Within each hexagon was a different letter of the alphabet, which represented the first letter of the correct answer to a question. The game was played on a board that consisted of four interlocking rows of five hexagons each. The solo contestant played behind a red desk while the family pair played from a white one. Three contestants played in each game, with a solo contestant playing against a team of two related contestants that was referred to as the 'family pair'. Letterman's show, for which NBC had cancelled three game shows to create a space for back in June 1980, did not draw good ratings and only managed a total of eighteen weeks of episodes (and was cut in length from 90 minutes to 60 minutes midway into its run) before NBC decided to return to a more traditional morning lineup. Bill Rafferty hosted the 1987 version, with Jeffries announcing the entire run.īlockbusters and Las Vegas Gambit, which premiered on the same day, were added to the NBC schedule to replace The David Letterman Show. Johnny Olson and Rich Jeffries substituted for Hilton on occasion, with Jeffries taking over for the final two weeks. Blockbusters was revived on NBC from January 5 to May 1, 1987, but featured only two solo contestants competing.īill Cullen hosted the 1980–82 version, with Bob Hilton as announcer. In the first series, a team of two family members competed against a solo contestant. The first series of the show debuted on NBC on October 27, 1980, and aired until April 23, 1982. On this program, contestants answered general-knowledge questions to complete a path across or down a game board composed of hexagons. Revived series: January 5, 1987 ( )–May 1, 1987 ( )īlockbusters is an American game show, created by Steve Ryan for Mark Goodson- Bill Todman Productions, which had two separate runs in the 1980s.

Mark Goodson Television Productions (1987)

Mark Goodson-Bill Todman Productions (1980–1982) Please help improve this article by introducing citations to additional sources.įind sources: 'Blockbusters' American game show – news Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. This article relies largely or entirely on a single source.

Blockbusters game show episodes