Twenty Questions
| 20 Questions | |
|---|---|
| Created by |
Fred van de Venter (1949-1955) Ron Greenberg by arrangement with Dick Rubin Ltd (1975 Pilot) |
| Directed by | Roger Bower (1949-1955) Dick Sandwick (1949-1955) Harry Coyle (1949-1955) Bill McCarthy(1949-1955) Arthur Forrest (1975 Pilot) |
| Presented by |
Bill Slater (1949–1952) Jay Jackson (1952–1955) Jack Clark (1975 Pilot) Dick Wilson (1989 Pilot) |
| Narrated by | Frank Waldecker (1949-1955) John Gregson (1949-1955) Bob Shepard (1949-1955) Wayne Gossman (1975 Pilot) Burton Richardson (1989 Pilot) |
| Composer(s) | Score Productions (1975 Pilot) |
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of seasons | 6 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) |
Fred van de Venter (1949-1955) Ron Greenberg (1975 Pilot) |
| Producer(s) | Norman Livingston (1949-1955) Jack Wyatt (1949-1955) Duane McKinney (1949-1955) George Elber (1949-1955) Gary Stevens (1949-1955) |
| Location(s) |
New Amsterdam Theatre, New York (1949-1955) ABC Television Center, New York (1975 Pilot) KTLA Studios, Hollywood (1989 Pilot) |
| Running time | 25 mins. |
| Production company(s) | Fred van de Venter Productions (1949-1955) Mutual Broadcasting System (1949-1955) Ron Greenberg Productions (1975 Pilot) MCA-TV Ltd (1975 Pilot) |
| Distributor | Buena Vista Television (1989 Pilot) |
| Release | |
| Original network |
WOR (1949) NBC (1949) ABC (1950–1951, 1954–1955) DuMont (1951–1954) |
| Picture format |
Black-and-white (1949-1955) Color (1975 Pilot, 1989 Pilot) |
| Audio format | Monaural |
| Original release | November 2, 1949 – May 3, 1955 |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows | 20Q (2009) |
Twenty Questions is a spoken parlor game which encourages deductive reasoning and creativity. It originated in the United States and was played widely in the 19th century. It escalated in popularity during the late 1940s when it became the format for a successful weekly radio quiz program.
In the traditional game, one player is chosen to be the answerer. That person chooses a subject (object) but does not reveal this to the others. All other players are questioners. They each take turns asking a question which can be answered with a simple "Yes" or "No." In variants of the game, multiple state answers may be included such as the answer "Maybe." The answerer answers each question in turn. Sample questions could be: "Is it bigger than a breadbox?" or "Can I put it in my mouth?" Lying is not allowed in the game. If a questioner guesses the correct answer, that questioner wins and becomes the answerer for the next round. If 20 questions are asked without a correct guess, then the answerer has stumped the questioners and gets to be the answerer for another round.
Careful selection of questions can greatly improve the odds of the questioner winning the game. For example, a question such as "Does it involve technology for communications, entertainment or work?" can allow the questioner to cover a broad range of areas using a single question that can be answered with a simple "yes" or "no". If the answerer responds with "yes," the questioner can use the next question to narrow down the answer; if the answerer responds with "no," the questioner has successfully eliminated a number of possibilities for the answer.
The most popular variant is called "Animal, Vegetable, Mineral." This is taken from the Linnaean taxonomy of the natural world. In this version, the answerer tells the questioners at the start of the game whether the subject belongs to the animal, vegetable or mineral kingdom. These categories can produce odd technicalities, such as a wooden table being classified as a vegetable (since wood comes from trees), or a belt being both animal and mineral (because its leather comes from the hide of an animal unless it is synthetic, and its buckle is made of metal). Though if made of cloth or plant fibers, a belt can also be considered a vegetable.
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Wikipedia