One word game shows

So, you’ve already completed the day’s Wordle and won six games of Scrabble against your phone. What’s a bored word lover to do? Allow us to suggest a game show! 

That’s right—while we’ve all been playing on our phones, TV and radio game shows have quietly become one of the most riveting ways for certified wordies to get their fix. From new Wordle-inspired games to updated classics like Pyramid and Chain Reaction, there are so many exciting word games that will have you shouting the answers at your TV, tablet, or phone screen. There are even word-based radio game shows to keep you company on the commute to work. If you’re as obsessed with words and language as we are, here are the 11 best word-focused game shows you need to check out.

1. Lingo

If you never miss a round of Wordle, it might be time to add Lingo to your watch list. The game show originated in the late ’80s, but the latest version premiered in 2021 and is hosted by RuPaul. In it, players compete to decode words of five letters and longer after being given only the first letter. Much like in Wordle, letters guessed are illuminated to show whether they’re in the correct place. The faster contestants solve the puzzles, the more money they can win. Later rounds expand to include a 10-letter word and a 12-letter Super Lingo word, taking the magic and challenge of Wordle to a whole new level.

2. Wheel of Fortune 

What’s the most iconic wordie game show of all time? We’d like to solve the puzzle: it’s Wheel of Fortune! Not only is this one of the longest-running game shows of all time, but its also had the same hosts since 1981. Wheel of Fortune contestants spin for prizes as they compete to solve challenging word-based puzzles that feature word play, common sayings, and unique phrases. The puzzles challenge players with missing letters, much like Hangman, so the bigger your vocabulary, the more likely you are to fill in the blanks quickly. 

Word games aren’t just for the world’s grown-ups. Check out some kid-friendly educational games for all ages to enjoy!

3. Password 

If you thrive on crossword-style clues and word association, this one’s for you. In the NBC game show Password, celebrities and contestants compete to guess mystery words by giving each other one-word clues. For instance, if the word is popsicle, clues might be “frozen,” “cold,” or “treat.” It’s the perfect opportunity to put your knowledge of synonyms to the test. The original Password premiered in 1961. The current version was revived in 2022 with actress and comedian Keke Palmer as the host.

4. Pyramid

Pyramid is the name of a series of game shows that have been airing since the ’70s, and for good reason. In the game, teams composed of a celebrity and a contestant work together to guess categorized lists of words to win money. One person gives clues while the other teammate tries to figure out what the words are. To make things even more challenging, they only have 60 seconds to figure them all out! Pyramid first came to TV in 1973, hosted by the legendary Dick Clark. Variations have included $10,000 Pyramid, $50,000 Pyramid, and even $100,000 Pyramid. The current game is hosted by Michael Strahan.

5. 25 Words or Less

Meredith Vieria, previous host of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, heads up another game show that challenges people to test their smarts. This time, the challenge goes to the word lovers. On 25 Words Or Less, contestants have to use synonyms and clever word play to help a panel of celebrity guests figure out a list of words. What’s the catch? They can only do it in 25 words or less. In fact, they have to place bets on how few words they can use to give all of their clues. In this game, an expansive vocabulary and a love of clever puns is definitely an asset.

6. Tug of Words

What if you took a classic playground game of tug-of-war and combined it with a word game? Well, then you’d get Tug Of Words, a show in which teams of two compete to guess a series of words based on clues. With each correct guess, the flag on the tug-of-war rope moves towards the winning side. The best part is that the words get more complicated with each round. Can you figure them out before the contestants do?

7. Says You

This nationally syndicated public radio game show is a delightful way to test your word knowledge. The show involves a variety of word questions and puzzles. During its Bluffing Round, for example, rather than guessing words, contestants are given a term and three different definitions, only one of which is actually correct. Can you figure out which one it is? You can listen live each week or play old episodes. And if you feel up to the challenge, you can even submit your own words and clues on the show’s website.

8. Chain Reaction

You’ve heard the phrase “one thing leads to another.” In this game show, one word leads to another. Players on Chain Reaction are tasked with solving six-word puzzles comprising terms that are all logically or linguistically connected. Think: wide, open, sesame, street, car, alarm. That’s one example from the show where each word logically fits with the term that comes before and the one that comes after it. This clever play on the traditional word puzzle game show has delighted folks who love wordplay since the 1980s.

TV is full of fun fodder for grammar geeks if you know where to find it—like in these TV moments for language nerds!

9. People Puzzler

If you thought crossword puzzles were a solo endeavor, think again. People Puzzler challenges three players to compete against one another while they solve the week’s crossword puzzle from People magazine. The clues are sometimes entertainment focused, so a knowledge of pop culture helps, but the crossword puzzles also require word skills like word association, fantastic spelling, and a broad knowledge of synonyms and antonyms. We bet you can solve the puzzle before the players do!

10. Jeopardy

When you think of word games, Jeopardy might not come to mind immediately, but it definitely counts. The long-running trivia show relies heavily on word-based categories that stump contestants and viewers alike. If you’ve forgotten how it works, contestants pick trivia categories and then answer a series of questions in each category to compete for cash prizes. Past categories on Jeopardy have included compound words, 10-letter words, synonyms, slang words, and other word-focused trivia that challenges you to bring all of your vocabulary skills to the table. We’ll take that for $400!

11. Ask Me Another

NPR describes Ask Me Another as “an amusement park for your brain.” The radio show is recorded in front of a live audience and includes a thrilling mix of trivia, word games, and puzzles. Oh, and there are also celebrity guests! Word games include guessing well-known figures based off of puns on their names, playing with synonyms, and even an emoji quiz. The show stopped recording new episodes in 2021, but the website still has links to nine years’ worth of past weekly episodes to enjoy for free.

The topic of this page has a Wikia of its own: Password.

Hosts

Allen Ludden (1961–1980) Tom Kennedy (1980–1982) Jack Narz (1 segment from 1982) Bert Convy (1984–1989) Regis Philbin (2008–2009) Keke Palmer (2022-present)

Substitute Hosts

Jack Clark (1964–1965) Bill Cullen (1980)

Announcers

Jack Clark (1961–1967) Lee Vines (1961–1967) Bern Bennett (1961–1967) Frank Wayne (1964–1965 (sub)) John Harlan (1971–1975, 1979 (sub)) Gene Wood (1979–1982, 1984–1989) Rich Jeffries (1981–1982 (sub), 1984) Bob Hilton (1980–1982, 1985–1986 (sub)) Johnny Olson (1980 (sub)) A.D. Miles (2022-present)

Permanent Celebrity Guest

Jimmy Fallon (2022 version only)

Broadcast

CBS Daytime: 10/2/1961 – 9/15/1967 CBS Primetime: 1/2/1962 – 9/9/1965, 12/25/1966 – 5/22/1967 ABC Daytime: 4/5/1971 – 11/15/1974 ABC Daytime: 11/18/1974 – 2/21/1975 ABC Daytime: 2/24/1975 – 6/27/1975 NBC Daytime: 1/8/1979 – 3/26/1982 NBC Daytime: 9/24/1984 – 3/24/1989 CBS Primetime: 6/1/2008 – 6/14/2009 NBC Primetime: 8/9/2022 – present

Packagers

Mark Goodson/Bill Todman Productions (1961–1982) Mark Goodson Productions (1984–1989) (Fremantle)Media North America (2008–present) Electric Hot Dog (2022-present) Universal Television Alternative (2022-present)

Password is a game show where one player teams up with one celebrity to try to guess a secret password by using only one-word clues.

Since then, the franchise has had a plethora of incarnations such as Password All-Stars, Password Plus, Super Password and Million Dollar Password.

60s–70s Game Format[]

In the original from 1961 until 1974, two teams of two (consisting of one celebrity and one contestant) played Password for points. One player from each team (both celebrities or both contestants) was given the password while the home viewers saw the word on their screens (accompanied by the announcer whispering, «The Password is…»). Then the clue givers gave a one-word clue to get their partners to say the password. In the ABC version, the first team got the option to pass or play. Teams alternated turns until one guesser mentioned the password which gave the team points according to how many clues were given, starting at 10 and ending with 1 (5 in the ABC run). Should the guesser on the team in control say a form of the password, the guesser got one last chance to say the exact word. Whenever an illegal clue was given, a buzzer sounded, and the guesser lost a chance to guess the password, and giving away the password by the clue givers ended the word. The decisions whether the clues were good or bad were made by a word authority. In the CBS version, the authorities were Professor David H. Greene, a professor from New York University, and World Book Encyclopedia Dictionary editor Dr. Reason A. Goodwin. On ABC, the authorities were Dr. Robert Stockwell from UCLA and Carolyn Duncan. Partners on both teams alternated between giving & receiving, starting with the stars, then to the contestants; plus, the team that trailed or lost the last password (in case of a tie) started a new password. The first team to reach 25 points won the game ($100 to the contestant in the CBS daytime version and $250 in the CBS nighttime version) and went on the play the Lightning Round. By the end of the ABC run, the game was played best of three.

Lightning Round[]

In the Lightning Round, the celebrity on the winning team had 60 seconds (one minute) to get his/her partner to say five more passwords. If the contestant can’t guess the password, the celebrity can pass, but cannot return to it. Each password guessed was worth $50 meaning that the contestant can win up to $250. In the ABC version, after the main Lightning Round, the winning contestant can bet any or all of his/her winnings on one more password called the «betting word» in which the contestant now gave clues to the celebrity partner for the next 15 seconds. Later in the ABC run, the value per word was upped to $100 for a possible total of $500 ($1,000 for going all in and winning the betting word).

Returning Champions[]

On the CBS daytime version, contestants played 2 games (one with each celebrity), win or lose, with each game worth $100. If time remained, the celebrity and civilian teams would play a third game against each other: any money won by the civilian team (including that from the Lightning Round) was theirs to keep, any money won by the celebrity team would be donated to a charity or charities of their choice.

Originally on the nighttime version, 2 players stayed for the entire show. Starting that November, two new contestants played one game each, with winners receiving $250 ($500 total for completing the Lightning Round) and losers receiving $50.

On the ABC version, champions can stay until they are defeated or they win ten games. Later on, the limit was dropped.

Tournament of Champions[]

CBS[]

In 1965, the show adopted an annual «Tournament of Champions» where contestants on the daytime version who won both their games were invited back to compete for more money.

ABC[]

Every three months, the four top winners during that period would return for a quarterly contest. The winner would earn $1,000 and the right to compete in the annual Tournament of Champions. The winner of the annual contest won $5,000 and faced the previous year’s champion in a best-of-seven match for $10,000.

Password All-Stars/Password (’75)[]

On November 18, 1974, the format changed to have celebrities play the game but without contestants. Six celebrities played for one whole week, all playing for charity. In this version, celebrities earned points scored by the winning team they were on. The top four celebrities returned to play Friday’s game with the winning celebrity getting $5,000 plus a chance to play the Grandmaster Tournament for $25,000 more. This format was hated by fans of the show, so it was discontinued on February 21, 1975. The following Monday, the show reverted to its original form, contestants and all, but the new format remained. The show was canceled on June 27, 1975, to make room for a new charades game called Showoffs.

Main Game[]

The main game began with an elimination round with four contestants/celebrities seated across from two celebrities. The celebrities took turns giving one-word clues to the players, and the first player to buzz in with the correct password scored one point. An incorrect answer from the buzz-in player caused that player to sit out the rest of the word, and questioning about the clue after buzzing in ended the word right away, as did the failure to identify the password after four clues. The first two players to score three passwords (two for the celebrities) won the right to play Classic Password.

Classic Password was played the same as before, except that the clue giver on the first team was also given the option to double in addition to the pass/play option. Going for the double meant that the word would then be worth 20 points instead of 10; plus, both clue givers got one chance to get their partners to say the word. In the all-celebrities version, games were still played to 25 points, although any winning point total higher than 25 were kept (the most points a team could earn in a game was 44), when it switched back to the contestant/celebrity version, games were played to 50 points.

20/20 Password[]

In the All-Stars version, both celebrities on the winning team got 20 seconds to convey two passwords (one for each celebrity) to each other and score 20 points. The winning team’s score was given to both celebrities who then became clue givers for the next elimination round.

Password All-Stars

Password ’75

Big Money Lightning Round[]

When the show reverted to having contestants, a new and richer Lightning Round was played. The Big Money Lightning Round was now a three-level game. On each level, the celebrity had 30 seconds to get his/her partner to say three passwords. On the first two levels, each password guessed was worth money, and getting all three won extra money for every second leftover. The contestant must guess at least one password to go to the next level, for not getting any passwords right ended the round automatically; and if it happened on the second level, they still kept the money from the first level.

• Level 1 — Each word was worth $25. Getting all three earned $75 plus an additional $5 per second leftover.
• Level 2 — Each word was worth the total amount of money won on the first level. Getting all three earned an additional $10 per leftover second.
• Level 3 — The celebrity had another 30 seconds to get his/her partner to say the final three passwords. If the contestant did get all three he/she won ten times the cash won from both levels, but unable to get all three still kept the money won from both levels. Highest possible total, $9,750.

After the Big Money Lightning Round, the winning contestant along with the contestant he/she defeated in the main game played another elimination round with two new players. Contestants played until defeated or until they reached ABC’s $20,000 limit. Should a Big Money Lightning Round win put the contestant over the limit, the third level would be played for however much money was needed to reach $20,000. ABC increased the cap to $30,000 in April.

Password Plus/Super Password[]

From 1979 to 1989, NBC aired two new Password series in which teams do more than guess passwords but tried to solve puzzles for money as well. Winning teams had a chance to win even more money by guessing ten more passwords arranged in alphabetical order.

Main Game[]

In the main game, contestants & celebrities solved puzzles with five clues each. They earned a chance to solve the puzzle by playing Password, and the passwords were the clues to the puzzles.

A password was given to the clue givers and had a limited number of chances to get their partners to say the word. Each time the guesser mentioned the password, the password became a clue and it appeared on a puzzle board; plus the guesser had a chance to solve the puzzle. If the password was given away by the clue-giver, the right to solve the puzzle automatically went to the opposing guesser. Failure to solve the puzzle meant that another password/clue was played. If the guesser failed to solve the puzzle after five clues, the clue givers helped out by guessing the puzzle themselves. If the puzzle was missed entirely, another puzzle was played for the same amount. The first team to solve the puzzle won money and meeting a certain goal won the game and a chance to win more money.

Password Plus[]

The words appeared on the playing desk in the form of slides rather than being superimposed. When the word was given to the clue givers, the first clue giver had the same pass/play option from the ABC version. Failure to decide in time gave the opposing clue giver two clues instead of one. The teams had six chances (three clues for each giver) to get their partners to say the clue. In later episodes, it was reduced to four chances (two clues for each giver) Forms of the word were always accepted.

The first guesser to get the password won a chance to solve the puzzle; solving the puzzle won the round and the money attached to it for his/her team but failing to do so meant another clue was played in the same manner, with the team who lost the last password getting the option. Later shows had the team who won the last password getting the option. If the guesser who won the last password didn’t solve the puzzle after the fifth clue, the clue-giver was given a chance to solve the puzzle. If he/she failed, the puzzle was discarded (but it wasn’t before the audience was given a chance to solve it). Beginning with the April 23, 1979 episode of Password Plus and continuing until the series ended on March 26, 1982, a new rule was put into place. It disallowed any password’s direct opposite as a legal clue.

When the show started, the first two rounds were worth $100, and the next two were worth $200, with $300 needed to win the game. Later, a third $100 puzzle was added, after which the contestants did what host Tom Kennedy called “the crossover”: they traded celebrity partners (a nod to the original Password); that’s when the $200 puzzles started, and the first team to reach $500 wins the game.

Password Portion

Password Puzzle

The France/French Fiasco[]

Late in 1980, after Tom Kennedy became the permanent replacement for Allen Ludden, the freakiest Password Plus moment of all time occurred. The first password, FRENCH, was given to both Betty White and Dick Martin. Betty was awarded the option, and she chose to play. Betty mentioned, in a French accent, “Language”. Sherry Sojo, her contestant partner, responded with “Italian”. The buzzer then sounded, unsurprisingly, following which Dick then gave his partner, Kathy Cortez, “France” as his clue, to with Kathy responded “French”. Kathy was correct, but then the illegal clue siren quickly sounded. (Dick used “France”, from which we get “French”.) Tom admonished Dick for the illegal clue. Tom was supposed to give Sherry the guess; however, he mentioned, “Now we have another puzzle.” In fact, he repeatedly forgot that Sherry was supposed to guess! Tom quipped, “Boy, Allen has no idea what trouble he’s in.” Sherry then finally guessed “Hollandaise”. The buzzer sounded, indicating that was incorrect.

After Dick had Kathy correctly guess the second password, REVOLUTION, it seemed the game was back to normal. But, then came the third password: LOST. When Betty failed again, Dick used “lose”. Kathy was correct, but again, the illegal clue siren sounded late! (He used “lose”, from which we get “lost”.) This time, however, Tom did remember to give Sherry the guess. Sherry answered “The Battle of Waterloo”. The buzzer sounds again.

For the fourth password, HEAD, Betty gave Sherry “pate” as a clue. Sherry responded “Chopped liver”. No one got this hilarity-filled word right. The final password, QUEEN, then came up. Betty mentioned, “Victoria”, to which Sherry responded “Queen”, at which point the bell sounded.

Sherry now had a chance to solve; she mentioned, “Victoria”. The buzzer sounds, but Betty managed to save Sherry. She guessed «Marie Antoinette» (pronouncing it “Mary Antoinette”), which was the correct answer; the puzzle win bells then rang, and the puzzle was finally over.

Before it all started, Tom explained a scenario of this nature was usually edited out. But, this lasted nearly nine minutes, and was left in! Despite losing, Sherry was invited back for a future game.

Super Password[]

The gameplay was the same as Password Plus, except the pass/play option was dropped, and the «no opposites» rule was lifted. Therefore, opposite words were ruled legit again. Plus, if the team that won the last password couldn’t solve the puzzle, the opposing team had a chance to solve it. Also, starting in 1986, the famous phrase «The password is…» was reinstated for the first time since that practice was lifted at the start of the All-Stars version. It also revived the «last chance to guess» rule whenever a guesser gave a form of the word.

Each puzzle was worth $100 more than the previous, starting with $100, and ending at $400. After the second puzzle (the $200 puzzle) the team that solved that puzzle won the right to play the CA$HWORD game. This was where the celebrity gave up to three clues, trying to get the contestant to say the CA$HWORD. Correctly guessing the CA$HWORD won a cash jackpot which started at $1,000 and grew by that amount until won, with the highest being $12,000. This was bonus money that was the contestant’s to keep, regardless of the game’s outcome. If the celebrity gives an illegal clue, the CA$HWORD automatically ends. The contestants then switched celebrity partners. The first team to reach $500 or more won the game.

Password Puzzle

CA$HWORD

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In either version, the winning team got to play a bonus round for more money.

Bonus Round[]

In the bonus round (called Alphabetics in Password Plus, and The Super Password End Game in Super Password), the winning contestant was shown 10 letters which were all initials to 10 passwords and in alphabetical order. The celebrity’s job was to give a series of one-word clues to the contestant. The contestant can guess as many times as they want. Should the contestant guess the correct word, he/she won $100 and advances to the next word beginning with the next letter on the list. If the contestant can’t guess the word, the celebrity can pass that word and may return to it if time permits. No penalty was given to the receiver who guesses the wrong word. Getting all ten words in 60 seconds or less won a cash jackpot.

Alphabetics[]

In Alphabetics, if the contestant got all ten passwords within 60 seconds, he/she won $5,000 minus $1,000 for each illegal clue. In later shows, the jackpot was progressive, starting at $5,000 and increasing by that much each time it wasn’t won, with a maximum of $50,000 (which was never achieved). The biggest jackpot ever won was $35,000; $30,000 was won twice. Illegal clues reduced the jackpot by 20% ($2,500 for a brief period).

When the show started, the Alphabetics board was located at the entrance and the words were listed downward; it was later moved to a wall behind a set of doors so that it wouldn’t be in the way of the show’s logo that closed the entrance. Ludden called it «The Alphabetics Wall.» Also, the words were zigzagged down the board.

After each Alphabetics, the champion played a new game with the other celebrity; later, the champion stayed with the current celebrity until the third $100 puzzle was played, after which he/she would do the crossover. Champions stayed on the show until they lost or until they won seven times, after which they retired undefeated.

Super Password End Game[]

In the Super Password End Game in the mid-to-late 1980s version, the letters appeared in computer-animated boxes, which flipped in from side to side. Each active word resulted in its respective letter flashing to help the viewer. Each time a word was guessed correctly, the appropriate letter turned into a dollar sign. Getting all ten passwords within 60 seconds won the jackpot which still started at $5,000 and grew by that amount every time it wasn’t won. If the celebrity gave an illegal clue or used their hands, the appropriate letter turns black and voids the word in play, resulting in the team forfeiting the chance at the jackpot. There was no maximum jackpot in this version, the highest of which was $55,000 (which was won twice; however, the latter winner didn’t receive his winnings after it was discovered he was wanted for insurance fraud); also won on three occasions was $50,000, the second-highest jackpot. In all instances, the words were seen on a small monitor located near the contestant’s head but were only visible to the celebrity. Winning players stayed on the show until they won five games, or were defeated.

Kerry Ketchem Insident[]

In January 1988, a man later discovered to be a previously convicted felon with active warrants for his arrest appeared on Super Password. Kerry Ketchem, who competed on the program under the name «Patrick Quinn», won a total of $58,600 in cash over four days on Super Password, which included a record-tying $55,000 jackpot win in the bonus round. However, his appearance on the show led to his apprehension on charges of fraud.

Ketchem’s arrest came as the result of an investigation started when a bank manager in Anchorage, Alaska, called the United States Secret Service after having seen his episodes. He was discovered to have outstanding fraud warrants in Alaska and Indiana, and producer Robert Sherman was contacted by the Secret Service shortly thereafter. Around the same time, Ketchem—claiming that he was leaving the country on work-related business—called Mark Goodson Productions and asked if he could collect his winnings in person instead of having a check mailed to him, which is the usual standard procedure. Sherman said yes, with the knowledge of the Secret Service, and gave him a date and time. When Ketchem showed up to the Goodson offices he was apprehended and taken into custody by local officials. The arrest came two days after his appearances finished airing. Booked on the outstanding Indiana warrant, Ketchem was found to have used his «Patrick Quinn» alias (which came from the name of one of Ketchem’s college professors) to commit credit card fraud in Alaska; to defraud a used car dealer; and to collect illegally on an insurance policy on the life of his ex-wife. Ketchem, who had previously spent 18 months in prison on an unrelated felony charge, agreed to a plea deal in May 1988 on charges of mail fraud. He was sentenced to five years in prison and his winnings were rescinded as he was ruled to have violated contestant eligibility rules.

Possible 1998 Revival[]

According to an article from the November 11, 1997 issue of Broadcasting & Cable^[1] magazine, it was reported that a new syndicated version of Password was in the works with Gordon Elliott as host and would be produced by All American Television for the Fall 1998 season. The series never materialized.

Million Dollar Password[]

On June 1, 2008, CBS brought back Password in a new million-dollar format. Former Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? host Regis Philbin (who was a celebrity player on Password Plus) emceed the new version. It ended on June 14, 2009, after two seasons by making it the shortest incarnation of Password in history.

Main Game (Elimination Game)[]

Two teams of two (consisting of one contestant and one celebrity), played the game which was now in a Pyramid-like format.

Each team had 30 seconds to correctly guess five passwords, with each one scoring one point. On each word, the clue-giver could give as many one-word clues as possible, but they had to wait for the guesser to answer; otherwise, the word would be a disqualification. As soon as the guesser correctly guessed the word or if the giver passed, the team would move on to the next word (upon passing, the team could come back to the passed word(s) if and when time permitted, but giving an illegal clue, in addition to the rule above, disqualifies that word). The celebrities gave the clues in the first round, and the contestants gave clues in the second round.

The game was played in two halves, and after the first half, the contestants switched partners for the final half. After the second half, the team with the most points went on to play the Million Dollar Password round. If there was a tie at the end of the fourth round, the teams played a tiebreaker in Classic Password mode. In the Classic Password tiebreaker, the teams alternated turns with the contestants giving and the celebrities receiving until one team got the password and winning the game.

Million Dollar Password[]

In the Million Dollar round, the winning contestant partnered with the celebrity who scored the most points with that contestant (or the last celebrity partnered in case of a tie) and faced a six-level money ladder. To start, the contestant opted to either give or receive (more contestants wanted to give) throughout the round. Then on each level, the giver had 90 seconds to get his/her partner to say five out of a set number of words. On each word, the giver could give no more than three clues to his/her partner; using up all three clues, passing, or giving illegal clues threw out the word, and (of course) guessing the right word won that word. Getting five passwords in 90 seconds won the money attached to that level and the team advanced to the next level with one word fewer than the previous level. Running out of time or failure to have enough words to reach five ended the game.

Here’s how the money ladder went:

Level #	Goal	Prize
1	5 out of 10	$10,000
2	5 out of 9	$25,000 (Safety Net/Guarantee)
3	5 out of 8	$50,000
4	5 out of 7	$100,000
5	5 out of 6	$250,000 (Safety Net/Guarantee during season 2)
6	All five words	$1,000,000 (Grand Prize Jackpot)

Losing on the first or second level won nothing for the contestant. Winning the second (and/or fifth levels in season 2) did more than won the money but also guaranteed the contestant that amount of money. After each completed level, the contestant could either stop and take the money or continue playing for the million.

If the contestant did make it to the top two levels, he/she was shown the passwords at the start before making a decision. In the first season on the fifth ($250,000) level, the giver was shown the first five passwords, and in the second season, he/she was shown all six. Only one contestant opted to play for $250,000, but he lost, dropping back to $25,000.

Only one contestant won nothing during the two-season run (see below).

Subconscious Password[]

See Main Article for Details
In 2013, a 3-D comedic animated short based on the original incarnation was made by Chris Landreth as he forgets his friends’ name (John Dilworth) at a party.

Buzzr Version[]

From March 4, 2015 until June 18, 2016, a YouTube channel called Buzzr^[2]briefly had an online revival of Password with various internet celebrities as contestants hosted by Steve Zaragoza. The pilot episodes before it aired on January 6 until February 17, 2015.

2022 Version[]

This version uses the classic format but with a reduced scoring format. This time the top clue value will be six points and again, each new clue reduces the value by one. An illegal clue given at anytime ends the word and gives the opposing team two points. 15 points are now needed to win the game and it has brought back the best two out of three format used in the 70s revival. After the first game, the contestants change celebrity partners for the second game. If the clue giver gave away the password, their opponent scores 2 points.

When there’s a 1-1 tie, a tiebreaker will be played under the Password Puzzle format from the 70s & 80s but without the aid of celebrity partners and it is played on the buzzers. Keke will give each of the five Password clues one at a time. The first player to buzz-in will get first shot at the puzzle. An incorrect solve will give the opponent a chance to see the remaining clues and make a free guess. The first player to solve the puzzle wins the match.

The winning contestant will play an altered version of the Alphabetics round from Password Plus/Super Password. This time both celebrities will play; it is structured like Celebrity Name Game and The Hollywood Game. Plus, the contestant will always be the giver. As usual, 10 passwords arranged in alphabetical order will be presented. The winning contestant will have 60 seconds (30 for each celebrity) to get the celebrities to say all 10 passwords. As always, the giver can pass if they’re stuck and can come back to it if there’s time left on the clock. After the first 30 seconds with the first celebrity (which will be of the contestant’s choosing), the second 30 will be played with the second celebrity; should an illegal clue be given on any word during the first 30 seconds, a new word will replace the discarded one. Each password is worth $1,000 and getting all ten is worth $25,000. If the player does not convey all ten passwords after both 30 second attempts, a «Redemption Round» is played with one final password. The player gives one clue and puts on headphones while the two celebrities have 30 seconds to come up with one answer. If the celebrities’ guess is correct the player wins double the money (s)he has won in the bonus round (maximum possible = $18,000); otherwise, (s)he still keeps the initial money.

Possible Reboots[]

Password (Coming [Back] to ABC?)[]

In 2016, an article from Buzzerblog^[3]has received from an anonymous but reputable source that Password is listed as one of ABC’s new alternative series on the internal ABC’s affiliate website. Although 45 years ago there was already a version of Password on their network that aired from 1971 until 1975, the potential news comes on the heels of several announcements from ABC in what has, so far proven to be a landmark year for the traditional game show genre. The remake would’ve joined the likes such as Match Game with Alec Baldwin, To Tell the Truth with Anthony Anderson and The $100,000 Pyramid with Michael Strahan as well as Celebrity Family Feud (Harvey) and the two-season cancelled 500 Questions on its summertime primetime schedule. But, neither host, premiere date, and taping/casting information have been made since then.

Jimmy Fallon’s PASSWORD[]

After playing the game in its classic format several times during his current run on THE TONIGHT SHOW, host Jimmy Fallon is producing a revival of Password for NBC. The series, under the auspices of Fremantle, has started casting as of early 2022, which precludes the new show coming to air this summer.^[4][5]

It was announced that actress Keke Palmer will be the new host of Password and is the first woman to host the show.^[6][7]

This version featured a dedication to the late Betty White on the premiere episode and also featured contestants from Super Password.^[8]

International Versions[]

Countries that have done their versions of Password include the following:

• Australia
• Brazil (Classic and Million Dollar formats)
• France (Million Dollar format only)
• Greece (Million Dollar format only)
• Indonesia (Million Dollar format only)
• Japan
• Mexico (Million Dollar format only)
• New Zealand
• Portugal (Plus/Super format only)
• Slovakia (Million Dollar format only)
• Spain (Million Dollar format only)
• Sweden (Plus/Super format only)
• Turkey (Million Dollar format only)
• United Kingdom

Trivia[]

The show’s creator, Bob Stewart, would later create a similar show to Password called Pyramid.

In the ’71 version, the word «is» in the catchphrase «The Password is…» is dropped.

Both Plus & Million Dollar versions did not have the catchphrase «The Password is…».

In the Super version, the catchphrase «The Password is…» was reinstated starting on October 20, 1986 where it hadn’t been used since the start of the All-Star version of Password in 1974. Additionally, it also revived the «last chance to guess» rule whenever a guesser gave a form of the word.

The Plus version was original going to be called Password ’79 similar to the series Match Game.

Password Plus the first game show where Tom Kennedy and Gene Wood made their appearances together. The second was Body Language.

Super Password managed to last 4½ years despite being placed in the «death slot» of noon ET/11am CT/MT/PT on NBC for its entire run, where it was prone to be preempted for local news.

It has been recently reported that NBC had greenlit a reboot of Password with Jimmy Fallon, current host of The Tonight Show. For the longest time, he had the game on his show.^[9][10]On January 24, 2022 a casting notice was sent.^[11]

The 2022 version aired on the same day as the second Spanish-language version of Top Chef as Top Chef VIP hosted by Carmen Villalobos on Telemundo.

Episode Status[]

The CBS version is mostly intact (save for a few years of the daytime version) and has been rerun on Game Show Network and Buzzr.

The ABC version is almost completely lost with only a few episodes known to exist. An orange set episode (featuring Jack Klugman & Brett Somers) has been aired twice on GSN in 2006 and 2007 as a tribute to Somers’ death. Sixteen years later, this episode aired on Buzzr as part of a marathon called «Password Summer Beach Party» in 2022. The finale of Password All-Stars and the blue set Password Finale both exist due to home recordings. Another studio master of a blue set episode also exists. A kinescope of the blue set was found, in which Betty White gets to host the show while Allen Ludden and Paul Williams play as celebrity guests. It was available as an extra for the Betty White’s Pet Set DVD collection.

It was unknown the reason Mark Goodson didn’t save copies of this version as he did with most of his shows. It was believed the tapes for this version were reused to record Family Feud due to a person finding a Password label under the label of a Family Feud master.

Password Plus is completely intact and has been rerun on GSN and Buzzr.

Super Password is completely intact and has been rerun on GSN and Buzzr as well.

Million Dollar Password has been rerun on GSN and Buzzr as part of «Password Triple Play».

On July 2, 2018, GameTV in Canada started airing reruns of Super Password^[12], which aired the first 65 episodes of the series. The show left the GameTV schedule on July 2, 2019.

Rating[]

1963-1974

1979-present

Music[]

1961: «Holiday Jaunt» by Kurt Rehfield
1963: «You Know the Password» by Bob Cobert
1971: «The Fun of It» by Edd Kalehoff
1974 (All-Stars): «Bicentennial Funk» by Charles Fox for Score Productions
1979 (Plus): «Not Enough Disco Inferno» by Michel Camilo & Walt Levinsky for Score Productions
1984 (Super): «Stardust» by Gary Anderson for Score Productions
2008 (Million Dollar): Lewis Flinn

Studios[]

60s Version[]

CBS Studio 50/52, New York City, NY
Studio 33/43, CBS Television City, Los Angeles, CA

70s Version[]

ABC Television Center, Los Angeles, CA
Vine Street Theater, Los Angeles, CA

Plus and Super Versions[]

NBC Studio 3, Burbank, CA

Million Dollar Version[]

Kaufman Astoria Studios, New York City, NY (Season 1)
CBS Radford Studios, Los Angeles, CA (Season 2)

2022 Version[]

Universal Studios

Inventors[]

Bob Stewart, Mark Goodson & Bill Todman

Additional Pages[]

Password/Celebrity Guests
Password/Password Plus Episode Guide
Password/Super Password Episode Guide
Password/In Popular Culture
Password/Merchandise
Password/Quotes & Catchphrases
Password/Picture Gallery
Password/Video Gallery

References[]

Links[]

Password @ Tim’s TV Showcase
Password Rules @ Loogslair.net
ABC Password Fan Site
Password Plus Fan Site

Super Password Fan Site
The Super Password Page @ Bertconvy.net (archived)
A blog about «Super Password»
Official Site of the 2022 Version

Videos[]

Comedy Central — Buzzword (2005) :30 (USA)

YouTube[]

Password Plus
One Clue Guesses from Password Plus
The Biggest Alphabetics Win of all ($35,000)

Super Password
One Clue Guesses from Super Password
The Biggest Super Password End Game Win of all ($55,000)
Contestant Robbed of $15K then $30K!
Another Contestant Robbed of $10K!
The Biggest Super Password Winner!

Million Dollar Password
The Only $0 Winner

The All New Password
Password Is Back Starring Jimmy Fallon with Host Keke Palmer!
Sneak Peek!

by jordanhores
| created — 25 Dec 2018
| updated — 27 Sep 2019
|

Public

This list is a list of the greatest game shows in television history based on critical reception, diversity and cultural impact. Including both retro, (pre-1960s,) and modern, (1970s-present.) Excluding those with mixed, negative and panned reception. No specific ranking.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Catchword
Genre	Game show
Created by	Bryan Mitchell
Presented by	Gyles Brandreth (BBC1 Scotland) Paul Coia (BBC2)
Theme music composer	«Orient Express» by Jean-Michel Jarre (1985–90)
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
No. of series	2 (BBC1 Scotland) 8 (BBC2)
No. of episodes	13 (BBC1 Scotland) 457 (BBC2)
Production
Running time	30 minutes
Production company	Leslie Mitchell Associates
Release
Original network	BBC1 Scotland (1985–86) BBC2 (1988–95)
Picture format	4:3
Original release	17 May 1985 – 23 May 1995

Catchword is a daytime word game show first shown on BBC1 Scotland from 17 May 1985 until 2 April 1986, hosted by Gyles Brandreth, and then network on its sister channel BBC2 from 5 January 1988 until 23 May 1995, hosted by Paul Coia.

A computer referred to as Bryan was used to generate words and check the validity of contestants’ responses.

Format[edit]

In the odd-numbered rounds, contestants scored one point per valid word, and a three-point bonus was awarded for the longest word. If two or more contestants tied for the longest word, each of them received the bonus. Words had to appear in the Chambers Dictionary in order to be valid; proper nouns and hyphenated words were not allowed.

The even-numbered rounds were played on the buzzer, with one point for each correct answer. If no one buzzed-in for a certain length of time, Coia would give a clue to the answer.

Round 1 – Four Second Word Game[edit]

Each contestant in turn was shown 10 different sets of three consonants, one every four seconds. For each set, the contestant had to give a word that started with the first consonant and included the other two in the specified order (e.g. «calamity» for C-L-M).

Round 2 – Hall of Fame[edit]

Ten anagrams or sets of scrambled letters were generated, one at a time, and the contestants buzzed-in and tried to rearrange each set into a name that fit a specified category.

Round 3 – Flying Solo[edit]

One at a time, each contestant was given a set of three consonants and had 30 seconds to think of as many words as possible that started with the first and included the other two in order. Each valid word awarded one point; however, if the contestant gave multiple words that were deemed to have the same root (e.g. «profit» and «profiteer»), only the longest word was counted.

During the first three series, a set of three letters would appear. From series 4 on, the centre consonant was replaced by a joker and the contestant had to decide which consonant it would represent before starting to form any words.

Round 4 – They Said It / Hidden Word in a Sentence[edit]

Eight poems were generated, one at a time. Each poem had one incomplete word, which the contestants had to finish.

From series 5 onward, this round was replaced by «Hidden Word in a Sentence». The contestants were shown a sentence in which a word had been hidden, typically comprising the end of one word and the start of the next, and which was phrased to include a clue to that word. (E.g. «Pill used by table tennis player» would lead to «tablet».) The contestants had to buzz-in and state the hidden word. Seven sentences were played.

Round 5 – Through the Vowel[edit]

Three 3-by-3 grids of nine letters were played, each with a vowel in the centre surrounded by consonants. Each contestant in turn read off a line of three letters that included the vowel, then gave a word that started with the first consonant and included the other two letters in order. The two consonants in the line were removed from the grid before the next contestant’s turn, and a new grid was played after all three had given a word.

A line of letters could be played reading in either direction, such as «Y-A-T» becoming «yachtswomen» or «T-A-Y» becoming «treasury».

Round 6 – Synonym Game[edit]

The contestants were shown one pair of words at a time; within each pair, one word had been scrambled and was a synonym for the other. The contestants had to buzz-in and give the unscrambled word.

Final Round[edit]

The Four Second Word Game was played again, under the same rules as Round 1.

At the end of this round, the high scorer became the day’s champion and was invited to return for the next show. Any contestant who won five matches in a row retired undefeated.

Prizes[edit]

The winner of each match received a reference book of their choice (dictionary, thesaurus, etc.) as their prize. Undefeated champions won a larger prize, such as a home computer package or a learning vacation.

Transmissions[edit]

BBC1 Scotland[edit]

Series	Start date	End date	Episodes
1	17 May 1985	28 June 1985	7
2	24 February 1986	2 April 1986	6

BBC2[edit]

Series	Start date	End date	Episodes
1	5 January 1988[1]	11 March 1988[2]	40
2	14 November 1988[3]	17 February 1989[4]	50
3	6 November 1989[5]	2 February 1990[6]	50
4	19 November 1990[7]	25 March 1991[8]	68
5	11 November 1991[9]	18 March 1992[10]	62
6	26 October 1992[11]	18 February 1993[12]	61
7	1 November 1993[13]	10 March 1994[14]	62
8	24 October 1994[15]	23 May 1995[16]	64

References[edit]

External links[edit]

• Catchword at IMDb
• Catchword at the British Film Institute
• Catchword at UKGameshows.com