Can you beat THIS game?

[Ten Foot Bunny]

The first episode of The New Price is Right with Bob Barker. Recorded August 19, 1972, aired September 4, 1972. Would YOU have made it up on stage?


As an aside, I totally want Elaine's dress - it'd go perfectly with my anchor earrings, the ones in my avatar pic.

 

[EvilRoy]

Probably not. I don't really buy the kind of stuff they display so I never know how much it costs :/. I have to say, inflation makes a difference, doesn't it? That fur coat is worth $3,400 today and I looked it up - given the apparent quality and style of coat, the price is pretty similar to what you would pay today.

I find it hilarious that in 30 years they didn't really change the theme though.

 

[Ten Foot Bunny]

Probably not. I don't really buy the kind of stuff they display so I never know how much it costs :/. I have to say, inflation makes a difference, doesn't it? That fur coat is worth $3,400 today and I looked it up - given the apparent quality and style of coat, the price is pretty similar to what you would pay today.

How very true. The hardest part is trying to figure out what those prices are before inflation. I watched another episode from a few days later and a box of spaghetti was 29 cents. My mom was 13 when that episode ran and she couldn't even believe it.

 

[Frezzato]

Hmm. Am I using this [http://data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/cpicalc.pl?cost1=595&year1=1972&year2=2015] right?

First item, "A FUR COAT!",

Spoiler: priced at

priced at $595. That works out to $3,385.02 in today's dollars.

Spoiler: Connie!

Connie!

Spoiler: 30-inch electric range

30-inch electric range, $385.

That's $2,190.31 in today's dollars.

Spoiler: Chevy Vega Kammback Wagon

Chevy Vega Kammback Wagon, $2,746.

That's $15,622.31 in today's dollars.

Spoiler: Piggy bank

Piggy bank, $109.

That's $620.11 in today's dollars.

Elna Lotus self-contained portable zigzag sewing machine,

Spoiler: priced at

priced at $250.

That's $1,422.28 in today's dollars. Approximate vintage model on eBay is $589 [http://www.ebay.com/itm/Elna-Lotus-SP-35-Tavaro-Portable-Vintage-Sewing-Machine-Switzerland-Smithsonian-/181779152873] OBO.

.

Man, 1972 doesn't seem THAT long ago, but then again it's --oh crap, that was 43 years ago.

OOOH I would LOVE a vintage 1972 Mazda 808. That's a cute little car.

Jesus, calm down, Connie.

 

[Ten Foot Bunny]

Couls someone sum it up for me? I don't really know american TV.

You know, I never took that into consideration! lol

1. The people who are called down to the front row have to guess the price of the item they're shown. The person who comes closest to the actual price without going over gets to come on stage.

2. That person plays a game, trying to win a prize.

3. The two people who won the most money on that episode (in cash and prizes) play one final game in which they're shown two different groups of prizes (the showcases). Those two people bid on their showcases, and the one who comes closest to the actual value without going over wins the prizes in their showcase.

The show became more complex later, but that was how it worked for the first couple of years.

The hardest part about trying to play along to those old games is that the value of the items is so different than what they'd be today. A $2,000 car back then would probably be around $15,000 now. Guessing the values is so difficult!

 

[Ten Foot Bunny]

Cool stuff, and...

Jesus, calm down, Connie.

Connie rocked the price of that car, didn't she?! It was so funny seeing her up on stage holding her purse. That woman had so much energy; she was fun to watch.

And that's some great research on the value of the prizes. Nicely done!

 

[Frezzato]

Cool stuff, and...

Jesus, calm down, Connie.

Connie rocked the price of that car, didn't she?! It was so funny seeing her up on stage holding her purse. That woman had so much energy; she was fun to watch.

And that's some great research on the value of the prizes. Nicely done!

I was hoping she would win though



I had actually guessed a price of $500 for the fur coat, but I was thinking in today's dollars. This just goes to show that I don't know what anything costs.

I used to pay upwards of $18 for a CD though, because back then it might have contained an IMPORT-ONLY BONUS TRACK! Man, we were such suckers back then. Well, I was at least.

 

[Ten Foot Bunny]

I used to pay upwards of $18 for a CD though, because back then it might have contained an IMPORT-ONLY BONUS TRACK! Man, we were such suckers back then. Well, I was at least.

OMG!!! You just summed up about 15 years of my life.

I still remember going down to one of the only two decent record stores in Denver to buy those expensive imports. On my first trip (right after I got my license) I went and bought the import of Nirvana's In Utero because it had the extra track, Gallons of Rubbing Alcohol Flow Through the Strip (it was worth the purchase). And since all of my favorite bands were from England and didn't have US releases, that store is where I bought pretty much everything.

Even crazier? The most I ever spent on a CD was $800, and no, I didn't buy it at that store.