Supermarket Sweep | |
---|---|
Genre | Game show |
Created by | Al Howard |
Directed by | Lloyd Gross (1965–1967) Peter Molnár (1965–1967) Chris Darley (1990–1995, 2000–2003) |
Presented by | Bill Malone (1965–1967) David Ruprecht (1990–1995, 2000–2003) |
Narrated by | Wally King (1965–1966) Richard Hayes (1966–1967) Johnny Gilbert (1990–1995, 2000) Randy West (2000–2003) |
Theme music composer | Christopher Rhyne |
Country of origin | United States |
No. of seasons | 2 (ABC) 5 (Lifetime) 3 (PAX) |
No. of episodes | 1,111 |
Production | |
Executive producer(s) | Leonard Stern (1965–1967) Al Howard (1990–1995; 2000–2003) |
Producer(s) | Jerome Schnur (1965–1967) Joel Stein (1990–1995) Mark Maxwell-Smith (2000–2001) Jim Rossi (2001–2003) |
Location(s) | Food Fair (1965–1967) Hollywood Center Studios Hollywood, California (1990–1995, 2000–2001) NBC Studios Burbank, California (2001–2003) |
Running time | 30 minutes |
Production company(s) | Talent Associates (1965–1967) Al Howard Productions (1990–1995, 2000–2003) |
Broadcast | |
Original channel | ABC (1965–1967) Lifetime (1990–1995) PAX (2000–2003) |
Original run | December 20, 1965 February 5, 1990 –May 26, 1995 April 3, 2000 – May 23, 2003 |
–July 14, 1967
Chronology | |
Related shows | Dale's Supermarket Sweep |
Supermarket Sweep is an American television game show. Part of the format was similar to other team-based quiz shows; the other part was a live-action race through a supermarket, a novel concept at the time. In the timed race, cameras followed the teams with shopping carts through a large vacated supermarket with several aisles; the value of items thrown into the cart determined the winning team. The original show was broadcast on ABC (December 1965–July 1967), with revivals airing on Lifetime (February 1990–May 1995, reran until August 1998) and later PAX (April 2000–May 2003, reran until March 2004).
ABC's Supermarket Sweep was broadcast from Food Fair supermarkets, mostly around New York City. For the Lifetime version, a mock supermarket was created at Hollywood Center Studios.[1] It was modeled after a Hughes Market until September 1993, when it was remodeled again after a Unified Western Market. The PAX version was staged in the same set and studio as the Lifetime version. Beginning in September 2001, the show moved to NBC Studios.
The host for the 1965–1967 ABC version was Bill Malone. The announcers were Wally King from 1965–1966, and Richard Hayes from 1966–1967, with Johnny Olson and Gene Wood as frequent substitutes during those years. The host for the 1990–1995 Lifetime version and the 2000–2003 PAX version was David Ruprecht. The announcers were Johnny Gilbert from 1990–1995 and again from April–September 2000, then Randy West for the rest of the show's run.
Contents |
Three teams competed. Each team began with a base time of one minute and 30 seconds. In the first part of the game, the teams were shown a grocery item and were asked to guess its retail price. The team who came the closest won the item and an additional 15 seconds to their time. Four items were played.
In the second part of the game, one contestant from each team went on a shopping spree through the market, using the time accumulated in the first half of the game. Bonus items worth bonus money were also spread throughout the store. After each contestant ran their sweep, the total value of groceries and bonus items in each player's cart was determined. The team with the highest total won the right to return to the show and play in the next game. All teams kept the items they picked up.
The gameplay of the Lifetime/PAX version of Supermarket Sweep consisted of three segments: the question round, the Big Sweep, and the Bonus Sweep. The game was played between three teams of two related individuals, such as a parent and child, spouses, siblings, or best friends. In the last two rounds, the team members wore sweatshirts of the same color. The show gave the appearance that pairs were chosen to be contestants based on who in the audience (or in the show's last two seasons, the market) held pre-distributed grocery items that the announcer called for at the beginning of the show.
At the beginning of the game, all three teams started with a base time of 1:30. The questions answered correctly added time to their clocks. The round was divided into three segments; in the first two segments, one teammate from each team answered a variety of questions and/or played one of several games that involved pricing everyday grocery items, with the teammates switching between segments. The third segment was the Round Robin game, in which the teammates rotated after each question.
Players were asked a series of questions, usually with specific brands of grocery items as answers; each question was worth 10 seconds. In each round, the questions followed a specific format, which varied between rounds and shows. The formats used on the show included:
During each segment, different games were played involving everyday groceries. These games varied from day to day and generally involved the following objectives:
If a player was correct, the team earned 10 seconds; however, if all three players were right, 20 seconds (30 in the "On Sale" game, and for all games after late-1992) was added to all three teams' times.
For the final segment, the teammates switched after each question. The contestants were shown the scrambled letters of a brand name, common food, or item, and three clues were given for 10 seconds each. If no one buzzed in and then answered correctly after the last clue was given, all three clues were repeated quickly. On some episodes throughout the entire Lifetime era, an alternative format was used with five clues given and no scrambled name. The Round Robin originally consisted of four questions, but was lengthened to six in 1991.
Beginning in September 1990, a Mini-Sweep was played at the beginning of the first round. A toss-up question (usually a rhyming couplet) was asked with a particular product as the answer. The team that correctly answered the question earned ten seconds, as well as a chance for one team member to run into the market to retrieve the product, which was marked with the show's logo. If the product was returned within 30 seconds, the team won $50 towards their Sweep total. If the team member returned with the incorrect product, the correct product but it didn't contain the sticker featuring the Supermarket Sweep symbol on it, ran out of time to find the correct product with the Supermarket Sweep symbol on it, or returned the correct product with the Supermarket Sweep symbol on it after time ran out, no bonus was awarded.
A year after its debut, the bonus was doubled to $100 if the product was brought back within 20 seconds. After three seasons, a second Mini-Sweep was added at the beginning of the second round and was later used only during special weeks on the PAX version.
The "Big Sweep" was the chance for the teams to run throughout the aisles and to grab whatever they could off of the supermarket shelves. The clock was set to the highest time earned by one of the teams, and the clock started when that team was sent into the market. Once the clock displayed the amount of time the second place team had earned, that team's runner was sent into the market, and the process repeated for the third place team. If more than one of the teams earned the same amount of time, both runners started at the same time. During the Big Sweep, the show's announcer provided the play-by-play.
The runner could bring their cart back to the team's register at any time, at which point it was exchanged for an empty cart. Any items in the runner's cart when the bell rang were included in their total.
The three main rules for the Big Sweep were:
The product limit, which was absent in the original ABC version of the show, was added to prevent a team from overloading their carts with expensive items, such as poultry, laundry detergent, or over-the-counter drugs.
In most episodes of the show's first season on Lifetime (1990–1991), costumed characters such as Frankenstein's Monster, a gorilla, or a creature named Mr. Yuck ran through the aisles during the Sweep. If the character came near a contestant or vice versa, the contestant had to turn around and go in the other direction. The characters were dropped in 1991.
Once time was called, all products were scanned while the show took a final commercial break. Afterward, the grand totals of each team's takes were revealed. The team with the highest grand total, including bonuses from the question round, won their Sweep total in cash and the right to play in the Bonus Sweep. The other teams received parting gifts. In early episodes of the first season, the totals included cents but were rounded to the nearest dollar in later episodes.
Many bonuses were available during the Big Sweep at different times during the show's run. Each contestant was only able to take one of each bonus type. With the exception of the Bonus Specials shown below, all items picked up by the runner had to be in the shopping cart (and properly bagged/sealed, if necessary) or over the red checkout line before time ran out in order to count. Some of these included:
The winning team was given 60 seconds to find three products in the market. They were given a clue to the first product, after which the time started. The second clue was affixed to the first product, and the third clue was on the second product. If the team found the third product, they won $5,000. The winning team had to find all three products and return with them to win the money. If the team was unsuccessful, the team still won $200 for each product found. The team had to have their hands on the money before the bell signaled the end of the 60 seconds.
Originally, if the team found the final product and the $5,000 before one of the other products they automatically forfeited the bonus round. However, after the first two seasons this was changed so that an overhead announcement was made reminding the team to find the first two products, then return to the third product and claim the money.
During both runs of the show, special tournaments were held periodically, as well as other individual shows in which former teams were invited back for a chance to win more money or a trip.
From September 5–30, 1994, at the beginning of the show's final season on Lifetime, a month-long Twin Car Giveaway tournament was held. During the first three weeks of the tournament, a standard game was played each day. The twelve teams with the highest Big Sweep totals from these episodes at the end of the third week returned for the fourth and final week, in which games were played with no Bonus Sweep. The six teams with the highest Big Sweep totals during that final week returned for the Friday show to play for a pair of Geo Trackers. On the Friday show, the first three teams played an eight-question Round Robin game, where each correct answer was worth $50 towards their Sweep total. Each of the first three teams then had a flat three minutes in the Big Sweep. This process was repeated for the other three teams. At the end of the show, the team with the highest Big Sweep total won the two cars (a combined value of more than $25,000) in addition to whatever else that they won on their previous shows. All other teams kept their prior winnings.
Occasionally, former teams were invited back to play for additional money or a trip. These consisted largely of "Sweeps of Champions", which gave previous winners a chance to go on another Bonus Sweep for the opportunity to play and get a second chance at $5,000. On a few early "Sweep of Champions" episodes, former players were invited back for a chance to double their money to $10,000. Others include:
A Spanish language version entitled Arrasa con Todos con Kmart (Sweep it All with Kmart) currently airs on Univision weekly and takes place in a replica Kmart. This version sponsored by Kmart has only two single players, as well as the big sweep with players being only able to take one of each item as they will win whatever they grabbed.
A syndicated Canadian version, later aired on the Global Television Network, was produced from 1992–1995 and is currently airing on GameTV in Canada. Tino Monté was, according to the opening, the "host and games master extraordinaire" and Dave King was announcer. The supermarket in this version was much smaller than in the United States and did not contain the specialty racks such as videos, cards, or flowers. The only exceptions were the Voortman cookie hut, a (rarely used) produce section and a display of Nabob coffee located right behind host Monté. The question rounds each began with a Mini-Sweep which, if won, added $50 to a team's total. On at least two occasions (when the item being searched for was a health food) a gift certificate worth $75 from Naturally Yours Health foods was also awarded for a win.
Each team started with a base time of 1:00 and for the Big Sweep, and only the Shopping List bonus was used in every episode. The Manager's Special (using a wooden crate rather than a red-and-white barrel) was also sometimes used. While the five-per-item rule appeared to be in play (contestants would frequently take five of most items), the announcer rarely mentioned either the rules of the Sweep, or the value of the products. Similar to the "bonus specials" used on the American version, occasionally the market had three inflatable cheeses (referred to as "inflatables" on-air) with a bonus hidden behind a label of either $50, $75, or $100. Although rarely mentioned, teams were allowed only one each of these.
Originally, contestants who won the bonus round received $5,000, as on the American show. Later, prior to playing the bonus round, the winning team chose a scroll represented by one of the letters in the show's title; the scrolls contained a cash amount of $500, $1,000, or $5,000, or a prize such as a Doncaster recliner, two Bulova watches, Mini Maid service for a year, a VCR, a 32" television, or a trip to Acapulco, Mexico, or Cuba. If a team lost the bonus round, they won a consolation prize.
Dale's Supermarket Sweep aired on ITV from 1993–2001 during the day with Dale Winton as host and Bobby Bragg as announcer; it was produced by FremantleMedia for Carlton.
The show was revived in 2007 and filmed 60 episodes at the Maidstone Studios, this time produced by Talkback Thames. The rules were the same as America and Canada, except that the winning team looked for £5,000.
The original run was taped at Central's Lenton Lane studios in Nottingham, and the setup was a little different from America. The new version has a slightly different set from the original, and it has a new theme tune. The grand prize has also been upped to £5,000. British Fun House announcer Gary King replaced Bobby Bragg as announcer.
As in Canada, teams started with 1:00. As with America and Canada, each show started with a Mini-Sweep worth £25 to the sub-total.
Unlike other versions, teams could grab no more than three of one item, as opposed to five. As with America and Canada, the "Shopping List" was also used frequently. The Manager's Special (renamed "Dale's Sale") was also used on some occasions. Brand names were rarely, if ever, mentioned on this version. Also, the UK version did have some games of their own, including "Pricing Gun", where teams could earn £50 by pricing up to 12 coffee pots. The bonuses only went from £25 to £100 on this version.
The original set was transformed to look like a Co-op, Asda, or Somerfield market, depending on the season. The current set resembles an Asda market, due to Asda sponsoring the show. Like the American set, this did have racks of videos and flowers, etc. that the Canadian version lacked.
Reruns of both shows can be seen on Challenge TV.
An Australian version was produced by Grundy, airing on the Nine Network from 1992–1994 with former Price Is Right host Ian Turpie as emcee, assisted by Tania Zaetta. Col Mooney and Alan Glover served as announcers.
The supermarket on this show was originally a Coles Supermarket, but was later changed to a generic supermarket. Like America, the winners searched for $5,000. The latter set was identical to the American show, as was the case with most Grundy-produced Australian games based on American programs.
Supermarket had two versions—the first was produced by Band from 1990–1993. The revival, produced by Record during the 2000s (decade), was in fact part of the TV show Note e Anote. Both versions were hosted by Ricardo Corte Real.
Supermercado ("Supermarket") aired during the 1990s on commercial television station Antena 3 with Enrique Simon as host. The rules were identical to America, except that the currency used was the now-defunct Peseta. The series aired every midday at around 1:25 PM.
All but seven episodes of the ABC version have been wiped. The Lifetime/PAX version remains fully intact. The Canadian version of airs in reruns on GameTV. The British version airs in reruns on Challenge.