Body Language

Charades have long been a staple of TV game shows, and "Body Language" provided a return to the durable format. Two contestants, each paired with a celebrity, competed in this game. In round one, the celebrity member of the team pantomimes as many of five words or phrases as possible to the contestant in 60 seconds. Each correctly-guessed word is placed in an often-puny word puzzle containing seven blanks; at least two spaces will always be left blank. If the contestant correctly guessed the puzzle, he/she won $100; an incorrect guess allowed the contestant member of the opposing team to fill in any one of the remaining blanks. Round 2 was played identically, with the contestant members of the team pantomiming the clues and the celebrities trying to decipher the puzzles; correct guesses were now worth $250. The first team to reach $500 won the game and advanced to the two-stage bonus game. A playoff was played if neither team reached $500, with the contestants shown a new word puzzle with seven blanks and the contestants simply calling out numbers to fill in the spaces. In the first half of the bonus game, the contestant had 60 seconds to guess as many of 10 words or phrases as possible pantomimed by his/her celebrity partner, with each word worth $100. The contestant could multiply his/her winnings by 10 by guessing three additional words or phrases within 20 seconds (e.g., if the contestant won $600 in the first half, he/she would play for $6,000); up to $10,000 was possible. If the contestant failed to guess all three words or phrases, his/her winnings were unchanged. Contestants could lose twice before defeated; surpassing CBS' $25,000 (later, $50,000) limit retired the contestant undefeated.