The $10,000 Pyramid 

Two contestants, each with a celebrity partner, must guess words from their partners' clues; then the roles are reversed. Winners face the pyramid.

Stars:

Dick Clark, Bob Clayton, Soupy Sales

17 wins & 21 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Dick Clark	...	Himself - Host 3,206 episodes, 1973-1988

Storyline

The Object of the game is simple to get to the top of the Pyramid (aka "The Winner's Circle") in the shortest time possible. But to do so, contestants must face celebrities (goes back and forth) by naming as many answers (8 things from 1973 to 1974 & 7 from 1974 to 1992) in a particular category (subject) within 30 seconds. If a contestant (the winner) wins the game and they get the right to go to the Winner's Circle to try winning the grand cash prize and in which throughout the series has ranged from $2500 to $100,000 in 60 Seconds (1 Minute) after they fail to do so, "The Cash Blocks: has ranged from 1973 to 1992 from $50 to $300 are too can be collected. The 2 Greatest popular incarnations of the series are "The $50,000 & $100,000 Pyramids", where 3 or Greatest Top Winners who've been gone on top of the pyramid in the shortest amount of time return for The Tournament and in which the grand cash prizes are in 1981, It's Worth $50,000 and from 1985 to 1992, It's Worth $100,000.

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Plot Keywords:

celebrity | team | money in title | dollar sign in title | word association | 

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Genres:

Game-Show

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 March 1973 (USA)

Also Known As:

The $20,000 Pyramid

Filming Locations:

Elysee Theater, ABC TV-15, New York City, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bob Stewart Productions, Basada Inc., CBS

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (1973-1987) Stereo (1987-2004) SDDS (2012-Present)

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

The 1st celebrity guests/guest stars on the debut weekday broadcast of "THE $10,000 PYRAMID" on CBS-TV are June Lockhart & Rob Reiner; Rob Reiner went on/go on to become the first celebrity guest star with his civilian partner named Mr. Bob Lyon to successfully climb to the top of The Big $10,000 Pyramid aka "THE WINNER'S CIRCLE" (his winning clue for the $200 Subject is "Things With A Hole" was/is "Doughnuts") on Friday March 30, 1973 and he wins $10,000 within less than 60 Seconds (1 Minute.)

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Quotes

[last lines]
Host: For now, Dick Clark.
[salutes]
Host: So long.

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Connections

Spoofed in Robot Chicken: Badunkadunk (2005)

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Soundtracks

Tuning Up (1982 Remake)
Written by Kenneth "Ken" Aldin
Arranged by Robert "Bob" Cobert

User Reviews

TV's Most Durable Word Game

Since Bob Stewart left Goodson-Todman in the mid 60s to form his own production company, he has had successes such as Eye Guess, Personality and Three on a Match. But in 1973, he had the biggest hit of his career with The $10,000 Pyramid.

Derived from Password, Stewart loosened up the main game by allowing a player descriptive clues to get their partner to guess the word without revealing part of the answer. The winning team goes to The Winner's Circle where the clue giver faces the giant pyramid and gives clues to their partner so they can identify six subjects in 60 seconds. This is what makes Pyramid one of TV's greatest game shows. It is the best bonus round of any game show ever invented because it's 60 seconds of drama and suspense, two important elements needed for a successful game show.

Another element that made Pyramid a hit was host Dick Clark. The American Bandstand host brought to the proceedings something no other host has done. If a contestant loses the big money, he would give clues that would have helped the contestant win. He was the type of host who cared about the players and wanted them to win. Also hosting the various versions were Bill Cullen, John Davidson, Donny Osmond and Mike Richards. They did a really good job as hosts.

Also, there were many celebrities who were outstanding at the game. Some of the best Pyramid players were Soupy Sales, Anita Gillette, Betty White, Nipsey Russell and Henry Polic II.

Since its debut in 1973, the top prize has risen to 25, 50 and 100 thousand and there was also a version simply titled Pyramid and also The Pyramid. It's TV's most durable word game and it will put you in The Winner's Circle.