| Hosts | |
| David Greenfield (1987 Runthrough) Marc Summers (1988 Pilot & 1989 Series) | |
| Announcers | |
| Joe Alaskey (The Neighbor) {1988 Pilot & 1989 series} Jim McKrell | |
| Broadcast | |
    | |
| Packager | |
| Saban Productions | |
| Distributor | |
| Group W Productions | |
Couch Potatoes is the short-lived television game show that was all about popular television shows from the past & present.
Gameplay[]
Two teams of three contestants, both with a TV show related name, answered questions focusing on popular TV shows past & present.
Main Game[]
The First Four/Six Rounds[]
Tune-In Questions[]
Each of the first few rounds began with a "Tune-In" question (toss-up) in which all six players could play. The first player to buzz-in had a chance to answer. A correct answer earned points (on this show they were called "Rating Points") and control of the "Spin-Off" questions (follow-ups), but in the pilot, an incorrect answer gave the opposing team had a chance to steal the points, while in the series an incorrect answer did not give the opposing team any "Rating Points" but control of the "Spin-Offs".
Spin-Off Questions[]
The "Spin-Off" questions were questions related to the "Tune-Ins" and about a specific TV show or category. The team that won the "Tune-In" earned control of those questions. Each player could answer each question only once and each correct answer scored more "Rating Points". If at anytime the controlling team missed a question, the opposing team had a chance to steal control by answering the same question.
Scoring[]
The first two rounds (later three) had questions worth 25 rating points, while the next two rounds (later three) had the questions worth double or 50 rating points.
Couch-Up (Final Round)[]
In the final round called "Couch-Up", all questions were under one more category and were all head to head. This is because one member from each team played on each question.
While host Summers asked questions, a randomizer was active. The randomizer was constantly shuffling point values (50, 100, 150 and 200 (also there was 250 in the pilot)), and it stopped when a contestant buzzed in. A correct answer scored the landed point value, but an incorrect answer gave the opponent a chance to answer the same question for the same amount. It was called the "Couch-Up" round, because there was also a "Couch-Up" space in the randomizer and whoever buzzed in and landed on "Couch-Up" the contestant who's team was trailing had a chance to tie the score by answering the question correctly; a correct answer from the player from the leading team only prevented a tie.
Each pair of players would get two turns and after six questions, the team with the most rating points won the game; in the event on the last question if the trailing team buzzed in first but was unable to catch up with the value landed on, the leading team automatically won; the round went to "extra innings/overtime" if after the sixth question, the game ended in a tie.
The winning team received $1,000 and went on to play Channel Roulette bonus for $5,000 in the series, $10,000 in the pilot. The losing team would be "CANCELLED".
Bonus Round: Channel Roulette[]
In the Channel Roulette bonus round, the winning team faced a board of 12 channel numbers (2-13, representing the VHF channels). Behind those numbers were pictures from popular TV shows and a value (from 100-1000, depending on the difficulty) attached to it.
Players on the winning team took turns picking off channel numbers and tried to guess what the mystery TV show was. A correct answer earned the value of the picture, albeit, an incorrect answer did not reward the value of the picture. A player in control could also pass if (s)he didn't know the show, but they could go back to it if there was time. It was not all that easy because behind one of those channels was a sign reading "PAY TV"; picking that channel wiped out their score.
If the winning team could reach 1,000 or more in 30 seconds or less, they won $5,000/$10,000. But if they couldn't when time ran out, they had a dollar sign ($) added to their bonus round score, converting their points into dollars.
Teams stayed on the show until they won five games or were defeated, with a potential maximum total of $30,000.
Trivia[]
Upon a correct answer given by Marc or the contestants, a picture of a TV star or from a TV show appeared to the home viewers.
Celebrity Guests[]
Throughout it's eight month run, Couch Potatoes had celebrity guests from TV shows past or present appear to ask questions about their shows or career. Originally they appeared in Round 2; later they appeared in Round 6.
The first guest to appear on the show was Dennis Franz who asked questions about his then-successful cop show Hill Street Blues. He then went on to star in another successful cop show NYPD Blue.
One show featured Jack Larson and Noel Neill, "Jimmy Olsen" and "Lois Lane" from the 1950s series "The Adventures of Superman", asking questions about that classic series.[1]
Game Show Week[]
For one whole week, celebrities from TV game shows visited the show. They include Bob Eubanks, Jim Lange, Janice Pennington, Wink Martindale, Peter Marshall, Johnny Gilbert, and Gary Owens. In addition, Marshall once promoted his new syndicated game show 3rd Degree (who was later replaced by Bert Convy when the series was picked up) on the show.
Gallery[]
Stations[]
New York - WNBC
Los Angeles - KTLA
Chicago - WPWR
Philadelphia - KYW
San Francisco - KPIX
Boston - WBZ
Washington, DC - WTTG
Miami - WSVN
Orlando - WESH
Pittsburgh - KDKA
Baltimore - WJZ
Rochester, NY - WROC
Sioux Falls - KDLT
Green Bay - WBAY
Milwaukee - WVTV
Omaha - WOWT
Detroit - WXON
South Bend - WNDU
Atlanta - WXIA
Harrisburg - WHTM
St. Louis - KMOV
Minneapolis - KARE
Columbia, SC - WOLO
Dayton - WKEF
Oklahoma City - KWTV
Indianapolis - WTHR
Music[]
Haim Saban & Shuki Levy
Opening & Logo Animation[]
Ruby-Spears Productions
Inventor[]
David M. Greenfield
Studios[]
Studio 4, FOX Television Center, Los Angeles, CA
Hollywood Center Studios
Additional Page[]
Reference[]
Links[]
- Rules for Couch Potatoes @ Loogslair.net
- Jay Anton's Couch Potatoes Rules Page
- Xanfan's Couch Potatoes Page