantle will soon really be in deep you know what)
And in another post…
But yeah I hope there will be something worth seeing, first and foremost. I can’t believe there used to be a time I would be excited to hear that so-and-so show would be coming back. But as I said, since the late-90s (when pop culture jumped the shark in general), remakes are more-and-more something to dread. Look at all the bad ones in the movies (can you name, um, 5 good ones?) and now they’re 95% of their output. TV is slightly better, but has given us many stinkers. Especially in game shows. And it’s not so easy to say, “They need to leave the old shows alone and come up with their own ideas.” As I actually fear sometimes what the powers that be will consider the next “evolution” in television gaming (there’s a few who thought the R-word was the next step up from GS’s…nuff said!) Probably me overreacting, but it does get me down often.
I try to be positive, but sometimes I do wonder why I keep hoping, and why I just don’t accept that the golden age of game shows (and TV, really) is dead and buried. The article I [read] doesn’t sound like this one will stray away from the original format. But TTD90 was basically the same game. So is GSN Chain Reaction when you think of it. But other elements sunk the presentation of both. Sometimes the gift is enhanced by the wrapping, or vice versa.
http://www.fremantlemedia.com/our-companies
Look for the North America link, that would be their address. If you want this new PW to succeed, I suggest writing to them and sending some of these opinions.
I think because of Regis the show will do well its first week. As far as the format goes I’d have to understand how both formats would fit together.The only other thing that worries me that it is FreeMantle. Their track record with the shows of Mark Goodson is not that great.
How about this?
Ultra Password
Created by Greg Palmer
Based on “Password” created by Bob Stewart
Host: Roger Lodge
Announcer: Charlie Tuna
Summary: 2 teams, each consisting of a celebrity and a civilian contestant, play against each other for thousands of dollars in cash.
Gameplay:
Same as the Super Password format, but with these changes:
* option to play or pass for first clue
* opposites can be used
* 1st 2 puzzles worth $1,000 each
* each incorrect guess decreases value of puzzle by $100
* If an illegal clue is given during the main game, the password is automatically placed on the board and the opposing team gets a free guess. The value of the puzzle doesn’t drop, though.
* 3rd puzzle worth $2,000 (with the value dropping by $200 for each incorrect guess)
* 4th puzzle worth $3,000 (with the value dropping by $300 for each incorrect guess)
* winner of 2nd puzzle plays Cashword for $10,000 plus $2,500 for each time it isn’t won
* first to $3,000 wins and goes on to play Super Alphabetics
Super Alphabetics: Same as Super Password/Alphabetics round, except each word is worth $2,500. The contestant will have to pay a $1,000 fine for each illegal clue.
Betting Word: At the end of Super Alphabetics, the celebrity is shown a word. He writes down how much he wants to bet on a Magna-Doodle. Then, the celebrity has 15 seconds to get the contestant to say the secret word. After 15 seconds, the bet is revealed. If the contestant guesses correctly, the bet is won. If not, the bet is lost. (So, if the celebrity plays a perfect “Super Alphabetics” round and bets it all, the contestant could stand to win $50,000.)
After the Bonus Game: After the Bonus Game, the contestant has a choice. He can either take the money he’s won and go home, or risk it all for more. If he risks it and loses, he only takes home the main game (and Cashword, if applicable) winnings. If a contestant wins 5 games in a row, he plays “Super Alphabetics” for $25,000 a word (or up to $250,000, for a possible $500,000). After winning 5 games, the contestant automatically retires as an undefeated champion.
Tournament of Champions: At the end of the season, the 2 highest winning contestants come back for a match.
* each Cashword is worth a flat $10,000
* the first contestant to win 2 games wins the match and $500,000
* Super Alphabetics is played at end of the match for $25,000 a word (total cut in half for each illegal clue)
* Possible winnings for perfect bonus round and $250,000 win on betting word: $500,000
* Total possible tournament prize: $1 Million
What do you think?
I’m almost expecting Fox to rush a Pyramid revival on the air to beat CBS to the punch.