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Host
Henry Polic II
Announcers
Bob Hilton
Johnny Gilbert
Broadcast
Dtalk86
Celebrity Double Talk
ABC Daytime: 8/18/1986 – 12/19/1986
Packager
Bob Stewart Productions

"This is (Celebrity) Double Talk! Today, our guest stars are (insert celebrity name) and (insert celebrity name). And here's your host on (Celebrity) Double Talk, Henry Polic II!"

(Celebrity) Double Talk was a short-lived word game show where words and phrases and names are not exactly what they seem to be.

Gameplay[]

Two teams of two (consisting of one celebrity & one contestant) played a game of solving puzzles that are double meanings.

Example: "Crack/the Money Place" Answer: "Break the Bank"

Main Game[]

Each team faced a game board of four hidden numbered puzzles. On a team's turn, the contestant picked off puzzles one at a time. On each puzzle, one player tried to solve the first half, while the other player tried to solve the second half. Correctly solving the entire puzzle earned points for the team. The team in control kept on playing until they played all four puzzles or if they missed one; upon a miss, the opposing team could end the first team's turn by solving the missed puzzle. Stealing that puzzle earned five points for the stealing team, but not stealing the puzzle resumed play for the first team.

Four boards were played (two for each team) with the first two boards worth 10 points per puzzle, and the last two boards were worth double, making it 20 points per puzzle. The team with the highest score won the game.

Jackpot Puzzle[]

If the controlling team could solve all four puzzles in a single turn, they had a chance to solve a Jackpot Puzzle which was harder than the others. If they could solve that puzzle, the contestant won the jackpot which started at $1,000 and grew by that amount at the start of each show until won (if the Jackpot Puzzle was solved on the last board of the day, it began on the next show at $1,000).

Rule Changes[]

In later weeks, teams were forced to only play three puzzles each turn, so now three puzzles were required to go for the jackpot. Stealing the puzzles still scored five points, but they no longer stopped the controlling team from scoring.

Tiebreaker[]

If the game ended in a tie, a series of toss-up puzzles were played with the first to buzz-in and solve the puzzle correctly earning 10 points; but an incorrect solve gave the opposing team 10 points. The first team to score 20 points/give two correct answers won the game.


The winning team went on to play the bonus round for $10,000.

Bonus Game[]

To start, during the break, the winning contestant decided whether to give or to receive.

The giver was shown a series of common phrases on a secret monitor on the side of the stage, while the receiver only saw the initial letters of all the phrases. Example: A___________ B___________ The giver's job was to give an incomplete sentence to get his/her partner to say the correct phrase. Ex: "In addition to Pyramid, Dick Clark hosted the ABC Saturday dance show called…" Answer: American Bandstand

If the team got stuck on a phrase, either one could pass and return to it with time leftover. Cluegivers were forbidden from using their hands as well as saying a word in the puzzle or otherwise giving the solution away. Doing so blocked the letter out and cost the team a chance at the $10,000.

Each correct phrase revealed a letter in the show's title (the D in Double was always given for free) and earned the player $100. If the team could reveal the rest of the show's title by getting all nine phrases in 60 seconds or less, the contestant won $10,000.


Two games were played each show with the contestant partners swapping celebrities for the second game; so there was a possibility of winning $20,000 overall. The contestant who won both games or the most bonus round money (whichever came first) became Double Talk champion and returned to play the next day. If both contestants won the same amount of money, they both returned on the next show. Champions stayed on the show for a maximum of five days.

Trivia[]

Double Talk was a reincarnation of the short-lived 1970s Stewart game Shoot for the Stars (Shoot the Works in the pilot).

The bonus game originated from the failed Bob Stewart pilot $50,000 a Minute.

One of the reasons Henry got the job as host of Double Talk is because he was a long time friend of producer Bob Stewart.

Although there was no change in format (or even elimination to civilian contestants), on September 29, Double Talk was renamed Celebrity Double Talk.

Music[]

Bob Cobert

The theme originally was used on Blankety Blanks.

Rating[]

72px-TV-PG icon svg

Studio[]

ABC Television Center, Hollywood, CA

Other Pictures[]

Taglines[]

"Until tomorrow/Monday, this is Henry Polic II, giving you a Double Talk puzzle… (insert puzzle), which is Double Talk for… (with celebrities): (insert answer)! Bye-bye." - Henry Polic II

"This is Henry Polic II saying, (insert puzzle), which is Double Talk for/another way of saying… (insert answer)! Bye-bye, everybody." - Henry Polic II

Additional Page[]

Double Talk/Episode Guide

Links[]

Rules for Double Talk
Jay Anton's Double Talk Page

YouTube Video[]

The first intro to Double Talk

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