Fun & Fortune

Hosts
Geoff Edwards (Pilot) Rick Tamblyn (Series)
Hostess
Penny Greene
Broadcast
Pilot: 1995? Syndication (Weekly, Missouri area): 1/20/1996 - 7/27/2002
Packager
Sande Stewart Television

Fun & Fortune was once the official state lottery game show of Missouri. To be eligible for the show, contestants had to purchase a special lottery ticket.

Gameplay

The show was played on computerized game board. Six Missouri Lottery players played two preliminary games (three for each player). All games were played for cash, and the podiums contained displays of the cash amount and a little box on top showing how many "strikes" were remaining. The winners of those two games went on to play the championship game against the show's returning champion for $10,000 and the right to play a bonus game called Missouri Multiplier.

There were five games in all.

Games

In each game, the three players each began with $500 and 3 strikes. Each player in turn picked off numbers in the hopes it would be a good number. A good choice earned the controlling contestant $100 and the option to pick again or pass control. A bad choice lost a strike. Losing all three strikes immediately lost the game. The last player standing or the first player to finish an objective was the winner. Here are some of the games featured on the show:

Top This! - The board consisted of 30 boxes numbered 1-30. Beginning with the first player, each player, in turn, called out a numbered box, hoping that it would contain a concealed number bigger than the previous one. The base number was established to begin with. If the player guessed correctly, he/she would win $100, and the last number revealed became the base for the next guess. The player could then elect to guess again or pass to the next player in hopes of the next player guessing a number equal to or lower than the base number. If that happened, the player lost his/her turn and the strike indicator counted downward. When the indicator displayed 0, the player was out of the round. For the purposes of the game, 0 was low and 9 was high. A 9 also froze the digit so that nothing could replace it. The last player standing or the first player to conceal the last box to be a higher number, wins the game. The eventual champ won whatever was spelled out on the money line.

9-Ball - To start, the computer broke the pool balls which will then form a triangle with the numbers in random order, then the players received $500 and three strikes to start. Below the pool table are 19 numbered boxes; nine of them hid the nine numbers, another nine hid strikes and only one hid a four leaf clover which will win the contestant who found it a prize. On a player's turn he/she called out a number and if it revealed a number, the appropriate ball was knocked into the nearest pocket and the contestant wins $100; but if he/she revealed a strike, his/her strike counter went down one and lost his/her turn, which is why after each number the player in control can choose to pass control to the next player in line or continue playing at the risk of getting a strike. When a player's strike counter reached zero, that player was out of the game. The first player to complete a side with the last ball revealed won the game and the money according the completed side reading counterclockwise and if the ball revealed completed two sides, the winning player won the combined total of both those sides. In the event that two of the players struck out, the last remaining player automatically won the game, but continued to play until a side was completed or that player struck out him/herself.

Crazy Eights - A money line began at $4,444 and 21 random cards (numbered 1-21) were dealt. Each player began with $500 and three strikes as usual. The object of the game was to select a card that raised one of the four suits (clubs, spades, diamonds, or hearts). Doing so added $100 to their score and gave them the option to pick another card or pass control to the next player. Whenever an "8" was uncovered, the suit would be closed and no additional cards were added. The first player to find an "8" also won a prize. Also on the board was a "Lucky" card indicated by the Missouri Lottery "L"; finding that card also won a prize (usually $300 in scratch-off tickets). Selecting a card that did not raise a suit or a card from a locked off suit would incur a strike. Three strikes eliminated a player. The last surviving player wins the game and the value in the money line; but if the player in control found the last "8" on the board, he/she automatically won the game and $8,888.

The other games featured were Finder's Keepers and Nest Egg.

The $10,000 Championship

Behind 13 numbered squares were nine Xs and four 0s. The money line started out at $1. Again beginning with the first player, each player, in turn, called out a numbered box. The catch this time was that the player was looking for 0s. Each time a player found an O, a zero was added to the money and received that amount; thus creating a sequence of $1, $10, $100, $1,000, and finally $10,000.

If the player found an X, s/he lost his/her turn and were issued a strike with the indicator again counting 3, 2, 1, 0 - with 0 eliminating the player from the game. Since there were nine Xs, it was possible for all three players to strike out.

The first player to find the last zero and reach $10,000 (or whoever was the player in first place when all three struck out) returned as champion. Whoever won this game by reaching ten grand also won the right to play "The Missouri Multiplier". In a rare case that two players struck out and the last player did not reach $10,000, the Missouri Multiplier did not play.

The Missouri Multiplier

That night's champion faced with the word "MISSOURI". Behind those numbers were numbers 2-7 and two halves (1/2). The numbers represent the multiplying number, while the halves cut the player's winnings in half. They effect the $10,000 won in the Championship Game, so the champion can win as low as $5,000 and as high as $70,000. To start, the computer jumbled the numbers & halves and when the jumbling stopped, the champion chose two letters. After that, the unchosen letters were revealed one by one and if all numbers appeared, then the two letters chosen consisted of halves and the champion won $100,000 (originally $250,000). If not, then the champion chose one of the two letters to revealed hopefully a number and whatever number that comes up was what the $10,000 was multiplied by, unless it's one of the two halves, causing the money to be reduced to $5,000.

Champions who won 3 games in a row were deemed "Triple Crown Champions".

Stations

Joplin - KOAM (Channel 7/CBS)
Kansas City - KMBC (Channel 9/ABC)
St. Louis - KTVI (Channel 2/Fox)
Jefferson City/Columbia - K38II "KQFX" (Channel 38/Fox)
Springfield - KDEB/KSFX (Channel 27/Fox)
Kriksville - KYOU (Channel 15/Fox)

Inventor

Sande Stewart

Trivia

The "WLUK" callsign seen in the show's intro is actually the callsign of the Fox affiliate for Green Bay, Wisconsin.
Although the show was viewable in portions of Iowa, Kentucky, Illinois, Oklahoma, Kansas, Tennessee, Nebraska and Arkansas (which border Missouri), only residents of Missouri were allowed to participate in the show.

YouTube Videos

Clips of intro and contestant interviews

A full episode from April 22, 2000: Part 1, Part 2
A full episode from September 23, 2000