Grand Slam Trivia Game Show

If you don't have access to the Game Show Network on cable or satellite television, you just missed the conclusion of an amazing trivia tournament featuring most of the top money winners in U.S. game show history.

The seedings, determined by total prizes accumulated:

1. Brad Rutter (Jeopardy!: Tournament of Champions winner, defeating Ken Jennings en route)
2. Ken Jennings (Jeopardy!: longest winning streak in U.S. game-show history)
3. Kevin Olmstead (Jeopardy! and WWTBAM: top Millionaire winner, having won when there was an escalating bonus for the top prize)
4. Ed Toutant (multiple shows including WWTBAM: another Millionaire bonus winner)
5. David Legler (Twenty-One: top winner on the newer version of the show)
6. John Carpenter (WWTBAM: first Millionaire winner, the top winner on any show then)
7. Rahim Oberholtzer (Twenty-One: surpassed Carpenter's record total)
8. Nancy Christy (WWTBAM: first female Millionaire winner)
9. Ogi Ogas (WWTBAM: recent $500,000 winner)
10. Phyllis Harris (WWTBAM, Super Greed, and four other shows)
11. Thom McKee (Tic Tac Dough: had longest winning streak since 1980 until Ken surpassed him)
12. Frank Spangenberg (Jeopardy!: five-time champion when that was the limit)
13. Leszek Pawlowicz (multiple shows and repeat WWTBAM lifeline [correct each time])
14. Michelle Kitt (Weakest Link: top winner)
15. Victor Lee (World Series of Pop Culture: 2007 champion on MTV)
16. Amy Kelly (Lingo: well, it was a Game Show Network show)

Like the Final Four NCAA basketball tournament, the 1-seed met the 16-seed in the first round, and so forth, in a single-elimination format.

The show originated in the U.K., where other tremendously popular games like Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? and Weakest Link also began. Although the emphasis is on trivia, there are also math and letters-and-words rounds. The speed of the rounds (one minute on the clock for each contestant until the final round), the unique face-to-face setup (in contrast to most game shows where the contestants sit facing the host), and the winner-take-all tournament structure (consolation prizes and appearance fees were probably paid quietly) created an intense drama that played out over six weekends complete with entertaining upsets, comebacks, and even a villain.

I won't spoil the results in case you want to watch the episodes on YouTube (either search there or start from the collection of links on Ken Jennings's message board). If you just want to know who won, check out the Grand Slam (US TV Series) Wikipedia entry.

I hope Grand Slam becomes at least an annual event as my entire family enjoyed every minute of it (yes, even Dennis Miller's obscure jokes).

Congratulations to the champion of champions, you know who you are!