"America's biggest bargain Sale"
The '80s version of Sale of the Century debuted on NBC on January 3, 1983, and aired weekdays until March 24, 1989. A concurrent syndicated version was offered to local stations during the 1985-86 season. (Reruns from both version aired on the USA Cable Network in the early '90s.) The host was Jim Perry, a familiar face on NBC thanks to a 3 1/2 year run hosting Card Sharks, although his most successful stint was a twenty-year run on the Canadian game Definition. Jim was a perfect fit for Sale, combining no-nonsense, fast-paced questioning with skillfull salesmanship (often convincing players to buy instant bargains they otherwise wouldn't have given a thought to).
A series of three co-hosts served with Jim over the years. First up was dizzy actress Sally Julian (above left), whose obvious struggles with cue cards, squeaky voice and unnatural delivery led to her being replaced after a mere two months. Next up was popular and glib Lee Menning (above center), the former dealer on Las Vegas Gambit. Lee left the show in 1984 to raise a family (although she would return to TV on Your Number's Up the following year). Former Miss USA Summer Bartholomew (above right) took over for Lee and, after a self-described rough start, settled nicely into her role, staying with the show until its 1989 finale. Jay Stewart was the original announcer, replaced by Don Morrow in '88.
Each day, three contestants - one a returning champ, unless a winner retired on the previous episode - were each spotted with $20. Jim then began reading a series of fairly easy buzz-in questions; the first to jump-in earned $5 for a correct answer or lost $5 for an incorrect one. The gameplay was interrupted six times through the show - roughly every six questions - for three "Instant Bargains" and three "Fame Games," in alternating order.
"Instant Bargains" were merchandise prizes, offered to the contestant at a massive discount - usually $5-7 for the first, $9-12 for the second, and $15-18 for the third. The contestant in the lead was offered the chance to "buy" that prize by subtracting its price from their score. Usually Jim would try to sweeten the offer by throwing a few hundred dollars in cash and/or lowering the price by a buck or two. If two or all three players were tied for the lead, the discounts would go even deeper - sometimes down to a dollar. Also in the back of players' minds, starting in 1985, was the "Sale Surprise," an additional cash bonus that would occasionally be tied to a Bargain - but only announced after the item was bought or passed up for good.
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| "$1900 for a stereo chair?"
| "Um... $11 for a stereo chair?"
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Somewhere around 1986, the third Instant Bargain was replaced with "Instant Ca$h." The player in the lead was offered the chance to select one of three boxes, two of which contained $100 bills, the other holding a cash prize that started at $1,000 and increased that much each day it was not won. The cost to try for it, though, was the contestant's full lead over the 2nd-place player - so dominating players usually passed. As a result, the jackpot was frequently well over $5K, and on a few instances climbed above $15,000! (if there was a tie for the lead, Jim would lead another auction, dropping the price as low as one dollar.)
The "Fame Game" centered around a very long series of clues read by Jim to the identity of a famous person, place, or thing. Players could buzz in at any time and guess without a scoring penalty; if wrong, the game continued for the remaining players. A right answer earned a player the right to select from the Fame Game board. In the series' early days, the board consisted of nine celebrity photos; behind eight were prizes that the contestant kept, win or lose, while the ninth hid a $25 money card - which was added to the player's score.
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| Behind Charlotte Rae...
| A vacuum! Should've picked Fred Dryer.
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About a year into the show's run, the famous faces were replaced with the numbers 1-9. Soon after, $10 and $15 money cards were added to the mix, with one being added to the board in every round. (A $5 card was also seen occasionally.) Cash prizes of $500 - $1000 also began appearing, along with spaces offering the choice of cash or a second pick. Sometimes, it was even "Mystery Money or Pick Again," which concealed prizes as high as $1500 or as low as $1.75. Around '86, rather than choosing their number, the board became randomized a la Press Your Luck, with the player stopping the light with their buzzer. The money cards were revealed before the spin, to heighten the dramatic effect.
Starting in '84, a 60-second speed round ended the game, and the highest scorer was named the day's champion. (The speed round replaced an often-anticlimactic set of three questions.) Losing players received their score in cash, along with any prizes they may have picked up alon the way, while the winner proceeded to the show's final act, which had three completely different formats over the show's six years.
Page 2: The Endgames
The "Sale of the Century" site is part of The Original Game Show Page! (gameshowpage.com), and was launched on February 20, 2002. The show and all images and rules relating to it are the property of FremantleMedia. No challenge to their ownership should be implied by this non-profit fan site.