''The Pop 'N Rocker Game'' is an American

game show A game show (or gameshow) is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment where contestants compete in a game for rewards. The shows are typically directed by a game show host, host, who explains the rules of the program as well as commentating a ...

and

variety show Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical performances, sketch comedy, magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is normally introduced by a comp� ...

produced by

Ron Greenberg Ron Greenberg (born 1940?) is an American television game show producer who worked on numerous network and syndicated programs of that genre from the 1960s through the 1990s. His credits include ''Camouflage,'' '' Word for Word,'' '' Let's Play ...

Productions and

Alan Landsburg Productions Alan Landsburg Productions (ALP), later known as Reeves Entertainment Group and Reeves Entertainment, was an independent television production company founded by Alan Landsburg in 1971. The company produced ''In Search of... (TV series), In Searc ...

. The program premiered on September 17, 1983, and aired through September 1984 and combined musical trivia with in-studio performances. Two bands were featured on every episode; as such, the show was touted at the opening of each show as a "Game in Concert".

Jon Bauman Jon "Bowzer" Bauman (born September 14, 1947) is an American singer, best known as a member of the band Sha Na Na, and game show host. Bauman's Sha Na Na character Bowzer was a greaser in a muscle shirt. Biography and career Bauman was bo ...

was the show's host, and both

Phil Hartman Philip Edward Hartman (; September 24, 1948 – May 28, 1998) was a Canadian-American comedian, actor, screenwriter and graphic designer. Hartman was born in Brantford, Ontario, and his family moved to the United States when he w ...

and

M. G. Kelly Gary D. Sinclair (born 1952), known professionally as Michael Gary "M.G." Kelly and Machine Gun Kelly, is an American actor, disc jockey, and radio personality. In addition to hosting several radio programs over the years, Kelly has held severa ...

served as announcers. Some notable bands that appeared on ''The Pop 'N Rocker Game'' were

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, and

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.''Those Wonderful TV Game Shows'', February 27th, 1984 on

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The very first televised appearance of

the Bangles The Bangles are an American all-female band, all-female pop rock band formed in Los Angeles, in 1981. They are known for hit singles during the 1980s that made them one of the most successful pop rock groups of the decade. The band’s biggest ...

with new bassist

Michael Steele Michael Stephen Steele (born October 19, 1958) is an American politician, attorney, and political commentator who served as the seventh lieutenant governor of Maryland from 2003 to 2007 and as chair of the Republican National Committee (RNC) f ...

happened on ''The Pop 'N Rocker Game''.

Gameplay

Three teenagers competed. Five or six pop music trivia questions were asked; some of them having to deal with visual clues (such as pictures or clips from music videos). Each question was worth $50. After the final question was asked, the performer mentioned in the question would come out and perform a song (hence why the show was billed as "a game in concert" in its intro). After this performance, the Countdown Round was played. The questions started at $50, and increased by $10 for every question. This continued for 60 seconds. The contestant in the lead won the game and moved on to the Superstar Round. If the game ended in a two-way tie for first place, or if all three tied, Bauman read one last question, with the person ringing in and answering correctly winning the game. In the Superstar Round, the contestant had to unscramble the names of bands. Jon would read a clue to every one. If they could unscramble three in 30 seconds, they won a prize package worth over $2,000. After the bonus round, one of the bands mentioned in the bonus round would come out and perform a song. The show would end with one final song by the first performer.

References

* Encyclopedia of Television Game Shows 1st ed. - Fred Wostbrock, Steve Ryan, David Schwartz

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pop 'N Rocker Game, The Musical game shows 1980s American children's game shows First-run syndicated television programs in the United States 1983 American television series debuts 1984 American television series endings Television series by Alan Landsburg Productions Television series by Universal Television