PlayMania
Encyclopedia
PlayMania is a live interactive
game show
on GSN
, hosted by Mel Peachey
, Shandi Finnessey
, Jessica York
, Angelle Tymon
and Jeff Thisted
. The two-hour program featured interactive games that the viewers could play to win cash
prizes. On February 20, 2007, the show was replaced with two separate programs, quiznation
and 100 Winners
which were collectively known as the PlayMania Block.
for a small fee, or using the network's website to enter free. From January to April 2007 a premium-rate phone number was available to use as an entry method, as well.
Within a few moments, a contestant was notified whether or not his or her entry had been chosen (at random) to proceed to another random selection process. If an entry was selected in the second phase, the contestant would then be called on his or her home or mobile phone
, depending on which method of entry had been used. The contestant would then, if the game was still in progress, play on-air. After a game was completed, the queue
was cleared, and any entrants who wished to play the next game were required to re-enter. A $.99 fee applied for each text message entry or premium rate phone call, along with standard text messaging rates added to the former. Entries on the network's website were free. Regardless of the method of entry, each entry had an equal chance of being selected. An entry did not necessarily guarantee an opportunity to appear on the show. Residents of certain states were ineligible to play using various entry methods.
The PlayMania Block shows have continued to use the same entry process.
television channel produced by Optimistic Entertainment. Optimistic was also co-producer of the U.S. PlayMania, and Mel Peachey, one of the hosts of Quiznation, was brought over to host the U.S. version. After the division of PlayMania into two separate programs, the Quiznation name would be used in the U.S., as well. PlayMania originally was scheduled to air three days a week in April of 2006, from 1 - 3 AM (Eastern Time
); a Sunday broadcast was added on August 27, and Tuesday and Wednesday editions were added on October 3 and October 4 of that year. The airtime of the show changed to 12 midnight - 2 AM (ET) beginning with the August 24, 2006 episode.
On February 20, 2007, PlayMania was divided into two separate programs. Collectively, these shows, quiznation
and 100 Winners
, became known as "the PlayMania Block." While 100 Winners presented a format novel to American viewers, the quiznation program shared games and a similar format with the original PlayMania.
By June 14, 2007, all scheduled airings of 100 Winners had been replaced with quiznation episodes. The show is considered indefinitely canceled from the programming schedule, and is no longer referenced in the official rules described on the GSN
website. The same month 100 Winners was canceled, Optimistic Entertainment, the co-producer of PlayMania Block, went into administration
. It is unknown what impact, if any, this has had or will have on the PlayMania Block.
On June 26, 2007, PlayMania gave away its one millionth dollar. The winning contestant, Bernice, received a $500 bonus in addition to the $400 she had won playing, as well as a personalized plaque commemorating the achievement.
On July 17, 2007, the Tuesday edition of quiznation ceased airing. After September 2, 2007, the Sunday broadcast was removed as well, slightly over a year after it originally debuted.
quiznation aired its last episode on October 31, 2007. The network had made claims that it was improving upon its interactive participation for new concepts in the future, which came about with the premiere of GSN Live
on February 25, 2008.
, a host of the U.K. edition of Quiznation, and Shandi Finnessey
, a co-host of the GSN
game show
Lingo. Peachey was originally scheduled to appear on US airwaves for only one month in order to introduce America to the unfamiliar "participation TV" format. However, she stayed through the entire run of PlayMania and hosted the two "PlayMania Block" shows, as well. Finnessey and Peachey were joined by host Jessica York
on October 19, 2006. Peachey returned to England after hosting quiznation
on April 7, 2007, her "goodbye show". Finnessey and York continued to appear on quiznation. After a week of eliminations, Angelle Tymon
was introduced as Peachey's replacement on the "PlayMania Block" on April 21, 2007. A month later, the May 18 edition of quiznation featured the debut of The Price is Right
production coordinator Jeff Thisted
as host.
In addition to the "official" hosts listed above, there have been several fill-in and guest hosts during PlayManias run. Hannah Peckham
hosted the June 15 and June 16 episodes in 2006, but did not become a permanent host. On two occasions, regulars from I've Got a Secret
served as guest co-hosts in charge of viewer e-mail. Jermaine Taylor appeared on June 17, 2006, and Bil Dwyer
appeared on June 22 of that year.
The PlayMania week of August 24, 2006, which featured a timeslot shift and the debut of a Sunday broadcast, was a "Winner's Weekend." This week featured puzzles about television
to honor the 58th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards
. As part of the theme, PlayMania held its own award ceremony, the "PlayMes", a parody of the Emmy Award
s on the Sunday August 27 broadcast. Danny Bonaduce
, then host of GSN's original game show Starface
, appeared to present the awards. On that same night, $2,000 was given away to a caller named Julie, making her, at that time, the biggest PlayMania winner ever. (That record was later broken. The final record was set on the September 5, 2007 episode of quiznation by a caller named Teresa who won $4,700.)
During its ten month run, the below twenty-one permanent games were played on the original PlayMania. Many carried over to be rotated on quiznation
.
, the release of Horrorfest
and even a Super Match-esque style game for the documentary, The Match Game
Story: Behind the Blank .
. When new e-mail arrived, the active host was alerted via a sound effect. The host then walked over to the large plasma-screen monitor on the set and read e-mails from viewers while taking a break from talking to the audience during games. Since July 13, 2006, each episode has had a requested theme for e-mails. The tone of the e-mails varies widely, from serious to silly. The host may showcase graphics that viewers have sent with e-mails, including photographs and viewer-created art.
There were featured sponsors for a number of PlayMania episodes, usually during the first hour only. On some occasions — for instance, during the first month of the show when the main sponsor was Dick's Sporting Goods
— items provided by the sponsor were given away in addition to or instead of cash prizes.
and quiznation
.
quiznation Borrowing the title from its British predecessor, quiznation featured trivia, number, and word games with set cash prizes. The program aired from 12 midnight - 2 AM (EST) every Thursday through Saturday night (early Friday through early Sunday morning in the Eastern Time zone), but with the cancellation of 100 Winners, its final schedule was set at Wednesday through Saturday (technically early Thursday through early Sunday morning in the Eastern Time zone) quiznations format was nearly identical to that of the PlayMania program. Its final episode was aired on October 31, 2007.
es on the set with a prize inside. The program aired from 12 midnight - 2 AM Eastern every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Sunday night (technically early Wednesday, Thursday, and Monday morning in the Eastern Time zone). Its final episode was aired on June 13, 2007.
Interactivity
In the fields of information science, communication, and industrial design, there is debate over the meaning of interactivity. In the "contingency view" of interactivity, there are three levels:...
game show
Game show
A game show is a type of radio or television program in which members of the public, television personalities or celebrities, sometimes as part of a team, play a game which involves answering questions or solving puzzles usually for money and/or prizes...
on GSN
Game Show Network
The Game Show Network is an American cable television and direct broadcast satellite channel dedicated to game shows and casino game shows. The channel was launched on December 1, 1994. Its current slogan is "The World Needs More Winners"...
, hosted by Mel Peachey
Melissa Peachey
Melissa "Mel" Peachey is a British television personality, most notable for hosting PlayMania on GSN and Quiznation in the United Kingdom.-Early career:Born in London, she started out as an assistant for a London television network...
, Shandi Finnessey
Shandi Finnessey
Shandi Ren Finnessey is an American beauty queen, model, television hostess, and actress. She is best known for winning the Miss USA title, as Miss Missouri USA. She previously held the title of Miss Missouri 2002 and competed in Miss America where she won a preliminary award...
, Jessica York
Jessica York
Jessica York is an American television personality, and sports anchor. She was one of the three hosts on GSN's PlayMania before it broke off into two separate shows, and was subsequently a host on quiznation...
, Angelle Tymon
Angelle Tymon
Angelle Marie Tymon is an American broadcast journalist and game show host. She served as one of the hosts on GSN's interactive game show quiznation in the PlayMania Block....
and Jeff Thisted
Jeff Thisted
Jeffrey "Jeff" Thisted is an American game show host. He served as one of the hosts on GSN's interactive game show Quiznation in the PlayMania Block. He made his hosting debut presiding over one game on the May 18, 2007 episode of Quiznation and finished in October before the finale. He was the...
. The two-hour program featured interactive games that the viewers could play to win cash
Cash
In common language cash refers to money in the physical form of currency, such as banknotes and coins.In bookkeeping and finance, cash refers to current assets comprising currency or currency equivalents that can be accessed immediately or near-immediately...
prizes. On February 20, 2007, the show was replaced with two separate programs, quiznation
Quiznation (US game show)
quiznation was a live interactive game show on GSN. The official host was Shandi Finnessey, with Angelle Tymon, Jessica York, Jeff Thisted filling in. Featured in the two-hour program were interactive games where the viewers could win cash prizes. The show aired from 12 midnight - 2 a.m...
and 100 Winners
100 Winners
100 Winners is a live interactive game show on GSN, officially hosted by Jessica York. Jeff Thisted and Shandi Finnessey served as substitute hosts. Featured during the two-hour program were short interactive games from which the viewers could win prizes. The show generally aired from 12:00...
which were collectively known as the PlayMania Block.
Format
The original PlayMania was a game show in which home viewers were the contestants. American residents 18 or older could enter the contest by text messagingShort message service
Short Message Service is a text messaging service component of phone, web, or mobile communication systems, using standardized communications protocols that allow the exchange of short text messages between fixed line or mobile phone devices...
for a small fee, or using the network's website to enter free. From January to April 2007 a premium-rate phone number was available to use as an entry method, as well.
Within a few moments, a contestant was notified whether or not his or her entry had been chosen (at random) to proceed to another random selection process. If an entry was selected in the second phase, the contestant would then be called on his or her home or mobile phone
Mobile phone
A mobile phone is a device which can make and receive telephone calls over a radio link whilst moving around a wide geographic area. It does so by connecting to a cellular network provided by a mobile network operator...
, depending on which method of entry had been used. The contestant would then, if the game was still in progress, play on-air. After a game was completed, the queue
Queue area
Queue areas are places in which people queue for goods or services. Examples include checking out groceries or other goods that have been collected in a self service shop, in a shop without self service, at an ATM, at a ticket desk, a city bus, or in a taxi stand.Queueing is a phenomenon in a...
was cleared, and any entrants who wished to play the next game were required to re-enter. A $.99 fee applied for each text message entry or premium rate phone call, along with standard text messaging rates added to the former. Entries on the network's website were free. Regardless of the method of entry, each entry had an equal chance of being selected. An entry did not necessarily guarantee an opportunity to appear on the show. Residents of certain states were ineligible to play using various entry methods.
The PlayMania Block shows have continued to use the same entry process.
Programming history
The original format of PlayMania was based on Quiznation, a BritishUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
television channel produced by Optimistic Entertainment. Optimistic was also co-producer of the U.S. PlayMania, and Mel Peachey, one of the hosts of Quiznation, was brought over to host the U.S. version. After the division of PlayMania into two separate programs, the Quiznation name would be used in the U.S., as well. PlayMania originally was scheduled to air three days a week in April of 2006, from 1 - 3 AM (Eastern Time
North American Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...
); a Sunday broadcast was added on August 27, and Tuesday and Wednesday editions were added on October 3 and October 4 of that year. The airtime of the show changed to 12 midnight - 2 AM (ET) beginning with the August 24, 2006 episode.
On February 20, 2007, PlayMania was divided into two separate programs. Collectively, these shows, quiznation
Quiznation (US game show)
quiznation was a live interactive game show on GSN. The official host was Shandi Finnessey, with Angelle Tymon, Jessica York, Jeff Thisted filling in. Featured in the two-hour program were interactive games where the viewers could win cash prizes. The show aired from 12 midnight - 2 a.m...
and 100 Winners
100 Winners
100 Winners is a live interactive game show on GSN, officially hosted by Jessica York. Jeff Thisted and Shandi Finnessey served as substitute hosts. Featured during the two-hour program were short interactive games from which the viewers could win prizes. The show generally aired from 12:00...
, became known as "the PlayMania Block." While 100 Winners presented a format novel to American viewers, the quiznation program shared games and a similar format with the original PlayMania.
By June 14, 2007, all scheduled airings of 100 Winners had been replaced with quiznation episodes. The show is considered indefinitely canceled from the programming schedule, and is no longer referenced in the official rules described on the GSN
Game Show Network
The Game Show Network is an American cable television and direct broadcast satellite channel dedicated to game shows and casino game shows. The channel was launched on December 1, 1994. Its current slogan is "The World Needs More Winners"...
website. The same month 100 Winners was canceled, Optimistic Entertainment, the co-producer of PlayMania Block, went into administration
Administration (insolvency)
As a legal concept, administration is a procedure under the insolvency laws of a number of common law jurisdictions. It functions as a rescue mechanism for insolvent entities and allows them to carry on running their business. The process – an alternative to liquidation – is often known as going...
. It is unknown what impact, if any, this has had or will have on the PlayMania Block.
On June 26, 2007, PlayMania gave away its one millionth dollar. The winning contestant, Bernice, received a $500 bonus in addition to the $400 she had won playing, as well as a personalized plaque commemorating the achievement.
On July 17, 2007, the Tuesday edition of quiznation ceased airing. After September 2, 2007, the Sunday broadcast was removed as well, slightly over a year after it originally debuted.
quiznation aired its last episode on October 31, 2007. The network had made claims that it was improving upon its interactive participation for new concepts in the future, which came about with the premiere of GSN Live
GSN Live
GSN Live is an American live interactive show on Game Show Network that premiered on February 25, 2008 at noon ET and officially ended its 3 year run on July 29, 2011. The last "live" edition aired May 13, 2011...
on February 25, 2008.
Hosts and guest hosts
The debut episodes of PlayMania were hosted by Mel PeacheyMelissa Peachey
Melissa "Mel" Peachey is a British television personality, most notable for hosting PlayMania on GSN and Quiznation in the United Kingdom.-Early career:Born in London, she started out as an assistant for a London television network...
, a host of the U.K. edition of Quiznation, and Shandi Finnessey
Shandi Finnessey
Shandi Ren Finnessey is an American beauty queen, model, television hostess, and actress. She is best known for winning the Miss USA title, as Miss Missouri USA. She previously held the title of Miss Missouri 2002 and competed in Miss America where she won a preliminary award...
, a co-host of the GSN
Game Show Network
The Game Show Network is an American cable television and direct broadcast satellite channel dedicated to game shows and casino game shows. The channel was launched on December 1, 1994. Its current slogan is "The World Needs More Winners"...
game show
Game show
A game show is a type of radio or television program in which members of the public, television personalities or celebrities, sometimes as part of a team, play a game which involves answering questions or solving puzzles usually for money and/or prizes...
Lingo. Peachey was originally scheduled to appear on US airwaves for only one month in order to introduce America to the unfamiliar "participation TV" format. However, she stayed through the entire run of PlayMania and hosted the two "PlayMania Block" shows, as well. Finnessey and Peachey were joined by host Jessica York
Jessica York
Jessica York is an American television personality, and sports anchor. She was one of the three hosts on GSN's PlayMania before it broke off into two separate shows, and was subsequently a host on quiznation...
on October 19, 2006. Peachey returned to England after hosting quiznation
Quiznation (US game show)
quiznation was a live interactive game show on GSN. The official host was Shandi Finnessey, with Angelle Tymon, Jessica York, Jeff Thisted filling in. Featured in the two-hour program were interactive games where the viewers could win cash prizes. The show aired from 12 midnight - 2 a.m...
on April 7, 2007, her "goodbye show". Finnessey and York continued to appear on quiznation. After a week of eliminations, Angelle Tymon
Angelle Tymon
Angelle Marie Tymon is an American broadcast journalist and game show host. She served as one of the hosts on GSN's interactive game show quiznation in the PlayMania Block....
was introduced as Peachey's replacement on the "PlayMania Block" on April 21, 2007. A month later, the May 18 edition of quiznation featured the debut of The Price is Right
The Price Is Right (U.S. game show)
The Price Is Right is an American game show which was created by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman. Contestants compete to identify the pricing of merchandise to win cash and prizes. The show is well-known for its signature line of "Come on down!" when the announcer directs newly selected contestants to...
production coordinator Jeff Thisted
Jeff Thisted
Jeffrey "Jeff" Thisted is an American game show host. He served as one of the hosts on GSN's interactive game show Quiznation in the PlayMania Block. He made his hosting debut presiding over one game on the May 18, 2007 episode of Quiznation and finished in October before the finale. He was the...
as host.
In addition to the "official" hosts listed above, there have been several fill-in and guest hosts during PlayManias run. Hannah Peckham
Hannah Peckham
Hannah Peckham is a British presenter, most notable for working in the United Kingdom on Quiznation and Pop the Q on TMF . Before working on Quiznation, she was a host on Avago programming in 2004. She also hosted PlayMania in the United States in June 2006...
hosted the June 15 and June 16 episodes in 2006, but did not become a permanent host. On two occasions, regulars from I've Got a Secret
I've Got a Secret
I've Got a Secret is a panel game show produced by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman for CBS television. Created by comedy writers Allan Sherman and Howard Merrill, it was a derivative of Goodson-Todman's own panel show What's My Line?...
served as guest co-hosts in charge of viewer e-mail. Jermaine Taylor appeared on June 17, 2006, and Bil Dwyer
Bil Dwyer
William Michael "Bil" Dwyer is an American stand-up comedian and game show host. Television shows he has hosted include GSN's Extreme Dodgeball, I've Got A Secret and The 50 Greatest Game Shows of All Time, the PAX TV game show Dirty Rotten Cheater, and the FSN game show, Ultimate Fan...
appeared on June 22 of that year.
The PlayMania week of August 24, 2006, which featured a timeslot shift and the debut of a Sunday broadcast, was a "Winner's Weekend." This week featured puzzles about television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
to honor the 58th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards
58th Primetime Emmy Awards
The 58th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards were held at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California on Sunday, August 27, 2006 on NBC at 8:00pm ET with Conan O'Brien hosting the show...
. As part of the theme, PlayMania held its own award ceremony, the "PlayMes", a parody of the Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
s on the Sunday August 27 broadcast. Danny Bonaduce
Danny Bonaduce
Dante Daniel "Danny" Bonaduce is an American radio/television personality, comedian, professional wrestler, and former child actor...
, then host of GSN's original game show Starface
Starface
Starface is an American television game show which ran on GSN on August 1, 2006 to November 4, 2006. Reruns aired until January 2007.-Format:...
, appeared to present the awards. On that same night, $2,000 was given away to a caller named Julie, making her, at that time, the biggest PlayMania winner ever. (That record was later broken. The final record was set on the September 5, 2007 episode of quiznation by a caller named Teresa who won $4,700.)
Games
PlayMania featured various minigames that were played throughout the program. The rewards for the games were usually cash prizes ranging from $100–$500 in cash, sometimes reaching amounts as high as $2,000. Any games that were not completed before the end of a day's broadcast are normally carried over to the start of the next show.During its ten month run, the below twenty-one permanent games were played on the original PlayMania. Many carried over to be rotated on quiznation
Quiznation (US game show)
quiznation was a live interactive game show on GSN. The official host was Shandi Finnessey, with Angelle Tymon, Jessica York, Jeff Thisted filling in. Featured in the two-hour program were interactive games where the viewers could win cash prizes. The show aired from 12 midnight - 2 a.m...
.
| Game | How it is Played |
|---|---|
| Alphabuck$ | Similar to Wheel of Fortune or Hangman Hangman (game) Hangman is a paper and pencil guessing game for two or more players. One player thinks of a word and the other tries to guess it by suggesting letters.-Overview:... , this game allows players to attempt to guess a letter that is in the puzzle of a given category. If the player's letters are in the puzzle, he/she will earn a small prize per letter, and receive an opportunity to guess the full puzzle. Correctly guessing the full puzzle earns the contestant an additional, larger prize. |
| Anagram Anagram An anagram is a type of word play, the result of rearranging the letters of a word or phrase to produce a new word or phrase, using all the original letters exactly once; e.g., orchestra = carthorse, A decimal point = I'm a dot in place, Tom Marvolo Riddle = I am Lord Voldemort. Someone who... s |
A word, name or phrase with the letters mixed up will be given related to a specified category. The contestant must identify what the unscrambled phrase is. |
| Category Game | Three items or names, all in interlocking circles (a Venn diagram Venn diagram Venn diagrams or set diagrams are diagrams that show all possible logical relations between a finite collection of sets . Venn diagrams were conceived around 1880 by John Venn... in which each circle intersects the other two, but all three never overlap), are listed. The contestant must identify what all of the items have in common in the most specific manner. |
| Conundrums | There are three variations on this game.
|
| Crossword Crossword A crossword is a word puzzle that normally takes the form of a square or rectangular grid of white and shaded squares. The goal is to fill the white squares with letters, forming words or phrases, by solving clues which lead to the answers. In languages that are written left-to-right, the answer... s |
Similar to a crossword puzzle, Crosswords features four horizontal words with one letter in each word replaced with a question mark. Vertically, the letters behind the question marks make an actual word. The contestant must identify (and spell) the hidden word. The portion needed to be filled in may work with several choices; however, the host has an envelope containing the chosen word. |
| Find the Missing Letters | A five-letter word is given with two consecutive letters replaced by a question mark. The contestant must identify (and spell) the displayed word. The portion revealed may fit into multiple words; however, the host has an envelope containing the chosen word. Sometimes, a four-letter word is used instead of a five-letter word. |
| Lingo | Identical to the show of the same name, the object is to identify a five-letter word. The first letter is given, and as contestants continue to play, hints such as other letters in the word are given. The contestant must identify (and spell) the word. |
| Microcosm | A picture of an everyday object is shown with a part largely zoomed in and magnified. The contestant must identify what the item is. |
| Missing Link | A missing word precedes (or succeeds) three other words to form three separate a common words or phrases. The player must determine the missing word. |
| Movie Quotes/Television Quotes/Ad Slogans | Three quotes, each from a famous American film, television program, or advertising campaign, are listed, each with a cash prize beside it. The contestant must pick a quote and guess where it comes from. |
| Name the Catch Phrase | A rebus Rebus A rebus is an allusional device that uses pictures to represent words or parts of words. It was a favourite form of heraldic expression used in the Middle Ages to denote surnames, for example in its basic form 3 salmon fish to denote the name "Salmon"... based on a popular, everyday phrase is given. (e.g., MEREPEAT would be "repeat after me", because the word "repeat" comes after the word "me.") The caller must identify what the "decoded" phrase is. |
| Name the Celebrity | A pixilated photograph of a celebrity is shown. The contestant must identify who the celebrity is. |
| Series Game | Three different series (which may be specially ordered numbers, letters, etc.) are shown, each with a cash value attached to it. The caller chooses one of the orders and must identify the next value. |
| Shrink 'N Scramble | Three different-sized words are listed, each with a cash prize attached to it. The object is to take one of the words and make a smaller word based on the length requirement given and the letters contained in that word. Each word may appear to have multiple answers; however, the host has an envelope containing the chosen word for each larger word. This game was replaced by Word Slam. |
| Things You'd Find... | The PlayMania crew picks three items you would commonly find in a designated location. The contestant must identify one of the items that would be found. |
| Top 5 | Similar to Family Feud Family Feud Family Feud is an American television game show created by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman. Two families compete against each other in a contest to name the most popular responses to a survey question posed to 100 people... , a category is given. (e.g., "Top 5 Elton John Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor... Hits") The top five answers to the survey or fact-proven data are hidden, and it is the contestant's job to reveal one of them. Once all of the answers have been revealed, the game ends. A variation on a Top 5 is the PlayMania 5. The difference is that the PlayMania crew picks the five things on the list. |
| Twisted Title | A title of a movie is described using synonyms for the words in the title (e.g., Deceased Verse Writers Club would be Dead Poets Society Dead Poets Society Dead Poets Society is a 1989 American drama film directed by Peter Weir and starring Robin Williams. Set at the conservative and aristocratic Welton Academy in Vermont in 1959, it tells the story of an English teacher who inspires his students through his teaching of poetry.The script was written... ). The contestant must identify the original title. |
| What's Missing? | A common symbol or image is shown, with an obvious part either missing or replaced with a question mark. The contestant must identify what should be in the image. |
| Word Cuts | A word that has been cut in half is displayed. The contestant must identify (and spell) the displayed word. The portion revealed may appear to be multiple words; however, the host has an envelope containing the chosen word. |
| Word $lam | Nine letters are listed in random order. Three three-letter words have been pre-chosen, each with a cash prize attached to it. The object is to take the nine letters and make a smaller word based on the length requirement given. Each word may appear to have multiple answers; however, the host has an envelope containing the chosen words. The game is also played with three different-sized word requirements, at three, five, and seven letters. This game has roots in the game Shrink 'N Scramble. |
Special games
For a special occasion or promotional opportunity, PlayMania often engaged in special, personalized games. Some of these included the celebration of Mother's DayMother's Day
Mother's Day is a celebration honoring mothers and celebrating motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers in society. It is celebrated on various days in many parts of the world, yet most commonly in March, April, or May...
, the release of Horrorfest
8 Films to Die For
After Dark Horrorfest is an annual horror film festival featuring eight independent horror movies, sometimes with "secret" bonus films, all distributed by After Dark Films in the USA...
and even a Super Match-esque style game for the documentary, The Match Game
Match Game
Match Game is an American television game show in which contestants attempted to match celebrities' answers to fill-in-the-blank questions...
Story: Behind the Blank .
Other features
During its original tenure (and carrying over to quiznation afterward), PlayMania involved a second interactive feature, e-mailE-mail
Electronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...
. When new e-mail arrived, the active host was alerted via a sound effect. The host then walked over to the large plasma-screen monitor on the set and read e-mails from viewers while taking a break from talking to the audience during games. Since July 13, 2006, each episode has had a requested theme for e-mails. The tone of the e-mails varies widely, from serious to silly. The host may showcase graphics that viewers have sent with e-mails, including photographs and viewer-created art.
There were featured sponsors for a number of PlayMania episodes, usually during the first hour only. On some occasions — for instance, during the first month of the show when the main sponsor was Dick's Sporting Goods
Dick's Sporting Goods
Dick's Sporting Goods, Inc. , or Dick's, is a Fortune 500 American corporation in the sporting goods and retail industries.The company's headquarters are on the grounds of Pittsburgh International Airport in Findlay Township near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Dick's has 451 stores in 42 states as of...
— items provided by the sponsor were given away in addition to or instead of cash prizes.
PlayMania Block
PlayMania began to offer "new ways to play" on February 20, 2007. PlayMania expanded into the PlayMania Block, two separate shows under the PlayMania banner: 100 Winners100 Winners
100 Winners is a live interactive game show on GSN, officially hosted by Jessica York. Jeff Thisted and Shandi Finnessey served as substitute hosts. Featured during the two-hour program were short interactive games from which the viewers could win prizes. The show generally aired from 12:00...
and quiznation
Quiznation (US game show)
quiznation was a live interactive game show on GSN. The official host was Shandi Finnessey, with Angelle Tymon, Jessica York, Jeff Thisted filling in. Featured in the two-hour program were interactive games where the viewers could win cash prizes. The show aired from 12 midnight - 2 a.m...
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quiznation Borrowing the title from its British predecessor, quiznation featured trivia, number, and word games with set cash prizes. The program aired from 12 midnight - 2 AM (EST) every Thursday through Saturday night (early Friday through early Sunday morning in the Eastern Time zone), but with the cancellation of 100 Winners, its final schedule was set at Wednesday through Saturday (technically early Thursday through early Sunday morning in the Eastern Time zone) quiznations format was nearly identical to that of the PlayMania program. Its final episode was aired on October 31, 2007.
100 Winners
100 Winners offered a contestant the chance to answer the on-screen game. If he or she answered correctly, he or she then chose one of one hundred safe deposit boxSafe deposit box
A safe deposit box or wrongly referred to as a safety deposit box is an individually-secured container, usually held within a larger safe or bank vault. Safe deposit boxes are generally located in banks, post offices or other institutions...
es on the set with a prize inside. The program aired from 12 midnight - 2 AM Eastern every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Sunday night (technically early Wednesday, Thursday, and Monday morning in the Eastern Time zone). Its final episode was aired on June 13, 2007.