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Studio 33 - Price is Right Discussion => The TALK Is Right => Topic started by: Prizes on April 12, 2020, 04:30:25 PM

Title: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Prizes on April 12, 2020, 04:30:25 PM
Roger Dobkowbitz made a rather important, salient point on Facebook about the show as it stands today: What’s the future of a show like this in these times? I tend to think he was a bit pessimistic but the overall point stands that this is a show that, like LMAD (but unlike Wheel, Jeopardy, Millionaire), simply cannot tape with social distancing given the live selection of unknown long audience members. You’ve got a host close to players, who is then in touch with hundreds more at a time, often twice on a giving taping day, plus all the people Drew is in correspondence with for other events, theoretically. It compares really to a smaller scale sporting event, and those are in limbo for even the fall events right now, like college football.

I think short term you’re airing reruns once this season finishes up in June at least until 2021. But from there? What’s practical? Does the show die off in light of safety concerns if we still haven’t found some sort of long term medical treatment? I don’t mean to make this about the virus itself but it’s absolutely the impetus for what’s going to happen one way or the other here.

I think eventually you’re going to have to try electronic methodologies through something like Discord if there’s bottom line interest from CBS to ensure new content of their well-rated program(s) eventually happen(s). The other genuine possibility is cancellation, given a would-be lack of viability to these options. Personally, this is unlikely, but warrants mention.

Any other ideas? It might be a bit early for such talk given how much can change, but it’s a message board. It’s meant to invoke speculation by means of discussion.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: imhomerjay on April 12, 2020, 04:49:42 PM
It’s a very valid question and is applicable across the entertainment spectrum. There are going to be very long-term ramifications until there is a vaccine, and that assumes no additional pandemic, when the whole thing could repeat.

Narrowed down to Price and its closest peer, I think we’ve seen the end for a prolonged period. Yes, people will gradually return to workplaces, but the world is changing dramatically. Some shows can be reasonably adapted, even if the effect is clearly different. As constructed, Price isn’t. And I don’t see a practical long-term way to make it work.

Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: tpiradam on April 12, 2020, 06:08:53 PM
I do feel it may be a tad early to speculate anything but I will definitely weigh in with some opinions. The way I see it is that as long as these measures are in place for the time being there isn't much that can be done. Once this pandemic is over I don't think things will immediately go back to the way they were but I certainly don't see it as a cause for ending the show.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: SteveGavazzi on April 12, 2020, 06:27:56 PM
I think there's a certain amount of overreacting going on here.  Yes, the show will have to stay shut down for a while and maybe even forgo finishing out the season, but once Los Angeles sees fit to lift its lockdown order, I'd imagine most productions will be champing at the bit to get back up and running.  There might need to be some extra restrictions in place for a while -- say, limiting the audience to residents of LA or refusing entry to people from certain states or cities -- but I really doubt this is going to lead to a massive overhaul of where people sit, never mind how the whole show is produced.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: gamesurf on April 12, 2020, 06:56:59 PM
Roger Dobkowbitz made a rather important, salient point on Facebook about the show as it stands today: What’s the future of a show like this in these times? I tend to think he was a bit pessimistic but the overall point stands that this is a show that, like LMAD (but unlike Wheel, Jeopardy, Millionaire), simply cannot tape with social distancing given the live selection of unknown long audience members.

I no longer trust Roger to give a fair assessment of the show. I love hearing his old war stories about his days, but he hasn't been privy to the information CBS would need to make that decision for 12 years now, and he's writing mostly for an army of sycophants.

There's a non-zero chance this changes the landscape of TV irrevocably. I certainly hope that doesn't happen. That possibility deserves to be considered. But to a large chunk of Roger's audience, the show died years ago and they're just using his post as an opportunity to soapbox and complain about their pet issues. I don't think that feedback loop is worth paying attention to.

I think short term you’re airing reruns once this season finishes up in June at least until 2021. But from there? What’s practical? Does the show die off in light of safety concerns if we still haven’t found some sort of long term medical treatment? I don’t mean to make this about the virus itself but it’s absolutely the impetus for what’s going to happen one way or the other here.

My understanding is that "flattening the curve" assumes that people are going to get sick, but if we stretch that period out our hospitals can cope. It does not assume that we can contain it totally, or that we can reasonably keep people from getting together in groups until a vaccine is developed (which is likely 12-18 months away) But it does assume that we can prevent hospitals from being overwhelmed and that those most at risk will be able to get the care they need.

It is unreasonable to assume everybody will be able to keep up social distancing for a year. People are going to have to be reintroduced into society before there's a real vaccine, taking appropriate precautions.

But that isn't going to happen on the same schedule all over the country. Different areas are going to have different timetables of recovery. Some areas are going to be fine after a few weeks and get to move on, but that does not mean the rest of the country is safe to follow suit.

California began social distancing early. They have been doing a fine job of flattening the curve, which will save lives and prevent hospitals from being overwhelmed. That also has the side effect of stretching the curve out.

Even if other areas in the country get cleared to be reintroduced, theaters open, etc., that doesn't mean that LA is going to suddenly be open for business and they're going to just throw open the floodgates in California. Hub airports are a big potential risk.

It compares really to a smaller scale sporting event, and those are in limbo for even the fall events right now, like college football.

I would think college football has a better chance of happening than most other forms of entertainment. Whether that means playing without fans, splitting the season from October/November-February/March or pushing the entire season to the spring. If college football doesn't happen at all, the loss of revenue will be financially devastating for many universities.

I think eventually you’re going to have to try electronic methodologies through something like Discord if there’s bottom line interest from CBS to ensure new content of their well-rated program(s) eventually happen(s).

I hope not. I welcome Price trying to adapt, but doing it without an audience cheering you on just isn't the same. Price is more than its games and host and props--without the atmosphere it just isn't the same. I would prefer seeing reruns for a year before I would want to see contestants Skyping in. It would make the program a fundamentally different show.

Heck, I would even take "studio at 1/3 capacity, two of every three seats are taped off, all audience members must be under 50, in perfect health, and prove they reside in LA and didn't fly here" before I would want to see contestants Skyping in.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: 123123123 on April 12, 2020, 06:58:49 PM
It's probably early to be thinking so far ahead, but it's still an interesting hypothetical to think, however unlikely it might be.

Sport entertainment seems to be held in higher regard than others forms of entertainment in terms of getting them back on track, probably due to the amount of money they bring in. I believe if and when televised music festivals, fashion shows, other forms of non-sport entertainment come back and the protocols put into place will give more information on how large audiences such as TPiR will be dealt with for the forseeable future.

First thought is I hope that any decision made, whether that be going back to taping, revamping the show or canceling altoghether, is not made in a haste. Like Prizes said above, reruns for the next season would not be the worst thing if it meant it gave whoever in charge more time to come up with a plausible solution. I'm pretty sure on any given day, the only people who realize an episode is old are on this site. 

Next, this is based on the idea that we as society are incapable of discovering some type of treatment/cure besides self-quarantine. Of course, with all the clinial trials and federal regulations that would have to be cleared, it seems a bit unlikely such a treatment could be found and then streamlined across hospitals in multiple cities/countries efficiently in a timely manner. If there is anyone who has more knowledge about the timeline of vaccinations/drug treatments, please feel free to correct me.

So the best way I could see them doing if taping in 2021 rolled around with conditions similar to now is trying to minimize physical interaction to as little as possible. First off, the "easier" part to figure out probably would be gameplay. Most of the games on the show don't need the contestant to touch anything, or even be on the stage to play (other than Race Game & Bonkers). My thought is there could be a designated area/podia where the contestant stays while they tell Drew or one of the models what their choices are.

Now, the hard part would be recreating the audience hype TPiR is known for. I feel attempting to try and get a consistenly large audience for taping with virus scares would be too much to ask, so I would attempt to try and garner attention in a different way. Let me preface by stating I wouldn't want to change the format if possible, I'm merely stating different possibilities for the sake of the conversation at hand. My idea would be to have a single contestant for each episode and, at the onset, the home audience learns a little bit more about them (family, life story, etc.). Then that one contestant plays though pricing games until they lose, where they keep what they've already won. Then another contestant would come up and repeat. Remember when Ken Jennings was on his historic streak? Imagine how it would look when someone win some absurd amount of pricing games in a row.

Once again, let me emphasize that this would be a downgrade to the great show we have now and there probably won't be a need for any revamping, but I doubt that CBS would let their award winning game show go down without trying everything.  :-)
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: tpir04 on April 12, 2020, 07:00:36 PM
There's one thing we have to ask ourselves before we make any attempt to discuss the future of the show: Will the coronavirus become a permanent part of our way of life? No. Of course not. We'll overcome it just like we've overcome every other plague we've been afflicted with. That being said, what benefit would CBS/Fremantle gain by cancelling the show for something that is temporary? Nothing. If anything they'll lose the viewers that the regular season (and by extension the reruns) pulls in. As far as contestant selection is concerned, there's really nothing stopping the producers from only letting 100 people in per taping (or less if needed) and having them sit six feet apart. We've had a limited audience before, we can sure as hell do it again.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: thepriceis_J on April 12, 2020, 08:07:26 PM
I really don't understand the cancellation talk. A lot of shows use audience and every show that uses an audience is not going to get canceled. Yes, I know the audience is more important to Price and LMAD, but they'll be fine.

Like Steve said, once restrictions are lifted, a lot of people are going to be itching to go back out and that includes attending shows. Again, repeating him, there might need to be a change in some procedure or audience size, but the show will be fine even if things will never be truly normal again. Referencing something tpir04 mentioned, the show recorded an episode with a severely handicapped audience in the late 80s when a storm hit LA. Both sides of the studio were empty and it created a peculiar situation of trying to shoot around that. The show still came out fine.

Drew's been hosting the series for 13 years and the show's been going for 48. There are plenty of episodes to repeat and run in the interim until things get back to normal and I'd honestly be surprised if the show doesn't live through this. This just all seems like an overreaction and high strung speculation.

If there is a need to create content or to get the cast and crew back to work during this, I do like the idea of having at home contestants video call in to play individual pricing games. Drew and Co. in studio with prizes and props of games that could translate and easily be played remotely by folks at home. LMAD has previously done at home deals, and Let's Ask America existed, so that's certainly something I could find possible.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: jayfranken on April 12, 2020, 08:22:24 PM
The Price is Right is VERY re-run friendly, the vast majority of the viewing audience wouldn't even notice they were watching a rerun in Spring 2021 unless George is saying something along the lines of "It's a 2020 Kia Rio". And with a large segment of the population home for the forseeable future that likely missed episodes over the last few years when they were first aired it would likely be one of the more cost-effective decisions CBS could make to make sure it was on their schedule.

Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Wayoshi on April 12, 2020, 08:35:02 PM
A vaccine is far away but one will come, we humans are good at engineering, the process for a vaccine is just naturally on the length of 1-2 years.

So worst case, the show is on reruns for a year plus? CBS could use this time to air some of the best eps of all time, if they're smart.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Superballer on April 12, 2020, 09:46:25 PM
As you note, we will get a functional vaccine in due time.  If we're really lucky, perhaps either an effective stopgap treatment (maybe the plasma therapy that has been mentioned from time to time) will come into common usage in the interregnum, or the best case scenario, the virus mutates into a less virulent form where it's no longer deadly.  It will take some time to get all this together, but by and large we are on the right path as of now. 

A best episodes of all time series to fill any gaps would indeed be great if it can come together.  Of course, episodes featuring furs and models Bob's still at odds with will likely be out of play for the time being, but that still leaves plenty available to work with (would any royalties have to be paid to Mark Goodson's and Bill Todman's estates/heirs for episodes where they were still in charge?) 
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: mechamind on April 12, 2020, 09:49:14 PM
With all the trips offered, I really can't say the show is re-run friendly, at least not for now.

They'd have to phase out all the trips, portable cameras, and other small travel items. Bring in more home theater/household prize packs, desktop computers, and kitchen appliances. That can help send the proper message: STAY THE doop HOME.

Even if you win a car or cash prize, you could save it for later when things return to normal. You can't do that with a trip.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: gamesurf on April 12, 2020, 10:06:09 PM
With all the trips offered, I really can't say the show is re-run friendly, at least not for now.

Why not? They're already running first-run shows with that disclaimer. "This episode was taped before the COVID-19 outbreak." It's already obvious, since there's 300 people in the studio. What's the difference between that and reruns?
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: JayC on April 12, 2020, 10:55:59 PM
I would guess that they will look to start taping again after stay at home orders are lifted in California, and they would possibly limit contestants to just from California, lower the number of people in the audience and give everyone a temperature and symptom check, and not offer trips until there is a widely available vaccine. Of course it would be bad if they did start taping again and then there ends up being a case among the staff or someone that was in the audience then they would have to stop taping again for probably two weeks. Worst case scenario is they have to air reruns until late this year or sometime next year. Doing the show with Drew in the studio and contestants video calling in might work, but there's a limited amount of games that it would be feasible (mainly the quick games and ones that don't require physical action by the contestant).

Also, if they are able to, it would be really nice for them to do a special saluting healthcare workers.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Mr. Weatherman on April 13, 2020, 03:08:06 AM
All of us on this board come from different areas of the country (some of us are in different countries entirely!) and are subject to — in some cases — vastly different protocol for handling this virus.  I live in Tennessee, and unless an announcement is made today, our stay-at-home order ends Tuesday.  By all indications, we’re trying to reopen the state for business as soon as possible.  I won’t argue the potential benefits or consequences of that decision, but that’s where we are at.  Compare that to a state like Michigan where you aren’t even allowed to travel to a second home if you own one anywhere in the state.

My point is, we’ll all be at different stages come this summer.  We’ll probably be back to playing Little League games with a full crowd in my state.  New York might just be opening JCPenny back up (assuming they even survive this) at that point.  Given the success California has had so far, it wouldn’t surprise me if studios reopen within the next couple of months — Television City included.  Will Price have to be shot with a limited audience?  Maybe so.  Will the show go an entire year without tapings and be subject to cancellation?  Hell no!

Most of you may never have heard of him, but Clay Travis is a popular sports media influencer in the Nashville area with over 600,000 followers on Twitter — mostly sports fans.  He ran a poll the other day asking his followers (who are, again, mostly sports fans) if they would be willing to attend a sporting event this summer or fall without a coronavirus vaccine existing.  77% of respondents said “yes,” and that’s out of 89,000+ people who voted — a really great and genuine sampling of sports fans.  Translate that to other avenues, and Price will have no problem filling an audience once they get the go-ahead.  I don’t buy into the argument that we’re going to somehow become anti-social at public gatherings because of this.  Just my opinion, but I certainly won’t change my habits, especially once we either a) have a vaccine or b) have a widespread, proven treatment with drastically positive results.

Our favorite game show will be fine.  We might see limited audiences or a delayed start to Season 49, but the show isn’t going away.  The better question to ask is how will the prize budget be impacted?  If the economy is slow to recover, CBS will have a much harder time selling ads at the rate they’ve been accustomed to, which will translate into a limited prize budget.  Also, trips are their bread and butter for cutting corners with the budget.  If you can’t offer trips until a vaccine is released, how do you fill that gaping hole without destroying the budget?  Those are the questions I’m more interested in right now, not speculation over something that has a less than .01% chance of happening.

Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: SilverFirePrime on April 13, 2020, 02:47:31 PM

So worst case, the show is on reruns for a year plus? CBS could use this time to air some of the best eps of all time, if they're smart.


Absolutely.  You have Drew give a brief intro on why the episode is being shown, and go from there.  You could even do clip shows of big wins, retired PGs, bloopers, Price around the world. 
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: EvilChameleon on April 13, 2020, 04:37:11 PM
I think TPIR tapings will return before we see fans at sporting events, or guests at amusement parks.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: BillyGr on April 13, 2020, 05:15:54 PM
As you note, we will get a functional vaccine in due time.  If we're really lucky, perhaps either an effective stopgap treatment (maybe the plasma therapy that has been mentioned from time to time) will come into common usage in the interregnum, or the best case scenario, the virus mutates into a less virulent form where it's no longer deadly.  It will take some time to get all this together, but by and large we are on the right path as of now. 

Or one of the ones using existing drugs, since those would be easy to do, with much of the "background" work already known about them.  After all, most people aren't overly concerned with any number of other things that you can get, knowing there is something out there that you can take to make it better.

All of us on this board come from different areas of the country (some of us are in different countries entirely!) and are subject to — in some cases — vastly different protocol for handling this virus. 
My point is, we’ll all be at different stages come this summer.  We’'ll probably be back to playing Little League games with a full crowd in my state.  New York might just be opening JCPenny back up (assuming they even survive this) at that point. 

Absolutely - while those on here not in or around NY probably primarily hear the huge numbers that NY has (more than many countries), what you may not hear is that throughout the process somewhere over 90% of those have been confined to NY City and a few surrounding counties.  So even in a single state, there is a major variance, no less from one state to another.

If the economy is slow to recover, CBS will have a much harder time selling ads at the rate they'’ve been accustomed to, which will translate into a limited prize budget.  Also, trips are their bread and butter for cutting corners with the budget.  If you can'’t offer trips until a vaccine is released, how do you fill that gaping hole without destroying the budget?  Those are the questions I’'m more interested in right now, not speculation over something that has a less than .01% chance of happening.

Maybe the question is, do you have to not offer trips?  While normally there is a time period (1 year I believe) to take them, nothing stops them from changing that to, say 1 year beyond when X happens (say the vaccine is available)?  That way, you still get it but can just delay taking it until it is safe to do so. 

Perhaps they already started this for those who taped currently being shown shows that wouldn't be able to take them now as well?

Good question on the ads - I know so far (locally) there are some not advertising (mostly those who can't do anything, like a bus company) but other things have popped up in their places (like a locally owned food production company) - but no way to know without knowing someone in that business if they are getting a better deal or just chose to do ads now to let people know that they are around and can help (by delivering their items directly).


Obviously, if they had to do something different for a time to tape (less people, maybe pre-interviewing via online methods to limit how many needed to be in studio) it wouldn't be the same, but there might be ways to work with it.
 
How about some form of those video conferences that can be limited by passwords - basically let 50 (or how ever many) people "sign in" from home to watch as it's taped, having them show up on the screens so you can hear them cheering like they were actually in the audience.  Different, but would give some of the feel of having an actual audience.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: MSTieScott on April 13, 2020, 07:29:02 PM
I don't know what Drew's feelings are toward COVID-19, but if I were the host of a TV show where I came into contact with a minimum of six strangers per day, many of whom traveled a not-insignificant distance to voluntarily congregate in one enclosed space, I wouldn't want to go back to work until I was certain an effective vaccine was available and I had received it. Otherwise, it's virtually guaranteed that I'd catch the potentially life-threatening virus.

I don't care what precautions could be taken before the audience stepped onto the lot -- that's not a risk I'd be willing to take. Scientists still aren't sure whether the virus can be spread before symptoms appear. (This document (https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/situation-reports/20200402-sitrep-73-covid-19.pdf?sfvrsn=5ae25bc7_2) from the World Health Organization, dated April 2, states that presymptomatic transmission has been documented in a small number of cases.) And even if every audience member had their temperature taken ahead of time -- who'd be performing that task? Would they be 100% accurate? Would those people even be willing to do it? Already, Los Angeles bus drivers have complained about risking their health to do their jobs, and some have contracted the virus. A television game show isn't worth that.

It's impossible to do The Price Is Right with contestants appearing remotely. It would be too easy for people to find a way to cheat. Even if the production did jump through ridiculous hoops to ensure that remote contestants didn't have access to outside assistance, what would be the benefit? The show wouldn't be any fun to watch if everybody's in isolation.

Does that mean the show is doomed? No. Season 48 is most likely over at this point (Los Angeles's "stay at home" order is currently in effect through May 15, and even if it did end on that date -- which is far from certain -- I doubt the city is going to jump from "stay at home" to "everybody can immediately gather in groups of 100 or more again"). And I would predict that season 49 is going to start late -- quite possibly late enough that it too is shorter than usual. Repeats from the last year or two will fill the time slot once the remaining new episodes have finished airing. Fremantle will take a budgetary hit because storing all of those set pieces at Television City isn't cheap. But The Price Is Right is too valuable of a brand for everybody to give up on it because of one year of extenuating circumstances.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Mark on April 14, 2020, 09:21:57 AM
Scientists still aren't sure whether the virus can be spread before symptoms appear. (This document (https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/situation-reports/20200402-sitrep-73-covid-19.pdf?sfvrsn=5ae25bc7_2) from the World Health Organization, dated April 2, states that presymptomatic transmission has been documented in a small number of cases.)

Maine's CDC has identified a travelling salesman as a source of transmission. He did not show any symptoms. https://www.mainepublic.org/post/maine-cdc-says-traveling-salesperson-has-been-linked-cluster-maine-covid-19-cases
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: BD on April 18, 2020, 01:01:32 AM
I don't think the show (or Let's Make A Deal) will get canceled, but I do think that the majority of next season will probably be reruns--possibly with a mix of video messages from Drew, George, and the models that were recorded from their phones telling people to stay safe.

I just can't see how you can do a show like TPIR in good faith before there's a vaccine... regardless of restrictions possibly being lifted. Getting dozens of people together (audience, cast, crew) before there's a vaccine isn't very wise or empathetic in my opinion. I'm sure it's not absolutely impossible to make episodes after restrictions are lifted while yet still before there's a vaccine, but SO much would have to be done just to make it work. Seating, spacing/separation, facemasks, gloves, etc. Too much work when you could simply air reruns.

I know there are many people that would love to have big events come back as soon as possible with dozens (or hundreds, or even thousands) of people in attendance, but science & stats prove that social distancing is the best way to handle this before there's a vaccine. Long term health is far more important than short term fun. Sadly though, some adults will never have empathy unless something bad happens to them personally. But anyway, I agree with others here that say to just air reruns until there's a vaccine. No need to even think about ending the show right now. Just take it one month at a time and see where things are at. I'm sure that things will transform into to the new normal ("new" since some social norms will definitely change after this) by 2022 at the latest. We'll see though.

Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: DarkBaron on April 18, 2020, 05:38:07 PM
Given the current situation, there is reason to be afraid of the show's cancellation. But it will survive this, I have no doubt. Given the re-runs and the show's memories in everyone's head, the network will still see the show as viable, and it will resume production when this will be all over.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Mr. Weatherman on April 19, 2020, 01:04:35 AM
I’ll put this simply...

If The Price is Right is cancelled, then it will be at the bottom of an extensively long list of other shows that are also cancelled because the network is failing. 

CBS, Fremantle and any other powers that be will not be canceling the No. 1 show in daytime that has held this designation for two or three decades.  Season 49 might have some delays and technical hurdles — perhaps going as far as to suspend the season altogether, but that will be the fullest extent of this.  I truly do believe we will see some form of a 49th season during the 2020-2021 network broadcast year, however.

I have no issue with discussing the potential ramifications COVID-19 will have on the upcoming season, but please stop using the word “cancelled” in the context of meaning the entire show in general.

It isn’t happening.

Heck, CBS would be more likely to move the show to another state in order to resume production before even a suspended season is considered, much less all-out cancellation.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: CBSpromoman on April 19, 2020, 10:10:38 AM
Heck, CBS would be more likely to move the show to another state in order to resume production before even a suspended season is considered, much less all-out cancellation.

Given the cost of doing so, and the obvious problem that moving the show means the people coming for the show would all coverage on the NEW location and potentially carry the same virus there, moving the show elsewhere is an impossibility.

They're not going to cancel the show. But don't expect them to relocate it, either.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: EvilChameleon on April 19, 2020, 11:43:35 AM
Even if you think there will be a theoretical one season hiatus, lots of shows, with ratings less than TPIR mind you, have had longer breaks and still come back.

For instance, I can't remember the last time Hell's Kitchen aired, but sure enough, FOX ordered two more seasons of it.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: urbanpreppie0004 on April 19, 2020, 04:29:27 PM
Yeah, the show is in a four year ratings high- and its been at the top of the ratings of daytime for decades (yes, I know that it, like everything else on TV is down). Despite what some people wan-I mean, feel, the show isn't going anywhere. Especially with people tuning in more to the show as "comfort food."

I could see them temporarily limiting the number of guests to 100-150, and/or doing some special shows where somehow they play games for at home contestants. Maybe use a smaller "virtual" set and use the models as proxy for the skyped in contestants?
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: TPIRfan#9821 on April 19, 2020, 04:40:38 PM
The solution is simple.

Bring back TNPiR '94 with celebrities, extend it to an hour-long format with two contestants fighting for the same showcase, and make it a weekly primetime special. That way, you could just fill the audience with staff at hand, you technically wouldn't need Drew and George, and the celebrities wouldn't infect everyday contestants.

I'm being sarcastic, but I think the show could adapt if need be. I think we'll get a shorter season and maybe harder setups to offset the hit to the budget, but things should somewhat go to normal for the gold anniversary of TPiR.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: GameShowKid on May 07, 2020, 12:43:14 PM
I just can't see how you can do a show like TPIR in good faith before there's a vaccine... regardless of restrictions possibly being lifted. Getting dozens of people together (audience, cast, crew) before there's a vaccine isn't very wise or empathetic in my opinion. I'm sure it's not absolutely impossible to make episodes after restrictions are lifted while yet still before there's a vaccine, but SO much would have to be done just to make it work. Seating, spacing/separation, facemasks, gloves, etc. Too much work when you could simply air reruns.

How would you all feel about seeing those in attendance wearing masks when the show returns? I have mixed feelings.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: EvilChameleon on May 07, 2020, 01:47:07 PM
I think it would be fun to see what creative things the fans come up with for their masks.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: GameShowKid on May 07, 2020, 03:50:57 PM
I think it would be fun to see what creative things the fans come up with for their masks.
I still have mixed feelings, but I didn’t even consider that aspect of it. Thanks. :-)
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: bobbingforapples on May 07, 2020, 07:11:27 PM
Would there be a liability issue if the situation is still serious enough to require a mask?
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: BillyGr on May 07, 2020, 09:33:19 PM
Would there be a liability issue if the situation is still serious enough to require a mask?

Probably not - as has been pointed out other countries have had people wearing masks before this started on a regular basis.
Also, one would think that if you are going someplace and wearing one, you should understand what your risks are and that by going you are willing to take those risks.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: JhayPrice on May 08, 2020, 12:31:18 AM
The thing is, can they continue the production in a modified way even if the pandemic is still here, assuming that they finished airing all their prerecorded episodes?
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: gamesurf on May 08, 2020, 02:06:56 AM
The thing is, can they continue the production in a modified way even if the pandemic is still here, assuming that they finished airing all their prerecorded episodes?
Probably not - as has been pointed out other countries have had people wearing masks before this started on a regular basis. Also, one would think that if you are going someplace and wearing one, you should understand what your risks are and that by going you are willing to take those risks.

Even if the show has everybody sign their lives away before entering the studio (which I'm definitely not convinced they can do), if somebody catches it at a taping and gets seriously ill, and blames the show, the optics are still pretty terrible.

Earlier this week, California's governor announced four "stages" of reopening for the state. Concerts, conventions, sporting events with an audience, etc. are stage 4--all still months away. When the time comes for Price to resume taping, it will not be the only large event looking to figure things out and balance safety with a fun atmosphere. My guess is Price will wait and see what other large crowds are willing to do, and cautiously follow their lead.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Spmahn on May 08, 2020, 01:34:30 PM
I’m not sure I’d want to see TPIR with an audience that all has masks on, that would be kind of depressing to watch.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Hag on May 08, 2020, 01:42:57 PM
It would definitely take some getting used to.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: GameShowKid on May 08, 2020, 02:41:15 PM
I’m not sure I’d want to see TPIR with an audience that all has masks on, that would be kind of depressing to watch.
Yes. I do hope it doesn’t come to that. In fact, I would not like seeing a single mask on camera, be it on someone’s face, around someone’s neck, etc.

I mentioned I have mixed feelings. It would be great watching new episodes, rooting for contestants, & seeing favorite games and all, but I likely wouldn’t want a constant reminder of the current health situation while trying to find an escape of sorts. I probably would watch episodes from decades past or more recently aired ones instead.

Time will tell.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: EvilChameleon on May 08, 2020, 04:17:56 PM
I mean, every episode currently airing has a reminder of the current health situation when they put the disclaimer of it being taped before the outbreak at the end of the credits.

Ultimately, I don't think we'll see a situation where contestants have masks, because it's going to take a while for California to hit phase 4, which is where larger groups of people can get together safely. And by then, perhaps we won't even need masks.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Torgo on May 08, 2020, 05:18:26 PM
Please tell me people care more about the public health situation than about how contestants look on this show.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Spmahn on May 08, 2020, 05:57:06 PM
How about we care about both? We don’t want people getting sick and we would also prefer they not be forced to wear masks on the show. If that means the show goes on hiatus or they have to do some serious retooling than so be it.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: ssetta on May 16, 2020, 03:25:34 PM
I'm sure this has been on a lot of people's minds. I really do hope Price can start taping again before the fall, in time for the start of Season 49. Do you think there's any chance of it?Because I know that unlike some other TV shows, TPiR cannot go on without an audience.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: thepriceis_J on May 16, 2020, 03:30:39 PM
This is something being discussed in this thread...

http://www.golden-road.net/index.php/topic,31147.0.html (http://www.golden-road.net/index.php/topic,31147.0.html)

The long and short of it is that The Price is Right, as it exists now, is a game show dependent on having an audience, something that is very unsafe currently. With the possibility of a vaccine far out on the horizon, it simply wouldn't be safe to bring the show back. Currently, LA county (where the show films) is still in a stay-at-home order and even when lifted, groups will probably still be limited to make filming Price, as is, an impossibility.

Unfortunately, odds are that Price will not be back for the start of the season in the fall and might not return until early to mid 2021.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: BillyGr on May 16, 2020, 03:48:27 PM
This is something being discussed in this thread...

http://www.golden-road.net/index.php/topic,31147.0.html (http://www.golden-road.net/index.php/topic,31147.0.html)

The long and short of it is that The Price is Right, as it exists now, is a game show dependent on having an audience, something that is very unsafe currently. With the possibility of a vaccine far out on the horizon, it simply wouldn't be safe to bring the show back. Currently, LA county (where the show films) is still in a stay-at-home order and even when lifted, groups will probably still be limited to make filming Price, as is, an impossibility.

Unfortunately, odds are that Price will not be back for the start of the season in the fall and might not return until early to mid 2021.

Although as was (I believe) also pointed out, it could be done with a more limited audience, if that was allowed (which very well might occur sooner, the same way it worked at the beginning where group sizes were limited in steps). 

You'd probably need something like 25 as a minimum which would mean just those chosen as contestants in the audience plus host, announcer, models and some backstage/camera people. 

Obviously a group size like 100 or more would be better (since they've already done shows with only around 100 possible contestants in the audience, like any of the family/kids shows where at least 2 - 4 were there together).

You'd also likely get more contestants from closer areas at the beginning as well.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Mr. Weatherman on May 16, 2020, 07:16:42 PM
Mod Note: The latest three posts to this thread have been merged in from a separate post created earlier since it’s essentially the same topic.

Carry on. :)
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Casey on May 16, 2020, 08:24:40 PM
Mod Note: The latest three posts to this thread have been merged in from a separate post created earlier since it’s essentially the same topic.

Carry on. :)
Thanks for this - I thought I was losing it for a second :). I *knew* I’d read it, but not here :)
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: COINBOYNYC on May 16, 2020, 11:59:28 PM
other countries have had people wearing masks before this started on a regular basis.

True, but there was no pandemic.  It was more of a cultural thing, or at least more socially acceptable/understandable than it was here.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: SteveGavazzi on May 17, 2020, 01:30:55 AM
Although as was (I believe) also pointed out, it could be done with a more limited audience, if that was allowed (which very well might occur sooner, the same way it worked at the beginning where group sizes were limited in steps). 

You'd probably need something like 25 as a minimum which would mean just those chosen as contestants in the audience plus host, announcer, models and some backstage/camera people. 

Obviously a group size like 100 or more would be better (since they've already done shows with only around 100 possible contestants in the audience, like any of the family/kids shows where at least 2 - 4 were there together).

You'd also likely get more contestants from closer areas at the beginning as well.

I feel a little silly suggesting this, but the French version of Don't Forget the Lyrics recently resumed production with most of its audience consisting of balloon people (as in literally balloon animals, only shaped like humans).  It's kind of ridiculous, but it wouldn't be the worst way to fill out the audience if the show were able to start tapings again with a reduced contestant pool.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: imhomerjay on May 17, 2020, 09:01:38 AM
Pure wild speculation, but I thought I read Fox would superimpose crowds in NASCAR races. Could you do that somehow? Or printed out faces? Mannequins?

The point being, it may take some creativity, even when things are technically possible. It depends also on where CBS is at the time—are they content to air reruns longer rather than pony up for new shows? Do they want shows that look like...whatever they would look like? They have much bigger fish to fry as a result of the pandemic; they may not be throwing money at everything right away.

Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: JayC on May 17, 2020, 12:06:22 PM
I suppose they could find a way to insert audience members that aren't actually there, whether it's mannequins, superimposing, whatever and add in simulated audience noise, but unless they can get to where it looks really good I'm not sure CBS and Fremantle would want to go that way when they can just show reruns.

I could see reruns for a longer than normal time until they are allowed to tape with something like 100, maybe 50-75 audience members. Perhaps if they're allowed to until regular tapings can resume they would do 1-2 specials with a more limited audience with only local contestants including a salute to front line, first responders, and other essential workers with the matching winnings going to charity like in the Price at Night specials before Christmas and with RuPaul last week.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: gamesurf on May 17, 2020, 12:15:13 PM
Pure wild speculation, but I thought I read Fox would superimpose crowds in NASCAR races. Could you do that somehow?

My knee-jerk reaction is that tech would almost certainly be prohibitively expensive for a daytime show—a NASCAR broadcast has a massive, massive budget and dozens upon dozens of crew members. (While most sporting events only have a crew of a few dozen and one production truck, a colleague who has worked them tells me they have three giant production trucks—one truck has ONLY replay operators monitoring dozens of camera feeds, and one truck is ONLY for catering for the massive crew.)

Mannequins or balloon audience members would be a terrific and affordable (and tongue-in-cheek) way to make light of the situation without compromising on the feel of the show too much.

(But with Price doing as well as it is, I also think CBS has a good case for sticking with reruns for a year or so. It’s not like most people will notice, or they don’t have a decent backlog of memorable eps)
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: EvilChameleon on May 17, 2020, 12:27:57 PM
Perhaps if they're allowed to until regular tapings can resume they would do 1-2 specials with a more limited audience with only local contestants including a salute to front line, first responders, and other essential workers with the matching winnings going to charity like in the Price at Night specials before Christmas and with RuPaul last week.

Considering CBS ordered two more primetime specials that haven't taped yet, this is a fantastic idea to fulfill that order.

Unless orders like that expire. No idea how the TV business works.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Ton80 on May 17, 2020, 12:32:47 PM
I may be in the minority here, but I'd rather see a year of reruns over an audience full of mannequins, balloon people, and canned applause.

If this social distancing goes beyond a year, then maybe I'll reconsider my opinion.

The only exception is if I'm allowed to go like this:
(https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/bigbangtheory/images/c/cf/S04E02GLantern.jpg)
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Briguy on May 17, 2020, 02:05:01 PM
The only possibility I see of an earlier start (i.e., "on time") for a Season 49 is if – and this is a huge if:

* An area of the country relaxes its social/physical distancing restrictions (i.e., allows gatherings larger than currently recommended) before the first scheduled taping date.

* The show subsequently decides to go "on tour" and tape at one of those venues.

* Potential audience members/contestants/cast/crew feel safe in such a gathering. (Remember, even in areas where restrictions are being slowly lifted, people are still a bit skittish about going out.)

That said, the odds of that happening are very slim. (As in, less than 0.0001 percent).

Meaning we'll be seeing reruns for the foreseeable future ... which like it or not will have to be OK in a time where not all is OK. There are much bigger problems in this world than thinking about whether Season 49 will be in 2020-2021 at all. (I can see an extended Season 49 airing during 2021-2022, or the regular 2021-2022 season and that counting as "Season 49.")

Brian
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: JayC on May 17, 2020, 04:02:26 PM
Considering CBS ordered two more primetime specials that haven't taped yet, this is a fantastic idea to fulfill that order.

Unless orders like that expire. No idea how the TV business works.
Right, there were three ordered altogether and the Rupaul special was the only one taped and aired so far. Do we know who the other two celebrities were slated to be?
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Spmahn on May 17, 2020, 04:11:13 PM
If we’re doomed for repeats for the next several months or longer, I at least hope we get some higher effort reruns and not just a random dump of shows from the past 3-5 seasons. Maybe a countdown of the top 100 moments in the shows history, or a series of best of shows highlighting a different pricing game every day and showing the best and worst playings of the game throughout the history of the show. I know it’s a pipe dream to hope that CBS will air a lot of content that predates High Definition but if they mix new stuff together with old stuff it wouldn’t be so bad.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: blozier2006 on May 17, 2020, 04:50:38 PM
I know it’s a pipe dream to hope that CBS will air a lot of content that predates High Definition but if they mix new stuff together with old stuff it wouldn’t be so bad.
I'd say it's a pipe dream to hope that CBS will air anything pre-HD at all (or heck, anything predating the hiring of George Gray, for that matter).
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: mrbrown2195 on May 17, 2020, 05:02:16 PM
I'd say it's a pipe dream to hope that CBS will air anything pre-HD at all (or heck, anything predating the hiring of George Gray, for that matter).

While I seriously doubt they'd do anything like that, it certainly wouldn't be unprecedented. During the last writers strike, NBC began airing Tonight Show reruns from the early 90s (https://www.reuters.com/article/us-latenight/nbc-slates-vintage-leno-during-wga-strike-idUSN2322146120071124), under the banner of "Vintage Tonight Show".

But, given the nature of Price is Right, they could show episodes from anytime in the last 3-5 years and most people wouldn't know a damn bit of difference... just don't pick any episodes that date the production (i.e. avoid Super Bowl specials, games with special prizes, etc.).
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: imhomerjay on May 17, 2020, 06:49:02 PM
They’ve dug up some pre HD Y&R episodes to fit themes, but that’s a different animal. They could stop gap with encores of theme weeks for a bit, but sooner or later, it’s going to need to be mostly just “regular” episodes.

There is effectively zero chance of a roughly normal fall premiere. That’s just reality. Whether it’s winter, spring or later is going to take time to become more clear.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Spmahn on May 17, 2020, 07:07:44 PM
They’ve dug up some pre HD Y&R episodes to fit themes, but that’s a different animal. They could stop gap with encores of theme weeks for a bit, but sooner or later, it’s going to need to be mostly just “regular” episodes.

I would bet that a not insignificant percentage of the audience for Y&R is watching using rabbit ears and a TV they purchased 40 years ago so they couldn’t tell you Hi Def from Black and White
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: gamesurf on May 17, 2020, 07:26:24 PM
“Haha, the audience who watches Young and Restless is old and rooted in tradition.”

The Price is Right:
(https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fi.imgflip.com%2F30r1af.png)

(Not that you’re wrong about Y&R :D)
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Spmahn on May 17, 2020, 07:30:16 PM
People joke about that with TPIR, but it largely isn’t true. Look at the people who make up the typical audience, it’s college kids and people in their 30’s and 40’s. It’s rare to see any stereotypical elderly people in Bidder’s Row anymore.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: urbanpreppie0004 on May 17, 2020, 07:53:19 PM
I think what they will do is run out the new shows as long as they can, then revisit shows from the earlier part of the season or last season. I think by fall, I could see them coming back with either-

-Best of the last few seasons
-social distancing specials; where celebrities or staff play games in house for Zoomed in contestants
-or an adjusted set/setup for the show?

I honestly think they won't go back to Bob's shows...because they're going to hold rearing those for his eventual passing. 
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: JayC on May 17, 2020, 07:58:34 PM
If we’re doomed for repeats for the next several months or longer, I at least hope we get some higher effort reruns and not just a random dump of shows from the past 3-5 seasons. Maybe a countdown of the top 100 moments in the shows history, or a series of best of shows highlighting a different pricing game every day and showing the best and worst playings of the game throughout the history of the show. I know it’s a pipe dream to hope that CBS will air a lot of content that predates High Definition but if they mix new stuff together with old stuff it wouldn’t be so bad.
That would be great, but we diehard fans would be the only ones to truly appreciate it. When the reruns do start, it will very likely be from this season and the previous one or two at the most.

I honestly think they won't go back to Bob's shows...because they're going to hold rearing those for his eventual passing. 
Drew's been hosting over 10 years now, there's no way they'd have to go as far back as Bob's episodes. I think even after he passes it would be a long shot to see CBS air any Bob hosted episodes, they would probably just do a clip show in tribute if anything.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: urbanpreppie0004 on May 17, 2020, 08:04:37 PM
Quote
Drew's been hosting over 10 years now, there's no way they'd have to go as far back as Bob's episodes. I think even after he passes it would be a long shot to see CBS air any Bob hosted episodes, they would probably just do a clip show in tribute if anything.

I dunno...considering that CBS brought back the classic Sunday night movies and is airing a sing along version of grease tonight...nothing would surprise me anymore.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Superballer on May 17, 2020, 08:42:56 PM
I think that when Bob does pass on, they will show at least one of his episodes as a tribute. 
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: imhomerjay on May 18, 2020, 10:48:20 AM
The Sunday night movie gimmick, even Grease...those are different. They just are. Even digging out vintage Y&R (oh, those shoulder pads...and so much hairspray) is different. They could rerun the past season or two of Price. No need to go back further. People re smart enough to understand the reasons, even if they do recognize them as reruns. There really is no reason to entertain going back any deeper.

And while I get the whole “at home” trend, and it’s been adapted to a heck of a lot, I’m not seeing it being successful in all cases, Price being one of them. Zoom contestants? Meh. Just give me reruns.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Briguy on May 18, 2020, 02:13:58 PM
When the reruns do start, it will very likely be from this season and the previous one or two at the most.

I tend to agree ... I'd maybe go back to 2017 or so, but that would be about it. It all depends on how the health situation is, various other factors and when taping will be permitted to resume (in, I'd guess, the Bob Barker Studios).

Drew's been hosting over 10 years now, there's no way they'd have to go as far back as Bob's episodes. I think even after he passes it would be a long shot to see CBS air any Bob hosted episodes, they would probably just do a clip show in tribute if anything.

In answer to speculation about what may or may not happen there, the only place you'd be likely to see a Bob Barker-era TPiR marathon upon his passing would probably be on Buzzr.

Brian
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: LiteBulb88 on May 18, 2020, 11:14:45 PM
Roger just added a 4th possibility to his Facebook page, which is that the show could move to Orlando. Apparently, due to tax breaks, FL is a much cheaper state to film in and there'd be a constant stream of tourists to make up the audience. (Note he still thinks the show consistently uses paid audience members, which it doesn't, at least according to the page I asked last year at the show.) Also, it looks like FL is going to relax COVID-19 restrictions well before CA will.

I highly doubt that's going to happen; TPiR is too much of a Hollywood fixture, plus Drew, George, and entire staff would have to move there, or at least stay there a significant number of nights per year. But it's an interesting thought at least.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Spmahn on May 18, 2020, 11:19:08 PM
(Note he still thinks the show consistently uses paid audience members, which it doesn't, at least according to the page I asked last year at the show.)

Believe me, I live in Connecticut and have stood outside in line in the dead of winter with 100 other people for tapings of Jerry Springer and Maury, and we weren’t compensated with so much as a slice of pizza. TPIR will never in a million years have to resort to a paid audience. On what planet could anyone possibly believe that would be a thing?
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: gamesurf on May 19, 2020, 12:11:39 AM
They have travelled before—only a few hours up I-15 instead of across the country, and with six games instead of 75—and it sounds like it was a huge cluster.

It wouldn’t be impossible, but it would come with its own set of growing pains. It could be done if they absolutely NEED to fulfill an order for more episodes. But I wouldn’t expect them to do it as a stopgap for a few months and then switch back to LA. It would be a long haul, all-season option.

I’m bracing for a long season of reruns.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: SteveGavazzi on May 19, 2020, 12:28:03 AM
I think what they will do is run out the new shows as long as they can

For the record, that's not very long at this point -- there are currently only 11 shows in the can.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Mr. Weatherman on May 19, 2020, 09:30:55 AM
CBS has a clear dilemma here.  If I’m an advertiser, I would *probably* rather spend my sponsorship dollars on a show producing first-run episodes vs a show airing repeats that a meaningful faction of the viewing audience will notice and subsequently not be interested in viewing (and even casual viewers will know the shows aren’t new if they pay even the slightest bit of attention to what’s going on in the world).  If programs like Today and The View are churning out new episodes, then that’s where I’d be inclined to spend a more significant portion of my money.  Even with the consideration that CBS won’t be spending money on the production itself, Drew Carey still needs to be paid, and I’m not sure the ad dollars vs lack of production costs will even out.  I’d say CBS still comes up significantly short.  I’m not an expert, and we have folks here who are much more knowledgeable of how network advertising works than I am, but it seems logical to me that CBS doesn’t win if Price enters an extended period without first run shows.  Maybe I’m wrong.

OK, so what are the alternatives?  I would bet five golden Plinko chips we will not see tapings at Television City at any point this summer.  Maybe shows like James Corden’s can tape without an audience, but California’s restrictions — barring any changes — won’t allow a show like Price to film with any sort of audience for at least the next few months, and once they can, it’s doubtful they can do so with a full audience.

So short of airing repeats for weeks/months, what else can CBS and, by a lesser extent, Fremantle do to get Price back on the air as quickly as possible with new episodes?

The show can’t go on the road in a practical manner with all 70+ pricing games, set, et al. requiring extensive efforts to be transported — and then finding a facility to both act as a studio and house everything required for the production.  However, the show doesn’t necessarily have to have every pricing game to function, and certain set pieces like the big doors and turntable can be recreated (think the 30th Anniversary Special) without having to go all-out with flashing lights and LED screens to help maintain cost efficiency.  We also have the live stage show’s Big Wheel that is made for transportation, and I’m sure there are other things I can point to if I sat down and really thought it through.

Short of California doing a ‘180’ and allowing larger crowds to gather this summer, the only option that would allow for new first run episodes to begin airing as soon as September is to take the show on the road.  It certainly won’t look the same.  Not all pricing games can be included, and you might even have to go as far as shortening the show to a half hour temporarily if it makes more sense (maybe pair it with a half hour edition of LMAD and fill that show’s time slot with something else?).  And then, of course, Fremantle has to agree to it, your host and production staff have to be on board, etc.  And even more-so than that, the state the show is being filmed at has to be fairly relaxed with restrictions and maintaining low virus case numbers.  The given studio may still have to have some sort of social distancing restrictions in place (wild idea: what if the show is taped at an outdoor venue?), and the crowd size would likely have to be less than that of a typical show.  But it would be creative, and in fact more people might actually tune in just because it’s different. 

I think road shows are logistically possible.  Is it something CBS would actually do?  Probably not, but I can’t imagine the idea isn’t being floated around.  They have an entire fall lineup to fill with few answers on how to fill it properly, and I’m sure other shows will move production out of California temporarily to get episodes on the air.  They kind of have to.  If done right, The Price is Right can be among them.

The alternative, of course, is to air repeats.  Here’s one significant problem with that: all of your Season 48 episodes worth airing a second time will be exhausted this summer unless the decision is made to go ahead with mixing in older episodes, which I don’t really see happening.  If they go the route of repeats in the fall, just how far back are we going?  Will George re-dub some of his lines to remove mentions of automobile model years?  There is also the consideration that some vehicles the show has offered have been either updated or discontinued (RIP Chevy Cruze), and some viewers may pick up on that — same with smartphones from a few years ago (“It’s the brand new, state-of-the-art iPhone 6s!”).  Those certain nuances will date each episode, potentially negating efforts to ‘trick’ the audience into thinking what they are watching is ‘new’.

We have a mess on our hands here, but the enthusiast in me can’t wait to see how it plays out.  Regardless of what happens, Gavazzi will have his hands full with the timeline. 🤓
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: imhomerjay on May 19, 2020, 10:44:56 AM
I'd be shocked if all kinds of ideas aren't batted around. That's the job of the folks at CBS and Fremantle. But once the ideas are laid out, the realities have to come into play. And those realities are challenging at best. They just are.

CBS's daytime schedule now consists of 90 minutes of old soap operas, of which at least B&B supposedly has alerted the cast and crew (take the rumors with a shaker of salt) that they're looking at ways to potentially restart production. But they can do that a la Neighbors from Australia. OK, so maybe they can get both soaps back up in some fashion this summer. Let's say a six week lead time to get back on the air. So maybe by fall that problem is solved. The Talk is already in home mode and could go back to an audience-less environment for however long it's needed. Not ideal, but that show is basically the least of CBS's issues.

The game shows happen to be the bigger challenge. Do you try to take both on the road? Just one? Where? At what cost (whatever the actual dollar amount is, let's just go with "enormous"). Without looking at a P&L, my educated guess is there's no way that becomes cost effective. I.e., the money you gain (or don't lose), if any, from running new episodes is drowned by the costs. And other questions come into play--what is the contractual obligation for paying for the current studio space? Is there any provision for something like this? Is there insurance in place?

Then there's the lead time vs what happens to viewers. With states opening up more workplaces, though not crowds at event venues, the audience will begin the decline. How long and how close to previous levels that goes remains to be seen. But what we saw in March and April will inevitably be an aberration. The question is how much.

Ad buyers will follow the audience. They'll buy reruns of Mr. Ed if that's where their target audience is. Lots of questions there, too. There will be big advertising cutbacks. There already are across meidia. The question is who and how much. Price had made some good progress getting "younger" brands thanks to younger viewers (alongside those tiresome Colonial Penn spots, but progress is progress). The bigger danger is less that those brands move towards CBS This Morning or even the soaps if they're back, but that they pull out of the market entirely, either to conserve cash or because they're broke. A brand like JC Penny was still running advertising up until this began; I'm wagering you'll see little to no national branding from them post chapter 11, with whatever smaller store portfolio they have left. Until consumer dollars flow, advertising dollars are going to dry up.

No media outlet is in good shape with this right now. The saving grace, such as it is, for daytime is that primetime is a bigger headache for all the major networks. NBC may be in the best daytime shape with only one show outside of Today; CBS can probably muddle through with game show reruns and hopes for the soaps to do something. ABC is somewhere in the middle, able to keep running that midday news hour in some fashion, and the View from home/without an audience.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Spmahn on May 19, 2020, 11:14:29 AM
I think whatever decision is made will largely depend on the ratings of the reruns. Clearly we’re going to get at least a month or two worth of repeats, at that point of the ratings stay relatively stable then they’ll continue with those until it’s safe to tape again. For repeats, I think the best strategy at least initially would be to go back maybe one or two seasons and avoid anything recent that might still be lingering in viewers recollection. Get George to record some new overdubs to make them slightly more evergreen and literally no one would notice. If they aired a random episode from 2018, other than the car models and maybe slightly out of date electronics, I guarantee you absolutely no one but maybe the top 10% of serious followers on this board would even notice the difference.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: imhomerjay on May 19, 2020, 02:48:53 PM
Honestly, I don't believe the ratings of reruns will tip the scales. There would be the normal summer changes anyway, so you're talking into the fall before you have a meaningful sample size. If you're thinking of a major change, that needs to be planned well in advance; otherwise, you put your chips on waiting until you can tape again in some quasi-"normal" circumstance. And normal is a really relative term. And you hope for the best and adjust when that time comes.

Very true no one would notice. And many won't care/won't hold it against the show, because they're capable of recognizing the circumstances for what they are.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Cliff.Hanger on May 19, 2020, 04:09:10 PM
For the record, that's not very long at this point -- there are currently only 11 shows in the can.
The final new episode for this season airs on 6/2. Repeats were supposed to start on 7/3, but they weren't able to tape the last ~25 shows. The editors have been working from home on the shows that were taped before the quarantine shut down production. After 6/2, they will air the normal summer repeats, until they run out.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: BillyGr on May 19, 2020, 06:47:15 PM
The show can’t go on the road in a practical manner with all 70+ pricing games, set, et al. requiring extensive efforts to be transported — and then finding a facility to both act as a studio and house everything required for the production.  However, the show doesn’t necessarily have to have every pricing game to function, and certain set pieces like the big doors and turntable can be recreated (think the 30th Anniversary Special) without having to go all-out with flashing lights and LED screens to help maintain cost efficiency.  We also have the live stage show’s Big Wheel that is made for transportation, and I’m sure there are other things I can point to if I sat down and really thought it through.

What else do they normally do on those live shows?  Do they have enough "stuff" there to do a show (games and such)?  That might be one option - a few episodes (even if they had the same games repeating) done with the travel show set that would be easy enough to fit in many places around the country.

Short of California doing a ‘180’ and allowing larger crowds to gather this summer, the only option that would allow for new first run episodes to begin airing as soon as September is to take the show on the road.  It certainly won’t look the same.  Not all pricing games can be included, and you might even have to go as far as shortening the show to a half hour temporarily if it makes more sense (maybe pair it with a half hour edition of LMAD and fill that show’s time slot with something else?).  And then, of course, Fremantle has to agree to it, your host and production staff have to be on board, etc.  And even more-so than that, the state the show is being filmed at has to be fairly relaxed with restrictions and maintaining low virus case numbers.  The given studio may still have to have some sort of social distancing restrictions in place (wild idea: what if the show is taped at an outdoor venue?), and the crowd size would likely have to be less than that of a typical show.  But it would be creative, and in fact more people might actually tune in just because it’s different. 

Depends on when taping would be allowed, but they have done at least one or two shows in the past with taping and airing very close (like a day or two), so being they normally don't start new shows until partway thru September, even a post Labor Day tapings could be done to still start on time.
Though the outdoor idea sounds interesting too (like Wheel has done at Disney over the years).

The alternative, of course, is to air repeats.  Here’s one significant problem with that: all of your Season 48 episodes worth airing a second time will be exhausted this summer unless the decision is made to go ahead with mixing in older episodes, which I don’t really see happening.  If they go the route of repeats in the fall, just how far back are we going?  Will George re-dub some of his lines to remove mentions of automobile model years?  There is also the consideration that some vehicles the show has offered have been either updated or discontinued (RIP Chevy Cruze), and some viewers may pick up on that — same with smartphones from a few years ago (“It’s the brand new, state-of-the-art iPhone 6s!”).  Those certain nuances will date each episode, potentially negating efforts to ‘trick’ the audience into thinking what they are watching is ‘new’.

Seems that if they did choose to air older repeats, it would be better off to just promote it as something like "The Best of" or Historical, and not try to trick people.
For the newer ones, it would probably make sense to start from the beginning of the season and go through that way, since those who may still be at home that normally don't watch would be seeing stuff they probably didn't the first time (after, of course, anything that got partially pre-empted during the season).
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: SteveGavazzi on May 19, 2020, 06:57:19 PM
The final new episode for this season airs on 6/2.

Do we actually know when 9011K is airing?  June 2 is a logical guess, but the schedules haven't actually been updated in several weeks.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: pricefan18 on May 20, 2020, 08:09:12 PM
Seems that if they did choose to air older repeats, it would be better off to just promote it as something like "The Best of" or Historical, and not try to trick people.

You know what could be interesting....what if they did something akin to the Bake-Off years and did that, with the year in the corner of the screen, and perhaps doing a different era every day like Game Show Network once did with their Win TV shows? You could actually go through all 5 decades if you wanted this way...70's one day, then the 80's, then 90's, etc finishing up with the current era at end of the week. Whether Barker would sign off on the older shows may be the one big issue I suppose, but.....it's an idea for sure to fill time a while and would allow many shows to be seen again that haven't been reran in over 20 years at least, with any post mid 1990's not reairing at all outside of summer reruns.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: imhomerjay on May 20, 2020, 10:06:48 PM
Honestly I think that would do more harm than good. Stick to what the show is now. Digging back into the past decades is only going to appeal to a narrow audience--Buzzr, old GSN...those aren't mass appeal. Rotating through decades old shows is a different thing than the decades week where it was paying homage.

Jeopardy managed to pull it off for two episodes because it tied into the GOAT tournament. There's more than enough Price over the past couple of seasons (largely visually the same to average viewers). 
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: thepriceis_J on May 24, 2020, 01:55:13 PM
While I agree that there's a difference in paying homage and running old shows, as I mentioned in a different thread, The Price is Right is a cultural touchstone that would certainly garner more interest in old episodes than Match Game or Sale of the Century reruns. You'll find a lot of people who'll mention the fond memories they have watching Price with the grandparents/parents as a kid, something you're not going to hear about To Tell the Truth or Match Game, something ABC has dumped a lot of money into placing in primetime. Heck, all the shows ABC has revived were all memorable in their own ways, but lack in comparison to The Price is Right's 48 consecutive year top rated run (which is why I'm glad CBS finally started greenlighting more primetime specials). With an advertisement/push, I think it could certainly be worth their while, but I can see why they wouldn't.

Honestly, I'm sure Jeopardy could pull it off for more than two episodes. They just did two episodes because Ken won the GOAT and it filled in the gap to make rerunning GOAT an even two week event. If they reran Ken's entire run or former super tourneys like MDM, UToC, or BotD (surprised most hasn't been put on Netflix) they'd probably do just as fine of a job publicizing it as they did with GOAT. They don't need to do that, my hunch is that they'll be able to return at some point in the fall so they don't need as many reruns, but they certainly could.

Again though, I agree that it'd be better to just go with reruns from the past few years. Honestly, they could dig back in the almost 10 seasons worth of shows filmed since Drew's weight loss (which I think marked a turning point in his hosting, though I think the two are mostly unrelated).
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: PricingPatrick on May 25, 2020, 02:40:27 AM
My crazy idea is that re-air thin and fat Drew episodes and maybe Bob’s on Saturday nights. Saturdays are usually for sports and since those aren’t being played, air Price, expands to six days a week and is cheap to put on. Plus, you could do what Jeopardy did and have Drew, George, Models, and/or Contestants provide commentary as an online supplement.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: pricefan18 on May 25, 2020, 05:17:07 AM
While I agree that there's a difference in paying homage and running old shows, as I mentioned in a different thread, The Price is Right is a cultural touchstone that would certainly garner more interest in old episodes than Match Game or Sale of the Century reruns. You'll find a lot of people who'll mention the fond memories they have watching Price with the grandparents/parents as a kid, something you're not going to hear about To Tell the Truth or Match Game, something ABC has dumped a lot of money into placing in primetime.

Match Game might be one actually I'd argue that some might, given the prime Primetime slot it has had in reruns at times over the years on the GSN/Game Show Network before it started churning out more modern fare. Only Family Feud really woulda had more traction I believe on the network, as far as a cornerstone show for it going back to its' very beginning days in 1994. I mean, it still runs on it to this very day. Kinda says something with how the overall direction of the network has changed over time. It's essentially the last of its' kind there at this particular moment.

Maybe there's a certain bias to that belief having said that, but like my best friend from high school used to watch it with his mom a lot when he was younger, and my dad and I used to occasionally as well when I'd be with him on weekends, when it was running in the early Sunday Morning slot. And given the general popularity the show had for the generation before us as the aforementioned Family Feud also did (him and I are both 32), I could see others perhaps having similar experiences and possibly turning it onto their own children in turn, even moreso now with the current revival.

The others I'd agree with more, being a bit more niche and in the case of a show like To Tell the Truth, not as likely to garner the attention of the younger crowd I'd suspect given the format of the show, but that one would be the outlier I think.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: PimpinJC on May 25, 2020, 11:20:10 AM
If the studio is smart, then they should also be planning on what to do if the 2nd wave of coronavirus hits and when.  If it’s not until later in the fall, great, maybe they can get a few episodes taped before round 2 hits.  If it’s within the next month, then any hopes of having a Season 49 are gone until a vaccine and treatment are readily available.

But let’s take best case scenario and the wave doesn’t hit until late fall and the show is able to restart production over the summer.  Consumer confidence is extremely low, and getting 300+ people to sit in an enclosed space for a few hours sounds like a disaster, especially since social distancing / protection is still required even with going back to in-person gatherings.  At a very minimum, temperature checks and face masks would be required.  Maybe you also tape at a quarter to half capacity.  Maybe you tape 2-3 shows with the same audience to reduce new people interactions.

Even beyond that, things which are going back to in person have minimal contact with shared surfaces (for example, churches are allowing masses but with no hymnals or missals).  And Price suffers greatly from having lots of contact with shared objects.  Even if you tell (enforce?) contestants don’t touch Contestant Row podiums and don’t play games involving the contestant touching objects (no more Plinko :cry:), you come to the Big Wheel and then you have a problem.  Short of stopping after every contestant spins to sanitize, you can’t continue the show.

In all likelihood, it’s looking as if we’re going to be in rerun mode for at least the first half of Season 49 and maybe all of it.  The show survived when Drew took over, and we had reruns through the start of the season, and no body blinked an eye.  Folks will understand: we’re all in the same mess here.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: COINBOYNYC on May 25, 2020, 11:47:56 PM
The show can’t go on the road in a practical manner with all 70+ pricing games, set, et al. requiring extensive efforts to be transported

If the show moves to, say, Florida for a significant amount of time, is there any reason why they can't recreate the pricing games in Florida?
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: gamesurf on May 26, 2020, 03:19:45 AM
If the show moves to, say, Florida for a significant amount of time, is there any reason why they can't recreate the pricing games in Florida?

It’d probably be at a cost of hundreds of thousands, if not millions. But aside from that, not really.

Maybe you also tape at a quarter to half capacity.  Maybe you tape 2-3 shows with the same audience to reduce new people interactions.

If you’re in an audience taping at 1/3 capacity (100 audience members) and 2-3 shows with an audience (27 contestants)...your odds of getting picked just went up from the normal 1 in 30 to about 1 in 4.

You’d get an interesting crop of contestants—Stan would have to dive deep.

Even beyond that, things which are going back to in person have minimal contact with shared surfaces (for example, churches are allowing masses but with no hymnals or missals).  And Price suffers greatly from having lots of contact with shared objects.  Even if you tell (enforce?) contestants don’t touch Contestant Row podiums and don’t play games involving the contestant touching objects (no more Plinko :cry:), you come to the Big Wheel and then you have a problem.  Short of stopping after every contestant spins to sanitize, you can’t continue the show.

Disposable gloves for all contestants?

(I agree a year of reruns is the more likely option.)
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Mr. Weatherman on May 26, 2020, 09:19:06 AM
If the show moves to, say, Florida for a significant amount of time, is there any reason why they can't recreate the pricing games in Florida?

*Some* pricing games can be transported, which is what I was getting at in my original comment.  In theory, most turntable games and stage games with relatively small footprints (Golden Road, Double Prices, Side by Side, Most Expensive, etc.) can probably be loaded onto a truck or plane with ease.  Some of the larger games with live stage show cousins can simply play with those versions instead (Plinko).  And then some games can simply utilize a video board of sorts and not feel too terribly different (Lucky $even, 3 Strikes, etc.).  All told, they can probably get at least half if not more of the rotation over to Florida if they really wanted to — all without having to recreate any pricing game props.  Would it be worth the expense of transporting everything?  That much remains to be seen.  I’m not holding my breath that the show will actually go on the road — I’m simply saying it’s one of a handful of options CBS and Fremantle have before them to get new shows on the air.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: JhayPrice on May 26, 2020, 09:46:21 AM
It would cost them a lot on the case that they'd move to FL. Big games such as Plinko, 3 Strikes,  Gridlock!, Hot Seat, etc. can be hard to replicate. Plus, I do prefer continuous reruns.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Mr. Weatherman on May 26, 2020, 09:48:03 AM
It would cost them a lot on the case that they'd move to FL. Big games such as Plinko, 3 Strikes,  Gridlock!, Hot Seat, etc. can be hard to replicate. Plus, I do prefer continuous reruns.

You did read my above comment, right?
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: JhayPrice on May 26, 2020, 09:54:43 AM
PTR, I just mean that a third of the games would require some budget, just saying that I really do agree with your comment. Sorry if I made it look that I duplicated your comment. 😁
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: thepriceis_J on May 26, 2020, 03:35:06 PM
I thought I remember hearing that transporting the games they needed to Vegas for the 30th Anniversary special was a nightmare, besides the other logistics that trip involved. Roger never tried it again and I suspect that of all the gimmicks that Mike tried, there's a reason travelling with the show was one we never saw. I can imagine moving the current doors would be hellish with all the electronics now involved and rebuilding them would be quite a cost. I'd also hunch that they'd want the show to look as familiar as possible, so they might not be a fan of some knockoff props/doors.

Unless the show would seriously consider staying in Florida for over a year/season, moving there for any period less than that would be a waste of money, in my opinion.

The show's location is such apart of it (it's mentioned at the top of every show) that I can imagine that, besides a potentially costly move, they'd be hesitant to relocate.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Casey on May 26, 2020, 04:28:29 PM
The show's location is such apart of it (it's mentioned at the top of every show) that I can imagine that, besides a potentially costly move, they'd be hesitant to relocate.

I’ve seen this mentioned a few times.  I’m willing to bet that if the show looked the same and felt the same from Orlando, or Branson, or Albuquerque, or Des Moines, or anywhere else, no one except for the folks here would really notice much.  I doubt most casual watchers care that the show is “from Television City in Hollywood”

(Not to discount the other many valid reasons why it is unlikely the show is going to pick up and move somewhere, but on the list of reasons not to, I would think this one would be pretty far down below some of the others).
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: thepriceis_J on May 26, 2020, 06:49:16 PM
I’ve seen this mentioned a few times.  I’m willing to bet that if the show looked the same and felt the same from Orlando, or Branson, or Albuquerque, or Des Moines, or anywhere else, no one except for the folks here would really notice much.  I doubt most casual watchers care that the show is “from Television City in Hollywood”

(Not to discount the other many valid reasons why it is unlikely the show is going to pick up and move somewhere, but on the list of reasons not to, I would think this one would be pretty far down below some of the others).
I mean, I mentioned in my post that the show has traveled. So, they can do it and bill the location as whatever. You're right, no one would really notice the change in location, mentioned or otherwise. But we've seen and heard of the small changes that have been done or were proposed over the last 20 years, that probably would go mostly unnoticed by the general public.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: EvilChameleon on May 26, 2020, 07:53:31 PM
Where even in Florida is a space big enough to film TPIR?
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Spmahn on July 09, 2020, 08:46:57 PM
So it appears Freemantle is beginning to start casting for LMAD, so I can only assume they’ve figured out a way make it work in a Post-Covid world. This is probably a good sign for TPIR, since the show is similar.

https://fremantle.formstack.com/forms/fremantle_gameshow_2020
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Casey on July 10, 2020, 09:51:30 AM
The main difference being the contestant selection process, right?  On LMAD, you could just sparsely populate the audience with the casted participants, not have the rest of the audience, and probably achieve the necessary social distancing.  Working out the deals so that Wayne doesn’t have to be near the contestant wouldn’t be too complicated for most of them. 

I still see TPIR being different.  You can’t have contestants’ row right now without modifying it so that the players stand far apart.  You also can’t have the audience either, and you’d have to modify a fair number of the games so that Drew and the contestant are not in close proximity.  There are a number of other logistics I think you’d have to solve for.  (Do contestants wear gloves to spin the wheel?  etc).

I’m not saying they couldn’t come up with the correct formula, but I don’t think it is as easy as LMAD.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: urbanpreppie0004 on July 10, 2020, 10:23:57 AM
They won't change locations. The cost and logistics alone just don't make much sense, and this is someone's "pipe dream" to force drew to step down. Ugh.

I do see them trying something else- Cash Explosion in Ohio has resorted to using skype/zoom for their contestants and it actually works quite well. Theoretically, price COULD do the same thing. Maybe a smaller stable of games so there's less chance of looking up prices. Or, or, they could use socially distanced facilities at CBS stations (even if they just used the O&O stations), with drew/George and one of the models spinning the wheel as proxy.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: JayC on July 10, 2020, 11:19:30 AM
The main difference being the contestant selection process, right?  On LMAD, you could just sparsely populate the audience with the casted participants, not have the rest of the audience, and probably achieve the necessary social distancing.  Working out the deals so that Wayne doesn’t have to be near the contestant wouldn’t be too complicated for most of them. 

I still see TPIR being different.  You can’t have contestants’ row right now without modifying it so that the players stand far apart.  You also can’t have the audience either, and you’d have to modify a fair number of the games so that Drew and the contestant are not in close proximity.  There are a number of other logistics I think you’d have to solve for.  (Do contestants wear gloves to spin the wheel?  etc).

I’m not saying they couldn’t come up with the correct formula, but I don’t think it is as easy as LMAD.
Definitely agree with this. LMaD could go on just fine with a smaller audience, and contestants could incorporate face masks and gloves into their costumes. And as you said for several games it's pretty easily to practice social distancing and limit interaction between the contestant and Wayne. Doing the show with contestants playing from home could work also for most of the deals.

For Price, the audience is a bigger part of the show even if they're not playing and it's more difficult to practice social distancing. There'd be some games where there's no interaction required or could be modified so Drew or a model is performing the action, but for others it wouldn't work. Contestants playing from home could be feasible, but there would be the issue of being able to look up prices. That said, perhaps they could try to tape with a small audience and modifications in place using only local contestants. I've suggested before that it would be great if they could do a week of shows saluting front line workers and first responders.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: EvilChameleon on July 10, 2020, 12:09:30 PM
I honestly don't think people looking up prices would be an issue, since the price you see on, say, Amazon, is not the price TPIR is using.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: JhayPrice on July 10, 2020, 12:30:41 PM
Is it possible that a one seat-apart rule will help (plus without the usual hi-fives and hugging when a contestant comes on down)?
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Casey on July 10, 2020, 01:27:10 PM
I think you’d have to be a minimum of 1 seat apart and skip every other row in the audience to space people out far enough.  The other thing you have to factor in is human nature.  We can tell people “don’t high five or hug people” but in the excitement of the moment, people can’t be trusted to not do those things.  And there are still the logistics of contestants’ row and a number of games that either can’t be played or must be modified.  There are still lots of games that can be played via social distance rules but some just can’t I don’t think without being reworked.  (3 Strikes and 10 Chances come to mind - they could be done but would need to be done differently.)
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: BillyGr on July 10, 2020, 02:26:40 PM
And there are still the logistics of contestants’ row and a number of games that either can’t be played or must be modified.  There are still lots of games that can be played via social distance rules but some just can’t I don’t think without being reworked.  (3 Strikes and 10 Chances come to mind - they could be done but would need to be done differently.)

Those seem easy enough.  For Three Strikes, contestant stands 6 feet away while the numbers are shown and put in bag.  Once the balls are in and mixed up, Drew steps away and contestant draws one.  You could have the contestant walk over and drop it in the slot if they are correct (or get the x).  If they need remixing, the contestant steps back while Drew does that.

For 10 Chances the same idea.  Drew steps up and reveals numbers.  He steps back, contestant goes and writes choice.  They step back while Drew comes up and pushes button (or, if easier have them push it on command, like Flip Flop).  And repeat.

For bidding, simply remove one row of seats (if needed) and put up walls between spots (like Jeopardy does for final, but a bit larger and clear, since you're not trying to hide anything). 

That way, contestants are separated without being a set distance apart.  The couple seconds waking from the spot to the stage is no more an issue than two people passing in a store aisle (which happens all the time, one way or not) - the seat removal is only if needed to allow space to walk behind others with these dividing walls in place.

And at the end of the day, if you tell people not to do something (like the high fives or hugs) and they still do, that's their problem and not the show's (just like any of the other rules created during this that people sometimes don't follow).
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Mr. Weatherman on July 10, 2020, 03:13:22 PM
I made several ‘predictions’ weeks and months back in this thread, but let’s be real here.  As optimistic as we are and want to be, I don’t think there is any chance The Price is Right returns to air with new episodes before a vaccine or treatment is in place.  There is no way to properly bring it back in L.A. without completely altering the format into something that doesn’t resemble the show we know and love.  Sure, they could take it in the road to a state that would allow an audience, but even that’s not really feasible for a multitude of reasons.  As long as repeats do well enough to turn a profit for CBS, we’ll be seeing repeats until the pandemic ends — hopefully by early next year if we can get a vaccine widely available by then.  In the meantime, I think the best we can hope for is the network to step into the vault and air episodes going well back into the Barker era.  The reasons for and against this happening have been discussed in length here and in other threads, but as fans, that’s probably the only surprise we would get.  Otherwise, we’re probably looking at Season 45+ repeats until new episodes can resume.  It’s just the reality of the situation we find ourselves in.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: JayC on July 10, 2020, 04:13:23 PM
I honestly don't think people looking up prices would be an issue, since the price you see on, say, Amazon, is not the price TPIR is using.
True, and prices can vary based on location. They could also use more time limits if need be so contestants wouldn't have time to look anything up.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: gamesurf on July 10, 2020, 04:44:24 PM
And at the end of the day, if you tell people not to do something (like the high fives or hugs) and they still do, that's their problem and not the show's (just like any of the other rules created during this that people sometimes don't follow).

If it results in a transmission, that’s very much the show’s problem.

“She hugged me against my will and I got COVID, the show didn’t do enough to prevent that, that is negligence and I’m suing TVC for eleventy bajillion dollars”

At a minimum it would get the show a bunch of negative press, at worst it would get audiences in LA closed down again. That’s true even if the fault is mostly on the contestant.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: EvilChameleon on July 10, 2020, 05:21:57 PM
Well that's why they would have you sign waivers before you even entered the premises absolving them of all liability if you caught COVID19.

Luckily, as PayingTheRent said, I don't see tapings returning before a vaccine, unless we suddenly start doing extremely well in our battle against this virus, so it's a moot point.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: gamesurf on July 10, 2020, 07:09:16 PM
Well that's why they would have you sign waivers before you even entered the premises absolving them of all liability if you caught COVID19.

Sure, but that only absolves them in a court of law. If the news hears about it, it isn't going to stop TMZ and Hollywood Reporter from writing articles with titles like "Are we killing people by putting game shows on the air?"

(It's an exaggerated scenario, but not an impossible one.)

Point is that it's more complicated than "well you didn't follow our guidelines, therefore the consequences aren't our fault." They have to be a bit more careful than that.

I agree that we're a long way out from tapings resuming. LA county still looks to be in big trouble. (https://abc7.com/coronavirus-threat-level-orange-red-los-angeles/6309272/)
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: imhomerjay on July 10, 2020, 07:30:41 PM
The court of public opinion can be a brutal beast. In the risk/reward equation, you have to factor that in. As well in that equation is the question of reusability of the program. Are you going to repeat these shows and amortize your costs? Doubtful. That’s not to say you don’t do them, but to illustrate the decision is multifaceted.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: SuperSweeper on July 10, 2020, 07:44:22 PM
So it appears Freemantle is beginning to start casting for LMAD, so I can only assume they’ve figured out a way make it work in a Post-Covid world. This is probably a good sign for TPIR, since the show is similar.

https://fremantle.formstack.com/forms/fremantle_gameshow_2020

Unfortunately, this casting notice is not “current”. A good friend has connections with the show, and this is only to get information for when tapings resume. They do not have any plans to start taping now or in the near future.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Spmahn on July 10, 2020, 08:41:25 PM
Sure, but that only absolves them in a court of law. If the news hears about it, it isn't going to stop TMZ and Hollywood Reporter from writing articles with titles like "Are we killing people by putting game shows on the air?".[/url]

WWE hasn’t skipped a beat taping shows this entire time and has experiences issues with talent contracting Covid 19 and the public largely hasn’t batted an eye at them. Granted, TPIR might be a little higher in the public consciousness today than professional wrestling is, but there’s still precedent.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: pricefan18 on July 10, 2020, 08:57:08 PM
WWE hasn’t skipped a beat taping shows this entire time and has experiences issues with talent contracting Covid 19 and the public largely hasn’t batted an eye at them. Granted, TPIR might be a little higher in the public consciousness today than professional wrestling is, but there’s still precedent.

WWE doesn't have random people showing up every show either as its' participants. So it's not the most fair comparison to make.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: urbanpreppie0004 on July 10, 2020, 09:01:19 PM
One thing that everyone has to consider is that COVID is going to make some big changes in every single industry, and companies, schools, and infrastructure can't just take a "wait and see" approach and wait for a vaccine. Everyone is making adjustments. Price will too- even if it's for a few months.

To be honest...I'm kinda intrigued to see what they do!
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: imhomerjay on July 10, 2020, 09:57:43 PM
Price is the product. CBS is the customer. If the powers that be don’t want a modified version for the time being, all the ideas in the world won’t change the outcome. CBS needs to weigh all the pros and cons from a business standpoint. Just because something might be technically feasible doesn’t make it good business.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: urbanpreppie0004 on July 11, 2020, 09:54:47 AM
I honestly, honestly think they will do something, at least in the interim. They may even have an idea that hasn't even been thought of yet. I'm not saying this from an emotional perspective, but from what we've seen so far in the industry with shows going back to production without audiences, screening of early episodes, new shows added to the schedule to fill in gaps for the forthcoming lack of scripted programs, and other adjustments.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Spmahn on July 11, 2020, 10:45:07 AM
I don’t know about filming new shows, but I think Advertisers will grow weary of continued Season 48 or similar reruns into the Fall. I think for that reason alone it’s unlikely that we’ll continue with the same reruns indefinitely. I would guess by Labor Day CBS will be forced to come up with some sort of outside the box idea, whether it be classic reruns or something else TPIR related, hopefully not putting something different in the time slot temporarily
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: JayC on July 11, 2020, 11:34:25 AM
I think the best guess for what they'll show besides season 48 reruns is reruns from other recent seasons, particularly the special weeks and theme shows. I doubt they would stop airing the show at any point before new episodes begin airing.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: BillyGr on July 11, 2020, 12:56:47 PM
If it results in a transmission, that’s very much the show’s problem.

“She hugged me against my will and I got COVID, the show didn’t do enough to prevent that, that is negligence and I’m suing TVC for eleventy bajillion dollars”

At a minimum it would get the show a bunch of negative press, at worst it would get audiences in LA closed down again. That’s true even if the fault is mostly on the contestant.

The problem is, no one can prove where the person got it from - it's highly unlikely that the taping of the Price is Right is the ONLY place someone goes in a two week period.  Thus, there's no way to know if that person in the studio gave it to you, or the person at the supermarket, or the drugstore, or the restaurant or wherever else.

Additionally, even if they did somehow figure that out, it's still NOT the show's fault, as they provided proper instructions.  No one can be expected to guarantee someone else will follow every rule.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Casey on July 11, 2020, 01:52:57 PM
The problem is, no one can prove where the person got it from - it's highly unlikely that the taping of the Price is Right is the ONLY place someone goes in a two week period.  Thus, there's no way to know if that person in the studio gave it to you, or the person at the supermarket, or the drugstore, or the restaurant or wherever else.

Additionally, even if they did somehow figure that out, it's still NOT the show's fault, as they provided proper instructions.  No one can be expected to guarantee someone else will follow every rule.
All the more reason then to not put the show back in production.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Mr. Weatherman on July 11, 2020, 03:16:03 PM
Completely out-there alternative: quarantine 300+ people in a hotel for 14 days with a guaranteed chance to ‘come on down,’ and you’ve got yourself at a good 30-35 shows right there.

Totally kidding, btw.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: gamesurf on July 11, 2020, 03:56:48 PM
Completely out-there alternative: quarantine 300+ people in a hotel for 14 days with a guaranteed chance to ‘come on down,’ and you’ve got yourself at a good 30-35 shows right there.

Totally kidding, btw.

“You and a guest will fly round trip coach to Los Angeles, California, where you’ll enjoy a 15 day, 14 night stay at the Beverly Inn...”
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: imhomerjay on July 11, 2020, 06:22:39 PM
Let’s be clear—advertisers want the eyeballs regardless of the content. They’re not “weary” of reruns per se—it doesn’t matter one way or another. In a hypothetical situation where reruns outrate new content among the desired audience, reruns win. Bottom line always comes out on top.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: SeaBreeze341 on July 11, 2020, 11:27:21 PM
It's similar to the advice I've heard for sports.  If you have to go to extreme measures to do something, you're better off cancelling it all together. 


Agree with imhomerjay as it relates to reruns.  Advertisers don't care whether price is new or old if people tune in.  While it's not the best comparison, Seinfeld, PYL, and Pyramid did well in reruns (which lasted longer than their first-run airings)
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: COINBOYNYC on July 12, 2020, 03:27:44 AM
Completely out-there alternative: quarantine 300+ people in a hotel for 14 days with a guaranteed chance to ‘come on down,’ and you’ve got yourself at a good 30-35 shows right there.

I know you were just kidding...

Totally kidding, btw.

...yeah, I just said that.   :-D

Anyway, I'll bet there are plenty of people who'd be willing to audition for an opportunity to be one of those 300+ people.  As far as the 14-day quarantine, it's no different than the people willing to be "marooned" for 39 days on Survivor - there may not be a million dollar grand prize, but I'm sure the conditions under quarantine wouldn't be as arduous.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: JayC on July 12, 2020, 12:05:31 PM
Anyway, I'll bet there are plenty of people who'd be willing to audition for an opportunity to be one of those 300+ people.  As far as the 14-day quarantine, it's no different than the people willing to be "marooned" for 39 days on Survivor - there may not be a million dollar grand prize, but I'm sure the conditions under quarantine wouldn't be as arduous.
Fair point, I think there would certainly be people willing to do it if they did some kind of Big Brother and Price hybrid with the top nine getting called down to be contestants.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: gamesurf on July 12, 2020, 12:54:22 PM
Of course, that would self-select out every type of contestant except for the types of people who make it on Survivor and Big Brother.

And the real "prize" for those types of people isn't necessarily the million bucks--it's also the chance to be on TV for potentially weeks and weeks. On Price a good contestant might be shown on the air for about 10 minutes, at most.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: sayingsorry on July 15, 2020, 09:20:22 AM
I think the only way TPIR can ever work going forward is-

- Casting 9 people for each show they film with temperature checks before they are let into the studio
- Have each contestant separated by plexiglass in bidders row
- Each game will have to have a separate place for Drew and the contestant to stand at least 6 feet apart.
- Any game that has the contestant touching it to be sanitized and placed out of use for that taping day at a minimum to dry
- Showcase podiums separated 6 feet apart

It will certainly be a weird feeling with no audience but I think TPIR can really pull it off well
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: actual_retail_tice on July 15, 2020, 11:01:27 AM
Hmmm, time to dust off that podium from episode 1.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Mr. Weatherman on July 15, 2020, 12:45:40 PM
Survivor was just taken off the schedule for this fall — probably one of the easiest contestant participation shows to film during the pandemic (quarantine everyone involved for 14 days, test, and boom. Show can go on.).  Price isn’t coming back until it can be done normally again.  That day will absolutely come, but at this rate, it will likely be at some point next year.  My bet is either the entirety of Season 49 will be scrapped, or it will begin in late spring and segue directly into Season 50 with no summer repeats — S50 itself either being shortened or extended well into the summer of 2022 to allow for production breaks to accommodate summer episodes in 2021 without fatiguing the staff.  In the meantime, we have plenty of repeats to fall back on (hopefully digging deep inside the vault!), and CBS/Fremantle likely won’t hurt very much financially.

Given the extended production break, regardless of when taping resumes, I imagine we’ll see quite a few changes to the set and some pricing games.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: brosa0 on July 15, 2020, 12:52:42 PM
This has me wondering - how many pricing games would be impossible to play without the contestants touching any part of the game?  Plinko springs to mind immediately, as well as other similar luck-involved games like Dice Game, 3 Strikes, Let Em Roll.  Hot Seat could perhaps be played without the sitting in the seat, calling higher or lower for each item, but then it may as well be rested as it loses its core concept.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: tpir04 on July 15, 2020, 01:06:58 PM
Well, aside from timed games technically any game can be played without the contestant touching anything, just have one of the models do it.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: SeaBreeze341 on July 15, 2020, 01:47:02 PM
I would be down for a remote version of the show.  Given what the World Series Of Poker is doing this year, it is possible to go off-script for the sake of having the season (and avoiding a break in the consecutive streak of one of the best gameshows of all time).  While I can't completely picture a remote PIR (as something indefinite), I couldn't picture the WSOP going remote after 50 years either.

That being said, I probably won't bet on a season this year, definitely not before 2021
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Prizes on July 15, 2020, 02:09:57 PM
And we’re more than likely done (https://deadline.com/2020/07/viacomcbs-ceo-says-keeping-offices-closed-critical-focus-production-1202986390/) for quite sometime in terms of at least in studio, physically.

From Bob Bakish, ViacomCBS CEO:
Quote
Unfortunately, we have seen recent spikes in infection rates in many areas across the U.S.  This obviously makes our facilities-related planning difficult. It’s clear this will not happen.  In fact, at this point, we are assuming the majority of employees will not be returning to U.S. offices this year.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: BillyGr on July 15, 2020, 03:14:33 PM
And we’re more than likely done (https://deadline.com/2020/07/viacomcbs-ceo-says-keeping-offices-closed-critical-focus-production-1202986390/) for quite sometime in terms of at least in studio, physically.

From Bob Bakish, ViacomCBS CEO:

Also in that article is the following sentence:

"As mentioned, getting back to production is critical, and we’ve made important progress in navigating the complexities of doing so."

Reading it, it looks like this refers to people who work in an office setting for the company (the kind of stuff, like paperwork, that can be done from home easily), rather than those who work on actual productions (which, it also mentioned “generally has to be done in person and is the lifeblood of our business.”).

Survivor was just taken off the schedule for this fall — probably one of the easiest contestant participation shows to film during the pandemic (quarantine everyone involved for 14 days, test, and boom. Show can go on.).

That was sort of surprising, as they were ready (or just about) to leave when this first started and that they didn't just go ahead then (when there was minimal problems and what you suggested would have solved even those) and they would have had it all set to go.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: gamesurf on July 15, 2020, 04:48:46 PM
And we’re more than likely done (https://deadline.com/2020/07/viacomcbs-ceo-says-keeping-offices-closed-critical-focus-production-1202986390/) for quite sometime in terms of at least in studio, physically.

From Bob Bakish, ViacomCBS CEO:
Quote
Unfortunately, we have seen recent spikes in infection rates in many areas across the U.S.  This obviously makes our facilities-related planning difficult. It’s clear this will not happen.  In fact, at this point, we are assuming the majority of employees will not be returning to U.S. offices this year.

Yeah, the way the author of the article truncated that quote is very misleading. The actual quote is:

Quote
Team,

As we all know, there continues to be significant complexity, disruption, medical issues and uncertainty around COVID, and, unfortunately, we have seen recent spikes in infection rates in many areas across the U.S.  This obviously makes our facilities-related planning difficult, despite the fact that we are in constant contact with a whole range of constituents, including governments, medical advisors and more.

At the same time, we know everyone is juggling a lot of uncertainty — including around schooling in the fall, caring for family members, the prospect of commuting, and more — so we feel it’s important to provide you with the best information we have at this point about our return to offices and productions.  As we do so, know that we continue to hold the health and safety of our employees as a critical priority of ViacomCBS.

First, on our offices:

• While we were hopeful we’d be able to bring a small number of employees back to U.S. office locations beginning in August, due to recent spikes it’s clear this will not happen.  In fact, at this point, we are assuming the majority of employees will not be returning to U.S. offices this year.

...


As a result, we can continue to focus our time and resources on supporting our business-critical employees who need to work from facilities, as well as enabling our return to production – which generally has to be done in person and is the lifeblood of our business.

Our international colleagues will continue to operate in line with the various local market conditions, and they will be receiving separate communications on their specific situations.

As mentioned, getting back to production is critical, and we’ve made important progress in navigating the complexities of doing so.

•We’re collaborating with our industry partners at the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) and government organizations on industry-wide recommendations, as well as determining our internal process for planning and evaluating all ViacomCBS productions.
•Our Productions task force has also been working to ensure we have personal protective equipment and cleaning and disinfection services, validating safe travel and hotel resources, securing testing and health screening services, hiring and vetting COVID compliance consultants and vendors to support our Production Safety and Environmental, Health & Safety teams.
•In addition to the few productions that have returned domestically and internationally, all of our businesses have been working hard to develop highly detailed and thoughtful plans for each of their unique shows, events, features and series to get them back into production under these new safety protocols.

They are not freezing all studio productions. Quite the opposite. They're focusing resources on making studio productions safe.

(Obviously this doesn't mean all systems go either. LA county is still not going to have audiences anytime soon.)
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: SeaBreeze341 on July 16, 2020, 11:36:27 AM
Quote
They are not freezing all studio productions. Quite the opposite. They're focusing resources on making studio productions safe.

(Obviously this doesn't mean all systems go either. LA county is still not going to have audiences anytime soon.)

Yeah, it's going to be a while.  Even a move to a better part of the country (if not area) isn't possible or feasible.


Based on that article, the better safe than sorry approach is the best approach.  A lot of places were more than eager to return to normal, but patience is key.  As a result, the restrictions have returned.  I hate to see production return to get a season in only to have to halt it.  I love TPIR, but I’m not losing sleep over no season.

On a related note, I’ve got a question to whomever may know the answer:  What determines whether a series continues as such vs a revival of a television series?  For example, Family Feud has completed 21 seasons in a row albeit with 4 different hosts.  Not 10 in a row with Steve Harvey or 35 seasons (34 in syndication) with 6 hosts over the past 44 years.  TPIR has completed 48 seasons in a row with Barker hosting the first 35 & Carey the past 13.


If the show were to be delayed throughout the entire 2020-2021 season, wouldn’t they have to start over and consider it a revival, or resume in 2021-2022 as Season 49?  Just something that came to mind recently.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: Mr. Weatherman on July 16, 2020, 11:48:45 AM
If the show were to be delayed throughout the entire 2020-2021 season, wouldn’t they have to start over and consider it a revival, or resume in 2021-2022 as Season 49?  Just something that came to mind recently.

You can’t revive a show that was never cancelled.  If Season 49 is scrapped for the 2020-21 television season, then it will simply premiere in summer or fall of 2021, and every season from then-onward will be shifted back a year.  Even in this scenario, the show isn’t skipping a year, as new episodes will have aired in both 2020 and 2021 — just not in the traditional television season sense.  Absolutely nothing to lose sleep over.
Title: Re: Will The Price be Right?: The Possible Future of the Show.
Post by: pricefan18 on July 16, 2020, 12:01:05 PM
On a related note, I’ve got a question to whomever may know the answer:  What determines whether a series continues as such vs a revival of a television series?  For example, Family Feud has completed 21 seasons in a row albeit with 4 different hosts.  Not 10 in a row with Steve Harvey or 35 seasons (34 in syndication) with 6 hosts over the past 44 years.  TPIR has completed 48 seasons in a row with Barker hosting the first 35 & Carey the past 13.


Feud is interesting too in this case I think.....since they had 2 different nighttime runs running alongside the daytime ones for both the Dawson and Combs eras (and in the latter era, also 2 years past it). So you could almost say when you count those in.....(something I was actually thinking about just a bit ago in fact watching part of an episode from Dawson's return year in 1994), that when put together, from a total number of episodes and seasons standpoint, it's been running from 76 onward without a break and really plus some.

Obviously there's been several actual ones in time, but production wise they've done so many shows across both day and night that if put back to back to back to back etc, there'd be no actual gap in timeframe from when it debuted to now.