Time Machine (game show)
Contestants raced through time to win prizes.
Produced by Reg Grundy Productions, it was one of three Grundy series on NBC at its premiere, alongside Sale of the Century and Scrabble. Contestants answered trivia questions about popular culture and recent history to win prizes.
Quick Facts
- Creator
- Bill Barr
- Executive producers
- Robert Noah
- Producer
- Caryn Lucas
- Director
- James Marcione
- Company
- Reg Grundy Productions
- Runtime
- 30 minutes
- Presenter
- John Davidson
- Announcer
- Charlie Tuna
Facts from the source article.
Format #1
Three contestants, one usually a returning champion, competed in mini-games to win prizes that went into a "Prize Bank." Each contestant played one game, with the champion playing the third game. In "Tube Game," the contestant was given two show names and had to pick which was airing in a given year; a correct answer gave control of that network. This was done three times with ABC, NBC, and CBS shows. After all three networks were played, a hidden prize package was revealed; if the contestant controlled that network, the package was added to the bank. Getting all three correct won the prize automatically. "3 In A Row" used a tic-tac-toe board with years from the same decade. In one format, the player picked three "Poison Cards" then chose events; making a horizontal or vertical line added a prize, a diagonal line won a larger prize, but a line with all three Poison Cards lost the game. In the second format, the player chose between two events, and a diagonal line was the only way to lose. "As Time Goes By" began with one free spin. Three photos of a celebrity were shown one at a time; the contestant guessed the year each was taken. Coming within five years earned a spin. Spins were used on the Money Clock, a spinner with a red area at 12 o'clock. The contestant watched the pointer, then turned away and hit a plunger to stop it. Landing in the red added a prize; the game continued until the contestant won or ran out of spins.
Format #2
On February 11, the format was overhauled. The champion no longer played mini-games; two challengers played for the right to meet the champion in the final round. Three mini-games were played: the first two worth one point each, the last worth two points. Both challengers kept whatever they won. The player with the most points after three games advanced to the Challenge Round; a tiebreaker question was used if needed. Six mini-games were used, with the same two lineups alternating each day. "Game 1: As Time Goes By" used a higher/lower format: one player guessed the year of a photo, the other decided if the actual year was earlier or later. If the second player guessed correctly, they earned a spin on the Money Clock; otherwise the first player got the spin. Contestants watched the pointer spin, then turned away and hit a plunger. Both kept money won; the one with more money won the game and a point. "Game 2: Tube Game" was revised: Davidson asked questions about television series on the three major networks in a certain year. The first to reach five points won a prize.
Bonus Round
Over the course of the show, three distinct bonus rounds appeared. In the first, the contestant saw four events but only one actually occurred in a specific year. Choosing that correct event won a growing jackpot of prizes, but the champion could only play this round if they had first guessed the exact year during the Time Capsule round. The second bonus round gave a target year and asked up to four questions. The contestant had to decide whether each event happened before or after that year. A wrong answer ended the game, but each time the player returned to the bonus round, they needed one fewer correct answer to win. The third bonus round began with the second format and worked exactly like the second, except the champion played solely for the car, not the prize package and cash. Four correct answers were required to win the car on the first attempt, with one fewer needed for each return trip. If the player reached a fifth day, the car was automatically theirs. A champion retired immediately after winning the car, and the contestant they had defeated in that day's Challenge Round became the new champion.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who created Time Machine (game show)?
Time Machine was created by Bill Barr.
How many episodes of Time Machine (game show) are there?
Time Machine has 79 episodes.
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