Gameshow Marathon (Johnsonverse)

Gameshow Marathon (stylized as Game$how Marathon) is an American television program which aired on CBS from May 31 to June 29, 2006, and on WBC from May 17 to June 28, 2007, May 15 to June 26, 2008, and May 14 to June 25, 2009. It is based on the United Kingdom series Ant & Dec's Gameshow Marathon which aired on ITV in 2005. It also aired in Canada on CTV.
The show features contestants competing in some of television's most historically popular game shows, in a single-elimination format until an ultimate winner is found. Both the UK and US versions featured celebrity contestants.
The US version was produced by Johnson Television and Granada America and was hosted by Ricki Lake and announced by Rich Fields, who also served as the announcer of The Price Is Right. In the US, the series aired for 4 seasons, the first on CBS, and then the next 3 aired on WBC. When the show aired on CBS, it was recorded at Stage 46, CBS Television City in Los Angeles, CA, USA. Production was moved to the Johnson Studios Lot when the show moved to WBC.
==Premise==
Each series featured a seven-part game show tournament featuring celebrity contestants, playing classic game shows in order to progress in the tournament. The series used replicas of each show's original set, or in the case of The Price Is Right on the CBS season, actual props from the series currently airing. Each installment began with a narration of the format of the particular show featured on that episode coupled with montages of clips from each program's history.
==Tournament Format==
The format of each individual show was largely unchanged. All six celebrity contestants participated in the first game. The winner from this episode claimed the first of four seats in "Finalists' Row". The remaining contestants after each game was played then participated in the next game (five for the second game, four for the third game, three for the fourth game) to win one of the remaining seats. After the fourth game, the remaining two contestants were eliminated.
The four contestants in "Finalists' Row" were then paired in a competition to play the fifth and sixth games . The winners of those two games then proceeded to the "championship game".
For the finals, each celebrity assembled a five-person team of family and friends to play the last game, with the charity of the winning "family" receiving $100,000.
On the first series, Brande Roderick was the showcase winner on the episode featuring The Price Is Right. Lance Bass became the next semifinalist from Let's Make a Deal, and Paige Davis won the Beat the Clock installment. Kathy Najimy won the last semifinal slot on Press Your Luck, and Tim Meadows and Leslie Nielsen were eliminated at the end of that episode. Roderick defeated Davis in Card Sharks, and Najimy defeated Bass in Match Game. Najimy and her family then beat Roderick and her family on Family Feud to capture the top prize.
The Match Game installment on the first series also featured Adam Carolla, Adrianne Curry, George Foreman, Kathy Griffin, Bruce Vilanch, and Betty White (in her traditional seat) as the panel. The six also appeared as audience members during the Price is Right episode (but did not play).
The "Barker's Beauties" from The Price Is Right also played a role in some of the games during the CBS series. Gilbert Gottfried appeared on the Let's Make a Deal episode in a Zonk and in the Big Deal prize.
===Season 1===
The shows recreated were:
Show 	Years aired on CBS 	Original producer(s) 	Date of Gameshow Marathon appearance
The Price is Right	1972-Present 	Goodson-Todman Productions 	May 31, 2006
Let's Make a Deal 	Had not aired on CBS 	Stefan Hatos-Monty Hall Productions	June 1, 2006
Beat the Clock 	1950–1958, 1979–1980 	Goodson-Todman Productions 	June 7, 2006
Press Your Luck 	1983-1986 	Carruthers Company Productions 	June 8, 2006
Card Sharks 	1986-1989 	Goodson-Todman Productions 	June 15, 2006
Match Game 	1973-1979 	Goodson-Todman Productions 	June 22, 2006
Family Feud 	Has never aired on CBS	Goodson-Todman Productions 	June 29, 2006
===Season 2===
By this point, the show had moved over to WBC, and Craig Johnson had taken over hosting duties. The show also decided to air every Thursday Night. 
The shows recreated were:
Show 	Years aired on WBC 	Original producer(s) 	Date of Gameshow Marathon appearance
Win, Lose or Draw 	Has Never aired on WBC	Burt & Bert Productions 	May 17, 2007
Let's Make a Deal 	Has never aired on WBC	Stefan Hatos-Monty Hall Productions	May 24, 2007
To Tell The Truth 	Had not aired on WBC 	Goodson-Todman Productions 	May 31, 2007
Wheel of Fortune 	1989-Present 	Merv Griffin Enterprises 	June 7, 2007
The $100,000 Pyramid	Has Never aired on WBC	Bob Stewart Productions 	June 14, 2007
Hollywood Squares 	Has Never aired on WBC	Heatter-Quigley Productions 	June 21, 2007
Family Feud 	1987-Present 	Goodson-Todman Productions 	June 28, 2007
===Season 3===
The shows recreated were:
Show 	Years aired on WBC 	Original producer(s) 	Date of Gameshow Marathon appearance
Keynotes 	Had not aired on WBC 	Reg Grundy Productions 	June 12, 2008
Sale of The Century	Has Never aired on WBC 	Al Howard Productions with format by Reg Grundy Productions	May 22, 2008
Blockbusters 	1987-1992 	Goodson-Todman Productions 	May 29, 2008
Lucky Casino 	1998-Present 	Johnson Television 	June 5, 2008
30 Questions 	Revival of infamous Groovy Gold (Johnsonverse), 1983	Johnson Television 	May 15, 2008
Supermarket Sweep 	2003—present 	Al Howard Productions 	June 19, 2008
Twenty-One 	2000-2005 	Barry & Enright Productions 	June 26, 2008
===Season 4===
The shows recreated were:
Show 	Years aired on WBC 	Original producer(s) 	Date of Gameshow Marathon appearance
Supermarket Sweep 	2003—present 	Al Howard Productions 	May 14, 2009
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?	2008-2013 	Celador 	May 21, 2009
Money Wheels 	1979-1983 	Johnson Televison 	May 28, 2009
Wheel of Fortune 	1989-Present 	Merv Griffin Enterprises 	June 4, 2009
Scrabble 	Has Never Aired on WBC	Reg Grundy Productions in association with Exposure Unlimited	June 11, 2009
The Joker's Wild 	Has Never Aired on WBC	Jack Barry Productions 	June 18, 2009
Card Sharks 	2001-present 	Goodson-Todman Productions 	June 25, 2009
Category:Johnsonverse
Category:Game shows