Debt

OPENING SPIEL:

''MAN (Wink): Drowning in a sea of bills? (crashing, bills shaking and dropping, and Wink pulls out the office worker) WOMAN: Whoa! WINK: Then it's time to play Debt! (WOMAN SIGHS) WINK: The game show where three debt-laden Americans, just like you, compete to have us pay off all their bills and go home with nothing. WOMAN: Whoo! WINK: And now let's meet today's contestants/contesti: (insert self-introductions of the contestants with the amount of debt and whatever reasons why). JULIE: And now, starring that host, the crowned prince of credit, the duke of Debt, Wink Martindale!''

''REST OF SPIEL: Thank you! Thanks everybody, and welcome to the return of the game show/our show/Debt. Well, the country's in debt, you're probably in debt, but more importantly, our/these three players, (insert three names), have come to us with their real-life debt and one of them just might be lucky enough to get out of it by the end of the show.''

Debt was an American game show hosted by veteran host Wink Martindale, which aired on Lifetime from June 3, 1996 to August 14, 1998. To date, it was the last game show hosted by Martindale, except for an appearance he made on Good Morning America in 2008 when he hosted a segment of Gambit, until the short-lived Instant Recall came along.

Gameplay
Three contestants are introduced with the amount of debt they have (usually between $6,000 and $10,000) and the reasons why. After introductions, the debt of the three contestants was averaged to level the playing field. The scores were shown in negative amounts to reflect the debt of each contestant.

First season
The first round was a Jeopardy!-style round in which the contestants faced a 30 trilon gameboard with five categories, each with five questions with negative dollar values ranging from -$50 to -$250 in increments of $50. The first selection went to the player who had the lowest debt (before averaging the scores). On a player's turn, he or she chose a category and value, after which a "Who am I?" type question was revealed (for example, "I'm the name of the fictitious, mustachioed "ranking officer" who hawks the Quaker Oats cereal Peanut Butter Crunch."). The first contestant to buzz in was allowed to answer. Contestants were required to start their answers with either "You are..." to receive credit (the contraction "You're" also was accepted). A correct answer deducted the chosen amount from the player's debt. A wrong answer or running out of time put the player that much further in debt.

One of the questions in the round was labeled the "Debtonator". This was the round's most difficult question in the producers' opinion, and was worth $500, regardless of the face value of the question.

When time ended or all questions had been asked the player with the highest debt was eliminated and received a $200 savings bond, along with a piggy bank.

Second season
This round underwent a few format changes between seasons:
 * The 30 trilons were replaced with a 9-screen video wall.
 * Before round one (and after the averaging of the debts), the game started out with a toss-up question worth -$1 and the right to pick first from the board.
 * Contestants were no longer required to begin their responses with the phrase "You are..." throughout the game.
 * Rather than choosing individual questions, contestants chose an entire category from the five on the board, and five questions from that category were asked in succession. Due to this change, the "Debtonator" now represented an entire category played for double value (-$100 to -$500).

Round 2 (Gambling Debt)
After revealing the category, each contestant announced how many out of five questions he/she could answer to win the money for that category. At the beginning of the round, the player with the lesser amount of debt placed the first bid; his or her opponent then had the opportunity to increase the bid. Bids were exchanged until the maximum bid of five was made or a contestant directed their opponent to "Prove it!", forcing them to fulfill the contract. Upon giving a correct answer, the question just played turned into a "happy face", but upon an incorrect answer or no answer whatsoever flipped the question back to its neutral position in season one, and turned into an "X" in season two. If the controlling player completed the contract, the money was subtracted from that player's debt. If the player was unable to fulfill the contract their opponent's debt was reduced. The winner of each category earned the right to place the first bid for the next. Five categories were played in this round, with values of -$300, -$400, -$500, -$750, and -$1,500, respectively.

The player with the higher debt was eliminated at the end of the round and received a $500 savings bond in addition to the piggy bank, while the player with the lower score won and advanced to the bonus round. If at any point in the round it became mathematically impossible for a player to catch up, even if he/she were to win every remaining category, that player was "mathematically eliminated" and automatically received the consolation prize.

The most money a player can eliminate from their debt in the General and Gambling Debt rounds was $7,650 in season one and $7,951 in season two.

Bonus round
The show's bonus round was played in two stages called "Get Out of Debt" and "Bet Your Debt".

Get Out of Debt
The winning player was given an "expiration date" (time limit) of 60 seconds to answer 10 questions in a particular category. Winning the bonus round meant their entire original debt (before the averaging of debts from the main game) was paid off. Losing the bonus round meant the player kept whatever money they earned in the first two rounds.

Bet Your Debt
After the first part of the bonus round, the player was given the option to "Bet [their] debt". A category selected by the contestant (prior to the show) on their particular favorite subject in the world of pop culture was presented as a one-question double-or-nothing gamble. The player could elect to keep what they had won up to that point, or risk all of their winnings to add an amount in cash equal to their original debt or their main game winnings, based on how well they fared in the first part of the bonus round.

The player had 10 seconds to answer the question. Should the player elect to bet their debt and answered the question correctly, their winnings were doubled, and the player received the equal amount of money to their original debt if they won the first part of the bonus round. Should the player elect to bet their debt and fail to answer the question correctly, they lost the money they had won, and received a savings bond worth $1,500 if they won the first part of the bonus round or $1,000 if they failed to win the first part of the bonus round.

Catchphrases
"So let's get this party started! Our first round is called General Debt, and here are today's categories: (insert five categories). This is an elimination round, only the two players with the least debt at the end of the round get to move on and have a chance of going home with... AUDIENCE: Nothing!  ...you're so good/perfect! (Insert player with the lowest debt), since you spent less than your opponents in the game of life, you'll get the honor of choosing/selecting the first category. But, to make things fair, we're gonna even you all out to the average Debt amount the day. The average debt is worth (insert average debt). Two final reminders, all the questions on Debt take the "I am/You are" format, and you will be penalized for an incorrect answer." - Wink Martindale (at the start of General Debt in Season 1)

"Before we get going, let's make things fair, we're gonna even you all out to the average Debt amount the day. The average debt is worth (insert average debt). Our opening question is worth one big dollar and the honor of choosing/selecting the first category. (insert question) Let's take a look at today's categories for general debt: (insert five categories). This is an elimination round, only the two players with the least debt at the end of the round get to move on and have a chance of going home with... AUDIENCE: Nothing!  ...you're so good/perfect! /Let's get this party started!" - Wink Martindale (at the start of General Debt in Season 2)

"Whoa! It's the Debtonator. This is the most difficult question in today's board in the opinion of our producers. And because of that, it's worth $500 for whoever gets it right." - Wink Martindale (when a contestant picks a Debt-O-Nator in Season 1)

"Whoa! It's the Debtonator. This is the most difficult category in today's board in the opinion of our producers. And because of that, the value of each question in this category is doubled." - Wink Martindale (when a contestant picks a Debt-O-Nator in Season 2)

"That's the end of general debt and I'm sorry to say that you (insert player's name with the biggest debt) have the highest score and unfortunately, in our game, that means you are eliminated and you will not home empty-handed, Julie, What do we have for (instert players name)" - Wink Martindale (at the end of general debt)

"Well, (insert player's name), to help you get back on the road the financial recovery/you may have come in last place, but you're first to get a prize, Here's our very own Debt piggy bank, along with a $200 saving bond (insert funny thing related to why that player is in debt)" - Julie Claire (after Wink asks her to give something the first player that's eliminated)

"We'll back to watch (insert player 1's name) and (insert player 2's name) battle it out for the chance to have us pay off all their debts after these messages" - Wink Martindale (at the start of the first commercial break)

"And now, let's get deeper into debt with Wink Martindale!" - Julie Claire (at the end of the first commercial break)

"Welcome back, everybody, we're down to our two players now, (insert player 1's name) is in the lead with (insert player 1's total), (insert player 2's name) has (insert player 2's total). At the end of this round, one of you, the one/the player with the least debt remaining will have a chance to have us paying your entire original debt. But, first, we're gonna play Gambling Debt. In this round, I'll show you a category, and then you'll wager between yourselves to see who can answer the most questions correctly out of five. Category values naturally increased throughout the round. $300 will be at stake in our first category, which is... (insert category)." - Wink Martindale (at the start of Gambling Debt)

This is a must win situation for you, (insert player 2's name)! If you don't get this category, you'll be mathematically eliminated and (insert player 1's name) will be the winner! - Wink Martindale (if a player can't catch up)

"Congratulations to you, (insert winning player's name)! That means you're going to the final round for the chance to have us pay off everything you owe/your entire debt amount and you (insert loser's name) will go home with this, Julie!" - Wink Martindale (at the end of gambling debt)

"Well, (insert loser's name). Sorry! We're not gonna pay off your bills, but we are gonna give you one of our debt piggy banks,m along with a $500 savings bond, spend it wisely!/don't spend it all in one place!/ (insert funny thing related to why that player is in debt)" - Julie Claire (after Wink asks her to give something the runner up that's eliminated)

"We'll be back to see if (insert winner) can move out of the red and into the black/find financial freedom after this commercial timeout!" Wink Martindale (at the start of the second commercial break)

"Bills got you down? Well, there's help in site! If you'd like to be a contestant on Debt and if you live in the LA area, call (213) 468-3300!" - Julie Claire (explaining to viewers what they can do if they must be on the show)

"And we're back to see if (insert winner's name) can get out of debt with the help of our main man Wink!/ride the road to financial freedom with the help of the Winkster!" - Julie Claire (at the end of the second commercial break)

"It's time to see if Wink Martindale can help another contestant get out of debt!" - Julie Claire (at the end of the second commercial break from season 2)

"Welcome back to Debt everybody! (Insert player) played his/her first two rounds, blew/eliminated his/her opponents knocked (insert money they earned in the first two rounds) off of his/her debt. Now you've earned the right to have us to pay off the entire original debt of (insert original debt), in a round we appropriately called Get Out of Debt. If you can answer 10 (of these/my) questions in 60 seconds, your debt of (insert original debt) will be completely eradicated/wiped out." - Wink Martindale (at the start of the Get Out of Debt)

"Congratulations, to you, (insert player's name)! You're officially out of debt!" - Wink Martindale (if a contestant won the first part of Get Out of Debt and in Season 2 "Paid" appears at the Debt Screen)

"We're gonna pay you the entire original debt of (insert original debt). It's decision time, because we're gonna give you the opportunity to Bet Your Debt. When we selected/picked you to be a player on this show/Debt, you told us your specialty category in the World of Pop Culture was (insert category). Before the show, we prepared/wrote one question about (insert category), and if you answer this question correctly, we'll not only paying off your debt of (insert original debt), we will give you the same amount of cash in this briefcase (by Mr. Clean, our Debt Security Guard.). However, if you go for it and miss, you lose everything. It's a big risk, but a big payoff. We'll give you some time to think about it as we take our final commercial break." - Wink Martindale (if a contestant won the first part of Get Out of Debt)

"Well, you didn't make it down to zero, but all is not lost. In the first two rounds you reduced your debt by (insert money they earned in the first two rounds), that's yours to keep, unless you decide to Bet Your Debt. When we selected/picked you to be a player on this show/Debt, you told us your specialty category in the World of Pop Culture was (insert category). So before the show, we prepared/wrote one question about (insert category), and if you answer this question correctly, we'll double your current total of (insert money they earned in the first two rounds). However, if you go for it and miss, you'll be back (original debt) in the hole. So you can walk away what you've won, or risk it all. We'll be back to see what you wanna do after this commercial break!" - Wink Martindale (if a contestant failed to win the first part of Get Out of Debt).

"It's time for another big money moment on Debt!" - Julie Claire (at the end of the last commercial break)

"Welcome back to Debt everybody! Alrighty, you had time to think about this choice, because if you go for it, this question will be worth (instert double the current winnings). What do you wanna do? risk it all or walk away with what you won so far/risk it all and go for the big payoff or stop now and walk away with you bills paid off?" Wink Martindale (exlaning about bet your Debt)

"You'll have 10 seconds to answer the question once I've asked it. OK?" - Wink Martindale (if the contestant choose to go for it)

'Let's see what would've happened if you went for it!" - Wink Martindale - (if a contestant choose to walk away with his/her winnings)

"You've just won (insert double the current winnings)! Congratulations, to you!" - Wink Martindale - (if a contestant won both parts of Get out of Debt, and the game board says "WINNER" along with spinning happy faces and in Season 2 "WINNER" appears in both game board and the Debt screen)

"Well, you took a big gamble and you lost, but nobody's a loser here on Debt, for being a gutsy player, we'll give you a savings bond of $1000 and our thanks for being with us" - Wink Martindale (if a contestant failed to win both parts of Get out of Debt)

Logo
When Debt debuted on June 3, 1996, the show's logo resembled a Visa card with 3 stripes in green, white and red from top to bottom with the word "DEBT" in teal across the white stripe. It was revised on September 2, 1996 with a white box surrounded by a green frame which included the underlined title in red letters inside the white box.

Broadcast history
Debt replaced Shop 'Til You Drop, which moved from Lifetime to The Family Channel in 1996. It aired at 6:30 p.m. Eastern Time for its entire run, paired with reruns of Supermarket Sweep.

Debt was replaced by reruns of Ellen in 1998.

Some local syndication stations (like KTLA) reran all the episodes of the show with a different opening.

Notable contestants

 * Two game show hosts appeared as contestants on Debt: Larry Toffler, who had hosted the syndicated version of Finders Keepers in the late '80s, and Frank Nicotero, who later went on to host Street Smarts. Toffler would later win $100,000 on the FOX game show Greed.
 * In one episode, a victorious contestant celebrated a $16,000+ win by ripping off his toupee, throwing it on the floor, then dancing around the hairpiece.

Music
Alan Ett

Tagline
"We'll be back next time with three more big spenders, and we'll do our best to help get them out of... Audience: DEBT! ...Yes!" - Wink Martindale (1996-1998)

Links
Rules for Debt @ Loogslair.net

Rules for Debt @ The Game Show Temple

1st Season
Early episode with a Visa-esque logo

Part 1

Part 2

Frank Nicotero's appearance

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Contestant Ryan Hopak rips off his toupee.

2nd Season
An episode with new changes

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3