Password, Password '75, Password All-Stars
Host: Allen Ludden
Announcer: Jack Clark, John Harlan,
Word Authority: Dr. Reason A. Goodwin
Premise: Timeless classic where two teams of celebrity and contestant convey words.
The Basic Rules of Password:
Allen showed the word to either the celebrities and civilians. The player in control could play the word, or pass the first clue to the opposing team. After a clue is given, the partner then tries to guess the word for 10 points if correct. If not, the opposing team played for 9 points. Each successive miss lowered the value by a point, and if neither team was successful after five tries, the word was replaced. Illegal clues meant that the partner did not get to guess, and control of the word went to the other team. Illegal clues were: using more than one word, gesturing while giving the clue, using part of the password in the description. The resident Word Authority gave the final word as to the legality of the clues.
Version 1.0
The teams played words until one team scored 25 or more points. The winning team won $100 for the contestant and the right to play the bonus game.
Lightning Round
The celebrity had 60 seconds to convey five words at $50 apiece, but after passing, they could not return.
Password All-Stars
Six celebrities compete per week to score points. In the Qualifying Round, two celebrities give clues to a word one at a time, and the remaining celebrities buzz-in when they want to guess. Correct guesses score a point, and the first to score two points picks their partner for Password. The second to score two points is partnered with the remaining clue giver. Incorrect guesses drop that player out of the rest of that word.
In Classic Password, the two teams played, but the "Double" option was in play: the first team could go for 20 points, but if they missed, the opponents could score 20 with another clue. All points won by a team are totaled for the week, as the top scorers play on Friday in the Finals. By the way, the team that reaches 50 points wins and plays "20-20 Password" where the team can score an additional 20 points by guessing one word on each side.
After each match, the winning players gave clues for the Qualifying Match, lather, rinse, repeat.
Friday had the four top scorers playing in the last match, and the player with the most points overall won the Trophy of the week, and $5000 for their favorite charity.
During the short run, a Grand Master Tournament was held, and Richard Dawson won $25,000 for charity on the finale. Allen couldn't keep up with the myriad changes, and they didn't sit well with the viewers, so Mark Goodson and Bill Todman decided to go with Password ('75)
Password '75
The third incarnation was very similar to the Celebrity game, with the double rule, and Qualifying Match. The first player to score 50 points with his partner won the game and played the bonus game.
Big Money Lightning Round
In the first step, the team tried to convey three words in 30 seconds for $50 each, plus $5 per second left. So if the team got all three in 20 seconds, their bank is $150 for the words, and $50 for time: $200. Then, another set of three words are played, for the value of the bank each time, and $10 for each second. So, if it takes another 20 seconds, the team wins $600 for the words, and another $100 for the time, or $700. Finally, level three is worth 10 times the bank, for another three words in 30 seconds, or in our case, $7,000; a mighty sum for the mid-seventies (TPiR's showcases were about $6000, and Match Game '75's top prize was $5600 a game.)