WISS Trivia Contest

WISS Trivia Contest was a trivia contest that was held annually on WISS between 1982 and 2005. The contest was billed as the "world's longest-running commercial trivia contest" before its 2006 cancellation.

Radio station
The trivia contest began in 1982 on Hometown Broadcasting's WISS in Berlin, Wisconsin. In the late 1990s the trivia contest was simulcast on both of Hometown Broadcasting's radio stations (WISS and WBJZ-FM/WAUH). The 2005 contest was broadcast only on WAUH.

Rules
The contest traditionally started on the first Saturday morning of February (often at 10:00 a.m. local time), and it ran continuously until some time on Sunday morning. The contest was 21 hours long from 1982 to 1999 and 2002 to 2003. The 2000 and 2001 contests were shortened to 9 daylight hours because WISS was unable to get a Federal Communications Commission waiver to broadcast outside its normal daytime hours. The 2004 and 2005 contests were lengthened to 22 and 23 hours, respectively.

The questions had a point value of 5, 10, 25, or 50 points. There were two difficult 50-point questions that were asked overnight.

The radio station read a question and announced its point value. Teams were given three songs (approximately 10 minutes' worth of time) to call the station's request lines with the correct answer. Teams were allowed unlimited guesses, and the phone operators would only ask for the team name after a correct guess. Teams were not allowed to continue guessing after calling in with a correct answer (the term is jamming). Any and all teams that correctly answered the question were credited with question's points.

There was no restriction or limit on the source of the guesses. Teams in the 1980s would use books for sources, but by the mid- to late 1990s teams had gone away from books in favor of using the internet. The internet and Fred L. Worth books were not considered "sources" for the purpose of contesting an answer.

The top four team were awarded cash prizes between $25 and $100.

Trivia masters
The original trivia master was Steve Handrich, who presided over the contest from 1982 until 1997. Martin Jury was trivia master from 1998 until 2001, and Andy Disterhaft from 2002 until 2005.

Sample questions
2005, question #6 (10 points): Which (United States) Presidents are buried in Tennessee?
Answer: Andrew Jackson, James Polk, and Andrew Johnson
2002, question #52 (25 points): Hakeem Olajuwon and Alex Rodriguez have both studied flexibility at what Chicago gym?
Answer: A.T.T.A.C.K. ATHLETICS, Incorporated
1999, question #1 (5 points): What is the name of Wisconsin's current Miss Teen, and what city is she from?
Answer: Heidi Cody - Markesan, Wisconsin
1995, question #69 (50 points): What does the acronym "PRETTY BLUE BATCH" mean?
Answer: Philadelphia Regional Exchange Tea Toddling Young Belles Letters Universal Experimental Bibliography Association To Civilized Humanity

Annual question categories
Music
Current events
Television/Radio
Movies/Hollywood
History
Sports
Cartoons/Comics
General Knowledge
plus one revolving category

List of revolving categories
2005 World Leaders
2004 Food 
2003 Major world cities
2002 WISS station history
2001 Elections
2000 Cats
1999 Holidays
1998 Toys
1997 Games
1996 Double Jeopardy (35-point questions that had been asked in a previous contest)
1995 Acronyms
1994 Big Business
1993 Religions
1992 Express Yourself
1991 American military conflicts
1990 The 1980s decade
1989 Listening/Audio Questions
1988 Transportation
1987 Wisconsin
1986 Disasters
1985 Cartoons
1984 Olympics
1983 Soap Operas
1982 None

References

WISS contest information formerly at triviaasylum.com, retrieved February 1, 2007 
www.execpc.com/~jamesf/wiss/wisspr98.htm, Retrieved January 2, 2001, link not valid February 1, 2007 
www.execpc.com/~jamesf/wiss/tz_wiss1.html, Retrieved January 2, 2001, link not valid February 1, 2007 
"WISS trivia contest another success"; February 1998 Berlin Journal; last accessed February 1, 2007

External links
Official website of the radio station management

Wisconsin culture
Trivia competitions
Competitions in the United States