Weird Facts About Your Favorite TV Game Shows

We all have our favorite television shows ranging from comedies, crime, dramas and even game shows. Let’s take a little peek behind the scenes to find some interesting, odd, and even weird facts about some of these game shows.

The Price is Right

This product-pricing game show is filled with interesting behind the scenes tidbits. If that giant wheel contestants spin to get as close to a dollar as possible to win a place in the Showcase Showdown looks heavy, well, it is. That wheel spins on a stainless steel shaft with roller bearings weighs about 2,400 lbs. That’s nearly as much as a sub-compact car. Speaking of cars, contestants must come up with the cash to pay taxes on any prizes won. That means when they are jumping up and down after winning a $30,000 car they are not likely thinking of the $10,000 in cash they will need to pay the taxes on it.

Wheel of Fortune

While camera angles make it look bigger, the actual wheel spun on Wheel of Fortune is only about six feet in diameter. Lighting and panels extend that to just over 16 feet. The wheel is heavier than it “sounds”, weighing over 2,000 lbs. If you’ve ever noticed all contestants are the same height, there is a reason for that. It is to make sure height doesn’t give one contestant an advantage over another. Platform heights are adjusted to contestants prior to each show. The five shows for a week are filmed in one day with about a 20-minute break between each show.

Jeopardy

This game show has won more awards than any other television show in history. Its most seen category is the difficult “Before and After” category. If a single contestant got every question correct during a complete game and bet and won it all on the Final Jeopardy question they would win $566.000. Many are surprised to learn that there are buzzer activation lights on the game board. Contestants who buzz in prior to the lights being activated will be locked out for about a quarter of a second.

Family Feud

Family Feud actually uses an independent polling company to get the answers to the questions it uses. Those taking part in the survey are not aware their answers are for the game show. If your family wants to get on Family Feud, choose its most energetic and personable members to be on your team. Family Feud, as most games shows, is always in search of interesting and even “over the top” contestants.

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