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The Cheap Show

 The Cheap Show
type
TVTItem
 The Cheap Show
label
The Cheap Show
 The Cheap Show
page
TheCheapShow
 The Cheap Show
comment
Game Show that ran in weekly syndication from 1978-79 with Dick Martin of Laugh-In fame as emcee. Two teams competed, with Martin asking questions to a thr-oh, sorry, two-celebrity panel. The team "in control" then picked one of the two given answers; a correct pick awarded you a point (and a great prize such as Dick's toenail clippings) and one of your opponents got covered in slime, while a wrong answer gave your opponent the point and toenails while your teammate got covered in slime.The first team to reach 20 points won the game and moved on to The Semi-Colossal Prize Sweepstakes Finale, in which the show's mascot (a large rat named Oscar the Wonder Rodent) determined the couple's (real) prize by crawling into one of 12 holes in a spinning wheel. If the team correctly predicted that hole, they also won a car.The Cheap Show was a parody of low-budget games, with embarrassingly-cheap "prizes" and the most obvious Golden Snitch format ever — Exactly What It Says on the Tin, in other words, although that was the point.
 The Cheap Show
fetched
2023-10-12T15:00:07Z
 The Cheap Show
parsed
2023-10-12T15:00:07Z
 The Cheap Show
processingComment
Dropped link to AffectionateParody: Not a Feature - ITEM
 The Cheap Show
isPartOf
DBTropes
 The Cheap Show / int_4af55b78
type
Credits Gag
 The Cheap Show / int_4af55b78
comment
Credits Gag: Such as "Oscar's Wardrobe by MOTHER NATURE".
 The Cheap Show / int_4af55b78
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Cheap Show / int_4af55b78
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
The Cheap Show / int_4af55b78
 The Cheap Show / int_5fcb3c79
type
Golden Snitch
 The Cheap Show / int_5fcb3c79
comment
Golden Snitch: An intentionally absurd example - the first two questions were worth one point each, while the final question was worth 20 points. 20 points were required to win the game.
 The Cheap Show / int_5fcb3c79
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Cheap Show / int_5fcb3c79
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
The Cheap Show / int_5fcb3c79
 The Cheap Show / int_6c62b1a8
type
Covered in Gunge
 The Cheap Show / int_6c62b1a8
comment
Covered in Gunge: More than likely the first American game show example - if you lost a round, your loved one got something dumped on top of them, or a Pie in the Face.
 The Cheap Show / int_6c62b1a8
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Cheap Show / int_6c62b1a8
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
The Cheap Show / int_6c62b1a8
 The Cheap Show / int_7d7a7d0f
type
Opening Narration
 The Cheap Show / int_7d7a7d0f
comment
Opening Narration: Quoted at the top of this page.
 The Cheap Show / int_7d7a7d0f
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Cheap Show / int_7d7a7d0f
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
The Cheap Show / int_7d7a7d0f
 The Cheap Show / int_95496a1d
type
The Announcer
 The Cheap Show / int_95496a1d
comment
The Announcer: Charlie O'Donnell, no stranger to the genre that was being mocked (particularly the "cheap" prize descriptions, almost certainly intended to parody his role on Wheel of Fortune).
 The Cheap Show / int_95496a1d
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Cheap Show / int_95496a1d
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
The Cheap Show / int_95496a1d
 The Cheap Show / int_98b1dc8f
type
Luck-Based Mission
 The Cheap Show / int_98b1dc8f
comment
Luck-Based Mission: The outcome of the Bonus Round depended entirely on Oscar's behavior.
 The Cheap Show / int_98b1dc8f
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Cheap Show / int_98b1dc8f
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
The Cheap Show / int_98b1dc8f
 The Cheap Show / int_a966fdee
type
Mascot
 The Cheap Show / int_a966fdee
comment
Mascot: Oscar, the Wonder Rodent.
 The Cheap Show / int_a966fdee
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Cheap Show / int_a966fdee
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
The Cheap Show / int_a966fdee
 The Cheap Show / int_af616e40
type
Accidental Misnaming
 The Cheap Show / int_af616e40
comment
Accidental Misnaming: One running gag had Dick calling Wanda by some other name - Winda, Zelda, Lila, Fillmore...
 The Cheap Show / int_af616e40
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Cheap Show / int_af616e40
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
The Cheap Show / int_af616e40
 The Cheap Show / int_b01abe4f
type
Catchphrase
 The Cheap Show / int_b01abe4f
comment
Catchphrase: "Remember, it's not whether you win or lose — it's how much it costs you!"
 The Cheap Show / int_b01abe4f
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Cheap Show / int_b01abe4f
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
The Cheap Show / int_b01abe4f
 The Cheap Show / int_b53077b3
type
Take That!
 The Cheap Show / int_b53077b3
comment
Take That!: Toward low-budget games and those who ran them.
 The Cheap Show / int_b53077b3
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Cheap Show / int_b53077b3
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
The Cheap Show / int_b53077b3
 The Cheap Show / int_d3435454
type
Bonus Round
 The Cheap Show / int_d3435454
comment
Bonus Round: The Semi-Colossal Prize Sweepstakes Finale, where Oscar the Wonder Rodent ran around on a wheel with 12 holes representing actual and legitimate prizes while it was spinning, and the first hole he went into determined what prize would be won. If the couple could correctly guess where he'd go, they'd also win the grand prize of an actual, legitimate new car! note (Granted, it was a Chevy Chevette, one of the cheapest cars of that era...but it was still a legit new car.)
 The Cheap Show / int_d3435454
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Cheap Show / int_d3435454
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
The Cheap Show / int_d3435454
 The Cheap Show / int_e0c44755
type
Half Hour Comedy
 The Cheap Show / int_e0c44755
comment
Half-Hour Comedy
 The Cheap Show / int_e0c44755
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Cheap Show / int_e0c44755
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
The Cheap Show / int_e0c44755
 The Cheap Show / int_e54b7b17
type
Zonk
 The Cheap Show / int_e54b7b17
comment
Zonk: The main-game "prizes", typically worth little or nothing because they were complete junk, such as a broken hair dryer or a one-way ferry trip to an island 500 yards offshore.
 The Cheap Show / int_e54b7b17
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Cheap Show / int_e54b7b17
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
The Cheap Show / int_e54b7b17
 The Cheap Show / int_e90b789a
type
Lovely Assistant
 The Cheap Show / int_e90b789a
comment
Lovely Assistant: Wanda (Janelle Price), a dim-bulb ditz who talked in a very stilted/robotic manner. Oh, and men in drag.
 The Cheap Show / int_e90b789a
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Cheap Show / int_e90b789a
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
The Cheap Show / int_e90b789a
 The Cheap Show / int_ea5c413d
type
Biting-the-Hand Humor
 The Cheap Show / int_ea5c413d
comment
Biting-the-Hand Humor: Most of Dick's comments, especially his monologue. Justified, in that the show pretty much asked for it.
 The Cheap Show / int_ea5c413d
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Cheap Show / int_ea5c413d
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
The Cheap Show / int_ea5c413d
 The Cheap Show / int_f870d50
type
Consolation Prize
 The Cheap Show / int_f870d50
comment
Consolation Prize: Some were described between Rounds 1 and 2, and more following the Bonus Round. As with the endgame, these prizes were genuine.
 The Cheap Show / int_f870d50
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Cheap Show / int_f870d50
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
The Cheap Show / int_f870d50
 The Cheap Show / int_name
type
ItemName
 The Cheap Show / int_name
comment
 The Cheap Show / int_name
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Cheap Show / int_name
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
The Cheap Show / int_name
 The Cheap Show / int_name
itemName
The Cheap Show

The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.

 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
Covered in Gunge / int_60dfa1a2
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
Game Show / int_60dfa1a2
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
Golden Snitch / int_60dfa1a2
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
Invisible Celebrity Guest / int_60dfa1a2
 The Cheap Show
hasFeature
No Budget / int_60dfa1a2