In One Away, each digit in a fake retail price of a car prize is "one away", up or down, from the correct digit.
After guessing the numbers, the contestant asks the question: "Ladies/Gentlemen/Oh Mighty Sound Effects Lady, do I have [at least/all] X number[s] right?"
Gameplay
- The contestant is shown the wrong price for the car (colored in black), with each digit one higher (colored in blue) or lower (colored in red) than the actual digit in the price (zero and nine are considered to be one away from each other in this game). The contestant is asked to change each digit to the right digit.
- After all five digits are changed, the contestant is requested to ask the backstage directors (who, specifically, have changed; see History) if they have one, then two, then three, then four and then five numbers right, in order, and is met with a car horn each time the answer is "yes" (on the game's first playing a series of bells were heard). If every number is wrong, the contestant loses automatically (a very rare event that occurred only twice; see below). Otherwise, the contestant is given one more opportunity to change however many digits they have wrong, without being told which specific digits are correct. The price is then revealed one digit at a time until the result is determined or inferred by the number of digits changed.
- Perhaps ironically, one of the best outcomes a contestant could have would be to only have one number right after the first round of picks, because the first number of a car price is almost always obvious.
History
- One Away first premiered on December 4, 1984 (#5512D). On its first playing, it was won.
- One Away was played for cars less than $10,000 during the 1980s with a dollar sign placed on the first trilon. In the early 1990s, it was frequently played for luxury cars. The game itself made it easily compatible for four-digit cars and five-digit cars. One Away has been played for five-digit cars exclusively since April 6, 1989 (#7224D).
- Though the board was the same throughout the years, on May 17, 2000 (#1453K), the One Away neon sign was removed and replaced with a regular sign, due to repeated malfunctions with the neon.
- During Bob Barker's tenure, contestants were instructed to ask, "Ladies (or until February 27, 1995, #9481D, Gentlemen), do I have at least one number right?" On its first playing, however, Bob asked the gentlemen how many numbers she had right, and dings were used instead of horns, and Bob said "I wanna do it with a little horn!", and asking how many numbers she has right; each digit was revealed one-by-one until the final digit revealed. After that playing, Bob would ask "Ladies/Gentlemen, how many numbers do we have right?" followed by a series of honks for the number of correct digits. By late 1985, the format was changed to what it currently is today. Drew Carey instructs the contestants to use a phrasing such as "O mighty sound effects lady..."; he has offered a variety of adjectives over his tenure. Usually, the contestant will be asked to kneel while asking if all five numbers are correct (sometimes in this case, the question is changed to "...do I win the car?"). On the short-lived Doug Davidson version in 1994, contestants asked, "People in control..." Whenever the game was played on Tom Kennedy's syndicated version, instead of the contestant asking how many numbers were right, Tom did so himself, without addressing anyone. The original horn was also shorter and louder than the more familiar one used today.
- On February 23, 1988 (#6772D), a contestant playing the four-digit incarnation of One Away lost by getting no correct numbers on her first try.
- On March 3, 1989 (#7175D), a mistake occurred when the third digit was a 1 as the wrong number, while the actual price had a six as the third number. While contestant Imogene did lose the car, as a result of this mistake, Imogene was awarded the car at the beginning of the second Showcase Showdown.
- On May 28, 1990 (#7691D), a contestant named Jacqueline Graves lost the game on her first try. Before the reveal, the audience booed at her selected price of $12,751, to which Bob humorously chided the audience by saying, "Now, look. Don't start throwing things, you might hit me!" The audience then laughed. After Jacqueline politely asked "Gentlemen, do I have at least one number right?", the gentlemen were silent, but then played the foghorn and the losing horns. Bob Barker wasn't sure if that meant that she had no numbers right, and asked the gentlemen, "Was that a horn?" and was dismayed to know that when the correct price was revealed to be $30,973 instead of $12,751, Jacqueline indeed had no numbers right, although he claimed it did happen once before. Bob then explained that she chose a 1 as the first number instead of a 3 as it was played for a Lincoln Mark VII, which is why the audience booed her before. (A man in the audience yelled "Give it to her!" Bob jokingly and sarcastically responded "'Give it to her!'." and chided to that response, later saying, “I’m about as apt to give it to her as I am to give her my house!” and the man humorously replied, "Give her your house!")
- On January 21, 1993 (#8664D), the horn sound effect normally played for this game was mistakenly used at first when the mountain climber fell off the cliff during Cliff Hangers, instead of the normal crashing noise which was instead played a few seconds later.
- On February 22, 2008 (#024SP), the first The Price Is Right $1,000,000 Spectacular since Carey began hosting, a $1,000,000 bonus was offered if contestant Bronson Pasquale Farr could guess the price correctly on the first attempt (a rare feat that happened on several occasions in the daytime show).
- During an October 2008 taping that aired on December 10, 2008 (#4543K), one of the models, Tamiko Nash, assisted in turning the trilons. This was a one-time situation, as host Drew Carey was injured and the game play was adjusted to compensate for his foot injury. The episode that was originally scheduled for December 16, 2008 (#4552K) and aired out of order on November 19, also from an October taping, was played in the same manner, which Carey also asked for the correct numbers on this episode (which was for time constraints; the Showcase that day had a The Bold and the Beautiful appearance as a prize, resulting in extra time)..
- On April Fool's Day 2010 (#5104K), Mimi Bobeck from The Drew Carey Show, played by Kathy Kinney, took over as the "sound effects lady" and triggered the horn from her desk on the turntable.
- On October 17, 2014 (#6845K, aired out of order on October 16), during Dream Car Week, a Tesla Model S worth $79,320 was offered to a woman named Vanessa Ansoorian, and it was won.
- On June 22, 2016 (#7593K), Sarah Ellis played this game for a Mini Cooper priced at $22,050. She got all 5 numbers right on her first try, with increasingly dramatic bribes for the mighty sound effects lady.
- On October 10, 2016 (#7641K) Tracy Thomas was instructed to ask, "Oh, Mighty Tiffany of the Deal."
- On May 25, 2018 (#8355K), Erin Bonilla got all five numbers right on the first try.
Trivia
- The most number of times this game was played in any season was 34.
- As there are 32 combinations possible and the contestant has 2 chances to guess, the chance of winning the game is 1/16 (6.25%).
- One Away was one of seven pricing games seen on the second taping session of Season 36, which was seen on October 16, 2007 (#4042K, aired out of order on October 29), October 30, 2007 (#4062K, aired out of order on October 15), November 8, 2007 (#4074K, aired out of order on January 22, 2008), and November 21, 2007 (#4093K, aired out of order on October 22).
Foreign versions of One Away
- One Away is played on versions of The Price is Right in numerous countries besides the United States, using anywhere from four to six digits and generally holding true to its American rules. The only version known to be significantly different from the original was that found on the 1980s UK version of the show; on that program, the game was played for prizes with 3-digit prices, and contestants were given only one chance to guess the price.
- On most foreign versions of the show, contestants are simply given a series of bells after their first turn to indicate how many numbers they have right. However, Cash en Carlo in the Netherlands does have its contestants ask for bells one at a time, although the question is directed at the announcer instead of the sound effects operator.
- In the Vietnamese version of the game, the contestant has 60 seconds to guess the price as many times as they want and time permits. After putting in the combination onto the board, the contestant pushes a button to know whether it is right or not. The first digit of the price is already correct thus the contestant doesn't need to guess.
Pictures
Here's a win from Christmas Eve 1986 (#6313D) during the four digit era. The contestant kept screwing up the first line, so the audience had to help her.
Here is proof of Jacqueline’s epic fail in One Away (#7691D). As Bob says, the car was a Lincoln, which nowadays doesn't cost anywhere near $10,000.
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Here's better news. This is how you win One Away from October 20, 1997 (#0491K).
Here's another win between 2003-2006.
O mighty sound effects lady, do I have at least one number right?
This contestant had three numbers right.
Premiere Playing (December 4, 1984, #5512D)
On her first try, she has 3 numbers right.
One Away for a Jeep CJ Laredo (October 17, 1985, #5844D)
On her first try, she has all 5 numbers right!
One Away for a Dodge Aries K Station Wagon (February 11, 1986, #5992D)
On his first try, he has 4 numbers right.
One Away for a Renault Alliance Convertible (August 14, 1986, #001P)
If he wins this car, he will also get a car phone.
On his first try, he has 3 numbers right.
One Away for a Dodge Lancer ES (September 9, 1986, #6172D)
If she wins this car, she will also get a Maxi Guard car alarm system.
On her first try, she has 2 numbers right.
One Away for a Chrysler LeBaron Town & Country (September 18, 1986, #006P)
If she wins this car, she will also get a Clear Guard car wax.
On her first try, she has only 1 number right.
One Away for a Subaru Brat (October 22, 1986, #6233D)
On his first try, he has only 1 number right.
One Away for a Chevrolet Spectrum (December 7, 1987, #6681D)
On her first try, she has 3 numbers right.
One Away for a Subaru DL Wagon (September 14, 1988, #6942D)
On his first try, he has 2 numbers right.
One Away for a Subaru Justy (October 7, 1988, #6975D)
If he wins this car, he will also get a Fultron sound system.
On his first try, he has 2 numbers right.
A Technical Win in One Away (March 3, 1989, #7175D)
On her first try, she has 3 numbers right.
But, during the second showcase showdown, Imogene was awarded the Buick Regal due to an error in the fake price, which was that the 3rd digit could only be changed to a 0 or a 2.
One Away Perfection for a Buick Skylark (May 10, 1989, #7273D)
On her first try, she has all 5 numbers right!
One Away for a Jeep Wrangler Islander (September 25, 1989, #7351D, aired out of order on September 26)
On her first try, she has 2 numbers right.
One Away Wipeout (May 28, 1990, #7691D)
The car: a Lincoln. Pay attention, as this is relevant to the game play.
The incorrect price
The price she changes it to
The correct price. And the reason the audience was booing her was pretty simple: The car was a Lincoln! A luxury car! Back then, you could find one with a 1 as the first digit in the price. But not now!
One Away for a Buick Century Custom Wagon (October 25, 1990, #7764D)
On her first try, she has 3 numbers right.
One Away for a Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz (February 6, 1991, #7903D)
On her first try, she has all 5 numbers right!
One Away for a Nissan 240SX S13 (April 5, 1991, #7985D)
On her first try, she has 3 numbers right.
One Away for a Cadillac Eldorado Touring Coupe (September 11, 1991, #8093D)
On her first try, she has all 5 numbers right!
One Away for a Nissan NX1600 (September 25, 1991, #8113D)
On his first try, he has all 5 numbers right!
One Away for a Subaru Legacy Station Wagon (December 3, 1991, #8212D)
On his first try, he has 3 numbers right.
One Away for a Cadillac Eldorado on Christmas Day (December 25, 1991, #8243D)
On her first try, she has 2 numbers right.
One Away for a $14,000 Pontiac Firebird (May 1, 1992, #8415D)
On her first try, she has 4 numbers right.
One Away for a Dodge Stealth (December 1, 1993, #8993D)
On his first try, he has 4 numbers right.
One Away for a Dodge Spirit (April 7, 1994, #9154D)
On his first try, he has 3 numbers right.
One Away for a Plymouth Acclaim (May 23, 1994, #9221D)
On her first try, she has 4 numbers right.
One Away for a Nissan Sentra XE Sedan (October 13, 1994, #0024N)
On his first try, he has 4 numbers right.
One Away for a Nissan 240SX S14 (November 3, 1994, #0039N)
On her first try, she has 3 numbers right.
One Away for a Mercury Mountaineer (November 8, 1996, #0125K)
On her first try, she has 3 numbers right.
One Away for a Chrysler Sebring Coupe LXi (May 24, 2002, #002SP, aired out of order on May 30)
On his first try, he has 4 numbers right.
One Away for a Ford Explorer Sport Trac (November 26, 2002, #2322K)
On his first try, he has 4 numbers right.
One Away for a Chrysler 300M (February 12, 2003, #008SP, aired out of order on February 5)
On his first try, he has 4 numbers right.
One Away for a Saturn Ion (November 4, 2003, #2662K)
On her first try, she has 2 numbers right.
One Away for a $42,000 Ford Thunderbird (April 16, 2005, #020SP, aired out of order on April 9)
On her first try, she has 4 numbers right.
Final Playing with Bob Barker (June 13, 2007, #4033K)
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On his first try, he has all 5 numbers right!
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One Away for an Audi TT (December 25, 2008, #4564K, aired out of order on December 24)
On her first try, she had 4 numbers right.
An All-Red One Away Win (April 27, 2009, #4731K)
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On her first try, she had 3 numbers right.
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Can you believe that? All the digits in the price are in red, meaning the actual price was lower than the displayed price at the outset! Unreal!
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One Away for a Scion FRS featuring Nene Leakes (January 25, 2013, #6195K, aired out of order on February 19, originally rescheduled to air on February 22)
On her first try, she has all 5 numbers right!
One Away for a Honda CR-V LX (November 26, 2013, #6512K)
On her first try, she has 3 numbers right.
One Away for a Nissan Altima 2.5 (February 4, 2014, #6602K, aired out of order on January 3)
On her first try, she has 4 numbers right.
One Away for a Tesla Model S (October 17, 2014, #6845K, aired out of order on October 16)
On her first try, she has 3 numbers right.
One Away for a Scion iM (January 8, 2016, #7355K)
On her first try, she has all 5 numbers right!
Deaf Contestant Plays One Away (May 30, 2016, #7561K)
On her first try, she has 3 numbers right.
One Away for a $29,000 Dodge Charger SE (October 10, 2016, #7641K)
Oh, Mighty Tiffany of the Deal does she have at least one number right? Honk!
Oh, Mighty Tiffany of the Deal does she have at least two numbers right? Honk!
Oh, Mighty Tiffany of the Deal does she have at least three numbers right? No, she doesn't.
Kenneth Plays One Away with Julie Bowen (February 20, 2017, #7821K, aired out of order on February 23)
On his first try, he has 3 numbers right.
One Away for a Mercedes-Benz E550 Cabriolet (October 12, 2017, #8044K)
On her first try, she has only 1 number right.
One Away for a Range Rover Evoque (December 29, 2017, #8145K)
On his first try, he has 2 numbers right.
16-Year Old Ahnalia Plays One Away (March 22, 2018, #8264K)
On her first try, she has all 5 numbers right!
One Away's Repainted Bottom Board Revealer Debuts (June 22, 2018, #8395K)
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On his first try, he has 3 numbers right.
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First One Away Win/Perfection in Season 47 (December 5, 2018, #8523K, aired out of order on June 24)
On his first try, he has all 5 numbers right!
One Away for 2 Cars (February 14, 2019, #8624K)
On their first try, they have 3 numbers right.
Elementary One Away (March 19, 2019, #8672K, aired out of order on April 23, originally rescheduled to air on March 11)
On their first try, they have 3 numbers right.
Baby One Away (May 3, 2019, #8735K, aired out of order on March 25, originally rescheduled to air on April 26)
On their first try, they have 2 numbers right.
Big Money One Away (October 18, 2019, #8855K, aired out of order on October 16)
On her first try, she has 4 numbers right.
Tanner's Automatic Win in One Away (November 4, 2019, #8881K)
On his first try, he only has 1 number right.
One Away for a Mercedes-Benz A220 Sedan featuring David Boreanaz & Neil Brown Jr From SEAL Team (December 22, 2019, #037SP)
On his first try, he only has 1 number right.
The charity total is at $81,863.
YouTube Videos
One Away Wipeout (May 28, 1990, #7691D)
A Perfect One Away from 1991 (September 11, 1991, #8093D)
Perfect One Away Win from Season 35 (March 27, 2007, #3932K)
Last One Away Win under Bob Barker's tenure (June 13, 2007, #4033K)
A Perfect One Away from 2012 (October 3, 2012, #6053K, aired out of order on October 24)
A Perfect One Away from 2013 (January 25, 2013, #6195K, aired out of order on February 19, originally rescheduled to air on February 22)
Jake wins big on One Away (February 27, 2013, #6243K)
Another Perfect One Away from 2013 (June 13, 2013, #6394K)
A Win from 2014 (March 6, 2014, #6644K)
A Tesla Win from Dream Car Week (October 17, 2014, #6845K, aired out of order on October 16)