The Price is Right Timeline/Season 4

01	02	03	04	05	06	07	08	09	10
11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20
21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30
31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38	39	40
41	42	43	44	45	46	47	48	49	50
51	52

Season 4 (1975-1976)

Pricing game calendar for Season 4, hosted by Scorpz.

Week 1 (157): September 1-5

• Sometime this week, Richard Dawson and Charles Nelson Reilly appear (not necessarily on the same show) to congratulate Price on its third anniversary -- a landmark which, oddly enough, Price itself does not celebrate until next week, despite it occurring this Thursday.
• On Friday, Bonus Game returns to the daytime game rotation, presumably with its color scheme updated to better mesh with the show's new set.

Week 2 (158): September 11-12, 8-10

• Originally scheduled for September 8-12.
• This week of shows introduces the hour format. Six pricing games are played each day instead of three, and the Showcase Showdowns are introduced to determine which contestant from each set of three games will advance to the Showcase.
  • As a result of the trial hour episodes, the show commandeers Gambit's timeslot each day this week, running from 10:30-11:30 Eastern/9:30-10:30 Central.
• In the opening, Johnny refers to this week's episodes as "super anniversary show specials": "A fortune in fabulous prizes may go to these people today if they know when in our super anniversary show special The Price Is Right!" By Friday, this has changed slightly to "A fortune in fabulous prizes may go to these people today on this super anniversary week special if they know when The Price Is Right!" He also states during his sign-off on Monday that he is speaking for "The Price Is Right Anniversary Specials."
• On all shows this week, the words "ANNIVERSARY WEEK" are hung on the frame atop Door #2.
• This week's openings introduce the light border, which begins its existence as a simple ring of chasing light bulbs a short distance into the screen; by Friday, an opaque yellow border has been added around the lights that extends to the edges of the screen. After Johnny calls the fourth contestant, the light border moves outward and leaves the screen as the show's logo appears.
• This week establishes the mid-show bumper that occurs on hour shows after the fourth game. During the commercial break, a camera pans the audience as Johnny says, "Stay tuned for more pricing games and the fabulous Showcases, which are coming up on the second half of this special one-hour edition of The Price Is Right!" with consolation prize music playing; as he finishes talking, the show's logo zooms onto the screen in the same fashion as at the end of the opening.
  • By Friday, the procedure for the bumper has changed slightly; it now occurs at the end of Act 4, before the commercials, and it includes the light border, which also mimics its behavior from the end of the opening.
• The Showcase Showdown uses a sideways-spinning wheel that has come to be known unofficially as "the Rainbow Wheel." The leader's podium/scoreboard is positioned to the right of the wheel.
• On Monday only, the contestants line up to spin the "Rainbow Wheel" in Contestants' Row, which has its bid displays replaced with wheel-like markers numbered for the first, second, and third spinners. From Tuesday onward, the contestants simply line up on stage to the left of the wheel.
• A series of odd noises plays as the "Rainbow Wheel" spins. A louder beep is heard whenever the $1.00 space passes by.
• The first spin-off occurs during this week. Unlike later, contestants can actually take 2 spins if they'd so choose.
• During early showings, no fanfare is played when a dollar is spun in the Showcase Showdown.
• Monday's second Showcase Showdown features the first occurrence of two contestants spinning $1.00 total and having a spin-off.
  • From what Bob says prior to the spin-off, the current spin-off rules state that contestants can win an additional $1,000 if they land on the $1.00 space in their $1.00 spin-off spin. This would also apply even if additional tiebreaking spin-off spins are needed.
  • It's not known whether anyone actually won multiple $1,000 prizes on the wheel through spin-offs while this rule was in effect.
  • Once the "bonus spin" is implemented in Season 7, any tiebreaking spin-offs required beyond the "bonus spin" pay out no additional prize money.
• As with all pricing game segments, the show's theme plays while going to commercial after the Showcase Showdowns.
• This week establishes that hour-long shows have no commercial during the Showcase. The descriptive labels are placed in the podiums during the second showcase.
• The consolation prize plugs this week are done before the first Showcase Showdown; at the end of the plugs, Johnny throws back to the commercials with, "Coming up next, our fabulous, exciting Price Is Right Showcase Showdown!"
• By this point, the show is giving two consolation prizes in each episode; in the first episode, only one was given. We don't know when this changed.
• On this week of shows only, Janice and Dian are assisted by a third Barker's Beauty named Barbara.
• By Monday show, the curtains behind the audience have changed to a pattern of vertical stripes; going left to right, they are colored red-blue-green-yellow-red-blue-green-yellow.
• On Monday, Golden Road is still using its original, lever-based price reveals, but has transitioned to the familiar slimmer font for the numbers.
• On Monday, Grocery Game is still using its short-lived striped table.
• On Monday, Most Expensive's second set is introduced; the game no longer shares props with Five Price Tags.
• On Monday show, Any Number uses its original prize reveal; this may have been a staging issue, as the 3-digit prize on this playing was a chaise lounge.
• By Monday, the base of the Range Game board has become blue.
• By Monday, the Give or Keep board has become green.
• Tuesday show features the debut of Poker Game.
  • Poker Game does not appear again after this episode for several weeks.
  • Poker Game originally allows the contestant to make whatever hand he wants from his selected prices and does not allow him to pass his hand to the house.
  • On the game's earliest appearances, the background of the number lights for the Poker Game is white to mimic actual playing cards, but this made the numbers rather difficult to see.
• Thursday show features the debut of 1 Right Price, at least as far as the daytime show goes; it had previously appeared on two early Season 1 nighttime shows with a different, three-prize format.
  • As such, Thursday also marks the debut of 1 Right Price's normal rules.
  • Thursday also marks the introduction of 1 Right Price's second set; its first set was only used on the Season 1 nighttime playings.
  • After Thursday, 1 Right Price does not appear again until the permanent hour conversion.
• Card Game appears on Friday for the first time since July 24; this is its only appearance of the season until the permanent hour conversion.

Week 3 (159): September 15-19

• On Monday, the show returns to the half-hour format.
• The light border is not used in the opening during the final seven weeks of half-hour shows.

Week 4 (160): September 22-26

Week 5 (161): September 29-October 3

Week 6 (162): October 6-10

• After Monday, Bonus Game vanishes from the game rotation again.

Week 7 (163): October 13-17

• On Tuesday, Poker Game enters the pricing game rotation permanently.

Week 8 (164): October 20, 22-24

• Only four shows; Tuesday has October Magazine.
• Wednesday show is the first episode for which Fingers is on the staff.

Week 9 (165): October 27-31

• By Monday, Anitra has returned.
• All this week, Janice and Anitra wear "Hour Power" shirts to promote the upcoming format change.
• On Monday, Bert Convy appears to congratulate Bob on the upcoming hour expansion; on Tuesday, Charles Nelson Reilly appears for the same purpose. It seems likely that a CBS or Goodson-Todman personality appeared every day this week.
• By Monday, Poker Game's rules have been changed to automatically make the contestant's hand the best one that can be made from the prices he has selected and to allow the contestant to pass his hand to the house.

Week 10 (166): November 3-7

• On Monday, the show expands to an hour permanently. Half-hour shows are still done on occasion when CBS's schedule calls for it up through February of 1994.
• On Monday, Dian officially joins the cast as the third permanent Beauty.
• The show now airs from 10:00-11:00 Eastern/9:00-10:00 Central.
• The light border returns on Monday, now with transparent gold trim around the lights.
• Beginning on Monday, the phrase "One Hour" flashes on the screen in blue (or on occasion, red or green) script while Johnny does the opening spiel.
• On Monday, the opening spiel changes to, "And here it comes! The first, big, hour-long game show on television! The fabulous, new, 60-minute Price Is Right!" (On Monday, this is preceded by, "Starting today.")
• By Monday, Golden Road has replaced its original, lever-based price reveals with a push-button system.
  • Also on Monday's playing, the production staff forgets to put the cover over the "5" in the 3-digit prize display (a range), so the contestant automatically wins the prize, and the first use of the push-button fails to work when revealing the 4-digit prize display (a floral display piece) so Bob has to push down the cover himself.
• By Monday, Grocery Game's table has changed again, this time to a red-brick appearance.
• By Monday, the side of the Any Number board has become green.
• As of Monday, the Big Wheel replaces the "Rainbow Wheel" in the Showcase Showdown; the numbers appear in the same order on both wheels.
  • The Showcase Showdown's regular spin-off rules are now in place; in the trial hour shows of Week 1, contestants could take two spins in a spin-off.
  • The Big Wheel's original, weak-sounding beeps are used for the first few weeks of the hour format.
  • The Big Wheel originally had long, red horizontal pegs that contestants grabbed onto to spin. These appeared to be awkward for contestants to use and could be dangerous while the wheel was spinning if they didn't get back fast enough (Contestant Lucille gets hit on the shoulder during the first Showdown on #1935D).
  • The Big Wheel also appears to be a lot looser early on and spins for longer than in future seasons. It was likely tightened up due to the amount of time it took even for weak spins to complete.
  • The arched panels to the sides of the Big Wheel are initially a solid light gold color, similar to the color of the side panels of the alternating spaces on the wheel.
  • Early on, there is no rule that contestants have to make the wheel go all the way around once for the spin to count. On Monday's second Showcase Showdown, contestant Alberto Lopez, after spinning 60 cents, intentionally tries a weak spin to get to the 40 cents two spaces up. Because the wheel is a lot looser, the spin goes well past the 40 cent space. Bob does not appear to be very happy with this and the rule likely appeared shortly thereafter (definitely by #1693D). He also asks both subsequent contestants to face the audience when spinning.
• The ticket plug, when it is done, is now placed before the first Showcase Showdown.
• Starting on Monday, Bob tosses to the mid-show bumper with the phrase, "There is more Price Is Right coming up!"
• On Monday, the text of the mid-show bumper is shortened to, "Stay tuned for more pricing games and the fabulous Showcases, coming up on the second half of The Price Is Right."
• As of Monday, the background of the number windows in the Poker Game is black.
• On Monday, the Top Winner still stands at the green Showcase podium.
• On Thursday, Bonus Game returns to the game rotation permanently.
• On Thursday, 1 Right Price enters the pricing game rotation permanently.
• On Friday, Card Game returns to the pricing game rotation.

Week 11 (167): November 10-14

Week 12 (168): November 17-21

Week 13 (169): November 24-26, 28

• Thanksgiving week; only four shows.
• Although it is not stated outright, the rule that the Big Wheel must go all the way around at least once for a spin to count seems to have been implemented by Wednesday.
  • On at least one subsequent episode this season (#1935D), when the wheel doesn't make it all the way around during a spin, Bob returns the wheel to the spot it was in before it was spun. In future seasons, when the wheel doesn't go all the way around, the contestant spins again immediately from the position the wheel stopped.
• By Wednesday's show, the front of the Big Wheel is zoomed in on when coming to a stop to show the value.
• By Wednesday, the "right answer" cards in Ten Chances have become blue. Also by Wednesday's playing, Bob is now pressing the chance buttons himself instead of asking the contestant to do it.

Week 14 (170): December 1-5

Week 15 (171): December 8-9, 11-12

• Only four shows; Wednesday has December Magazine.
• By Monday, the misnamed 1976 music package has debuted.
• On Tuesday, the show's theme is still being used while going to commercial from the Showcase Showdowns.
• On Thursday, the opening titles still read "One Hour."
• By Thursday's playing, Ten Chances is now using its familiar, slimmer font on the prize cards.

Week 16 (172): December 15-19

• Tuesday is likely the first episode where the opening titles read "Hour Power" instead of "One Hour."
• By Friday, the opening titles have been changed to "Hour Power," and their first standard font has debuted.
• On Friday, Johnny is not yet being shown while calling contestants.
• By Friday's show, the Big Wheel now has a decimal point in the $1.00 space (instead of "100"), and a decimal point also appears on the Big Wheel scoreboard.
• On Friday's show, the winning contestant's bid is exactly $100 below the actual retail price. The first DSW rule requires a difference of less than $100, so she does not win both Showcases.

Week 17 (173): December 22-26

Week 18 (174): December 29-31, January 2

• New Year's week; only four shows.

Week 19 (175): January 5-9

• On Tuesday, the opening titles still exhibit their original behavior; not long afterward, they are altered to begin small in the middle of the screen and gradually grow larger, flashing all the while.
• Thursday show is a half-hour episode.
• Thursday show features the debut of Danger Price.

Week 20 (176): January 12-16

• Mary Poms (aka Shana Forman) substitutes for Anitra several times over the next few weeks of shows, through at least the first week of February.
  • Mary had appeared on Temptation with Art James (no relation to Dennis) in 1967-68 and as the "Prize Witch" opposite Alex Trebek on the "The Wizard of Odds" in 1973-74. She would go on to appear again with James on his final show, the US version of "Catch Phrase" that ran from late 1985 through early 1986.
• On Tuesday, the "Walking" cue is used instead of the usual songs for the opening and the come-on-downs "Walking" permanently replaces the original cues several weeks later, likely on February 19.
• By Tuesday's show, the Showcase Showdown view has changed to a vertical display of the Big Wheel on the right as it slows down, with the contestant appearing in an arrow that opens up from the left side of the screen at the location of the wheel pointer.
  • The close-up shot of the wheel that had been used for the previous several weeks, with the camera gradually tilting downward as it came to rest, would resurface 28 years later, during the winter of Season 32.

Week 21 (177): January 19-23

• Monday's show was taped immediately after the December 9 episode; as such, any changes that have occurred since then are not present on Monday.
• Reportedly, Monday's show featured the first occurrence of a contestant bidding $1 in Contestants' Row when suspecting that the others have overbid. This also happens on Tuesday's show and the contestant who bid $1 does win the IUFB (after Bob remarks "It may not work, but it's good strategy.")
• By Thursday's show, the Showcase Showdown's familiar split-screen arrow graphic is in use, with the wheel appearing vertically on the right and the contestant displayed in an arrow on the left pointing at the same location as the wheel pointer, and a black background elsewhere.
  • On Tuesday's show, the familiar split-screen is in use, but without the black background above and below the contestant arrow. It's the same as the format used the previous week, but the arrow doesn't open up from the left and appears as soon as the view changes.
  • The black background was likely put in place because the contestant can sometimes be seen moving around to the left of the wheel, which may have been thought to be distracting to viewers (e.g. Theresa from first Showdown on #1772D).
• In Thursday's first Showcase Showdown, Bob mistakenly counts contestant Rose's first spin despite having correctly predicted that it would not go all the way around; this leads to her next spin, which lands on the dollar, making her go over instead of tying her for the lead and winning her $1,000.
  • Without that mistake, there would have been three total $1,000 winners on Thursday's episode, something that wouldn't "officially" happen until the following season (#2274D).
• Thursday's second showcase, a Bicentennial Salute to General George Marshall, includes an autographed photograph of General Marshall; this is regarded as a bonus, and the contestants are instructed not to include it while bidding.

Week 22 (178): January 26-30

• On Wednesday, the opening titles are pink.
• By Wednesday's show, the Big Wheel's beeps have been updated to sound fuller and deeper.

Week 23 (179): February 2-6

Week 24 (180): February 9-13

• Thursday's show features the debut of 3 Strikes.
  • Through at least the next two seasons, when 3 Strikes is played, the camera is pointed towards the contestant and Bob such that the turntable is in the background as opposed to the familiar view of the gap between the turntable and Door #1.

Week 25 (181): February 16-20

• As of Tuesday, the original opening and "come on down" cues are still in use.
• On Tuesday, the infamous Patricia Bernard incident occurs, with Johnny calling a contestant while she is in the bathroom. Although this has happened three other times in the show's run (as of Season 49), Patricia's was the first and is by far the best-known.
  • Patricia Bernard on 2/17/76, Trina Scott on 4/4/88, Daniel Jimenez on 5/16/00, and Tara Armstrong on 1/22/19
• On Tuesday, Mary fills in for Janice.
• Around this time, and most likely on Thursday, the opening and "come on down" cues are replaced with the cue called "Walking." The version used in the opening is more fully orchestrated, with more instruments, than the one used during the body of the show.
• Thursday's show features the debut of Hurdles.

Week 26 (182): February 23-27

Week 27 (183): March 1-5

Week 28 (184): March 8-12

• As of Thursday's show, the Big Wheel's beeps have been updated again to a higher-pitched, buzzing-type sound. The beeps also get out of sync with the wheel more often around this time, especially as it slows down.
• As of Thursday's show, when a contestant spins $1.00 total on the Big Wheel, a fanfare is now played that consists of the ending of the main TPIR theme.
• Thursday's show features early appearances of selections from the 1976 music package (other than "Walking"), as versions of "Amen Brother Herbert" and "Bhen" are played as prize cues.
• On Thursday's playing of Hurdles, when the contestant loses on the third product, Bob flips open the correct price marker for the product that the contestant didn't choose. This is the only known instance of Bob doing this; Usually, during a Hurdles loss, the correct price remains hidden.

Week 29 (185): March 15-19

• On Friday, then-Miss USA crown holder and future $ale of the Century hostess Summer Bartholomew is in the audience.

Week 30 (186): March 22-26

Week 31 (187): March 29-30, April 1-2

• Only four shows; Wednesday has March Magazine.
• Thursday's show features the April Fool's Showcase with a "Bicentennial Salute" honoring the great American physician and author Dr. John Barrett Clapinger, who supposedly disappeared several years ago while on an expedition in Howard Cosell's mouth. The prizes offered include two of Clapinger's books, The Clapinger Report and I'm OK, and I Don't Give a Flying Fig What You Are, the former of which cites Vitamin C as a treatment for broken legs and as an effective bathroom disinfectant and the latter of which "traces existentialist thought from Camus to Bette Midler" and pauses to ask the question, "was Jack the Ripper even as the trees and the stars a child of the universe?"; a trip to Flushing, New York, where Dr. Clapinger was awarded the prestigious Plotkin Prize; a case of athlete's foot personally awarded by Anitra, in honor of the Clapinger Clinic that the doctor had founded to treat said affliction; and an autographed leg cast presented right on the Turntable by the widowed Mrs. Clapinger. At this point, the showcase appears to fall apart, as another woman comes around on the Turntable, claims to be Mrs. Clapinger, and gets into an argument with the first Mrs. Clapinger; in the middle of the argument, Dr. Clapinger himself comes around on the Turntable and is chased into the audience by his two infuriated wives. The real showcase is a Cadillac El Dorado worth over $10,000, making this the second of only three known showcases to consist of only one prize. The showcase is also somewhat noteworthy for the on-camera appearance by then-production assistant Roger Dobkowitz, who played the part of Dr. Clapinger.

Week 32 (188): April 5-9

Week 33 (189): April 12-16

• Monday show features the debut of Cliff Hangers.
  • Cliff Hangers originally uses four small prizes instead of three.
  • Early in Cliff Hangers' life, the spaces on the mountain are not numbered, and the associated hash marks are noticeably longer than usual.

Week 34 (190): April 19-23

On Thursday's show, Bob comes out limping and wearing a ribbon on his ankle, which he had sprained.

Week 35 (191): April 26-30

• Tuesday show features the debut of Safe Crackers.
  • On very early playings of Safe Crackers, if the game is lost, one of the Beauties dials in the correct combination and opens the safe.

Week 36 (192): May 3-7

• On Tuesday, a showcase about "making it in Hollywood" includes a chance to "represent all Price Is Right contestants" at a ceremony for Bob on the Walk of Fame the next day; although the contestants are never instructed not to bid on this, it seems likely that it was a bonus.

Week 37 (193): May 10-14

• On Friday, the famous Janice Pennington, This Is Your Strife showcase is presented; it features prizes that Janice had trouble modeling over the years - a pop-up bar that wouldn't pop up, a refrigerator that nearly fell on her when she opened it, and a car that she almost wrecked during Lucky Seven (which is driven by Dian this time around) - along with clips of her unsuccessful attempts to model them. The staff rehearsed a fake showcase before the taping that day so that Janice would have no idea what was happening.
• Sometime between #1904D and Friday's show, "Dig We Must" starts being played at the end of the Showcase Showdown instead of the main TPIR theme. Presumably, it is also at this time played as the fanfare when a contestant spins $1.00 total on the Big Wheel.
• Friday's show features early appearances of "Big Banana" and "Bean Stalker" as prize cues.

Week 38 (194): May 17-19, September* 20, May 21

• Originally scheduled for May 17-21.

Week 39 (195): May 24-28

Week 40 (196): May 31-June 4

• On Tuesday, Cliff Hangers uses four small prizes for the last time.
• On Wednesday, Golden Road is still using its push-button price reveal method.
• By Wednesday, Johnny is being shown on-camera once or twice a day while calling the 5th through 9th contestants.
• Wednesday's show features the debut of Dice Game.
• Wednesday's show features an early appearance of "Starcrossed" as a prize cue.

Week 41 (197): June 7-11

• On Thursday show, Cliff Hangers adopts its normal rules.

Week 42 (198): June 14-18

Week 43 (199): June 21-23, 25

• Only four shows; Thursday has June Magazine.

Week 44 (200): June 28-July 2

• Season finale week.
  • Season 4 is the first year of The Price Is Right to make use of a long stretch of summer reruns; these begin next Monday, with Season 5 starting on August 30.
• In all likelihood, Thursday's show features the debut of Bullseye '76.
  • If Bullseye does indeed debut this Thursday, it is the only appearance of the game this season.
  • At the beginning of its life, Bullseye's target has a range of $5-$10, with $9-$10 as the bullseye.
  • At the beginning of its life, Bullseye's "hidden bullseye" allows a contestant to win if it is with the product whose marker on the target is the closest one to the bullseye.
• Bob incorrectly states that Friday's show is the 1,000th episode; in reality, with shortened production weeks due to holidays and other special CBS programming, it is only the 950th episode actually produced.
• As of Friday, the Range Game board is still blue.
  • On Friday, in an unusual move, Range Game's prize, a grandfather clock, is concealed in the Clam.
• Friday's show features one of the earliest appearances of the theme for "Family Feud" ("The Feud") used as a car cue (during Any Number).
  • This episode predates the debut of "Family Feud" by 10 days (July 12, 1976).
  • The version of the theme used as a TPIR cue does not include the banjo instrumentation.
  • The ending portion of the theme would also surface as the stinger when introducing the Grand Game several seasons later.