Street Smarts (game show)
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[edit] Gameplay
Before the game actually starts, we are introduced to the two studio contestants, as well as the three "street savants", whose interviews were pre-recorded.
[edit] Round One ("Who Knew It?")
A question is posed, and the studio contestants must choose which of the three "savants" knew the correct answer. A correct guess earns $100. Three questions are asked in this round.
[edit] Round Two ("Who Blew It?")
This is similar to the first round, but the object is to guess who got the question wrong; for each question, only two of the "savants" are considered, and correct guesses are now worth $200.
Also, the Dunce Cap is in play in Round Two; Once the question is posed, an in-studio contestant can hit their buzzer if he/she thinks that his/her opponent doesn't know the answer. The person hitting his/her buzzer usually placed the Dunce Cap on his/her opponent. The "dunce" must then answer the question. If the dunce gets the question wrong, $200 goes to the person who hit the buzzer. However, if the dunce does know the answer, then the "dunce" gets the $200 and is allowed to place the dunce cap on his/her opponent (that is, the person who hit the buzzer originally). In either case, the cap must be worn for the remainder of the question. Also, only one dunce cap opportunity is available.
[edit] Round Three ("Pick Your Pony/Brain")
Each contestant, starting with the person trailing (or whoever won a pre-show coin toss in the case of a tie), picks one of the "savants" to work with for the enitre round. Each question goes to an individual contestant, who must decide whether their "brain/pony" got the question right or wrong. Three questions are asked of each contestant, for a total of six in the round. Correct guesses are now worth $300. The Dunce Cap is back in this round, regardless if it was used in the last round. Again, one dunce per round, though, but dunces are now also worth $300.
[edit] Final Round ("Wager of Death")
Before the final commercial break, a question is asked. During the commercial, the contestants each choose, in secret, 1) which "savant" they wish to pick, 2) whether they got the question right or wrong, and 3) the amount of their score that they wish to wager. A correct guess adds the contestant's wager to his/her score, while an incorrect guess loses the wager. High scorer at the end of the game keeps their money, and, in season 5, has the opportunity to risk their winnings for the possibility of a slot in the season-ending Tournament of Champions (see below).
The most you can win on Street Smarts, by getting all of your questions right and winning both dunces, is $4,600. With only the first dunce, you can win up to $4,000. With only the second dunce, the max is $4,200. With neither dunce, the max is $3,600.
[edit] Tiebreaker
If the game ends in a 0-0 tie, nobody wins; but if there's tie at more than zero, one final question was asked to both studio contestants. The first player to buzz-in gets to choose to either answer the question or pass it to his/her opponent. If the buzz-in chooses to play & gets the question that player wins the game, otherwise the game goes to his/her opponent. If the buzz-in player passes, it's the other way around.
The fact that the questions are typically not much more difficult than Groucho Marx's "What color is the White House?" or "Who's buried in Grant's Tomb?" provides the challenge to the in-studio contestants. They often find it hard to judge whether a given "street savant" is likely to know the answer or not.
[edit] The $100,000 Tournament
As celebration of being the first street interview show in over 20 years to reach a fifth season, Street Smarts announced a $100,000 tournament where the top winners of the season would play a single-elimination tournament for a grand prize of $100,000.
During that fifth season, the winner of each show had the option of keeping their money or risking it for a chance to play in the tournament. This gave contestants who won with just $1 a way to win more money.
The $100,000 Tournament featured the top 32 contestants of the season who gave up their winnings to be in the tournament. The contestants played for points instead of dollars, with the winner of each game moving on to the next round. Each round had a special name:
- Round 1: The Thunderous 32.
- Round 2: The Savvy 16.
- Round 3: The Great 8.
- Round 4: The "Phat" 4.
- Round 5: The Final 2.
The winner of this tournament was Teresa Lee. She defeated Brandon (last name unknown) on the episode aired Wednesday, May 25, 2005.
[edit] Trivia
- One episode of the series featured contestant Mike "Boogie" Malin, who would go on to be a contestant on the second season of the American version of Big Brother and later he would also win Big Brother 7: All-Stars. Janelle Pierzina and Chicken George from the same all star season of Big Brother have also appeared on "Street Smarts".
- Joe Walsh appeared on Street Smarts. He is one of the band members for the Eagles.
- The Naked Cowboy once appeared on the show.
