It's been a few weeks since "Sale of the Century" starting airing on GSN, and while it is one of my favorite game shows, I will admit that I do have some problems with it...particularly the version that aired on NBC Daytime. Here are a few problems I have with the show.
Number One--Putting the Cash Jackpot between the Car and the Lot.
When "Sale" first began, there was no "Cash Jackpot" of $50,000-plus that a champion would win during his or her run. Instead, after the six main prizes, there was "The Lot", which was all six prizes plus enough cash (seemingly always less than $10,000) for the entire lot to equal $95,000 exactly. By May, they added a Cash Jackpot, which started at $50,000 and added $1,000 each day until it was won. Now, I don't have a problem with big money being won on a game. What I do have a problem with is how it is won. When the Cash Jackpot was added to the daytime version, it was made its own level, with Level 6 being the Car, Level 7 being the Cash Jackpot, and Level 8 being The Lot (all six major prizes plus the Cash Jackpot). I think this was deliberately done by the network to discourage champions from going all the way. In fact, there was only one champion under this format, Barbara Phillips, who won all six prizes and the Cash Jackpot for over $150,000 in cash and prizes. When "Sale" added a syndicated nighttime version in January of 1985, they moved the Cash Jackpot to the Lot, changing Level 7 to simply winning all six major prizes. This move encouraged more champions to go all the way, and in fact, there were four Lot winners during this period.
Number Two--The Winner's Board
Now, I don't have a problem with the Winner's Board itself. What I do have a problem with is the fact that they discontinued the progressive Cash Jackpot in both versions, instead having the Cash Bonus worth a flat $50,000. I believe this move was done because of budget cuts, particularly on the syndicated version, as its ratings began to drop during the second season. But this doesn't bother me as much as some of the others.
Number Three--The Randomized Fame Game
In the Fall of 1985, "Sale of the Century" changed its Fame Game format from simply picking a number (or a Famous Face in its first year) to having a randomizer flash lights around the board and the contestant had to hit his/her buzzer to stop it (a la "Press Your Luck"). My question is why? The original version was just fine. I think this was just change for the sake of change, and while this is the most memorable version of the Fame Game, and many fans seem to like it, I'm not one of them. It's just too loud for my tastes.
Number Four--Instant Cash
Like the Winner's Board, I don't have a problem with the basis of Instant Cash (that is, a contestant buys a chance at a 1-in-3 shot at a cash bonus {$1,000 + $1,000 each day until won}). What I do have a problem with is how it's executed. First, you have to spend your entire lead in order to get a shot at it. Now, if you have a lead of $15 or less, you're more willing to take a chance at it, but if you have like a $40 lead, unless you're a complete idiot (or a contestant on Temptation 2007), you'd probably hold on to your lead. When the Australian version changed its game to "Cashcard" in 1989, they simply had the game played for a flat $15 (comparative to a third Instant Bargain which the Instant Cash replaced in 1986 {shortly after the Syndicated version ended its run}).
But the biggest problem I have with the daytime version of "Sale of the Century" came in the last year of the show with just four simple words.
WINNER'S
BIG
MONEY
GAME
This is the move, besides the network moving it to the 10:00 a.m. time slot resulting in pre-emptions over most of the country, that ended up killing the show. This endgame was added due to two things. One--budget cuts, and two--the network wanted a "proper" endgame for the show. In my honest opinion, "Sale of the Century" doesn't NEED a problem endgame. You might be inclined to disagree with me, but that's my view, and I'm sticking to it. Now, I don't have a problem with the basis of the Winner's Big Money Game--solve four (five in earlier episodes with this format) six-clue puzzles in 20 seconds (25 in earlier episodes). The problem I have is in its execution and because it was on a show where shopping and big prizes were key. I wouldn't have as much of a problem with it if one clue popped up every second, but according to a YouTube comment I read, each clue came up every 1.5 seconds. Also, there's the "You must stop the clock before it hits Double Zero" rule that has screwed numerous contestants. As soon as that bell rings, it's game over, no matter how fast you buzz in. The clock should have counted in tenths of a second instead of single seconds to prevent so many last-second losses. When I originally posted this, 40 episodes had aired on GSN, with 39 Winner's Big Money Games being played (the remaining episode was the finals of True Romance Week, in which the winner of the game won a brand-new Ford Probe {one of my least favorite cars ever}). Of those 39 games, only NINE were won. That's right--only NINE games won out of 39. That's only a 23% winning record. However, over the next twenty-five shows, an extra 13 were won, including a six-show winning streak (which included all of Brides Week), bringing the overall record to 22 wins and 42 losses and a percentage of .344...still a losing record.
Another reason why I hate this game is because of how difficult it is to win the CAR. First, you have to win seven main games. That's right--SEVEN main games. In the shopping format, if you were great enough in the front game, you could possibly earn enough money to buy a new car in five days, four if you're really good. In the Winner's Board era, you could win a new car on your very first day if you're lucky enough to get the WIN card followed by the CAR (and it HAS happened). But in the WBMG, the format just makes it impossible for some cars to be even played for. And get this--if you lose the seventh WBMG, you have to retire "undefeated". That's them saying, "Okay, you lost the car, now get out of here!"
If I do have anything positive to say, it's that a champion does not have to put any of his major prizes at risk to go for the eighth Winner's Big Money Game. If they win that main game, then they play for $50,000 cash. If they lose, they retire for good. Only one player, Rani White, managed to win the $50,000 during its run, and even then, she didn't win every single WBMG (she only missed her fifth, which was played for $9,000).
I like "Sale of the Century", I really do. It's just starting with the Winner's Big Money Game era has made it very difficult for me to really enjoy it. I hope if GSN gets more episodes, they get the ones from either the Syndicated version (which was the absolute best version of American Sale IMHO) or even the early daytime episodes (particularly the Famous Faces era).
P.S.: I know I didn't include the "Final Three" format from the first year of the show. I didn't think it was necessary to include it. Besides, at least they changed it to the Speed Round.
