Idiot Savants (game show)
Encyclopedia
Idiot Savants was an American
television
game show
on the MTV
network which ran from December 9, 1996 to April 25, 1997. It was created by Michael Dugan and Chris Kreski, directed by Steve Paley, and hosted by comedian Greg Fitzsimmons
.
The show's title refers to a label historically directed toward autistic
humans with Savant Syndrome.
al" gimmick. Each day played like a standard game show episode with eliminations and a bonus round
. However, all four contestants returned to start each new episode, and each player's scores from all episodes throughout the week were added together to create a grand total. The contestant who had the highest total after five days of competition won the weekly grand prize, usually a vacation or a car
.
Each contestant was an expert in a specific topic, his or her "Savant Category", which ranged from 1980s Sitcoms to Physics to Heavy Metal Bands.
As in its predecessor Remote Control, many of the questions were asked (or performed) by the Savant Players, a group of actors who acted out comical sketches that led to the questions. Many of these actors were also writers on the show, including senior writer Tom Cohen, along with Jason Nash, Paul Kozlowski, Eric Friedman, and Shonda Farr.
." The other three players remained in the second round.
As soon as any of the following occurred, the category went out of play and the last player who gave a correct answer would choose the next one:
Initially, the first question of a Monday episode was selected by the contestant who answered a "Control Question" correctly (more often than not, the category of this question was also the answer). This was soon replaced by a straw draw. On Tuesday-Friday, the first category was chosen by the previous episode's Dunce.
" (an on-stage monitor played by Matt Price) chose the categories, and if the three players could not answer a question, the Dunce could steal the points (the category would end immediately afterward). The lowest scorer of the three remaining contestants at the end of the second round was eliminated for the day, leaving the remaining two players.
" from Get Smart
, but covering the entire upper half of the player's body).
The player was then asked a series of rapid-fire questions about his or her Savant Category, and had to answer ten of them correctly within the allotted time to win the bonus prize. Win or lose, 200 points was added to the player's weekly total for each question answered correctly.
For the first few weeks, contestants had only 45 seconds to answer the questions; since very few contestants accomplished this feat, this time limit was soon increased to 60 seconds.
The two remaining players then competed for the weekly grand prize in the "Double Grand Savant" final round. The player in second place was placed in the "Cylinder of Shush," and answered questions from his or her Savant Category for 60 seconds, at the rate of 1,000 points per correct answer.
The other player was then placed in the Cylinder and given 60 seconds to try and regain the lead. The player in the lead after this final round was declared that week's champion and won the high-level prize. Four new contestants appeared the following Monday and the process repeated.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
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...
on the MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
network which ran from December 9, 1996 to April 25, 1997. It was created by Michael Dugan and Chris Kreski, directed by Steve Paley, and hosted by comedian Greg Fitzsimmons
Greg Fitzsimmons
Greg Fitzsimmons is an American stand-up comedian, television writer/producer and radio host.-Life and career:Fitzsimmons has performed his comedy on numerous programs such as The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Show with David Letterman, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Chelsea Lately and Comedy...
.
The show's title refers to a label historically directed toward autistic
Autism
Autism is a disorder of neural development characterized by impaired social interaction and communication, and by restricted and repetitive behavior. These signs all begin before a child is three years old. Autism affects information processing in the brain by altering how nerve cells and their...
humans with Savant Syndrome.
Format
Four contestants competed for five days in a standard question-and-answer game with an "educationEducation
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
al" gimmick. Each day played like a standard game show episode with eliminations and a bonus round
Bonus round
A bonus round or bonus game, known in the industry as an end game, is a special round in a game show or similar contest. The bonus round usually follows a main game as a bonus to the winner of that game...
. However, all four contestants returned to start each new episode, and each player's scores from all episodes throughout the week were added together to create a grand total. The contestant who had the highest total after five days of competition won the weekly grand prize, usually a vacation or a car
Automobile
An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
.
Each contestant was an expert in a specific topic, his or her "Savant Category", which ranged from 1980s Sitcoms to Physics to Heavy Metal Bands.
As in its predecessor Remote Control, many of the questions were asked (or performed) by the Savant Players, a group of actors who acted out comical sketches that led to the questions. Many of these actors were also writers on the show, including senior writer Tom Cohen, along with Jason Nash, Paul Kozlowski, Eric Friedman, and Shonda Farr.
Round 1
Eight categories were shown, and a player chose one of them. A toss-up question was asked, and the first player to buzz in with the right answer received 100 points and the chance to answer a bonus question worth 200 points. If that player answered the bonus correctly, he/she then had the right to try for the "Big Gamble" question, the last one in the category. Answering this question correctly awarded 300 points, while a miss deducted 300 (no points were lost for wrong answers to a toss-up or bonus). Any time a contestant answered a question incorrectly or ran out of time, the other players could buzz in and give the correct answer to steal the points. At the end of the first round, the lowest scorer was eliminated, isolated from the other three contestants, and labeled the "DunceDunce
A dunce is a person incapable of learning.The word is derived from the name of the great Scholastic theologian and philosopher John Duns Scotus, also referred to as Doctor Subtillis, or "Subtle Doctor", whose works on logic, theology and philosophy were accepted textbooks in the universities from...
." The other three players remained in the second round.
As soon as any of the following occurred, the category went out of play and the last player who gave a correct answer would choose the next one:
- No one answered a question correctly
- Different players got the toss-up and bonus questions right
- The same player answered the toss-up and bonus, but declined to try the Big Gamble
- The Big Gamble was asked
Initially, the first question of a Monday episode was selected by the contestant who answered a "Control Question" correctly (more often than not, the category of this question was also the answer). This was soon replaced by a straw draw. On Tuesday-Friday, the first category was chosen by the previous episode's Dunce.
Round 2
The question format remained the same; however, questions were now worth double value (200, 400, +/-600 points). Also in this round, the "BrainBrain
The brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals—only a few primitive invertebrates such as sponges, jellyfish, sea squirts and starfishes do not have one. It is located in the head, usually close to primary sensory apparatus such as vision, hearing,...
" (an on-stage monitor played by Matt Price) chose the categories, and if the three players could not answer a question, the Dunce could steal the points (the category would end immediately afterward). The lowest scorer of the three remaining contestants at the end of the second round was eliminated for the day, leaving the remaining two players.
Round 3: Brainstorm Round
The category was retrieved by Fitzsimmons from "inside the Brain," and rapid fire questions from that category were asked for a period of 60 seconds. Each correct answer was worth 200 points, while an incorrect guess lost 200 points. The player in the lead after this round advanced to the Grand Savant Round.Grand Savant Round
The winner of each day's contest played the bonus round for a mid-level prize, such as a vacation or a television set. Before appearing on the show, the contestant chose any subject that he or she knew most about, referred to as his or her "Savant Category". For the Grand Savant Round, the contestant was placed into a device called the "Cylinder of Shush" (a clear tube somewhat reminiscent of the "Cone of SilenceCone of Silence
The Cone of Silence is one of many recurring joke devices from Get Smart, an American comedy television series of the 1960s about an inept spy....
" from Get Smart
Get Smart
Get Smart is an American comedy television series that satirizes the secret agent genre. Created by Mel Brooks with Buck Henry, the show starred Don Adams , Barbara Feldon , and Edward Platt...
, but covering the entire upper half of the player's body).
The player was then asked a series of rapid-fire questions about his or her Savant Category, and had to answer ten of them correctly within the allotted time to win the bonus prize. Win or lose, 200 points was added to the player's weekly total for each question answered correctly.
For the first few weeks, contestants had only 45 seconds to answer the questions; since very few contestants accomplished this feat, this time limit was soon increased to 60 seconds.
Friday Finals
On Friday, the four players' starting scores were set to show the total points each had accumulated during the week. Point values for the first two rounds were doubled (200/400/600, then 400/800/1200), and the low scorer at the end of each round was eliminated from the game. There was no "Dunce" on this episode, and no Brainstorm Round was played.The two remaining players then competed for the weekly grand prize in the "Double Grand Savant" final round. The player in second place was placed in the "Cylinder of Shush," and answered questions from his or her Savant Category for 60 seconds, at the rate of 1,000 points per correct answer.
The other player was then placed in the Cylinder and given 60 seconds to try and regain the lead. The player in the lead after this final round was declared that week's champion and won the high-level prize. Four new contestants appeared the following Monday and the process repeated.