They were the first two taped episodes of Press Your Luck ever since the end of the original run in September of 1986. Peter Tomarken hosted one, and Todd Newton the other. Todd ended up being the new host. What are they? They're the 2 Whammy! pilot episodes! Several differences between the episodes seen today and the pilots were seen. The board was set up much more stranger that the way we know and love today. The monitors were smaller, the Whammy pictures were different, and the prize squares showed actual photos instead of icons. The contestant monitors were also small, so small that the scores were nearly impossible to see from afar. The Whammy! logo was not seen on the contestant island. The Whammies the players had earned were indicated by lights instead of the 3-D cards we see today. The background behind Todd was different (actually a recycled prop from the unsuccessful Card Sharks 2000). The round screen in the center of the board was actually a giant slide projector that showed a blowup of the square hit instead of the giant monitor we see today. In Round 1, each player was given 3 spins and the game was played much like Round 3. Players could not freeze. Only 4 questions were asked instead of five. If a player got all four buzz-in answers correct, they were awarded a "Whammy Guard", which nullified the next Whammy they hit. The Gem Car was replaced by a Camaro, which was won in the exact same way as the Gem Car.
Below are some pictures of the pilot episodes. Enjoy! |
