ARE YOU SMARTER THAN A 5TH GRADER: Host Turned Contestant!

HOLLYWOOD, CA – HOLLYWOOD JUNKET announces that one of our regular game show coverage hosts, Charity Cabico, will be instead of reporting on a game show, she will actually be on one as a contestant! Watch Charity compete tomorrow on the new day time syndicated version of “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader” airing locally in Los Angeles on FOX, at 1pm. Check you local TV listings and times.

On that note, below is a re-post of our report on the day time syndicated version of “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?” when we visited the set in June.

Repost- originally posted on June 14th, 2009:

The game show that humbles many adults for their lack of knowledge of basic school subjects such as mathematics, science, history, geometry, and English is joining day time syndication, “Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?” The show was sold to Warner Bros. who will air it on multiple stations, five days per week, twice per day. One network being, CMT.

The set looks the same as the prime time set. The seating has been limited to a smaller number of audience members and no balcony, where the prime time version did have a balcony for audience.
Daytime set much the same. Above photo: Billy Bush from a previous prime time season. No word yet on if celebrities will be brought into the day time version.

Same looking set for daytime shows. Above photo: host, Jeff Foxworthy with celeb contestant, Billy Bush from a previous prime time season.

Host Jeff Foxworthy, in person is very down-to-earth, and oddly enough does have a teacher vibe/presence about him on stage. He joked with the audience, signed autographs, and even recited some of his “redneck dictionary words” for a fan. Then told the story of how his book of the play-on-words came to be. He stated that he initially thought he’d only be able to come-up with about twenty, but it soon turned into about two thousand.

The format is different, and the time frame is one half hour. Contestants come out to the stage to roll through ten topics given to them on a monitor “chalk board”. Contestants are allowed to bring up to four supporters who consist of family and friends to sit in the audience adjacent to the stage to cheer them on.

The fifth grade child actor, students on-stage that are there to play the game with contestants now consist of only three children versus five from the prime time show. Two different groups of three children are rotated from the morning shows, and the afternoon shows. So, no same children are there for any one whole tape day.

How The Game is Played:

There are ten categories on the board. The top two are the hardest questions, being “Fifth Grade” level questions, and worth $5000 each. The next two are “Fourth Grade” level worth $3,500 each; “Third Grade” at $2,500; “Second Grade”, $1000 each; last two are “gimme” questions that are “First Grade” level at $500 each. A total winnings consisting of $25,000 that can be increased to $250,000 after being multiplied by ten if the contestant answers the “Bonus Question” correctly.

If at any time, the player gets an answer incorrect, they lose all of the money they had earned up to that point. The only exceptions are the following: They get a $5000 question wrong, but the fifth grade student gets it correct. The contestant still earns the $5000; the contestant can choose to use their “save” safety net option and if the fifth grader gets the answer correct outside of the $5000 question, the money is still earned.

The other two safety nets contestants have are “copy” and “peek”. If a contestant chooses to use their “copy” option, they must lock-in the answer the fifth grader wrote down without seeing it first, and that’s the answer they play. If they use “peek”, then they can take a look at what the fifth grader wrote for an answer and decide whether or not they would like to lock it in as their answer.

Contestants play all the way through the board to the end. Once they reach the “Bonus Question” that multiples their money times ten, they get to see the subject category of the question, and decide if they’d like to continue. If they decide to SEE the question, however, they must answer it. If the contestant answers this “Bonus Question” incorrectly, they “give all the money back”. If they’ve earned at least $2,500 before the “Bonus Question”, then they get a consultation prize in the form of a $2,500 “Best Buy” gift card. If they have earned less than $2,500, the gift card is only $250. One contestant at today’s taping walked out with a $250 gift card. On the other side, a contestant was almost “smarter than a fifth grader” and earned $25,000 in their game, and decided not to go for the “Bonus Question”.

At the end of their defeat, contestants must still look into a camera and admit verbally, “I am NOT smarter than a fifth grader”.

On-Set:

The filming of the show is very fast-paced and organized. There seems to be a large fan-base of the show. Sunday’s afternoon shows filled-up, having to turn some audiences away!

As far as contestants, no word yet on if celebrities will be brought into the day time version to play.

The show started filming last Thursday, June 11th, and films seven shows per day. The syndicated version begins airing this September.

ARE YOU SMARTER THAN A FIFTH GRADER?: Inside Casting!

Reported by: Charity C.
Charity’s first-hand account of the audition process for the new syndicated version.

“Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?” will be joining syndicated game show television. Filming for it started June 12th. Rumor was that they didn’t have a format for it yet when the contestant casting began earlier in April.

HOLLYWOOD JUNKET host, Charity, auditioned for the show. We had to hold this story earlier due to confidentiality agreements signed with the show because our host made it as a contestant on the show. Read about her experience, and you can catch her in the new promos running on television now.

I had an amazing experience auditioning for, “Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader?” with my friend Francis!!! The auditions were held at the Mark Burnett Production Building in West Los Angeles. Upon our arrival, Francis and I were a bit confused as to which building it was. The sign read, “Kids Casting For Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader”. Francis and I are not kids. A security guard told us we were in deed in the right building.

It was 10:40 am and Francis and I were scheduled for 11am. There were couches and tables set up like a living room where we were to complete our applications and take a quick quiz. Two other potential contestants were also in the room. I was stressing-out on the quiz because I thought that I didn’t know any of the answers. I had to take deep breaths to think of the answers. Once I calmed myself down, I was able to figure-out the answers. There were three pages of questions. Some subjects covered included: history, math, word problems, and true or false questions.

At least one other show that I could remember was also being casted in the same building. It is MTV’s “Bully Beat-Down”.

I finally got called in to be seen. I met with casting associates, Brook and Matt. I was surprised that I knew most of the answers to the questions! Brook and Matt wanted me think out loud before I answered the questions. I thought everything was going to be harder than what I expected. I was also asked: “What would you do with $25,000″, “What would you do with a million dollars?”, “If people had to describe me what would they say?”

Matt said that in the syndicated version contestants actually have more of an advantage. Brook gasped when she discovered that I was the infamous “girl that fell off the MTV Next bus”!

As for Francis, he said he never really answered the questions correctly, but he still had fun. I actually thought I wasn’t going to get any of the answers right, but I did. We both thought that the audition was laid-back and didn’t feel so intimidating. WE loved it!!!!

I actually might be smarter than a Fifth Grader!! You’ll have to wait and see! Yes, I did get a call-back, and YES, I will be a contestant on “Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?” Hollywood Junket was there when my episode is filmed on Sunday, June 14th!