Card Sharks Timeline (Bob Eubanks version)

This page lists events that occurred during the CBS series from its debut in 1986 until it's demise in 1989.

Winter
January:
 * January 6: Series debuts on CBS, replacing Press Your Luck in the 10:30 a.m. time slot.
 * No X indicators to show who won a game were prevalent.
 * Models Lacey Pemberton and Suzanna Williams wore the same uniform until October 24, 1986.
 * Money Cards rules allowed a player to change three cards anywhere on the board - this would only last one month.
 * When a contestant busts on the Money Cards, the on-screen display reads "$0"


 * January ##: Perhaps the shortest Money Cards in the CBS run, a contestant busts twice and ends the Money Cards after only three card reveals.
 * January 20-24: The show gives away over $90,000 in cash this week. This may have prompted a rule change in the Money Cards for budget reasons.

February:
 * February 3: a visually-impaired contestant named Susan starts her run on the show.
 * As of February 3, $0 Money Cards wins now display as "BUST" instead of "$0" as of this week.
 * As of February 3, X indicators for game wins first appear this week.
 * As of February 3, contestants can only change one card per line in the Money Cards.


 * On February 7, a contestant bets all of her money higher than a queen in the Money Cards and wins.

March:
 * As of March 3, the opening theme is updated, and used for the remainder of the series.
 * On March 24: Faith becomes the biggest Money Cards winner in all incarnations of the show, winning $29,000 in a single playing of the Money Cards, overshadowing Norma Brown's maximum $28,800 win in 1978.

Spring

 * On May #, Mark Goodson makes a cameo appearance, and recites a poem.


 * As of May ##, until sometime in October, still images of Money Cards winners started being shown prior to commercial break after Money Cards.

Summer

 * July 7-11 was the first Young People's Week of the series..


 * July 14 was the first show with the audience poll questions involving ten individuals.
 * August 25-29 was Young People's Week II.


 * On August 25 and 26, future Baywatch actress Kelly Packard makes her appearance.


 * As of August 25, audience polling groups now share a common occupation or belong in a certain group of people.
 * On September 2, the lowest non-$0 win at this point, Gayla wins only $100 on the Money Cards.
 * As of September ##, the contestant's face in the Money Cards is shown in a diamond instead of in a circle.
 * As of September ##, the money cards scoreboard uses a dark red color scheme instead of a deep orange color scheme.

Fall

 * From October 13, until sometime later in 1987: members of the audience polling group start wearing nametags, which have a yellow background with black letters.


 * On October ##: Bruce, the only contestant in a wheelchair, starts his run.


 * On October 27, Version 1.0 of the car game, with seven numbered cards and two jokers in the Money Cards deck, debuts.


 * Educated guess questions also debut today, though until December 12, answers could be no more than 99.


 * Starting on October 27, the models start wearing different outfits instead of the traditional uniforms.


 * On October 29: Jeff is the first contestant in the CBS series to win a car.


 * On November 4, a contestant named Bob Eubanks makes his appearance.  The host's reaction is priceless!


 * From December 1-5: Young People's Week III airs, and kids play the bonus game for a trip to Hawaii instead of a car.


 * From December 12-18: Educated guess questions now allow for answers greater than 99 as of this week, and for this week only, contestants write their guess on a card, similar to panelists writing their responses on Match Game
 * From December 19-25, Christmas decorations are prevalent.
 * As of December 19, on the educated guess questions, a contestant's numeric guess appears in chyron text appearing digit after digit on your screen.
 * As of December 19, the infamous losing horns are now heard on the car game if the car is not won.
 * December 28, 1986-January 2, 1987: Young People's Week IV starts and continues into the beginning of 1987.

Winter

 * January 19-23: Young People's Week V airs.
 * On January 21, a bizarre educated guess question about the models' combined weight is asked, and the models dare Bob to be weighed!
 * January 29 was the start of a car game losing streak, which lasts for 25 playings for a car.
 * From February 2-13, educated guess answer reveals appear to have a flipping animation effect, similar to the passwords appearing on the screen on Super Password.
 * February 16-20: Young People's Week VI airs.
 * As of February 16, educated guess reveals revert back to to the original fornat, first used on December 19, 1986.
 * February 17-18 is future child actress Kellie Martin's run on the show.
 * As of February 23, Lacey and Suzanna start doing model poses in the car game, similar to what Barker's Beauties do on The Price is Right.. This would only be prevalent if a car was being offered.
 * On March 4, an educated guess question involved an audio clip.
 * On March 10, after a 25-game losing streak, a car is finally won.

Spring

 * April 13 was the first show with no Money Cards and no car game being played, due to a match consuming the entire episode.
 * May 4 was perhaps the only time an educated guess question was used as a show's first question.

Summer

 * Sometime in the summer, was the only time a contestant wins three cars.  This would be the last time three cars was won on a CBS game show until the pricing game Triple Play on The Price is Right


 * During the opening, the green background that the computer-animated cards are dealt out on is now transparent, and shows the week's featured car. The opening spiel is modified to "You can win this beautiful car (or sporty truck/jeep) on the turn of a card, on Card Sharks! And if you play your cards right, you could win $32,000!"

Fall

 * Sometime by the fall, educated guess answers when revealed on your screen have a pastel-green border.
 * Sometime in by the fall, the font on the educated guess reveal is also updated to a Clarendon-style font.


 * 'By December 14,a $32,000 chyron graphic appears during the opening, and has a black shadow effect, and blinks a few times.


 * Also, by December 14, a flashing marquee behind the week's featured car appears.


 * December 21-31: Two consecutive weeks of Young People's Weeks, with the bonus game played for a holiday gift package, consisting of a trip to Hawaii, a bumper pool table, a computer, a pair of bicycles, a VCR, and a sailboat


 * December 28-31: Bob Goen makes a series of cameo appearances to plug the game show disaster Blackout, which debuts a week later.

Winter

 * Sometime in January, the $32,000 chyron graphic during the intro now has a red shadow effect.
 * Sometime in January, was the second time a contestant has $16,000 on the Big Bet row, and nearly wins the maximum $32,000 cash in the Money Cards.


 * As of February 29: tiebreaker rules are changed to a one-question sudden death game.

Spring

 * March 28-April 1: Young People's Week. WIN! cards from Christmas 1987 are still used, though the bonus prize reverts back to just a trip to Hawaii.
 * On March 29, Bob announces to the world that Lacey Pemberton is pregnant.


 * From June 6-10: Ray Combs, the host of the new version of Family Feud makes a series of cameo appearances to plus Family Feud, which premiered on CBS four weeks later.

Summer

 * Starting July 4: In an attempt to reboot ratings, the car game was updated to involve a question involving the week's audience polling group, and contestants were required to register his/her answer on the range board (a scale with numbers 0 to 10, with a blue diamond to move the marker on his/her guess).  This format was based on the "Judge the Jury" segment on the 1979 game show Mindreaders.


 * From July 11-15: The seven numbered cards make their final appearances this week, since this week of episodes was taped before the range board car game debut episode was taped.


 * July ## was the first time the car was won on the range board car game.


 * August # was Lacey's last show before her maternity leave.


 * From August # until December 9, guest models start appearing while Lacey is on maternity leave.

Fall

 * November 21-23: First Young People's Week with the range board  bonus game rules modified so that young contestants could win the trip to Hawaii if exactly right or off by one ($500 bonus is eliminated for this week only)
 * December 9 was the last episode with guest models filling in for Lacey.


 * On December 12, Lacey returns from her maternity leave.


 * From December 19-23: Christmas decorations prevalent this week.

1989

 * March ##: Since the show is confirmed by this point to be cancelled, the final Young People's Week winner was brought back to play for a trip to Hawaii, despite not being Young People's Week.


 * March 31: Final episode aired on CBS. During the final playing of the car game, the $500 bonus was eliminated, and the contestant would win the car if exactly right, or off by one.