Pyramid game and tournament play

This is the layout for game and tournament play for the Pyramid game show franchise.

Game Play

Main Game

With gameplay similar to Password, two teams, consisting of one celebrity player and one Contestant, competed against each other. Six categories, each of which had a name pertaining to what that category was AbOUT, were placed on the pyramid-shaped game board. A contestant chose one of those categories, and after the host explained the subject of that category, the contestant was given 30 seconds (35 on the Junior shows from 1979; 20 on the 2002-2004 revival) to guess seven words (eight from 1973-1974; six in the 2002-2004 revival), phrases, or names using clues given by his/her partner. If any descriptions were deemed illegal by the judges, a "cuckoo" (or an electronic "burble" on the 2002-2004 revival) sound was played, the clue was immediately thrown out, and the contestant couldn't earn any points for it. On the versions from 1973-1991, if a word was passed, the giver could not go back to that word, but if the receiver knew the word later on and guessed it, the team still earned a point; on the Donny Osmond-hosted Pyramid, however, if time permitted, the giver was allowed to go back to the passed words.

Clue giving

Almost any manner of describing the word or phrase was permitted; unlike Password, however, clues were typically more than one word in length. If the person giving the clues became stuck, he or she could attempt giving clues for a portion of the word or phrase, or for a homophone of the word (e.g. a clue for "flower" instead of "flour" would be acceptable). Usually, only a last name would be required if the answer was a proper name, unless the host indicated that first and last names must be given.

Illegal clues included:

Using the word itself, or any part of it, in the clue
Stating that the word rhymes with another word (rhyming words themselves could be used in clues, however)
Stating the first letter of the word (unless the category indicated that the word would begin with a certain letter)

Occasionally, a category might contain answers that all had a common word in them; e.g., a category for "famous mothers" might contain answers that all begin with the word "mother". In such cases, the host would inform the contestants whether or not they could use the common word in their clues.

Once time had expired or the contestant guessed all of the necessary clues (whichever came first), the opposing team followed the same procedures.

Three rounds, with two subjects per round, were played in the main game. While the celebrity gave the clues and the contestant received them in the first round, the roles were reversed in the second round, meaning that the contestant gave the clues and the celebrity received them. In the third round the contestant had the option to give or receive, with the team trailing going first.

From 1973 to 1980 (final season of The $20,000 Pyramid), categories were featured on a smaller pyramid on cards that were pulled off by a stage hand inside it (as opposed to the trilons on the main pyramid). In 1980, the smaller pyramid was rebuilt to have the categories and bonues on trilons. When the show moved to CBS Television City and received a new set, the small pyramid received backlit categories that would extinguish when the category was selected, or flash if a bonus was revealed. The second season of the 1991 John Davidson-hosted EDition abandoned the use of trilons on the small pyramid, replacing them with monitors that portrayed trilons "turning"; the 2002-2004 revival abandoned trilons altogether, using television monitors instead.

Tiebreaker Rounds

If the score was tied after three rounds, tiebreaker rounds were played using words that begin with a letter of the alphabet.

During the 1970s daytime editions, tiebreaker rounds would normally be continued to be played until the score was untied, and a winner declared. There had been occasions when tiebreaker rounds would finally end with high point totals, such as that it was on July 4, 1975 with Lucie Arnaz versus Anson Williams and a 45-44 score; on June 12, 1978 with Sandy Duncan versus Nipsey Russell and a 43-42 score; and on August 7, 1979 with Jo Anne Worley versus David Letterman and a 40-39 score. On the syndicated editions, if both teams scored 7 points, the team with the fastest time won the game.

During the 1980s and 1990s editions, the scores were reset to zero before the tiebreaker rounds began. The team that would go first was the team that caused the tie to occur, or in the event of a perfect (21-21) tie, the team on the left. The show awarded a $5,000 bonus for breaking a perfect tie. If the first team completed its tiebreaker round with seven words answered successfully, the opponents would have to beat the time it took the first team to get all seven. (The result was almost always that only one tiebreaker round was needed; on the rare occasions that the second team completed its words in the same time the first did, a second tiebreaker would be played with the same rules.)

The winner of the game played the Winner's Circle bonus round (see below).

In the original daytime version, when a contestant lost the main game, he/she left with Parting Gifts. On all syndicated versions, as well as the 1982-1988 daytime version, both contestants played on the entire show, swapping celebrity partners after the first game. From 1982-1992, whoever had the highest score at the Winner's Circle or won both of that day's games returned on the next show, unless that player won $25,000, in which case, he/she was retired. If both players matched their Winner's Circle totals, both returned the next day. The "bonus" dollars such as the "7-11" (discussed below) did not count as for "score". The "score" money is to be won only in the Winner's Circle.

Bonuses

One randomly-chosen category in each maingame contained a hidden bonus, which allowed the contestant to win additional cash or prizes if all of the clues were guessed correctly, though in virtually all cases, these bonuses did not count toward a contestant's score.

The 1973-1980 daytime network versions featured the "Big 7", instituted on the ABC version on December 23, 1974, where contestants could win $500 for getting 7 out of 7. This was played once per show and could Appear in either main game (though it was most often played in the first round). In early appearances of the "Big 7", a trip was offered, but this was later changed to bonus cash. Originally, the contestant could choose to receive $25 per answer up to $175 ("Play it Safe") or try for the $500 bonus for all seven, but the former option was soon dropped.

The 1974-1979 nighttime syndicated version also featured the "Big 7", first in the 1975-1976 season for $1000. It was later changed to "The Big Money" card, offering a random cash amount from $1000 to $5000 in the 1976-1977 season and from $1500 to $4000 in the 1977-1978 season. For the 1978-1979 season, the "Big 7" card returned, with an automobile as the bonus prize.

There were no bonus cards in play on The $50,000 Pyramid from 1981.

Instead of using the "Big 7", the short-lived daytime "Junior Partner Pyramid" saw each team given the option to pick one category in each front game as their "Bonus 7." If a team could identify all seven words on the category that they designated as their "Bonus 7," they were awarded $500. Unlike regular play, these bonuses would be included in determining that team's score for the day.

The 1982-1988 versions featured the "7-11" in the first game, first introduced on April 11, 1983 and much like the earlier "Big 7", contestants won $1100 for seven correct answers in that subject. Early on, the player had the option to play for $1100 in that fashion or to "play it safe" and take $50 per answer up to $350 total, but this option was eventually dropped when most contestants opted to try for the bigger money.

There was also the "Mystery 7" in the second game, begun on the premiere episode of the CBS $25,000 Pyramid, where contestants won a prize (most of the time either a trip or a car) for seven correct answers without receiving the subject of that category from the host (the subject was revealed after the 7 was played). Originally, the "Mystery 7" was displayed in plain sight on the gameboard, but beginning on April 11, 1984, it was hidden behind a category just like the "7-11."

For a brief time in 1983, the CBS version of The $25,000 Pyramid dropped the "Mystery 7" in favor of a "Player of the Week" bonus rule similar to that of the $50,000 version's, in which the player who identified 7 out of 7 answers in the quickest time (excluding the tiebreaker round) won a trip to Greece. This concept was soon discontinued when the same player would have been disqualified for the following week after having won the trip on the prior week.

The 1991-1992 version originally retained the bonuses of its immediate predecessor with the "7-11" and "Mystery 7" played as described above on the Monday, Wednesday and Friday episodes of a given week. The Tuesday and Thursday episodes, however, saw the "7-11" dropped, the "Mystery 7" moved to the first game and a new bonus called "Double Trouble", played in the second. Two categories on the board were designated as "Double Trouble" subjects (numbered 1 and 2), which consisted entirely of two-word answers. Teams were given 45 seconds (rather than the standard 30), and paid off $500 for Getting Through all seven. Each team was required to pick one "Double Trouble" category during the course of the game.

Later in its first season, the "7-11" was dropped altogether in favor of "Gamble for a Grand" (also played as "Gamble for a Trip"), which gave contestants the option of playing that category normally for no bonus or to take a chance at winning $1000 or the announced trip by getting all seven answers in 25 seconds instead of the usual 30.

On The $100,000 Pyramid, no bonus cards were used during tournament play, but during the 1985-1988 run, the $5000 cash prize for winning a 21-21 tiebreaker stayed in play.

The most recent version of Pyramid featured a "SUPER Six" in each game where contestants won a prize (a trip or a Sony electronic device of some sort) for guessing all six answers correctly within the 20-second time limit.

From 1976 to 1980 on the daytime version, $1000 was won for achieving a perfect score of 21 points. Near the end of the daytime run, 21 points awarded a bonus prize (a color television on the final telecast). This bonus only appeared in the 1977-1978 season of the nighttime show, but for $2100. On the 1982-1988 version, if the game ended in a 21-21 tie, the tiebreaker was played for a new car beginning in 1984, but it became a $5,000 cash bonus by 1985. No perfect game bonus was offered during the 1991-1992 run.

Winner's Circle

The Winner's Circle round, named for the circular structure around the chairs that the celebrity and contestant sat in, also featured a pyramid of six subjects: three on the bottom level, two in the middle and one at the top.

Each subject, however, was revealed one at a time and whoever gave the clues (usually the celebrity, although the contestant always had the option of giving or receiving) had to give a list of objects that fit into that subject, and the contestant would have to guess the category. The subjects increased in difficulty toward the top of the pyramid.

During most of Pyramid's runs, the round started with what would become one of TV's (and [...] Clark's) most famous catch phrases: "For $(Dollar amount), here is your first subject. GO!"

On the John Davidson version, he would use that phrase, but not before using this tagline: "You have 60 seconds". On the Donny Osmond version, he simply used this phrase, "Give me 60 seconds on the clock, please. Ready...Go!"

Any descriptions other than a list of items resulted in immediate disqualification of that category; this was signaled by a buzzer (instead of the cuckoo sound used in the regular rounds); the same buzzer was also used to indicate that time expired. The strictness of the judging has varied over the years. The following clues were considered off-limits to the givers:

Using hand gestures (the cluegiver had arm straps to help discourage this); hand gestures were allowed for a short time in the early CBS days and during special weeks in which the contestants were blind.
Giving the "essence of the answer" (e.g. "a building" for Things You Build; however, "4 Across" is a valid clue for Things in a Crossword Puzzle, as "cross" and "across" are unrelated)
Using synonyms (e.g. "a beautiful woman" for Things That Are Attractive)
Using a prepositional phrase, except as part of a title (e.g. "the train on schedule" for Things That Arrive)
Using an overly descriptive phrase (e.g. "A dress that doesn't fit" for Things You Return)
Describing the category itself rather than naming items (e.g. "open your mouth and I'll drill your teeth" for Things A Dentist Uses)
Listing items that do not fit the category at all (e.g. "Benjamin Franklin" for U.S. Presidents)
Using a made-up expression (e.g. "Ocean taffy" for Things That Are Salty)
Phrasing the clue as a question, as in "What do you do with your spare change?" for You Put It In Your Pocket

Often, the second box would contain a category such as "What (person or thing) Might Say" or "Why You (verb)"; on these types of categories, judging was much less strict. For instance, the example above, "Open your mouth and I'll drill your teeth", while illegal for Things A Dentist Uses, would be acceptable for What a Dentist Might Say.

The person receiving the clue would simply need to match any key word(s) within the given category, not necessarily the box's exact contents. For instance, in the example above (What a Dentist Might Say), the person receiving clues could say "What a dentist says", or simply the word "dentist" itself. Occasionally, an alternate keyword would be placed in parentheses on the box (e.g. "Exercises (Calisthenics)"), or two words with an "or" in between (e.g. "Shapes or figures"); in such cases, either of the two key words is acceptable.

The contestant must reach to the top of the pyramid by guessing all six subjects correctly (without getting any buzzed) within a 60-second time limit; doing so won the grand prize, which had changed with each incarnation of the show:

The network daytime versions from 1973 to 1976 and 1979's All-Star Junior Pyramid special offered $10,000 as its top prize. If won, the contestant retired undefeated with the $10,000 and any other winnings to that point.
On the 1974-1979 syndicated version and the versions played from 1982-1988 and 1991, a player's first trip to the Winner's Circle was played for $10,000. If a contestant won both games, his/her second trip to the Winner's Circle was played for a grand total of $25,000. (note on the CBS verson, players who reached the $25,000 winnings limit retired as champion, It was changed to $50,000 in September 1984, changed again to $75,000 in October 1986).
From 1976 to 1980, the top prize offered on the network daytime version was $20,000. The contestant who went to the Winner's Circle the first time played for $10,000; the second time for $15,000 and the third and subsequent times for $20,000. Players in this version continued until a successful Winner's Circle try at whatever cash prize level (thus retired at that point), or defeated in the main game. If the Winner's Circle was won, whatever money earned up to that point would be augmented to that top prize (so if a player won $1000 in the front game, then won the Winner's Circle for $10,000, they actually would win an extra $9000 for a total of $10,000).
On Junior Pyramid from 1979, a contestant's first attempt at the Winner's Circle would be for $1000. A contestant who played the Winner's Circle a second time would play for $2500. The third and subsequent attempts would have the contestant play for $5000.
On 1979's Junior Partner Pyramid, teams competed for the entire show. A teams first attempt at the Winner's Circle would be played for $2,500. A team's second Winner's Circle would be played for $5000. The team who won the most money returned on the next show, unless that team conquered the Pyramid.
On the 1981 syndicated version, the first trip to the Winner's Circle was worth $5000 and the second time was worth $10,000. Each tournament attempt would be played for the $50,000 grand prize.
On both versions of The $100,000 Pyramid, whenever it was tournament week, each attempt was always worth the grand prize. If the $100,000 was won the first half of the show, the other two finalists would play for a consolation $10,000 in the second half (difficult to win, as the harder "tournament" material remained in play). There was a five day limit on the $100,000 Pyramid.

For the 2002-2004 version, a player had to have won the $10,000 in his/her first trip to qualify for the $25,000 attempt and a spot in the tournament.

Rob Reiner was the celebrity guest, along with his civilian contestant partner (a 25-year old female secretary), to have had the very first successful Winner's Circle win occurred on CBS-TV's The $10,000 Pyramid during its debut episode broadcast on Monday, March 26, 1973. As actually stated by him on-air during a later episode from that debut week (as seen from an archived videotape found at the Film & TV Archive of UCLA), it occurred at the first attempt on the first episode.

If the top prize was not won, the contestant was awarded money for every subject guessed. The amount was displayed after the subject was guessed. [...] Clark would also provide clues for the subjects missed after the round ended to the player receiving the clues as suggestions had he been the clue-giver; even asking the judges if a certain clue would be acceptable with the judges responding either with a bell or a buzzer. (Occasionally, the judge would also respond to [...]'s questions in the maingame with a bell or buzzer; usually, these questions would involve whether or not a clue was answered in time.)

The original Winner's Circle pyramid was built with 10 trilons; however, before the first taping, it was decided that a winning team had very little chance of correctly identifing 10 subjects in 60 seconds. The bottom four trilons were covered by a strip of plywood.

The Payoffs

1973-1980 (network) and 1981 (syndicated) - $50 for the bottom three subjects, $100 for the middle two subjects and $200 for the top subject.
1974-1979 (syndicated) - $100 for the bottom three, $200 for the middle and $300 for the top.
All-Star Junior Pyramid special (1979)- $100 for each bottom subject, $250 for each middle subject, and $500 for the subject at the top.
Junior Partner Pyramid (1979) - The values for the first five subjects ranged from $100 to $200 in increments of $25 ($100, $125, $150, $175, $200), with the final (top) subject being worth $250.
1982-1991 - the first subject was worth $50 and increased in value by $50 for each subject up to $300 for the top subject ($50, $100, $150, $200, $250, $300).
2002-2004 - the bottom three subjects were worth $200, the middle two $300 and the top subject $500 ($500 for each of the three bottom categories, $1000 for each of the two middle categories, and $2500 for the category at the top during six-player tournament play and during the semifinals of a four-player tournament; $1000 for each of the bottom three subjects, $2500 for each of the two middle subjects, and $5000 for the top subject during the finals of a four-player tournament).

In most versions, each subject was displayed on a trilon containing: the name of the subject, visible both when clues were being given for that category as well as if the subject was passed by the clue giver; the appropriate dollar value for that subject, displayed when the receiving contestant correctly identified the subject; and a pyramid graphic, displayed prior to the subject's revelation, as well as if the clue giver gave an illegal clue for that subject. On occasion (primarily when contestants on the "$100,000 Pyramid" won the $100,000), the trilons would appear to tremble during the post-game celebration. This was the backstage board operators' way of congratulating the winning contestant.

The 2002-2004 version used television monitors instead, as producer Sony used their brand of television monitors. These monitors started swiveled horizontally, but then swiveled up to show the big pyramid. Passed categories had a red background, and the monitors for categories for which illegal clues were given had the Pyramid logo. After a win, all the monitors showed that payoff ($10,000, $25,000, or $100,000).

During the 1970s run of the series, if there was no time for the second bonus round, it would be played at the top of the next show. On the week-ending Friday episode, if there was no winner from the main game, the celebrities would play the winner's circle themselves and, if won, their contestant partners split $5000 (which was instituted after a Monday episode started with a Winner's Circle, requiring one of the previous week's celebrities, Nipsey Russell, to return just for that round). This procedure was eliminated in the 1982-1988 version when both contestants would play both games with celebrity switching between games.

Tournament Play

On The $50,000 Pyramid, the player with the fastest time in the front game during that week qualified for the $50,000 tournament. The field started with eight contenders but was narrowed down to three by the end of the first week of the tournament. On Monday and Tuesday, each game pitted two players in one game, with the winner advancing to the Wednesday-Thursday semifinals in adition to playing the Winner's Circle for $5000. During the semifinals, each show featured two semifinalists playing both games in one show as during regular play, with the player earning the most money in the Winner's Circle advancing to the finals. The losing contestants from the semifinals competed on Friday's "wild card" show which was played the same as the semifinals. Starting the following Monday, two finalists would play one game and the winner would play the Winner's Circle for $50,000. If the grand prize was lost, that player would play the next game against The Finalist who sat out the previous game.

Tournaments were frequently held on The $100,000 Pyramid where the three contestants who reached the top of the pyramid in the shortest amounts of time played until someone won the Winner's Circle, where $100,000 was awarded. These tournaments were played like the tournaments on The $50,000 Pyramid, but without the elimination process. If a contestant won the $100,000 Winner's Circle during the first half of a given episode, the second half would then feature the two remaining tournament contestants playing a consolation game, the winner of which would play the Winner's Circle for $10,000. This happened four times, with the first time coming in Pyramid 's first six-digit win. On most occasions, if the $100,000 was won the trilons swung back and forth and the entire audience mobbed the floor to congratulate the winner.

The last version of Pyramid held four three-day tournaments where a contestant could win $100,000. In a six-player tournament, two players would compete for the first show, two more would compete on the second show and the last two players competed on the final show.

Each contestant's first attempt at the Winner's Circle would be played for $25,000. If $25,000 was won in the first half, and that same player returned to the Winner's Circle that contestant played for an additional $75,000 and the tournament title. If the tournament ended with neither player able to win both Winner's Circles in one show, the contestant who won $25,000 in the fastest time, would have his or her tournament winnings augmented to $100,000.

In a four-player tournament, the first two semifinalists would compete on the first two days. Each attempt at the Winner's Circle would be played for $25,000. The category payoffs remained the same as with the six-player tournaments. On each of the two semifinal shows, whoever won more money returned to compete in the finals, in which each Winner's Circle attempt would have the player attempt to win $50,000. This was the only version where a $100,000 win was not guaranteed, or even a contestant winning $100,000, however a payoff of $175,000 was possible if one contestant won all four games and got to the top of the pyramid in each round.

Unlike the 1980s and 1990s versions, when someone won $100,000, confetti shot out of cannons, and no audience members ran to the stage.

$100,000 Pyramid Tournament Winners

[...] Clark Series

Richard Mahaffey - $119,450 (First Contestant to win $100,000 in cash)
Andy Culpepper - $113,250
Patty Geiger - $123,800
Cheryl Reinwand - $150,800 (All-Time Winner)
Denise Bumbliss - $118,600
Mary Monte - $123,600
Marilyn Evans - $147,600
M.G. McCormick - $133,650
Debbie Seppien - $129,400
Keefe Ferrendini - $122,450
Tracy Trench - $121,250
Carrie Etheridge - $119,100

John Davidson Series

Teresa Mueller - $114,600
Kris McDermont - $147,750
Peggy Belski - $115,700
Melia Kline - $127,800
Baron Harris - $124,800

Donny Osmond Series

George Elias (November, 2002) - $125,000
? (March, 2003) - ?
? (November, 2003) - $68,500
Jody Gray - $125,000

The Bonus Round Evolves

In the original concept for the Winner's Circle, a team had to guess ten subjects in 60 seconds to win the top prize. This idea survived long enough for the Winner's Circle gameboard on The $10,000 Pyramid to be constructed with ten trilons rather than six.

Perhaps realizing that ten in sixty seconds made it too unlikely for the $10,000 to be won with anything less than perfect gameplay, Bob Stewart changed the game to its familiar six-subject configuration shortly before taping was to begin. The bottom four windows on the gameboard were "dummied out" by having a large piece of plywood nailed across them, which would remain for the entire duration of its initial 1973-74 CBS run. The set was reconstructed without the eliminated trilons when the show moved to ABC in 1974, although the bare section on the ABC board carried a cushion-like bottom for most of its existence.

It was GeneRally assumed by fans (though by no means confirmed) that the four bottommost categories would have been worth $25 apiece, keeping with the established doubling pattern of the six categories that remained.