The Rich List (U.S. game show)

Infobox Television
show_name = The Rich List


caption = Host Eamonn Holmes on the set of "The Rich List"
genre = Game show
creator = Jim Cannon
Andy Culpin
Sam Pollard
David Young
director = Bob Levy
presenter = Eamonn Holmes
country = United States
language = English
num_seasons = 1
num_episodes = 5 (4 unaired)
executive_producer = David Young
Mike Beale
Andy Culpin
network = FOX
first_aired = November 1, 2006
imdb_id = 0889506
tv_com_id = 65309

"For other versions of the show, please see The Rich List."

"The Rich List" was a short-lived American television game show on FOX, that aired its only episode on November 1, 2006 at 9PM ET / PT. The show was then cancelled two days later by FOX after rating poorly in comparison to its slot competitors, "Lost" (on ABC) and CBS' "Criminal Minds". It was produced by the British company 12 Yard, who also produced "Weakest Link" and "Dog Eat Dog". It featured competitors making lists of things, such as ABBA songs or Steven Spielberg movies, with the winning team being the one that could name the most. British television presenter Eamonn Holmes was the host.

In the episode, Holmes stated, "Our top prize is so big...well, we don't have a top prize!"

Main Game

Two teams of two players each competed. The teams were placed in separate soundproof isolation booths, with audio that could be turned on or off by the host, much like the "Twenty-One" game show. He would announce the category for the list, such as "Tom Cruise Movies" or "Top 50 Broadway Shows of All Time," and the teams would take turns bidding on how many they think they could name.

The host would switch the audio on and off between booths as the bidding continued, then turn them both on when one team dared the other to fulfill the bid. That team would then need to come up with that many correct answers in a row in order to win the list. One mistake would award it to their opponents.

The first team to win two lists won the game and went on to the bonus round.

Tiebreaker

If each team won one list, a sudden death tiebreaker was played. The host would give the category, both booths are switched on, and the teams alternate their answers. In order to win the list and the game, one team would have to give a correct answer while their opponents missed.

Bonus Round

The winning team was given a new category by Holmes and had the chance to supply up to 15 right answers. Winnings increased after every third one as shown in the table below.

Past Lists

International Versions

* Fox promos for "The Rich List" in the weeks leading up to its debut had mentioned that the show was the most addicting game show to come out of the UK since "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?". However, despite being created by a British group, "The Rich List" had not then been televised in Britain (the US version was first to air). Before the US version was announced, Holmes did host a pilot for ITV, but the show was not picked up. It later aired as a tie-in for the UK national lottery on BBC One under the title "Who Dares Wins", hosted by Nick Knowles.

* In Australia, Seven Network picked up the rights to the show and announced plans to air a local version before the US version premiered. The program is hosted by "Deal or No Deal" host Andrew O'Keefe. The pilot episode was taped on October 18, 2006. The show began taping episodes for air on December 11, 2006 and auditions for contestants for the show continue. The money amounts for the final round are the same as on the US show, except in Australian dollars. The show premiered on January 29, 2007.

* In Germany, "The Rich List" is produced for the German TV channel Sat.1. Kai Pflaume is the host. The format and rules appear to be identical to those on the US and Australian versions, although the prize values for the bonus list are less (the top prize for completing the bonus list is €100,000). The show premiered as a three-night event on May 26, 2007, and will now run Saturdays and Sundays at 7:15PM. [http://www.sat1.de/comedy_show/richlist/]

* In New Zealand, "The Rich List" is produced for TVNZ and airs on TV ONE. Applications for the show were opened at the beginning of April 2007. The grand prize for completing the bonus list is NZ$50,000. The host is Jason Gunn.

Cancellation

After only one episode receiving poor ratings, the show was pulled from its time slot, to be replaced by a special new episode of "The O.C." the following week, which struggled the next night during its season premierehttp://www.variety.com/article/VR1117953285.html?categoryid=14&cs=1&nid=2565] . After the announcement, "The Rich List"'s page on FOX.com's website was removed. "The Rich List" became the second U.S. program in the 2006 calendar year (after ABC's "Emily's Reasons Why Not" in January), and the first of the 2006-07 television season, to be canceled after a single telecast.

Future version

It was reported by BuzzerBlog that a new American version of the show will be produced for GSN under the title "The Money List". Trial episodes of the series were taped in London, England on the set of "Who Dares Wins" at The London Studios from August 27 to 30, 2008 with Fred Roggin as host. The top prize will be $50,000, which is the same top prize amount as the UK and New Zealand versions. [ [http://buzzerblog.flashgameshows.com/rich-list-revival-information-going-to-gsn Buzzer Blog story from August 30, 2008] ]

See also

*List of television series cancelled after one episode

References

External links

* [http://au.blogs.yahoo.com/the-rich-list/ Official site for the Australian version]
* [http://www.freewebs.com/game-shows/whatsnewingameshows GSF-What's New in Game Shows-The Rich List]
* [http://www.zap2it.com/tv/news/zap-foxgameshowtherichlist,0,6211412.story?coll=zap-tv-headlines Zap2It article]
* [http://www.tvsquad.com/2006/09/01/new-game-show-coming-to-fox-the-rich-list/ TVSquad Article]