Gambit

OPENING SPIELS:

CBS Version: "You have the knowledge, you know the odds, all the rest is in the cards, On Gambit, a game of skill, fate & fortune. And now, from Television City in Hollywood, your host, Wink Martindale!"

Half Check Opening (1976): "Today on Gambit, match this half-a-check, with this half, and win $10,000. And now, from Television City in Hollywood, here's your host on Gambit, Wink Martindale!"

NBC 1979 Pilot: "It's Gambit!!!! And here's your host, Wink Martindale!"

NBC 1980 Las Vegas Version: "From the Tropicana Hotel, the most exciting game in town, Las Vegas Gambit! And here's your host, Wink Martindale!"

1990 Pilot: "It's blackjack with a brain! It's a game of 21! It's a contest of quick thinking! And today's jackpot bonus game is worth $10,000! This is GAMBIT!!!! And now here's the star of Gambit, BOB EUBANKS!!!!!!

A game based on Blackjack where you can win big if you play your cards right.

Main game
The object of the game was that of blackjack: come as close to 21 as possible without going over (or "busting"). As in blackjack, the cards 2 through 10 were worth their face value; face cards (Kings, Queens and Jacks) counted as 10 and an Ace could count as either 1 or 11.

Martindale asked a series of questions, usually multiple-choice or true-false, to two married couples. The couple who buzzed in and answered the question correctly won control of the next card from the top of a deck of over-sized (but otherwise regulation) playing cards. The first card was shown before the first question, but cards thereafter were presented face down.

Once a couple gained control of a card they had the option of adding it to their own hand or passing it to their opponents. After a couple received any card (whether by choosing to take it themselves or by having a card passed to them from their opponents) they could elect to freeze if they were in the lead (neither team was permitted to freeze when the two were tied), preventing them from receiving any additional cards. This rule prevented their opponents from passing cards to them in order to strategically force them to bust.

Once this happened, the other couple answered questions until one of the following conditions occurred:

Conditions for winning

 * Reaching 21, which not only won the game, but the Gambit Jackpot, which started at $500 and went up $500 at the start of each day (or at the start of each match on Las Vegas Gambit), except that if it was won with the last card of the day, it started the next day at $500.
 * Having their opponents exceed 21 ("bust"), even if the winners had no cards.
 * Freezing, and then having the opponents miss a question before getting a higher score without going over 21.
 * Having the opponents freeze, and then getting a higher score without going over 21.

Each game won was worth $100. The first team to win two games won the match and advanced to the bonus round.

The Gambit Board
For the entire original series and the first half of Las Vegas Gambit, the winning couple played the Gambit Bonus Board. They faced a large game board with 21 numbered cards (18 numbered video screens on Las Vegas Gambit). Each card/screen concealed a prize; along with each prize the couple chose, they received a card added to their hand from the deck.

The game ended in one of three ways:
 * The couple elected to stop before reaching 21 (especially if they feared the next card would push them over 21 or in some instances, if they won a desirable prize they wanted to keep) and keep all the prizes they've chosen to that point.
 * Going over 21, at which point they lost everything from the board.
 * Reaching 21 exactly, wherein they won a new car as well as the Gambit Jackpot and the prizes selected.

From 1972-1976, returning champions continued until winning a grand total of $25,000, relinquishing any winnings over that amount. There was no winnings limit in Las Vegas Gambit.

From 1972-1975 the show featured an annual promotion where the first couple to get a two-card 21 (an Ace and a face card/10) in the bonus round won either $200 a week for a year (totaling $10,400) or a flat $10,000, depending on the year.

During the early episodes of Las Vegas Gambit, a couple could elect to stop only when their hand totaled 17 or more; in addition, getting 21 won just the Gambit Jackpot, as well as all the remaining prizes on the board. Within a few weeks, the top prize changed from "all prizes + Gambit Jackpot" to "$5,000 + Gambit Jackpot".

Special Prizes (CBS Version)
There were a number of recurring prizes on the CBS version, including:
 * "Anniversary Dinner" - The couple would be flown to a city on their next anniversary and treated to dinner; there were three of these on the board when this was played, each with a different city (usually two in Europe, but the third was always Burbank).
 * "Suit" Cards - One card of each of the four suits of cards; each was worth $500, plus $500 for each card the couple got in that bonus round of that suit as long as they did not go over 21.
 * "Football Games" - During December, trips to various football bowl games including the Rose Bowl, Sugar Bowl, Orange Bowl, and Cotton Bowl, were offered. A couple winning more than one of these trips would not be able to take all of them as they all occur around New Year's Day, and like most trips given away on game shows had to be taken within a year of winning them and could not be transferred.
 * "Half-Checks" - The majority of the boxes on the board hide half checks. Left halves consist of numbers 5 through 100 and the right halves consist of two zeroes each. When a couple finds a right half check full of zeroes and match it up with a left half, they'll receive that money as long as they stay under 21. Hitting 21 also kept it. If a couple found either half and not the other but not go over, they carry that half over to the next session of the Gambit Board if & when they make it there. The potential maximum is $10,000.
 * "Top or Bottom" - Around the same time as the "Half-Checks", this prize offers contestants a choice between the top or the bottom. One choice has an expensive and desirable option, and the other an inexpensive and perhaps not so desirable option. (For example, a Top or Bottom card reading "Cruise" might offer a cruise to the Caribbean or to Catalina Island.)

Special Features (Las Vegas Version)
Las Vegas Gambit had its own special features, played when a couple stopped or won the end game, including:
 * "Beat The House" - Contestants winning this prize would then have the opportunity to play one hand of blackjack "against the house" for $1,000 using standard single-deck rules, with the possible exception being that there did not appear to be any cases in which contestants could split a pair or double down.
 * "Take Two" - The couple could pick two numbers on the next turn.
 * "Stop or Go" - The dealer would reveal a card, the value of which would be multiplied by $100. The couple could then choose to attempt winning more cash by selecting another card, but would bust if the next card was the same suit they as the first card dealt (i.e., if the first card was a club, another club would end the game), and thus lose all the cash accumulated up to that point.
 * "100/200/500 Times" - The couple, assuming they do not go over 21, would receive one additional card not counted towards their final hand score, and be awarded $100/$200/$500 times the value of that card, worth from $200-$1100, $400-$2200, or $1000-$5500.

The Gambit Galaxy
The second half of Las Vegas Gambit featured "The Big Numbers", a game borrowed from another Heatter-Quigley game, High Rollers (which Wink would eventually host starting in 1987 in syndication). The couple was presented with a pair of dice and was asked to eliminate the numbers 1 through 9 from a board in front of them. To do this, the couple eliminated numbers that added up to the total they rolled (for instance, if the couple rolled a 10 they could eliminate 4 and 6; 3 and 7; 1, 2, 3, and 4; or any other combination that added to 10.) The couple won $100 for each number they eliminated, and if all nine were eliminated, $5,000 and an accumulating "Gambit Galaxy" prize package was awarded, for a starting total of about $10,000 and increasing until won. In the event a double was rolled (the same number on both dice), an insurance marker was awarded; it could then be used in the event the couple made a bad roll.

This version's last week of shows consisted of reruns from an earlier "Singles Week" (in which teams of two complete strangers were paired up to play the game, and at the end of the week all couples who won a match rolled the dice for the "Gambit Galaxy").

Las Vegas Gambit Pilot bonus round
The bonus round found on the Las Vegas Gambit Pilot episode featured a "Living Deck", a group of 52 audience members each holding a different card. Every time the couple earned a prize, the audience member with the selected card would win the same prize.

CBS, 1972-1976
CBS put Gambit in originally at 11 a.m./10 Central, where it defeated NBC's Sale of the Century. It also easily beat Alex Trebek's American debut program, The Wizard of Odds, which NBC began in July 1973. On April 1, 1974 (the same day Now You See It with Jack Narz premiered), CBS moved the show ahead a half-hour to 10:30/9:30, where it faced NBC's struggling quiz Jeopardy!. NBC moved Jeopardy! to the afternoons on July 1 and placed one of the many Bill Cullen-Bob Stewart collaborations, Winning Streak, in the slot. That show's weakness made late 1974 the high point of Gambit's original daytime run, at least in the Nielsen ratings.

However, Wheel of Fortune would debut on January 6, 1975. Not only did Wheel impact Gambit's audience, but NBC's expansion of Another World in the afternoons forced CBS to return The Price is Right to the morning after a two-year run at 3/2 Central. In order to make room for Price, the network decided to return Gambit to its original slot on August 18, where it remained for the rest of its run. At that slot, Gambit had to go against its sister Heatter-Quigley show High Rollers. The network canceled the four-year-old game two weeks before Christmas 1976, replacing it with Goodson-Todman's Double Dare.

NBC, 1980-1981
In June 1980, NBC canceled Heatter-Quigley's flagship show The Hollywood Squares and the revival of High Rollers in favor of a 90-minute (later 60) talk-variety show hosted by future late night icon David Letterman. When Letterman's effort failed miserably after a four-month run, the network obviously decided to make amends to the packager by reviving Gambit.

Plugging the show in at 10 a.m./9 Central, NBC found out, however, that many affiliates would not give the show a chance, due to the increasing popularity of syndicated talk shows like Donahue and Hour Magazine, which station managers thought would draw larger audiences (and, more importantly, larger local advertising revenues) than NBC offerings. Further, even though CBS ran sitcom reruns against Las Vegas Gambit, many of their stations carried those aforementioned syndicated offerings and often won their markets with those, instead of the network feed.

Las Vegas Gambit lasted 13 months. Over the next several months, NBC would rid itself of all the other games on its daytime schedule except for Wheel, which became NBC's sole daytime game show until January 1983. Las Vegas Gambit appeared to go into reruns toward the end of its run, as the finale (which was never intended to be such) was a repeat of an earlier episode. A picture-in-picture box was inserted during the end credits where Wink Martindale announced the finale; the series was replaced by a talk show hosted by Regis Philbin and Mary Hart that was canceled shortly after its debut.

Episode status
The status of Gambit is unknown outside of one 1974 episode traded among collectors, a 1976 episode uploaded to YouTube by Wink Martindale himself, and five 1973 episodes held by the UCLA Film and Television Archive.

In Fall 1977, reruns of the CBS Gambit aired in syndication, most notably by WPIX in New York and KHJ in Los Angeles. It is then likely that this version still exists as CBS had mostly abandoned the practice of erasing older tapes by the early 1970s. However, it has instead been lost or misplaced.

Seven episodes of Las Vegas Gambit currently exist, despite NBC scaling back its wiping practices by 1980. Among the episodes that exist is the final aired and the first aired episode.

Pilots
Three pilots were made in an attempt to revive the series, none of them sold (and only one used married couples like the original and Las Vegas versions).

1979 Pilot
This pilot featured Wink Martindale once again as the host and Debbie Bartlett as the dealer, and used the opening and music from the eventual Las Vegas Gambit.

While the basic structure of the front game remained intact (with the Gambit Jackpot starting at $1,000 plus $500 for every game not won), the general knowledge questions were replaced with clues, similar to the future Scrabble, with the answers appearing as puzzles revealed on the "Gambit Answer Machine". The number of letters shown was always random.

The bonus round was a complete departure from the "Gambit Board" format. A giant Skeeball ramp was used, featuring three prizes, two "Aces", two "Jacks", and the letters in the word "GAMBIT". The winning couple was given six balls (three for each spouse). If two landed in a prize, they won that prize. If two landed in an "Ace" & "Jack", they won a car. If it landed in one of two red holes, that ball was dead. But if all six balls lit up the word "GAMBIT", the couple won $10,000. Once the ball fell into a letter hole, it was popped back out and remained in play. Letters that lit up carried over into the next end game.

1985 Pilot
This pilot featured former Camouflage host and Los Angeles DJ Tom Campbell as emcee.

This version featured three contestants to start the round, each dealt a "free card" to start off. Campbell asked a series of multiple choice toss up questions. Answering a question correctly won the right to either take the next card or pass it off to an opponent. This process continued until either a player reached 21 or a player went over. At that point, the player in the lead won a bonus prize, and the player in second place was allowed to continue on. The player who either bust or had the least amount of points was eliminated.

Round two was called "Beat the House". This time, a free card was dealt to both players, and to a rack next to Campbell. Again, players would be asked multiple choice questions, correct answers winning control. However, in this round, a player not only had to top their opponent, but also the "house" (the hand managed by Campbell). The house would take a card if it had 17 points or fewer, but would never pass a card to a player. If a player reached 21 or beat both the house and the opponent, s/he moved on to the bonus. If the house beat both players, Campbell asked a sudden death question to determine the winner.

The bonus round was named "Double Blackjack". The player would play two separate hands of blackjack, starting with a free card in each. One at a time, the player would draw cards off of the deck and place them into either of the two hands. The player won $25 a point per card on the board. Getting a single 21 won a special prize (a trip to Holland on the pilot), and getting a double 21 was also worth a new car.

1990 Pilot
A pilot for another revival was shot for ABC on October 20, 1990 with Bob Eubanks as host and Susie Fawcett as dealer.

After the first card is shown, two answers are put on what's called "The Gambit Screen" and Bob reads a statement. The first to buzz-in either guesses the statement applies to both of them, one (naming that one in the process) or neither. If they’re right they get control of the first card, if not their opponent does. They can keep it or pass it to their opponent. The rest of the cards in the game are not shown. After getting control, the contestant decides where an unknown card goes. If they go over 21 at any time, they lose. A player is allowed to freeze their hand when his/her score is 12 or more if they feel they have enough to win or fears that the next card will bust him/her out. That forces the other into solo play where they must keep answering questions to receive cards. They must beat their opponent without busting to win. If they bust or fail to answer a question, their opponent wins the game. If they beat the score they get the game. If anybody scores 21, they win the game and the Gambit Jackpot, this time starting at $1,000 and still growing by $500 per match. Each game was worth $100, and the first to win two games wins the match, $200 total and goes to the Beat the House bonus game.

The third game in a match, if needed, is played differently. The champion decides where the first unknown card goes. Then they receive the next card by default. Following this, questions are brought back into play as above.

In the bonus round, the winner tries to beat the dealer. They get five chances for cards. Three answers are now revealed, and they have to decide whether statements apply to none, one, two or all three items. If they get a question right, they earn a card. They can continue up to five cards or when they want to freeze. After their hand is set, the dealer begins drawing cards. They draw as long as their total is 16 and below and stay at 17 and above. If the dealer busts or does not beat the player (by having a lesser score or tying), the contestant wins $5,000. But in the player's half of the round if he/she gets 21, they win $10,000.

Orion (which had acquired the rights to the Heatter-Quigley library) was going through financial problems at the time, and the pilot did not sell.

Spin-Offs
Casino - Unsold Pilot by GSN in 2002

Catch 21 - Show aired on GSN in 2008

2008 Good Morning America segment
Martindale returned to play one round of Gambit for ABC's Good Morning America on August 20, 2008 as part of its ''Play it Again! Game Show Reunion Week''. Also featured during that week were Let's Make a Deal and The Newlywed Game, both of which also featured their original hosts.

One round was played, with Robin Roberts as the dealer.

International Versions
A British version of the show was produced by Anglia Television for ITV, notable for its opening title sequence featuring various casino equipment including playing cards, casino chips, a roulette wheel and a fruit machine. It started in 1975 as a program shown in the Anglia region only, but became a networked show in 1978 and ran until 1985. The original host was Fred Dinenage, later succeeded by comedian Tom O'Connor, and Michelle Lambourne was the card dealer. The program returned briefly in the early 1990s, but only in the Anglia region and was hosted by Gary Thompson.

In the ITV version, each game was worth £20. The Gambit Jackpot started at £200 and increased by £50 until won or until it hit £500. Also, no cars were originally offered in the endgame (from 1981 onwards, they did offer a car as one of the star prizes). The cards used on this version had the same design as the U.S. version.

In Australia, a version produced for the Nine Network briefly aired in 1974. The host was Peter Hitchener and the dealer was Ros Wood. It was produced by the Reg Grundy Organization.

Music
1972 - Mort Garson

1980 - "Hollywood Boulevard" by Stan Worth

Inventor
Wayne Cruseturner for Merrill Heatter-Bob Quigley Productions

Links
Curt Alliaume's Game Shows '75: Gambit

Rules for Gambit @ loogslair.net

Gambit @ Game Show Galaxy

Josh's Gambit Rules Page

The 1990 Gambit Pilot Page

YouTube Videos
A Recently Unearthed Clip

Final Episode of Las Vegas Gambit

Gambit "Run Thru" Opening Animation

The 1990 Unsold Pilot
Part 1

Part 2

Part 3