Make the Grade
Encyclopedia
Make the Grade is a children's game show
that aired from October 2, 1989 through December 29, 1991 on Nickelodeon
.
The first two seasons were hosted by Lew Schneider
, with the first season taped in a small New York
studio with no live audience and false crowd noise
. For the next two seasons, the show moved to the newly opened Nickelodeon Studios
in Orlando, Florida
, with Robb Edward Morris taking Schneider's place as host for the final season. New York-based disc jockey
Maria Milito was the announcer for the entire run.
questions and acquire squares on a 7x7 game board. The category icons and grade levels lit up on the front of each desk when a question was answered correctly. Grade levels, which ranged from elementary school and grades 7 through 12, ran along the top of the board; six subjects plus a "special elective" ran down the left. The contestants' goal was to answer one question from each grade level and one question from each category.
Most squares contained questions. If a contestant answered the question correctly, he earned that square for his desk and control of the board. If incorrect, the other two had a chance to answer once the host re-reads the question. Additionally, several squares contained "wild card" panels that could ultimately alter the outcome of the game. The wild cards were:
The goal of each Fire Drill was to complete the challenge first, thereby earning first choice at the three desks. Although a contestant can answer many questions correctly, the earned squares belonged to the desk. When the Fire Drill was completed, the first place contestant picked whichever desk he or she desired, usually the one with the most grade levels and subjects completed. The second place contestant got his/her choice of the remaining two desks, and third place took the last desk left.
Because of this structure, a contestant could do poorly in answering questions but successfully complete Fire Drills to win the game. In extreme situations, a contestant completed their card and won the game with one correct answer. While it was theoretically possible to win a game without answering any questions (by winning a fire drill, being only one square away from victory, and picking a "free" or "take" square), this never happened.
After two trivia rounds, the first contestant to light up 14 squares on their desk, or the contestant with the most squares in as many grade levels and subjects as possible, won $500 and goes on to the Honors Round. The other two contestants received $50 and a consolation prize.
.
In the first season, extra time was filled with clips of host Schneider going to malls and asking questions, and during the third season, studio audience members were asked questions to win T-shirts. On a few episodes, a contestant won the game so early that they started another game with a second set of contestants, playing the second game in abbreviated time.
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...
that aired from October 2, 1989 through December 29, 1991 on Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (TV channel)
Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...
.
Broadcast history
Make the Grade premiered on Nickelodeon on October 2, 1989 and ended on December 29, 1991. Reruns of Make the Grade aired Nickelodeon Games and Sports from January 2, 2000 to April 2, 2004.The first two seasons were hosted by Lew Schneider
Lew Schneider
Lew Schneider is an Emmy Award winning American television producer, writer, actor, and stand-up comedian.-Career:In the fall of 1989, Schneider landed his first regular TV job as the host of the Nickelodeon game show, Make the Grade. His stand-up act was featured on HBO's One Night Stand in 1992...
, with the first season taped in a small New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
studio with no live audience and false crowd noise
Laugh track
A laugh track is a separate soundtrack invented by Charles "Charley" Douglass, with the artificial sound of audience laughter, made to be inserted into television programming of comedy shows and sitcoms.The term "laugh track" does not apply to the genuine audience laughter on shows that shoot in...
. For the next two seasons, the show moved to the newly opened Nickelodeon Studios
Nickelodeon Studios
Nickelodeon Studios was a television taping studio as well as an original attraction at Universal Studios Florida.-History:...
in Orlando, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
, with Robb Edward Morris taking Schneider's place as host for the final season. New York-based disc jockey
Disc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
Maria Milito was the announcer for the entire run.
Main game
Three contestants each situated at either a red, green, or blue desk competed to answer triviaTrivia
The trivia are the three lower Artes Liberales, i.e. grammar, rhetoric and logic. These were the topics of basic education, foundational to the quadrivia of higher education, and hence the material of basic education, of interest only to undergraduates...
questions and acquire squares on a 7x7 game board. The category icons and grade levels lit up on the front of each desk when a question was answered correctly. Grade levels, which ranged from elementary school and grades 7 through 12, ran along the top of the board; six subjects plus a "special elective" ran down the left. The contestants' goal was to answer one question from each grade level and one question from each category.
Most squares contained questions. If a contestant answered the question correctly, he earned that square for his desk and control of the board. If incorrect, the other two had a chance to answer once the host re-reads the question. Additionally, several squares contained "wild card" panels that could ultimately alter the outcome of the game. The wild cards were:
- Take: Allows a contestant to steal any square from an opponent.
- Lose: Forces a contestant to give up a square of his/her choice, which would be placed back on the board as another question or wild card.
- Free: Gives the square to the contestant who picked it without having to answer a question.
- Fire: Leads to a "Fire Drill", a physical challenge for all three contestants.
Fire drills
Like other Nickelodeon game shows before it, Make the Grade allowed contestants to participate in (sometimes messy) challenge stunts called "Fire Drills." Fire Drills took place when a contestant selected a square with the Fire wild card. All three contestants participate.The goal of each Fire Drill was to complete the challenge first, thereby earning first choice at the three desks. Although a contestant can answer many questions correctly, the earned squares belonged to the desk. When the Fire Drill was completed, the first place contestant picked whichever desk he or she desired, usually the one with the most grade levels and subjects completed. The second place contestant got his/her choice of the remaining two desks, and third place took the last desk left.
Because of this structure, a contestant could do poorly in answering questions but successfully complete Fire Drills to win the game. In extreme situations, a contestant completed their card and won the game with one correct answer. While it was theoretically possible to win a game without answering any questions (by winning a fire drill, being only one square away from victory, and picking a "free" or "take" square), this never happened.
After two trivia rounds, the first contestant to light up 14 squares on their desk, or the contestant with the most squares in as many grade levels and subjects as possible, won $500 and goes on to the Honors Round. The other two contestants received $50 and a consolation prize.
Honors round
In this round, the winner is offered their choice of three question categories. Each category contains questions from each of the seven subjects in the main game. The contestant has 45 seconds to answer one question correctly from all seven subjects.First season
Each subject contained only one question and the contestant was only able to give one answer to each question. Each correct answer won $100, and getting all seven questions right augmented the bonus round total to $1,000.Second and third seasons
The bonus round was played as before, but missing or passing a question moved to the next subject, and a contestant was able to return to the subject missed with new questions if time permitted. Each of the first six correct answers won $100, and the seventh correct answer won a trip to Universal Studios FloridaUniversal Studios Florida
Universal Studios Florida is an American theme park located in Orlando, Florida. Opened on June 7, 1990, the park's theme is the entertainment industry, in particular movies and television. Universal Studios Florida inspires its guests to "ride the movies," and it features numerous attractions and...
.
University round
In second season episodes where the game finished early (and there was additional time to fill), a special University Round was played. A series of five questions were asked, for $50, $100, $200, $500, and $1,000, respectively. The contestant could stop and take the money at any time.In the first season, extra time was filled with clips of host Schneider going to malls and asking questions, and during the third season, studio audience members were asked questions to win T-shirts. On a few episodes, a contestant won the game so early that they started another game with a second set of contestants, playing the second game in abbreviated time.