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Debt (game show)
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Debt (game show)
Debt is an American game show hosted by Wink Martindale which aired on Lifetime from June 3, 1996, to August 14, 1998. It was produced by Buena Vista Television, a part of The Walt Disney Company. The show featured contestants who were trying to earn money to get out of debt. It had a similar format to Jeopardy!, on which contestants answered trivia, which eventually drew a legal challenge from that show's producers and forced changes to the format. However, it targeted a younger audience and placed a larger emphasis on popular culture.
The game was conceived by Sarah Jane West. Its host was Wink Martindale, and Kurt Engstrom was featured as an assistant playing the role of a security guard. Julie Claire was the show's announcer.
The show was produced by The Walt Disney Company. The show's set was designed to resemble the aesthetics of the 1950s, and had a disco soundtrack. The trivia asked on the show was typically based on popular culture and its target audience of Generation X viewers. Martindale later described it as "a 21st-century version of Jeopardy for the MTV crowd".
Television producer Michael Davies, who would eventually become the executive producer of Jeopardy! over two decades later, invited Martindale to host Debt, which he agreed to. Martindale later stated that the producers at Disney had told him the show would "do for [him] what MTV did for Tony Bennett."
Potential contestants had to prove that they had at least $6,000 worth of debt in order to qualify for the show. 5,000 people auditioned to compete on the show.
Three new contestants competed per episode, each having accumulated several thousand dollars' worth of debt (usually between $6,000 and $10,000) for various reasons (school loans, paying for a wedding, credit card bills, etc.). For scoring purposes, their debts were averaged before the game began. Scores were shown in negative amounts to indicate their remaining debts.
In the first round, contestants faced a gameboard with five categories, each with five questions in negative dollar values ranging from −$50 to −$250, in increments of $50. The first choice of question went to the contestant who had the lowest debt before averaging. This contestant chose a category and value, then Martindale asked a "Who am I?" question that all contestants could answer. Contestants buzzed in to answer and were required to phrase their response as "You are..." to receive credit (although the contraction "You're" also was accepted). (The correct answer to the example is "You are Cap'n Crunch".) A correct answer deducted the question's value from the contestant's debt. A wrong answer, or failing to respond within an allotted time, increased the contestant's debt, and allowed the others to buzz in. The contestant answering correctly then chose the next question from the board. If no one answered correctly, the contestant who gave the last correct answer kept control.
A "Debt-onator" was hidden behind one question, judged by the producers to be the most difficult one of the round. Regardless of the displayed value, it was played for −$500.
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Debt (game show)
Debt is an American game show hosted by Wink Martindale which aired on Lifetime from June 3, 1996, to August 14, 1998. It was produced by Buena Vista Television, a part of The Walt Disney Company. The show featured contestants who were trying to earn money to get out of debt. It had a similar format to Jeopardy!, on which contestants answered trivia, which eventually drew a legal challenge from that show's producers and forced changes to the format. However, it targeted a younger audience and placed a larger emphasis on popular culture.
The game was conceived by Sarah Jane West. Its host was Wink Martindale, and Kurt Engstrom was featured as an assistant playing the role of a security guard. Julie Claire was the show's announcer.
The show was produced by The Walt Disney Company. The show's set was designed to resemble the aesthetics of the 1950s, and had a disco soundtrack. The trivia asked on the show was typically based on popular culture and its target audience of Generation X viewers. Martindale later described it as "a 21st-century version of Jeopardy for the MTV crowd".
Television producer Michael Davies, who would eventually become the executive producer of Jeopardy! over two decades later, invited Martindale to host Debt, which he agreed to. Martindale later stated that the producers at Disney had told him the show would "do for [him] what MTV did for Tony Bennett."
Potential contestants had to prove that they had at least $6,000 worth of debt in order to qualify for the show. 5,000 people auditioned to compete on the show.
Three new contestants competed per episode, each having accumulated several thousand dollars' worth of debt (usually between $6,000 and $10,000) for various reasons (school loans, paying for a wedding, credit card bills, etc.). For scoring purposes, their debts were averaged before the game began. Scores were shown in negative amounts to indicate their remaining debts.
In the first round, contestants faced a gameboard with five categories, each with five questions in negative dollar values ranging from −$50 to −$250, in increments of $50. The first choice of question went to the contestant who had the lowest debt before averaging. This contestant chose a category and value, then Martindale asked a "Who am I?" question that all contestants could answer. Contestants buzzed in to answer and were required to phrase their response as "You are..." to receive credit (although the contraction "You're" also was accepted). (The correct answer to the example is "You are Cap'n Crunch".) A correct answer deducted the question's value from the contestant's debt. A wrong answer, or failing to respond within an allotted time, increased the contestant's debt, and allowed the others to buzz in. The contestant answering correctly then chose the next question from the board. If no one answered correctly, the contestant who gave the last correct answer kept control.
A "Debt-onator" was hidden behind one question, judged by the producers to be the most difficult one of the round. Regardless of the displayed value, it was played for −$500.