# Dumbest game show answers **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 6, 2007, 8:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921 "2007-01-06T08:58:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2007, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/41 "2007-01-06T21:09:03Z")
[QUOTE=Annie-Xmas] Ken Jennings on Jeopardy: This term for a long-handled gardening tool can also mean an immoral pleasure-seeker. What’s a ho? [/QUOTE] I remember watching this one and thinking he should’ve gotten credit. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2007, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/42 "2007-01-06T21:11:24Z")
[QUOTE=NurseCarmen] I _still_ think he got screwed, that seems like a perfectly valid answer to me. [/QUOTE] [I still agree](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=280006) The “What month does a pregnant woman start showing” answer of “September” has to be the stupidest answer that sounds like it could be right. ---
**Author:** ![dwc1970](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a183cd/32.png) [@dwc1970](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dwc1970)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2007, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/43 "2007-01-06T21:41:40Z")
On the Price is Right a contestant was playing the Cliffhanger game. For those who aren’t familiar with it, the game has a mountain climber (whose name is Hans, from what I understand, though Bob never calls him this) who goes up a 30°-40° slope, marked by 25 numbers before it reaches the top where it meets a cliff. The object of the game is to guess the prices of three small items correctly (usually priced $20 to $50) and then win a larger prize (trip, furniture, home entertainment system, etc.) For every dollar missed in each of the three smaller prizes Hans takes a step. If, over the course of three guesses he takes more than 25 steps (the combined total difference of the three guesses exceeds $25) Hans falls off the cliff and the contestant loses the game. The contestant in question was presented the three small items to price, the first of which was a toy guitar. When Bob asked him how much he thinks the guitar costs the contestant said, “Two thousand dollars.” Mr. Barker, being the graciously forgiving and saintly patient sole that he is, gave the contestant several chances to reassess the value of the first item. After going around several times, the contestant finally settled on $800 as his guess and Bob decided this was his final answer. “He says eight hundred…” Bob says as he decides to continue with the game, realizing that the contestant is hopelessly ignorant. Hans then begins his ascent towards his inevitable demise. Bob and everyone else in the audience knows the game is over as they patiently wait for Hans to meet his fate upon passing the $25 mark. It turned out the guitar was $23. ---
**Author:** ![A.R.Cane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ee7513/32.png) [@A.R.Cane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A.R.Cane)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2007, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/44 "2007-01-06T21:43:25Z")
[QUOTE=NurseCarmen] I _still_ think he got screwed, that seems like a perfectly valid answer to me. [/QUOTE] I guess I wooshed myself there. If the original Jeopardy question included the word “libertine”, then “rake” was the answer they wanted, contemporarily “Ho” might seem right, but then it could be argued that “Ho’s” aren’t seeking pleasure. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2007, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/45 "2007-01-06T22:07:22Z")
[QUOTE=dwc1970] On the Price is Right a contestant was playing the Cliffhanger game. For those who aren’t familiar with it, the game has a mountain climber (whose name is Hans, from what I understand, though Bob never calls him this) who goes up a 30°-40° slope, marked by 25 numbers before it reaches the top where it meets a cliff. The object of the game is to guess the prices of three small items correctly (usually priced $20 to $50) and then win a larger prize (trip, furniture, home entertainment system, etc.) For every dollar missed in each of the three smaller prizes Hans takes a step. If, over the course of three guesses he takes more than 25 steps (the combined total difference of the three guesses exceeds $25) Hans falls off the cliff and the contestant loses the game. [/QUOTE] You forgot the yodeling. The yodeling totally makes that game. ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2007, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/46 "2007-01-06T22:23:12Z")
Several years ago, there was a _Millionnaire_ question asking something along the lines of “If you mix blue and yellow, what colour would you get?” a) Red b) Green c) Purple d) Orange" I think the contestant used all of his lifelines, and may even have still gotten it wrong. It was the first question. Apparently, though, they show later found out the guy was severely colour-blind… I think they let him play again, but might not have fared much better! ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2007, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/47 "2007-01-06T22:44:04Z")
[QUOTE=panache45] Several years ago, on \*Jeopardy!, Clue: “A two-wheeled Roman vehicle.” Response: “What is a bicycle?” [/QUOTE] No one said _ancient_ Romans :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Kayeby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9de0a6/32.png) [@Kayeby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kayeby)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2007, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/48 "2007-01-06T22:56:31Z")
On Family Feud. **Question:** Name something you might look through if you suspected your partner was having an affair (email, wallet, phone bill, etc) **Answer:** Binoculars ---
**Author:** ![Burrido](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@Burrido](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Burrido)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2007, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/49 "2007-01-06T23:23:35Z")
Millionare. The 100 dollar question. Q: Which of these phrases is a common way of saying “I can’t take it anymore”? a) “That’s the last stick” b) “That’s the last straw” c) “That’s the last leaf” d) “I’m moving to Canada” A: a) “That’s the last stick”. And this one from Millionare also. Can’t stop laughing. > **[ImageShack - Best place for all of your image hosting and image sharing needs](https://imageshack.com/)** > > Unlimited space to host images, easy to use image uploader, albums, photo hosting, sharing, dynamic image resizing on web and mobile. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2007, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/50 "2007-01-06T23:33:18Z")
Okay, this is from National Lampoon, but I think it fits the spirit of the thread: Q:Name 3 famous Mickeys. A:Mickey Mouse,Mickey Mantle,and Mickey Way. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2007, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/51 "2007-01-07T02:46:20Z")
How about the stupid strategic errors people make? I can think of two recent ones: On an episode of ‘Deal or No Deal’, a player quit the game while having amounts something like this left: 500 10,000 500,000 750,000 The banker’s offer was a little under $300,000, as I recall. Maybe 285,000. The player took the money and quit. Now look at the possible outcomes of the various selections: There’s a 50/50 chance that the player will pick one of the low values. In which case, the offer would jump to over 400,000. If the player picks the 500,000, the offer is STILL about $250,000. If the player picks the 750,000, the offer drops to maybe 170,000. So the player had about 1/4 chance of losing less than a third of what she had accumulated, a 1/4 chance of staying roughly even, and a 50/50 chance of inceasing the money by about $120,000. However, assuming the player picks one of the low numbers, she’s now faced with a situation like this: 500 500,000 750,000. Now the player is almost free-rolling. With an offer of $400,000, if the player picks the $500, the offer jumps to 625,000. If the player picks the $500,000, the offer is still about 375,000. If the player picks the 750,000, the offer is about 250,000, which is just about the point at which the player quit. So basically, this player walked away from a 1/4 chance to lose only a third of what she had accumulated, and a 3/4 chance of either staying even or making almost 625,000. The amazing thing about the show is that almost none of the players seem capable of understanding the math behind it. When I’m watching it, I can usually predict the banker’s offer off the top of my head within a few thousand bucks, just as a guesstimate. But the contestants never seem to have a clue, and make some boneheaded decisions because of it. You’d think that if you got an invite to the show, you might actually spend some time figuring out the optimal strategy for playing it. The other boneheaded error I saw recently was on the horrible ‘identity’. The player was left with 3 unknown people - one was obvious, and the other two were pretty much a coin flip as to who they might be. Now, on that show you get a ‘mistaken identy’ freebie that allows you to make an error for free. The catch is that if you get down to the last two people, you lose your mistaken identity, and if you guess wrong you lose. So at 3 players, one of which was obvious, she was guaranteed to win if she just played correctly - guess at one of the two who’s a coin flip. If you get it wrong, you lose your mistaken identity, but then you know who all three are, and you win. But instead, she picked the obvious one, leaving the last two for the end. Then, with no ‘mistaken identity’ freebie left, she was facing a 50/50 chance of losing it all if she guessed incorrectly. Stupid, stupid. As I recall, she went for it, and won. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2007, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/52 "2007-01-07T03:31:20Z")
The thing about Deal or No Deal is that if you look at how to become a contestant, it would seem to cater to stupidity. Here’s the requirements to apply: 1. Make a 5-minute personal videotape of you and the supporters you wish to have appear with you on TV. 2. Fill out an application (include a recent photo of each person) 3. Send it to our contestant department. Yeah, that’s it. Really. I have to believe that the producers don’t want anyone who can do math in their heads and can actually calculate odds and understand how to best play the game. They want idiots with idiotic relatives that agonize over what should be a simple decision for five freaking minutes. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2007, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/53 "2007-01-07T03:43:19Z")
Many years ago on **Family Feud** they asked “Name a Country in South America.” One answer was “Rio de Janeiro” The thing that made this _really_ stupid was that, if a majority of the Polled Audience had actually answered “Rio de Janeiro”, it would’ve been right. Heck, if they answered “Pizza”, that would’ve been right, too. I suspevct this is why they stopped asking fact-based questions and went to preferences and the like. By the way, I attended a taping of FF back during Richard Dawson’s heyday. I was majorly disappointed that nobodt polled us to get those “Suvey Says” answers. I always assumed that they surveyed the studio audience. Guess i was wrong. ---
**Author:** ![WolfpackJeep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpackjeep/32/2921_2.png) [@WolfpackJeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WolfpackJeep)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2007, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/54 "2007-01-07T04:07:22Z")
Not quite as stupid as some of the examples given, but…it was a clue on Jeopardy! (it may have been a Double Jeopardy question) that was something to the effect of “This vehicle is considered to be the first SUV.” The contestant’s response was “Dodge Grand Caravan.” ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2007, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/55 "2007-01-07T04:20:36Z")
[QUOTE=dwc1970] The contestant in question was presented the three small items to price, the first of which was a toy guitar. When Bob asked him how much he thinks the guitar costs the contestant said, “Two thousand dollars.” Mr. Barker, being the graciously forgiving and saintly patient sole that he is, gave the contestant several chances to reassess the value of the first item. After going around several times, the contestant finally settled on $800 as his guess and Bob decided this was his final answer. “He says eight hundred…” Bob says as he decides to continue with the game, realizing that the contestant is hopelessly ignorant. Hans then begins his ascent towards his inevitable demise. Bob and everyone else in the audience knows the game is over as they patiently wait for Hans to meet his fate upon passing the $25 mark. It turned out the guitar was $23. [/QUOTE] Four thirty, time for Wapner. Four thirty, time for Wapner. I’m a really excellent driver… ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2007, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/56 "2007-01-07T05:40:56Z")
[QUOTE=Tapioca Dextrin] No one said _ancient_ Romans :smack: [/QUOTE] I think it actually did say ancient Romans. ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2007, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/57 "2007-01-07T05:46:07Z")
[QUOTE=asterion] I have to believe that the producers don’t want anyone who can do math in their heads and can actually calculate odds and understand how to best play the game. They want idiots with idiotic relatives that agonize over what should be a simple decision for five freaking minutes. [/QUOTE] Now now, let’s not be mean. They want people with personalities who are going to put on a show. Because that’s what television producers do… they produce… a **show**. It gets ratings, which gets money. That’s some pretty simple math right there. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![x-ray\_vision](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/x-ray_vision/32/351_2.png) [@x-ray\_vision](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/x-ray_vision)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2007, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/58 "2007-01-07T06:06:19Z")
[One of my favorites.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftg1EtdgbHI) ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2007, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/59 "2007-01-07T07:22:27Z")
If you look at that clip, about 1:04 in you see the other family looking anxiously at the board, as if they half expect Europe to be up there - instead of realizing it’s a retarded answer and celebrating. It is indeed amusing that none of the 5 people said “Hey guys, you know…” ---
**Author:** ![Peanuthead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peanuthead/32/360_2.png) [@Peanuthead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peanuthead)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2007, 9:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921/60 "2007-01-07T09:42:56Z")
Also from Family Feud lightning round: **Q:** A popular flavor of ice cream. **A:** Broccoli :eek: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbest-game-show-answers/386921.md?page=4)