Create it he did, starting from scratch and the result was an academic competition called High Five Challenge. Four years later he's survived the bankruptcy of his title sponsor, faced lean times, yet keeps moving ahead. He's turned it from a Portland metro area show to a regional contest between high schools from across Oregon and Washington. High Five, now sponsored by Hollywood Video, also airs in Seattle and Eugene. He has 10 part-time helpers and disk jockey John Williams as a regular announcer.
College professors help write the questions and answers used in the games.
Faligowski had two other goals besides launching a business. Another was to do something good for teenagers, because he is a father himself. He feels he's attained what he set out to do. Each week two teams of six players test their memories in a round-robin tournament, attempting to answer brainy questions on topics such as American History, Geography, Anatomy and the miscellaneous category Potpourri. Faligowski sees nothing but growth for the series, noting it more than doubled from 31 teams in 1993 to 66 in 1995.