Hitman (TV series)
Encyclopedia
Hitman was a quiz programme that was produced by Television South
and aired on the ITV
network for 1 series in 1989, the programme was hosted by Nick Owen
. The program was based on the US version
, which aired on NBC
in 1983 and was hosted by the late Peter Tomarken
The 2 remaining contestants then watched another film clip and after the clip ended there were more questions about the clip but this time each contestant had an army of hitmen, 9 for the contestant who got into round 2 first while the other contestant had 8 hitmen, each time a contestant answered a question correctly they eliminated a hitman from the other contestant and it was the first contestant to wipe out the opponent's hitmen who played in the final round for a chance to win £3,000.
In the final round the winning contestant was faced with columns of hitmen but they did not know how many hitmen were in each column as the contestant was facing away from the board, the contestant had 60 seconds to clear 3 columns by answering questions based on the 2 clips that he/she watched during the show and each time they cleared a column they won £1,000 but if they cleared all 3 columns within the time limit they won the £3,000.
In these days of million pound first prizes, it is intriguing to note that £3,000 was, at the time, the absolute maximum allowable as a cash prize win on a TV game show (the limit had just been raised from £2,000. As such the first winner of the £3,000 prize (Paul Grimshaw from Wakefield) briefly held the UK record for the most amount of money ever won on a game show.
Television South
Television South was the ITV franchise holder in the south and south east of England between 1 January 1982 and 31 December 1992. The company operated under various names, initially as Television South plc and then following reorganisation in 1989 as TVS Entertainment plc, with its UK...
and aired on the ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
network for 1 series in 1989, the programme was hosted by Nick Owen
Nick Owen
Nicholas "Nick" Corbishley Owen is an English television presenter and newsreader, best known for presenting the breakfast television programme TV-am and the BBC's local news show Midlands Today since 1997...
. The program was based on the US version
Hit Man (game show)
Hit Man is an American television game show that ran from January 3 to April 1, 1983 on NBC. Peter Tomarken hosted this Jay Wolpert production in association with Metromedia Video Productions, while Rod Roddy was the announcer.-Round 1:...
, which aired on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
in 1983 and was hosted by the late Peter Tomarken
Peter Tomarken
Peter David Tomarken was an American television personality primarily known as the host of Press Your Luck.-Early life:...
Gameplay
At the start of the show 3 contestants watched a film clip then after the clip they are asked questions about the clip, each correct answer earned the contestant a 'Hitman' the first 2 contestants to light 5 hitmen won through to round 2 while the remaining contestant was eliminated from the show but left with a consolation prize of a bottle of champagne and some caviar.The 2 remaining contestants then watched another film clip and after the clip ended there were more questions about the clip but this time each contestant had an army of hitmen, 9 for the contestant who got into round 2 first while the other contestant had 8 hitmen, each time a contestant answered a question correctly they eliminated a hitman from the other contestant and it was the first contestant to wipe out the opponent's hitmen who played in the final round for a chance to win £3,000.
In the final round the winning contestant was faced with columns of hitmen but they did not know how many hitmen were in each column as the contestant was facing away from the board, the contestant had 60 seconds to clear 3 columns by answering questions based on the 2 clips that he/she watched during the show and each time they cleared a column they won £1,000 but if they cleared all 3 columns within the time limit they won the £3,000.
In these days of million pound first prizes, it is intriguing to note that £3,000 was, at the time, the absolute maximum allowable as a cash prize win on a TV game show (the limit had just been raised from £2,000. As such the first winner of the £3,000 prize (Paul Grimshaw from Wakefield) briefly held the UK record for the most amount of money ever won on a game show.