| Balderdash | |
|---|---|
| Format | Game Show |
| Presented by | Elayne Boosler |
| Narrated by | John Moschitta, Jr. |
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | PAX TV |
| Original run | August 2, 2004 – February 4, 2005 |
Balderdash is an American television game show that aired on PAX TV from August 2, 2004 to February 4, 2005 with repeats airing until April 22. It was hosted by Elayne Boosler and announced by John Moschitta. The game was based on the board game of the same name.
Contents |
On Balderdash, two contestants competed to determine the factuality of statements made by three celebrities. Three rounds were played.
In the first round, the two contestants were given 250 points to start. Boosler gave the contestants a category and they then placed a wager on the forthcoming question. The question was then read to the panel and each celebrity gave an answer. Two of the answers were wrong ("Balderdash"), and one celebrity had the correct answer ("Truth"). Once the answers were given the players chose a celebrity and whether or not their answer was Truth or Balderdash. Correctly identifying a Balderdash answer added the amount of the wager to the player's score, while identifying the correct answer paid off at double the wager. Incorrect answers simply lost the amount of the wager.
In the second round, 500 points were added to the players' scores. Two questions were played and a minimum of 250 points had to be bet on both questions. If either player had less than 250 points after the first question, they would be forced to bet all of their points on the second question.
In the third and final round, the players were given 1,000 more points. In this round, both of the contestants sought out the panelist with the correct answer. They were also required to bet at least half of their score and those wagers were not revealed until the correct answer was. Whoever was ahead after this round was the day's winner and advanced to the Balderdash Barrage bonus round for a chance to win a trip.
The champion chose one of the celebrity panelists to play the Balderdash Barrage with him/her. Ten monitors, each displaying one letter in "Balderdash", were displayed. The champion was shown up to nine statements, all of which ended with a Balderdash word or phrase (almost identical to the end game of the CBS game show Whew!). If the champion could not correct the Balderdash, the celebrity was given a chance to give the answer.
The Barrage was played for 45 seconds and each correct answer eliminated one of the letters in "Balderdash". Giving nine correct answers before time ran out won the trip. Otherwise, the champion faced whatever monitors were left and chose one. The trip was hidden behind one of the monitors, while the other(s) hid a secondary prize (usually a spa package). Toward the end of Balderdash's run, the rules were adjusted so that if the champion gave nine correct answers within 45 seconds, he/she would win both prizes.