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Figure It Out

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For the song "Figure It Out" by Lil' Chris, see Figure It Out (song).
For the song "Figure It Out" by VersaEmerge, see Figure It Out (VersaEmerge song).
Figure It Out
Created byKevin Kay
Magda Liolis
Presented bySummer Sanders (1997-00)
Jeff Sutphen (2012-present)
Narrated byJeffrey "J" Dumas (1997-00)
Elle Young (2012-present)
Country of originUnited States
No. of seasons5
No. of episodes202 (list of episodes)
Production
Production locationsUniversal Studios
Orlando, Florida (1997-1999)
Paramount Studios
Los Angeles, California (2012-present)
Running time24 minutes
Original release
NetworkNickelodeon
ReleaseOriginal Series
July 7, 1997 (1997-07-07) –
December 12, 2000 (2000-12-12)
Revived Series
June 11, 2012 – present
A contestant on Figure It Out.

Figure It Out is an American children's game show that airs on Nickelodeon. The original series, hosted by Summer Sanders, ran for four seasons from July 7, 1997 to December 12, 2000; the current revival of the show began running on June 11, 2012 and is hosted by Jeff Sutphen.

Kids with special skills or unique achievements compete as contestants on the show while a panel of four Nick celebrities try to guess the predetermined phrase that describes the contestant's talent. The series is a loose adaptation of What's My Line? and I've Got a Secret, both established panel shows created by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman.

Shortly after the series aired its last first-run episode, Figure It Out began airing repeats on Nick GAS until the network ceased at the end of 2007 (2009 on Dish Network). The series was originally recorded at Nickelodeon Studios at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. The revival episodes are filmed on stage 19 at Paramount Studios in Los Angeles.[1]

Reruns of the Sanders-hosted series were among the shows carried on the now-defunct cable channel Nickelodeon Games and Sports for Kids; and also several episodes of the Sanders-hosted series have also aired as part of The '90s Are All That, a 1990s-oriented rerun block that airs on TeenNick, as the series aired on the block from August 3, 2012, to August 5, 2012.

Gameplay

Each episode has two sets of three timed rounds (originally all 60 seconds in length; currently, rounds 2 and 3 are 45 seconds long), in which the panel takes turns asking yes-or-no questions to try to guess the contestant's talent. Each time a panelist mentions a word that is part of the phrase that describes the secret talent, the word is turned over on a game board displaying the puzzle. This game board was referred to as Billy the Answer Head during the original series run and is known simply as the "It" Board in the show's current adaptation.

This game board shows which words of the phrase are guessed, along with blanks denoting unguessed words. Prepositions and articles, such as "of" and "an," are provided automatically. The contestant wins a prize after each round that his or her talent remains unguessed; the prize for winning the third round is a trip. In Season 1 prizes consisted mainly of leftover props from then-defunct Nickelodeon shows such as All That, Legends of the Hidden Temple, and Global Guts. Merchandise prizes (such as a Nintendo 64) and gift cards for stores including Kids Foot Locker, Toys 'R' Us, and Loew's began to appear as prizes during later seasons. If Round 3 ends with at least one word left unrevealed, each panelist takes one final guess as to what the contestant's talent is (any correct words given during the final guess are revealed, as during the game). The game ends when a panelist guesses the secret talent or if no panelist guesses the secret talent correctly after the "last guess" stage.

During each Round, the panelists receive one clue as a hint to one of the words of the secret phrase. The clue usually takes the form of physical objects – such as dates to indicate a clue about calendars – sounds (rarely used), or pantomime (the "Charade Brigade" (Season 1-4), "Clue Force 3" (Season 5)), usually two or three cast members that act out a word from the phrase during Round 3) with "Clue Force 3" pictionary was sometimes use instead of pantomime.

At the end of the game, after the secret talent is revealed, the contestant demonstrates or displays his or her skill and discusses it with the host and panel.

Secret Slime Action

In each game, from the start of Round 2, a randomly-selected member of the studio audience plays for a prize (a merchandise prize, such as a Nintendo 64 or a mountain bike in Season 1. A Figure It Out-branded article of clothing in Seasons 2-5) if at least one panelist performs the Action (and is subsequently "slimed") by the end of Round 3.

The action designated as the Secret Slime Action is typically simple and almost guaranteed; touching a clue, looking to the left (which was reflexive, as clues were commonly wheeled out on a small track from a tunnel to the panel's left), using the phrase "Are you..." or "Is it...", looking to the audience behind the panel (who was sometimes used for clues), saying "I don't know", having a certain name, and even being a panelist were all used as Actions. On one notable occasion, Steve Burns (from Blue's Clues) was slimed because the Secret Slime Action was "having a blue dog." Despite this, and contrary to popular belief, the Secret Slime Action was not always performed in the original series. In the new version, Secret Slime Actions are almost impossible to miss and so far, this has not been a single show in which it was not performed during both halves of gameplay.

Some Actions are logically unenforceable, such as "thinking about coconuts" or "thinking about mushroom soup"; Especially in the latter seasons, a successful Action has mostly been a foregone conclusion – the variables have only been when it will be triggered, and by whom (not necessarily a panelist). When the Secret Slime Action is triggered, all play stops (including the clock) while the panelist is slimed and the Action revealed, after which gameplay resumes. The host knows of the Action and sometimes tricks the panelists into performing it by making them say or touch something (in one episode, the Action was "touching your head"; Sanders touched her head and said "Have you done something with your hair?", which caused the panel to touch their heads in reaction).

Word of Honor

In the 2012 revival, prior to each game, one word of the contestant's secrets may be designated as the "word of honor." Should the panel guess this word, the contestant is slimed.[2] The clock is paused when the contestant is slimed.

Panelists

Either three or all four panelists are taken from Nickelodeon shows airing at the time. Regulars during the original run included All That cast members Amanda Bynes, Lori Beth Denberg (who left after Season 3), and Danny Tamberelli (who also starred in the Nick show The Adventures of Pete and Pete).

The first seat on the panel was usually reserved for an older-aged panelist, either an older actor from Nick (usually Kevin Kopelow of All That) or a non-Nickelodeon celebrity (such as Taran Noah Smith of Home Improvement). In several episodes, CatDog, rendered in CGI, and Cousin Skeeter, a puppet character, were panelists, but never at the same time.

Other guest panelists included Coolio (semi-regular on the 1998 Match Game); Mike O'Malley (host of Nick's Get the Picture and GUTS from 1991–1995); Colin Mochrie (regular on Whose Line Is It Anyway?), who, along with Kevin Kopelow, was notably slimed for "having a shiny head"; Paul Wight (WWE's "The Big Show", then known as "The Giant"); Chris Jericho also from WWE; "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan (WWE Hall of Famer); and Rondell Sheridan (regular on the 1998 Match Game).

There was also an episode where Lori Beth and Summer switched roles for half of an episode. Summer took Lori Beth's seat as a panelist, and Lori Beth took Summer's role as the host for Game 1.

List of panelists

Original run (Seasons 1–4)

3

Revival (Season 5–6)

Format changes

1997-1999 logo

For Season 3 (Fall 1998), the series became Figure It Out: Family Style, featuring two or three contestants who were related, typically parent-child or siblings. Sometimes on the 2nd half, the panel can have a family member of the contestant. Sometimes, the Charade Brigade can have family members of the panelists and the host. Figure It Out: Family Style also features Little Billy. If the panelists figured out the contestants' secret, then Little Billy (a miniature version of Billy the Answer Head with hair and on wheels) would come out. Summer reads a question about the family's talent and then each panelist try to guess one (almost impossible) answer. If they can't figure it out (no panel ever did since they simply treated it as a free-for-all most times by guessing answers intended for comedic response), then the answer in Little Billy would reveal and which gives the family another chance to win a prize (usually the Figure It Out apparel).

For Season 4 (Fall 1999), the show was retitled Figure It Out: Wild Style and focused solely on talents involving animals; in addition, Billy the Answer Head was reshaped into various animals. During these episodes, the panelists went wild with hair, wigs and make-up, sporting a different, distinctive look. Lori Beth Denberg never appeared in any of those episodes, because she left Nickelodeon and went on to The Steve Harvey Show, so during these episodes, panelists such as Steve Burns, Shane Sweet, Erin J. Dean, Christy Knowings, Irene Ng and Kareem Blackwell replacing Lori Beth in the chair on the right end.

For Season 5 (Summer 2012), the show was retitled once more to "Figure It Out", and Jeff Sutphen took over as host. The set, host, panelists, theme music, and logo were all modified to serve Nickelodeon's contemporary audience. Gameplay was also slightly modified to include the Word of Honor component and to shorten the lengths of Rounds 2 and 3 (Originally, all rounds were 60 seconds, in the newer version Rounds 2 and 3 are 45 seconds). Also, Billy The Answer Head was changed to the "It Board", the Clue Express was renamed the "Clue Coaster" and the Charade Brigade was changed to "Clue Force III" featuring Lorenz Arnell, Gevorg Manoukian and Julia Srednicki.

Cardinal Games released a board game based on the series in 1998. Cardinal games included "Name That Thingy", "Name That Critter", "The Drench Bench", "The Last Laugh" "Lightning Letters", "Little Billy" and "The Secret Panel Match Up."

Episodes

Main article: List of Figure It Out episodes

References

  1. ^ "Nickelodeon Figure It Out: Figure This Out". cattlecallauditions.com. Retrieved 2012-06-06.
  2. ^ "Ready, Set, Slime! Nickelodeon Premieres Figure It Out on Monday, June 11, at 7 P.M. (ET/PT)". The New York Times. Retrieved 2012-06-06.
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