MarioGS
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Post by MarioGS on Jun 11, 2015 12:43:39 GMT -5
So as many of you probably figured by my previous avatar, I was at a final audition in New York City today. During the break, the man running the computer, a CBS employee named Ken, answered a few questions. One person asked, "Are you coming back to New York?" He answered "no", then added something that most of us here were fearing given recent tips... Wheel will not be doing any remote tapings for "probably a couple of years." The room groaned and he said that their recent trip to Hawaii was "pretty pricey". Welp...another Wheel tradition out the window.
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whammy007
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Post by whammy007 on Jun 11, 2015 13:20:01 GMT -5
[rant]
Sigh... seriously, guys? Taking a quick look at the History Wiki, Wheel has traveled at least once every season since at least Season 9 (possibly earlier, but I couldn't find a record of travel in Season 8). So we're going to be chucking an almost 25-year streak right into the bin. Thanks for that.
Granted, it is more expensive to travel to Hawaii than pretty much anywhere else in the U.S., but they've done it before and still managed to book trips for seasons after that. Plus, where is all the money going that Wheel should be raking in for all of the sponsored weeks we've been plastered with? We had the Banquet week, the Sandals week, TWO Disney weeks... surely Wheel should be getting some kind of kickbacks for whoring themselves out to all these sponsors?
I can understand not wanting to do a really big trip right after the Hawaii run, but something like a quick little jaunt back to Vegas for a couple weeks shouldn't cost TOO much. Even though I've complained in the past about Vegas being a bit overused of late, I'd still take more of that over not traveling at all. Or how about San Francisco? It's still in California, but it's at least a change from Culver City.
I know that they have to keep to a tight budget and all, but if Wheel wants to maintain the interest of their fanbase, they need to make sure to keep up at least the appearance of doing new and exciting things. Raising the Wheel minimum to $500 has made maingame spins boring because we're limited to a $500-$900 range, barring gimmick spaces and top dollar. Raising the Bonus Round minimum to $32,000 has made THOSE spins boring (so much so that even your average Joe FreePlay has been calling out the overload of $32,000 repeatedly on social media). The puzzle writing has been repetitive at best and incoherent at worst, not to mention almost completely out of touch with most current events/pop culture. And now we're going to be stuck at home base for 39 straight weeks of the same old, same old routine?
Wheel staff, I've watched your show as much as I've been able to my entire life, and even I'm starting to get turned off a bit by all of these maneuvers. If you want to remain on or near the top of the ratings heap as you have been, you're going to have to recapture that "wow" factor that you used to have. On an average night, the current show is just not that exciting most of the time. Sure, there are nights where somebody makes an impressive viral solve or calls a big multiple on top dollar and rings up a big score, but those are few and far between. Even the diehard fans are beginning to lose interest, which normally does not bode well for viewership as a whole.
[/rant]
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MarioGS
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Post by MarioGS on Jun 11, 2015 15:07:07 GMT -5
Slight correction...upon further review and memory, his exact words were... "They won't do a remote shoot for probably a couple of years. 'Cause they went to Hawaii this past year...and that's pretty pricey." Most of the room laughed at that, but I found it more sad than funny...
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genius2751
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Post by genius2751 on Jun 11, 2015 15:12:51 GMT -5
WHAT?!?! Wheel will probably NEVER be the same for the coming seasons...
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MarioGS
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Post by MarioGS on Jun 11, 2015 15:29:38 GMT -5
Sigh... seriously, guys? Taking a quick look at the History Wiki, Wheel has traveled at least once every season since at least Season 9 (possibly earlier, but I couldn't find a record of travel in Season 8). So we're going to be chucking an almost 25-year streak right into the bin. Thanks for that. They began traveling in Season 6 and did it at least once every season after that, with 8 being the only exception. The number of remotes per season... Seasons 6-7 - 1 Season 8 - 0 Seasons 9-10 - 3 Seasons 11 - 2 Seasons 12-14 - 3 Seasons 15-16 - 4 Seasons 17-24 - 3 Seasons 25-28 - 2 Seasons 29-32 - 1 Season 33 - 0
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mechamind
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Post by mechamind on Jun 11, 2015 15:34:15 GMT -5
There just seem to be too many ways to say Wheel will never be the same as it was in past seasons. Each one seems minor at first, but how much longer can the frog stand the heat?
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whammy007
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Post by whammy007 on Jun 11, 2015 15:40:40 GMT -5
Slight correction...upon further review and memory, his exact words were... "They won't do a remote shoot for probably a couple of years. 'Cause they went to Hawaii this past year...and that's pretty pricey." Most of the room laughed at that, but I found it more sad than funny... Well, hearing it phrased that way, I don't know if we consider it completely confirmed, depending on the staffer's level of connection. Still, that's not a line you would want to be loosely throwing out around fans and potential contestants. Whether or not we do end up getting a location shoot after all, I stand by the rest of my little rant. The show has made a lot of changes that really haven't boosted the excitement of the show to any noticeable degree. Also, once we get the full season stats that Javier has been working so hard on, I'd like to see if we can compare to the last season or two, see if the $500 minimum on the Wheel and $32,000 minimum in Bonusland made any significant alteration in the winnings totals.
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MarioGS
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Post by MarioGS on Jun 11, 2015 15:48:48 GMT -5
I don't consider myself a pessimist, but I'd have to say it's 99.5% confirmed at this point. I've now heard it directly from two people who work for Wheel, plus Jim is normally one of the first people to make public the news of the next remote at late-season tapings. He mentioned the S31 Vegas tapings at the S30 NYC tapings and mentioned this season's Hawaii tapings during some S31 tapings (I believe Joseph from College Week reported this first). I have not heard any reports of such information from people who have been at S32 tapings, unless anybody here wants to say otherwise...
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WooWho
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Post by WooWho on Jun 11, 2015 16:14:25 GMT -5
WHAT?!?! Wheel will probably NEVER be the same for the coming seasons... Au contraire. It'll be the same...the same blinking studio every doggone week. I think, though, we're all underestimating how much it costs for the show to go anywhere. You have to consider transportation and lodging for not just Pat, Vanna, and Jim, but also the production team, the crew, and maybe even the contestants (not sure on that last one). You have to factor in the cost of even staging the show somewhere (the Waikiloa ain't hosting them for free, I'm willing to bet). You have to include the costs to haul the set from Culver City to the remote location (and getting the Wheel to Hawaii can't be easy), plus the cost of any additional set pieces they have to make for that specific location. And that's on TOP of the prize budget and the staff salaries. There are other ways of drawing in eyeballs than just going to different locales every year. Yeah, I get that it gives the show a breath of fresh air that it badly needs, but when it ain't financially feasible at this juncture, it don't make sense to do it. Bottom line, if the show don't have money, there won't be a show pretty soon. And I don't know about you guys, but I'd gladly take mediocre (or heck, even bad) Wheel over no Wheel at all.
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therealcu2010
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Post by therealcu2010 on Jun 11, 2015 16:18:31 GMT -5
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MarioGS
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Post by MarioGS on Jun 11, 2015 16:28:33 GMT -5
You know, I wonder if and how badly the Sony hacking incident took a toll on budgets. I know for a fact that it did interfere with Wheel (and probably Jeopardy!) in some way, I just don't know what exactly.
Either way, this is very sad news, especially seeing that money is the main cause, but I guess we have to take what we can get. As Josh said, new Wheel, good or bad, is better than none at all. I doubt too much of the general public will care. As long as they're still making Americans happy, right?
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mechamind
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Post by mechamind on Jun 11, 2015 16:34:58 GMT -5
I fully acknowledge that it's a business. But how many consider the risks of not spending the money a certain way? Really, it's only about as predictable as whether a video is going to go viral from its first view.
I wouldn't be surprised if they went without a road show for just one season, and then they bring it back the next one. It's just scarcity in business. You take away what the audience wants, and then they come running back.
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therealcu2010
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Post by therealcu2010 on Jun 11, 2015 16:39:53 GMT -5
I fully acknowledge that it's a business. But how many consider the risks of not spending the money a certain way? You can't spend what you don't have. I wouldn't be surprised if sponsors (or, rather, a lack thereof) came into play. I would guess that tourism boards and whatnot help to defray the costs of the show doing its remotes...and if they couldn't find anyone willing to contribute, they probably don't have the money to justify doing a remote. This really shouldn't come off as a surprise to anyone. Just another victim of cost-cutting.
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Post by lousan92 on Jun 11, 2015 17:10:43 GMT -5
Well, for the fans it's probably disappointing, but if they can't do it for money, we must accept it and understand it. This season has been the first that I've seen since the first day, and in my opinion... Yes, it's cool to see another set, with a bigger audience... But the show itself is the same. Probably for you is more disappointing because you could be in the audience depending on how far or near the tapings are from you. whammy007 To this date, and with only two shows remaining, the show has awarded $11,033,305 (and think about it, we could have summed another million). I don't know how much was awarded in S31, but I could say you that now is quite more common to see rounds won for more than $5,000 than last season.
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MarioGS
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Post by MarioGS on Jun 11, 2015 18:03:38 GMT -5
whammy007 To this date, and with only two shows remaining, the show has awarded $11,033,305 (and think about it, we could have summed another million). I don't know how much was awarded in S31, but I could say you that now is quite more common to see rounds won for more than $5,000 than last season. Season 31's total winnings were $9,527,015. Even if we count this season's million dollar winner as a regular $100K winner, S32's winnings would then be $10,133,305; a difference of $606,290, so yeah... Of course, the increased BR minimum helped here, even when you consider that they biased the distribution even more than S31 with the $30K's. Assuming my calculations of the distributions for both S31 and S32 are correct (or at least close), the total value of the Season 31 Bonus Wheel (the sum of every card including $100K but not including cars) was around $785,000. S32's is around $864,000. If S33 follows the same predicted distribution with $33K as the minimum, the total would be $881,000. If they were to do the unthinkable and make it so that there's only one of everything BUT the minimum, it would be only $862,000.
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germanname1990
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Post by germanname1990 on Jun 11, 2015 18:07:44 GMT -5
Well, if they gotta do it, they gotta do it. Yeah, it's saddening to know, but I'm more indifferent than disappointed. Even so, all I can do is hope that it proves to be a decision that fans will be able to accept because regardless of what it takes, all I want is for the show to go on.
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gamedude2330
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Post by gamedude2330 on Jun 11, 2015 22:06:43 GMT -5
I thought I saw somewhere that the show makes around $90 million a year or so. But anyways, I wonder if all the 1/2 Car wins this season had a part in this. Even if it doesn't have a major part, I don't think the show anticipated as many 1/2 Car wins as they actually got this season.
Whatever the reasoning behind it is, it will be sad to see that there won't be any on-the-road episodes next season. I HIGHLY doubt this will negatively affect Wheel's viewership, though. Wheel consistently gets high ratings, and I don't think the average viewer would make a big deal over whether the show tapes at Culver City, New York City, or Party City. Yes, it may be boring to see the minimum amount on the Bonus Wheel being landed on 200 billion times a season. And yes, the Wheel amounts may be lacking in variety. But, at the end of the day, it's still the same show where contestants spin a wheel, call letters, and buy vowels.
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StrangerCoug
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Post by StrangerCoug on Jun 11, 2015 22:54:00 GMT -5
How often has Jeopardy! been doing remotes?
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genius2751
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Post by genius2751 on Jun 12, 2015 0:03:38 GMT -5
How often has Jeopardy! been doing remotes? Almost NEVER.
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Post by WayoshiM on Jun 12, 2015 0:19:32 GMT -5
I doubt Hawaii was that pricey, honestly. It's the two millions in the last 3 seasons that may be cutting into the trip budget.
If Hawaii was indeed so expensive, that's gross mismanagement, or they realize that Pat/Vanna will just carry ratings anyways without needing to put in effort.
They do seem to realize that they need to do remote for S35, the next milestone season. Maybe even two remotes. Perhaps saving up for that season isn't the worst idea.
EDIT: Did Sony really lose a lot of revenue from that? If so and the Wheel budget took an additional hit when they were expecting to accommodate 32/raised minimum, maybe this is what's going on
(By the way, I've literally just started March on WOFTracker, I am hoping to be complete soon, with as few errors as possible)
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