Game Show Network Turns 30: See 10 Original Shows You May Have Missed
Q: When did Game Show Network launch?
A: December 1, 1994.
Q: What was the first game show aired on the cable channel?
A: What’s My Line?
Q: Did Game Show Network venture into original programming?
A: Yes, with some shows you may have heard of — including the original American version of The Chase and a long-running edition of Lingo — and many you probably haven’t — including the shows below.
As Game Show Network celebrates its 30th birthday, we’re rummaging through the archives to unearth some of the channel’s short-lived originals. How many did you see?
20Q (2009)
Hosted by Cat Deeley and based on the handheld electronic game of the same name, 20Q had contestants battling each other and a computer character (voiced by Hal Sparks) in 20 Questions-style challenges for cash prizes. (And yes, this game show was bigger than a breadbox.)
Camouflage (2007)
This game show had the letters to the puzzle answers consecutively hidden among decoy letters. For example, take the puzzle is “IF THEY’RE BOUNDING AROUND THEIR PARENTS, TIE LEASHES.” Your clue is “Television show about hyperactive children?” And the answer is The Young and the Restless.
Cram (2003)
How much can you accomplish after 24 hours without sleep? That was the question of this game show, in which contestant duos were sequestered in a Hollywood Boulevard storefront for 24 hours, given study material to cram, and then quizzed on that material while subjected to physical challenges. (Fun!)
Extreme Dodgeball (2004–2005)
Yes, the schoolyard game of dodgeball did inspire a Game Show Network show, in which themed teams — groups of mimes, sumo wrestlers, body-builders, and so on — competed to peg opponents with dodgeballs. And this series had big balls — as in, dodgeballs twice the diameter of normal ones.
Hellevator (2015–2016)
From famed horror film producer Jason Blum came this 2015 game show in which teams of contestants took a “haunted” elevator to different floors of a spooky warehouse, attempting to survive the frightening challenges on each level. Think “haunted house with an escape-room twist.”
Hidden Agenda (2010)
Imagine Candid Camera as a game show, and you have the gist of this one-season production. In Hidden Agenda, one half of a couple tried the other half to do outrageous things without letting on that they’re on a game show and hidden cameras are following their every move.
How Much Is Enough? (2008)
With Corbin Bernsen as host, players secretly buzzed in to stop a “money clock” on this show. The greediest player got nothing, so the trick was to buzz in second to last. GSN called this a “network-defining show,” but apparently, one solitary season is how much was enough.
Jep! (1998–2000)
Imagine Jeopardy! with pre-teen contestants, toy prizes, penalty boxes, and plushie deluges, and you have Jep!, a kid-centric spinoff of America’s favorite quiz show. Alex Trebek wasn’t the host — that would be Porky Pig voice actor Bob Bergen — but the late Jeopardy! emcee did serve as a consultant.
National Vocabulary Championship (2007–2008)
It didn’t take off like the Scripps National Spelling Bee did, but for two consecutive years, GSN and The Princeton Review teamed up to give teens across the country a chance to win $40,000 toward college tuitions with their vast, voluminous, and… um… very large vocabularies.
The Line (2014)
Hordes of people queued up for this game show, and that was the point. At the front of the line, contestants could win a jackpot by answering eight trivia questions correctly. But while they were waiting, they could play mini-games to better their chances. If you did catch this show, you’re a true GSN devotee — only one two-hour episode aired!