Game Show

This is the set for the famous critter game show “Six Questions.” It airs weekly on the Critter Channel. What, you have never heard of it? This show is tougher than Jeopardy! In fact contestants have nicknamed it “Quiz 666.” In its thirty year history no one has ever won the jackpot.

My cousin Vinnie, the one with advanced degrees of philosophy and physics, thinks these quiz shows are all about entertainment and have no redeeming value. I jokingly replied to him, “The real reason you don’t like this show is because the questions are too tough even for someone as brilliant as you are.” Well, Vinnie is never one to backdown from a challenge. Next thing I know Vinnie calls me up and says he is going to be a contestant on the show. He wants to borrow my DVD collection for the show. He managed to get through 29 seasons before he appeared on the show.

The contest format is straight forward. There are six questions. There are five possible answers for each question. Each colored row represents a question. The first row of numbers 1 to 5 (green) corresponds to the first question, second row 6 through 10 (pink) goes with the second question, etc. For example, the first question is how many paws do rodents have? Answer is four. The contestant answers the question by removing all the seeds from #4. Each number has the same number of seeds as the number printed on it. (Each seed can be cashed in for $1000 per seed.) If the contestant answers incorrectly they lose all of their winnings. After each correct answer the contestant has to decide whether to cash out or continue. If you get all six question correct there is a one million dollar jackpot.

First Question – “What is the third number in the Fibonacci sequence?”

Vinnie didn’t even have to think about this. He went straight to the three (correct answer)

Second question – "Massachusetts was the “X”^th state to enter the Union?"  The Woodpile is in Massachusetts, Mrs. Spot drilled into every student’s head their history lessons. Vinnie puts on a good show making it look like he stumped. He even digs out his lucky dice to decide his answer.

The crowd (practicing social distancing) is on the edge of their seats …

… then Vinnie sticks his dice back in his cheek pouches and saunters over to the 6 (correct answer).

Vinnie can answer the third question in his sleep – "What is the atomic number of Magnesium?" Twelve

Vinnie sailed through the fourth and fifth questions and became the first contestant to successfully answer five questions in the show's history.  Will he decide to go for the jackpot or not? He paces back and forth along the sixth question line trying to decided. Does he want to risk the $62,000 he has already won?

Turning to face the camera, he loudly announces he is going for it! The crowd goes crazy. The show's producers looking completely stunned and shocked huddle quickly together in a corner. I over hear bits of the conversation. “No contestant has ever made it this far … we don’t even have a 6^th level question … what are we going to do …”

After what seemed like an eternity, the host returned to his stump to announce the 6^th and final question – “How many seasons has Six Questions been on the air?”

 

Vinnie starts at the 26 and slowly works his way up the numbers. He stops at the 29 and looks like he is going to choose 29 (which is to the left of the #30). I am thinking to myself, Vinnie you’re going to blow it. You only watched 29 of the 30 seasons!

At the last possible second, he jumps over the 29 and selects 30, the correct answer.

Unbelievable he has won the Jackpot!

Halfway through the show, some prankster crashed the set and started eating all the seeds. You will not see this on the official episode, so, I thought I would share it with you.