Deal or No Deal (USA)
| Deal or No Deal | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Genre | Game show |
| Created by | Dick de Rijk John de Mol |
| Presented by | Howie Mandel |
| Starring | The Models The Banker |
| Narrated by | Joe Cipriano |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 6 (4 on NBC, 2 in syndication) |
| No. of episodes | NBC: 199 Syndication: 300 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Scott St. John |
| Camera setup | 8 |
| Running time | 44 minutes (NBC) 22–26 minutes (Syndicated) |
| Production company(s) | Entertain the Brutes Endemol USA |
| Release | |
| Original network | NBC |
| Picture format | 480i (SDTV) |
| Original release |
NBC December 19, 2005 – May 18, 2009 Syndication September 8, 2008 – May 28, 2010 |
| External links | |
| Website | |
Deal or No Deal is the American version of the international game show of Dutch origin of the same name. The show was hosted by Howie Mandel, and premiered on December 19, 2005, on NBC. The hour-long show typically aired at least twice a week during its run, and included special extended or theme episodes. The show started its fourth season on August 25, 2008, after NBC's coverage of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. A daily syndicated half-hour version of the show debuted on September 8, 2008 and continued for two seasons. Peter Abbay plays the Banker.
The game was primarily unchanged from the international format where a contestant chooses one briefcase from a selection of 26. Each briefcase contained a cash value from $.01 to $1,000,000. Over the course of the game, the contestant eliminated the other cases, periodically being presented with a "deal" from The Banker to take a cash amount to quit the game. Should the contestant refuse every deal, they were given the chance to trade the original case for the only other one left in play, and won whatever money was in the chosen case after this possible exchange. Special variations of the game, including a "Million Dollar Mission" introduced in the third season, were also used, as well as a tie-in with a viewer "Lucky Case Game".
The show was a success for NBC, typically averaging from 10-16 million viewers each episode in the first season, although the subsequent seasons only averaged about 5-9 million viewers each episode. It led to the creation of tie-in board, card, and video games, as well as a syndicated series played for smaller dollar amounts.
The show went on hiatus in early 2009, and its Friday night time slot was replaced with Mandel's other series Howie Do It. It was announced on the show's official site that Deal or No Deal would return with new episodes on Monday, May 4. These remaining four were taped in September 2008, and aired on three consecutive Mondays, May 4, May 11, and the final two on May 18.
The player chooses one of 26 numbered briefcases at the start of the game. These cases, carried by identically dressed female models, each hold a different cash amount from $0.01 to $1,000,000. On the stage is a video wall that displays the amounts still in play at any given moment. The player's chosen case is brought onto the stage and placed on a podium before him/her and the host.
In the first round, the player chooses six cases to eliminate from play, one at a time. Each case is opened as it is chosen, and the amount inside is removed from the board. After the sixth pick, a cordless telephone on the podium rings and the host answers it to speak with "The Banker" - a male figure, visible only as a dimly lit silhouette, who sits in a skybox overlooking the studio. The Banker's face is never seen, and his voice is never heard; after the call ends, the host relays the Banker's offer to buy the player's case. The player can accept the offer and end the game by saying "deal" and pressing a red button on the podium, or reject it by saying "no deal" and closing a hinged cover over the button.
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