Finders Keepers
Host: Wesley Eure (Nickelodeon), Larry Toffler (Syndicated)
Announcer: Harvey (Nickelodeon), Joe Conklin, Harry Stevens (Syndicated)
Premise: Teams of kids go on a hunt through a huge house
in order to win various prizes.
Hidden Pictures
In the first half, the host gives a clue to a smaller picture camoflaged in the larger picture. The first of two teams to buzz in gets to try and find the smaller picture. If they are successful, they win $25, and a room in the house. If they run out of time, or circle the wrong object, the other team gets to try to claim the money. If neither team is successful, another clue is read, and the game continues until four items are found, and four rooms in the house are claimed. If time runs out in the hidden picture round before all four rooms are claimed, the last one isn't played.
Room Ransack
In the second half, each team got to search as many rooms in the house as they claimed in the front game. Just like before, a clue was read for an item, and the team had 30 seconds to find the item. In this portion, the teams had a large room to look through. There were lots of items to sift through, and several traps that could be sprung to distract the players. Teams were encouraged to take things apart, throw stuff on the ground, to do anything that they need to find the item. If one of the teammates found the right item in 30 seconds, that team won the $50. If they brought the wrong item to the host, or found no item within the time, the $50 went to the other team. All four rooms would play out in this fashion.
Round two was more of same. The hidden pictures round was worth $75 per right answer, and rooms were worth $100 for the remaining four. Additionally, an "instant prize room" was played in this half. When a bell rang before a clue was read, that team was in the prize room. If they found the item in time, they won a bonus prize, (typically a vacation, but sometimes a sailboat or television). If they did not find it, the money went to the other team, and the prize was sent back to the warehouse.
After all eight rooms were played, the money was totalled up. The team that won more money (out of a possible $1,000) won the game and got to tear apart the house in the Room to Room Romp. If the game was tied up at $500 each, the teams would go back to the hidden pictures for a tiebreaker. The first team to find two pictures won the game and broke the tie.
Bonus Round
The winning team now had 90 seconds to find six different items in the house. The team would start out in a room of the house, and the host would read a clue. On "Find it!", the clock would start and the team would try to find the item. If they did, they would get a tag with the show's logo on one side. On the other was the next room to go to, and the next clue. The teams would go from room-to-room, up and down the stairs and so on until they found the sixth item, or time ran out. Teams won a prize for each item tag grabbed before time ran out, starting with small stuff, and ending up with a trip as the grand prize. Teams that won the bonus round could leave with prizes totalling $4,500 each.
Changes Among Versions
On the Nickelodeon version, teams would use a telestrator to circle items on their screens. On the syndicated version, teams would grab a colorform copy of the item and stick it to a large picture in between the teams. There were several decoy items that were in the picture but which had no clues to them.
Set Changes
The Nickelodeon show had a large set piece that the players and host would move through to travel from the hidden picture round to the big house, and it also served as Eure's top-of-the-show entrance. The 'front door' would then split apart so the audience could see the room ransack portion of the game. On the syndicated version, teams merely moved to stage right.