Trivia Trap

*Trivia Trap*
Trivia Trap
Created by	Mark Goodson
Directed by	Marc Breslow
Presented by	Bob Eubanks
Narrated by	Gene Wood; Charlie O'Donnell; Bob Hilton
Composer	Edd Kalehoff
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	128
Production
Executive producer	Chester Feldman
Producer	Jonathan Goodson
Running time	approx. 22-26 Minutes
Production company	Mark Goodson Productions
Distributor	FremantleMedia
Release
Original network	ABC
Original release	October 8, 1984 –; April 5, 1985

Trivia Trap is an American game show produced by Mark Goodson Productions. It was created by producer Goodson and originally ran from October 8, 1984 to April 5, 1985 on ABC.^[2] The game featured two teams of three contestants each competing against each other to answer trivia questions in various formats. Bob Eubanks was the host, and Gene Wood announced during the first two weeks. Charlie O'Donnell announced during the third week and was replaced by Bob Hilton for the remainder of the series.

Gameplay[]

Trivia Trap was the final Mark Goodson-produced game show to have an original format. From then until the acquisition of Goodson's company by the predecessors of FremantleMedia, all of the shows produced by Mark Goodson Productions were revivals of previous series.

Two teams of three contestants – the Juniors, who wore blue sweaters and were under 30 years of age; and the Seniors, who wore red sweaters and who were over the age of 30 – answered trivia questions to reach a goal of $1,000. The members of the championship team then competed individually to win or share a top prize of $10,000.^[1]

First format[]

Two sets of four answers each were displayed. The team in control chose one set and was asked a question, and each member in turn attempted to eliminate one wrong answer. Their turn ended when either all three wrong answers or the correct answer had been chosen. The team received $50 for eliminating one wrong answer, $100 for two, or $300 for all three.^[1] A new set of answers was then displayed to replace the ones that had been used, and the other team then played.

Two rounds were played in this manner; each team had one turn per round, with the seniors always choosing first. At the end of the second round, the host asked a question concerning the last unused set of answers for viewers to play along; the correct answer was revealed at the start of the Trivia Race.

This format remained in place until December 14, 1984. Goodson reworked the format after a focus group from the American Film Institute indicated that eliminating wrong answers was a format flaw.^[3]

Second format[]

In response to the findings of said focus group, Trivia Trap overhauled the first two rounds of the game.

With the introduction of this format, each episode of the show began with Bob Eubanks asking the home audience a question. He would reveal the answer after both teams had been introduced.

Fact or Fiction?[]

The first round consisted entirely of true/false questions.

The previous day's champions selected one of two question packets, and each team member was asked one question worth $25. After all three members had answered, the challengers played the other packet.

Two sets of questions were played, with the challengers given first choice for the second set.

The Trivia Trap Round[]

The team in the lead (or the champions, in case of a tie) played first and had a choice of two categories. After the category was chosen, the host asked a question and four answers were shown. One contestant answered, and each of the other two had to agree or disagree. The correct answer awarded $200 if all three agreed, $100 if one contestant disagreed, or $50 if two disagreed. If the original answer was incorrect and if any contestants had disagreed with it, they had a chance to choose the correct one in the same manner described above and win the appropriate amount. Two pairs of categories were played, one category per team in each pair.

$1,000 Trivia Race[]

Control of this round began with the team in the lead. In case of a tie, the champions, or the winners of a coin toss if both teams were new, started. The team in control chose one of three categories, and each member had one chance to answer a question asked by the host. The correct answer awarded $100 and allowed them to keep control, but if all three members missed it, control passed to the opposing team. The chosen category was then discarded and replaced in either case. When a team either answered a question correctly or gained control due to a miss by their opponents, the member after the one who had last given an answer chose the next category and had first chance to respond.

The first team to accumulate $1,000 or more won the game and advanced to the $10,000 Trivia Ladder bonus round. Except for a brief period in February 1985, the question value doubled to $200 if neither team had reached this goal after the tenth question. Both teams kept their accumulated money and divided it evenly among all three members.

$10,000 Trivia Ladder[]

The champion team played the Trivia Ladder round in a specific manner. Three desks were set up and each team member was placed behind one based on how each of them had performed during the Trivia Race. A row of four monitors was used for this round and, for each question that was played, it ascended by one level.

Contestant #1 (the best performer) was shown a set of four answers and, based solely on that. had a choice of whether to play the question or pass. Contestant #2 (the next best) was given the same choice if Contestant #1 passed. If both of the first two contestants passed, their other teammate was forced to answer the question.

The host then asked a question with the four answers, and the contestant in control won $1,000 for giving the correct answer. A miss eliminated the contestant from further play in the round.

The next question featured a new set of answers and the highest-ranking team member left was given the choice of whether to play or pass. Regardless of what happened here, one more set of answers was shown to the last remaining contestant for the third question.^[1]

If any or all of the members of the winning team correctly answered one of the first three questions, they faced one final set of answers at the top of the Trivia Ladder for $10,000. This time, after the question was asked, selecting an answer was done in a different manner. If more than one team member was playing the round, they would each lock in an answer choice by lifting up their desk and hitting a button inside it; the host would then call for them to reveal their answer choices one at a time. If only one teammate was left to play the round, he/she would simply state his/her choice to the host.

After all of the answer choices were given, the right answer to the final question was revealed. The $10,000 prize would be split equally between any teammates who answered the question correctly.^[1]

Any team that played the Trivia Ladder five times retired undefeated.

Broadcast history[]

Trivia Trap premiered on October 8, 1984 in ABC's 11:00 AM timeslot, taking over the time period for a house of reruns (like Benson, celebrity Family Feud specials, etc.). That time was home to popular game shows The Price Is Right on CBS and Wheel of Fortune on NBC and struggled as a result. ABC canceled Trivia Trap after six months and 128 episodes; the show's final episode aired on April 5, 1985. The following Monday, All-Star Blitz took over the show's timeslot. Game Show Network has aired the show several times on the network. Buzzr aired the first two episodes as part of the "Lost and Found" marathon in September 2017, and the show continued to air on Buzzr until April 2018.

References[]

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j Schwartz, David; Ryan, Steve; Wostbrock, Fred (1999). The Encyclopedia of TV Game Shows (3 ed.). Facts on File, Inc. pp. 71–73. ISBN 0-8160-3846-5.
^ Hyatt, Wesley (1997). The Encyclopedia of Daytime Television. Watson-Guptill Publications. p. 443. ISBN 978-0823083152. Retrieved 22 March 2020.
^ Baber, David (2008). Television Game Show Hosts: Biographies of 32 Stars. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. p. 92. ISBN 978-0-7864-2926-4.

External links[]

Trivia Trap at IMDb

[eotvgs-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j Schwartz, David; Ryan, Steve; Wostbrock, Fred (1999). The Encyclopedia of TV Game Shows (3 ed.). Facts on File, Inc. pp. 71–73. ISBN 0-8160-3846-5.

[Daytime-2] Hyatt, Wesley (1997). The Encyclopedia of Daytime Television. Watson-Guptill Publications. p. 443. ISBN 978-0823083152. Retrieved 22 March 2020.

[baber-3] Baber, David (2008). Television Game Show Hosts: Biographies of 32 Stars. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. p. 92. ISBN 978-0-7864-2926-4.

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