Game Show Strategies
How can a contestant prepare for an appearance on a trivia game show?
The best way to prepare for going on a game show is to watch the show as often as you can and as comprehensively as you can. You want to play it, you want to get into the rhythm, and the timing. You want to understand it. If you can, go to a taping of the show to get a sense of the environment of the studio. You should do all of that. Get the home game, if there's a home game, and practice it with your friends. Study whatever materials relate to that show. If you are going to a show about music, then study music. If you're going on "Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?", then study 5th grade material. Don't go onto a show thinking "Oh, I will figure it out when I get there."
What are some strategies that can be used on game shows?
Each show has its set of strategies. For Jeopardy, you obviously want to cram as much trivia into your head as possible, and you want to read reference books, you want to read newspapers, you want to prepare in every possible way that you can with quiz type material, and get to know your pop culture and your history. For Wheel of Fortune, you could practise hangman puzzles. It's a very simple skill but some people are better at it than other people. So, practise your hangman.
Can contestants outsmart a game show by studying its format?
The most famous example of a contestant outsmarting a game show was Michael Larson who, in the mid-80's, went on a game show call Press Your Luck. Michael Larson was so intent upon winning on Press Your Luck that he actually taped the show day after day for months prior to his appearance and memorized the pattern of the flashing lights on the board so that when he got on the show he could stop the button at the exact second, the exact frame, to be able to win the top prize time and time and time again. As a result he won on one episode over $110,000, which at that time was an astounding amount for one episode. What Michael Larson did in some peoples minds was cheat, but in truth all he did was beat the system. He did nothing wrong. He was just smarter than the producers and smarter than the network and he walked away with a bundle.