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| Classic Concentration | |
|---|---|
 Classic Concentration titlecard. |
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| Format | Game show |
| Presented by | Alex Trebek |
| Narrated by | Gene Wood |
| Country of origin |  United States |
| No. of episodes | 1,020 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) |
Chester Feldman Howard Felsher |
| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | 30 minutes per episode |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | NBC |
| Picture format | NTSC |
| Original run | May 4, 1987 – September 20, 1991 |
Classic Concentration was a revival of the American game show Concentration. The show was produced and packaged by Mark Goodson Productions and aired on NBC Daytime from May 4, 1987 to September 20, 1991. Reruns of the show aired from September 23, 1991 to December 31, 1993 in select cities. This is the most recent version of the classic game show as of now.
As with previous incarnations, the object of the game was to solve a rebus puzzle, by matching the concealed prize cards that in turn hid the puzzle. This new version was famous for its computer-generated game board, one of the first in the genre. It also introduced a popular new bonus round offering winners an opportunity to win one of eight new cars, displayed in the studio on a spiraling staircase.
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Hosts
Alex Trebek served as host and was accompanied by prize model Marjorie Goodson-Cutt (daughter of Mark Goodson and, at the time, wife of associate director Tim Cutt) throughout most of the show's run. In early weeks, Diana Taylor served as a model.
Steve Ryan created the show's many rebus puzzles.
Announcers
Gene Wood was the announcer for most of the program, and Art James substituted for a month in mid-1991.
Gameplay
The basic rules for Classic Concentration were similar to the original Concentration: Two players competed to match prizes and cash awards on a numbered board and solve a hidden rebus puzzle in order to win all the prizes accumulated. This version featured 25 numbered squares instead of the 30 found on the previous versions. Additionally, the mechanical board featured in earlier incarnations was now replaced by a computer-generated GUI board. The contestants looked at the puzzle board on a large-screen TV placed out of view of the cameras.
Players took turns calling two numbers hoping to match prizes. Originally, 2 or 4 pieces of the puzzle were revealed before the start of the game. Later on, no head starts were given. Typically, the player to Trebek's left [the challenger] would go first. If the player matched two numbers in one turn, the player earned whatever prize was revealed in the match, and two pieces of a rebus were revealed for the player to attempt to solve the puzzle. If the player succeeded, the player won all the prizes accumulated in their prize column. If the player could not offer a solution to the rebus (or offered an incorrect one), the player would choose two more numbers, hoping for another match. As in the original Concentration, if the prizes did not match, the opponent got to pick two numbers.
Classic Concentration featured the "WILD!" card, which guaranteed an automatic match to any number on the board, and the "TAKE!" card, which would allow a player to take one prize from his or her opponent's prize column. Each game would typically have three "WILD!" cards (although some games used only one or two), and two pairs of matching-colored "TAKE!" cards, one red and one green. In the earliest episodes, no TAKE cards appeared on the board, and for a short time, the green TAKE appeared all by itself; the red TAKE was added later. In this game, a player could choose either to use a TAKE card immediately after matching it on the board, or to hold onto it and wait for a particular prize to show up in the opponent's prize column. Choosing two WILD cards in one turn earned the player a $500 bonus, and if a third was chosen in the same turn, the bonus doubled to $1,000. As with the other prizes, cash bonuses could only be won if the player solved the rebus. The FORFEIT cards found on the original Concentration were not used on this show.
Later in the series, a "Ca$hpot" card was added, which contained a cash award that started at $500 and was increased by $100 every game this prize was not won. When a player matched the prize and solved a puzzle, the Ca$hpot would reset at $500. Additionally, a "Five Bonus Car Seconds" card appeared, which would earn the player who matched this and solved the rebus five additional seconds in the bonus round.
In the event of time running out during a game, the puzzle was revealed one square at a time in order. The first player to buzz in guessed. If they guessed correctly, they won. If not, they were locked out, the rest of the puzzle was revealed, and the opponent received a free guess.
Earlier in the run, after a rebus was solved, Alex went off stage right to a keywall and explained how the rebus is solved. Later, the contestant who solved the rebus did this.
In the beginning of the run, the player who solved the rebus went to the Winner's Circle while the loser was eliminated (except in cases of an interrupted game, when the losing player would return to play in the next match as the "challenger"). On July 4, 1988, the format was changed into a best-of-three match, with the first player to solve two rebuses winning the match and playing the bonus game. Unlike most game shows that tend to straddle when playing a best-of-three format, Classic Concentration had each match and bonus game fit into one complete show. The first game was split over the first two segments, with the second (and possibly) third game taking up the third segment. The bonus round was played during the fourth segment of the show.
From July 2, 1990 until the end of the run, players played the bonus game after solving a puzzle, and would be eliminated from competition after losing two games.
Car Game
A player who won a match got the opportunity to win one of eight new cars, valued at over $6,000-$16,000+, in the bonus game. The contestant was shown a board of 15 numbered panels, instead of 25 as in the main game.
Behind those numbers were the names of the eight cars sitting in the studio. The names of seven of those cars could be matched on the board while one was an unmatchable decoy (early in the run, all of the cars would be displayed before the bonus round began). If the player found all seven matches before time ran out, he or she won the car indicated in the seventh and final match. Players were given a base time of 35 seconds, and 5 seconds were added for each unsuccessful attempt. A frequent prize in the main game was five extra seconds in this round. After winning a car, the clock would be reset to the base time.
Early in the show's run, a player could win the game and play the Car Game round up to five times before being retired. Later, champions were only retired after winning a car. In late 1987, only one contestant had won 3 cars, and after 5 matches, retired with total of $60,650 in cash and prizes.
During some shows, if there was time remaining, an audience member preselected before taping began played the bonus round for up to $500 cash. Instead of the names of cars, dollar amounts were hidden behind the fifteen numbers. The audience member was given 60 seconds and kept any money amounts matched.
Special episodes
Classic Concentration produced several special episodes for different holidays, including Halloween, Christmas, Cinco de Mayo and St. Patrick's Day. For St. Valentine's Day one year, a full week of episodes were produced nicknamed "Love Week." A "College Week" of episodes also appeared. In 1989, the show celebrated the 20th anniversary of the Woodstock Festival.
Every year, Classic Concentration invited the fastest car winners from the previous season to compete in a "Tournament of Champions" for a fabulous grand prize. Two contestants play two games each day, and the winner of the rebus game plays the Car Game. The clock starts at zero and counts up. If the contestant finishes the round in 35 seconds, he or she wins another car. The time used to make all seven matches is noted regardless of winning another car. The player who matches seven pairs in the fastest time wins the grand prize, along with whatever prizes were picked up in the main games. For the first tournament in 1988, the champion won a trip around the world. In following years, a third automobile and $10,000 cash were awarded to each tournament winner.
Production
The basic set layout for Classic Concentration consisted of a large eight-stepped circular staircase where the eight cars were displayed, an elevated circular platform where the Car Game was played ("the Winner's Circle"), a mobile float where contestants played the regular game, and a large curved "CLASSIC CONCENTRATION" sign that hung from the studio rafters. The game board was computer-generated and seen by the contestants on an offstage studio monitor; an offstage CK wall was where Alex or the contestants stood to explain the puzzle. Throughout the progression of the series, a motley tropical motif was added to the set, consisting of a variety of fake grasses, shrubs, plants, rocks and palm trees. Various other props appeared throughout the year to depict the seasons, from a park bench, fake snow and a street lantern for winter, to fake fruits for summer. Trebek's wardrobe also became more casual as the series went on, with open shirts without ties or sweaters replacing jacket and tie.
The show's theme song was a re-orchestration of the ticket plug cue originally used on the game show Body Language.
Episode status
Although Mark Goodson Productions packaged Classic Concentration, NBC retains the rights to the entire Concentration format, including this version. All episodes still exist, and NBC has converted them from their original analog format to digibeta (required to air on cable TV). But as of today, NBC has yet to make reruns of Classic Concentration available to any channel or network. GSN first attempted to purchase this series (along with the 1970s syndicated version hosted by Jack Narz) in 1994 when the channel launched, but NBC refused to sell them for unexplained reasons.
