Trump Card was an American syndicated 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...

 that aired from September 10, 1990 to September 6, 1991 and was hosted by Jimmy Cefalo

Jimmy Cefalo

James Carmen Cefalo, , is an American sportscaster, game show host and former professional American football wide receiver.-High school:Cefalo attended Pittston Area High School in Pittston, Pennsylvania...

. Debi Massey served as hostess and Chuck Reilly was the announcer. The show was produced by Telepictures Productions, Createl, Ltd., & Fiedler-Berlin Productions (in association with & distributed by Warner Bros. Television Distribution).

The show was filmed at the Trump Castle

Golden Nugget Atlantic City

The Golden Nugget Atlantic City was a casino from 1980 to 1987 in Atlantic City, New Jersey. It is currently the Atlantic City Hilton.It was built in 1980 by a partnership of Golden Nugget Companies and Michael R. Milken for $140 million....

 (now known as "Golden Nugget Atlantic City") casino hotel in Atlantic City, New Jersey

Atlantic City, New Jersey

Atlantic City is a city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States, and a nationally renowned resort city for gambling, shopping and fine dining. The city also served as the inspiration for the American version of the board game Monopoly. Atlantic City is located on Absecon Island on the coast...

, and based on the British game show Bob's Full House

Bob's Full House

Bob's Full House was a popular quiz programme hosted by Bob Monkhouse which was based on the popular game 'Bingo' and aired on BBC1 from 1 September 1984 until 27 January 1990.-Gameplay:...

, which consisted of contestants trying to answer questions to fill up a 15-square bingo board in front of them.

Front game

Three contestants competed to fill a 15-square bingo-style card in front of them with the word "Trump" on top of it. Contestant one had numbers 1 through 15, contestant two had numbers 16 through 30, and contestant three had numbers 31 through 45. The numbers also correspond to an audience game.

Round one

In the first round, the object was to fill in the four corners of the card. The round was played with four categories, each containing four questions. If a contestant buzzed in first with the correct answer, one of the corners was filled in. However, a wrong answer locked them out of the next question (denoted by blanking all of the unfilled numbers on the contestant's card).

The first person to fill in the four corners won $750, his/hers to keep regardless of the game's outcome.

Round two

Before the second round began each contestant was given a Trump Card. The card could be used at any point during the rest of the game to impede another contestant's progress. When the card was played, the contestant who was trumped had their card blocked by a large "T" and was given a half-second buzzer delay. The contestant had to buzz-in and answer a question correctly in order to remove the trump and continue playing.

The object of the second round was to fill in the center line on the card. The round was played as before with four different categories, each containing five questions. The first person to complete the center line received an additional $1,500, again his/hers to keep no matter how he/she finished in the game.

Round three

The object of the third and final round was to fill in the remaining spaces on the card, which could be done with as little as six correct answers (depending on how a player had done in the first two rounds). All questions were general knowledge and asked in a rapid-fire manner. The first person to complete his or her entire card received $3,000, won the game, and a chance to win $10,000 more in the bonus round.

Bonus round

The winning contestant faced a 25 square board in a five-by-five grid and had to make a line of five squares either across, up and down or diagonally with his/her answers. Before the round, the contestant was given a free space, chosen at random from a deck of 25 cards. If the contestant had not used his/her Trump Card during the game, they drew a second card for a second free space.

Once the free space(s) were put on the board, the contestant had 45 seconds to make the line. The clock started after the contestant chose the first box, and for every number picked Cefalo asked a question. Getting an answer right claimed the box and lit it in gold, while an incorrect answer or a pass blacked it out and forced the contestant to work around it. Completing the line before time ran out netted the contestant an additional $10,000.

Audience Game

Audience members were given their own Trump Card with three rows of five numbers each. When a contestant answered a question correctly, the audience member marked off the corresponding number on their card. If they were able to fill in the four corners before the end of round one, they won $10. Completing the center row before the end of round two won an additional $10, and completing the entire card before the end of round three again won an additional $10, for a maximum total of $30.

On the reverse of the card was a three-by-three grid with fifteen numbers to be used in the bonus round. If the on-stage contestant's free number corresponded to a number on the audience member's card, the audience member's winnings were increased by 50% (e.g., from $30 to $45). If the on-stage contestant had saved their Trump Card and selected a second free number which also corresponded to a number on the audience member's card, the audience member's initial winnings were doubled (e.g., from $30 to $60).

As the on-stage contestant correctly answered questions, audience members marked off the corresponding numbers on their cards. If the audience member was able to mark off three numbers in a row their total winnings were doubled, for a maximum total of $120.

$100,000 Tournament of Champions

Toward the end of the show's run, 21 $10,000 bonus round winners were invited back to play for $100,000. The following changes were made for the tournament:

• Each game was played for a flat $3,000, and there were no bonuses awarded for the first two rounds. The endgame was still played for an additional $10,000. The seven winners and the two players who came closest to winning competed in the semifinals.
• In the final match, the two losing contestants received $2,500. The winner of the tournament received $10,000 and played the bonus round one final time for the $100,000 top prize, which they were unsuccessful in winning.