Blackout (game show)

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Blackout is an American daytime game show that aired on CBS from January 4 to April 1, 1988. It was created by Jay Wolpert. Two teams competed: a contestant paired with a celebrity, trying to solve word puzzles made of four missing words. Clues came from the partner, but parts of the clues could be muted by the other team using a blackout button, which could silence up to seven seconds plus extra time for any repeated words. The host was Bob Goen. The announcers were Johnny Gilbert, with Jay Stewart filling in for the last two weeks due to illness.

Two teams started at opposite desks: the red desk for the challenger and the yellow desk for the returning champion. In round one, the celebrity had 20 seconds to describe a missing word while the contestant wore headphones so they couldn’t see or hear the word description directly. The description was played back to the contestant, and both teams could hear it. If the contestant guessed correctly, their team won $100 and earned a chance to solve the puzzle. If they were wrong, the other team could try. If neither team guessed the word, it stayed on the board. If a word was spoken or imitated, the other team automatically won $100 and got a free guess. After four words, the team that solved the puzzle earned one point. If no one solved the fourth word, the host gave a toss-up definitions clue.

In round two, the roles reversed and the contestants described words for their celebrity partners, with the yellow team going first. The $100-per-word rule stayed the same. The first team to reach two points won the game and advanced to the Clue Screen bonus round. If the score was tied after two puzzles, there was a sudden-death final word.

The Clue Screen round lets one team try to guess five subjects in 70 seconds. Clues appear on a screen, up to six at a time, and the describer decides when enough clues are shown. The guesser turns to face the screen, reads the clues, and makes a guess. Solving all five subjects wins $10,000; otherwise, contestants earn $250 for each correct answer. The winning team could stay on the show, continuing to play the Clue Screen until they either solved five topics or were defeated in the main game.

Blackout was taped at CBS Television City in Hollywood. It debuted January 4, 1988 at 10:00 a.m., replacing The $25,000 Pyramid, which CBS had canceled. The show failed to attract a large audience and was beaten by NBC’s Sale of the Century. CBS canceled Blackout after 65 episodes, and later revived The $25,000 Pyramid while Family Feud began. Blackout has not aired since, though a brief clip appeared in the 1994 miniseries The Stand.