——————————————————————————————-

Florida Whammy regrets to inform our fans that as of today, April 1st, we will be retiring our signature show, Press Your Luck due to a code-eating virus that has infected the program and made it unusable. Backups and failsafes have been compromised, and were deemed unusable by our Programming & Development Unit. Redevelopment of the program is now prohibitively expensive and time consuming, given our current potential con workload. We apologize for any inconvenience, and hopefully in the future we will have a return of Press Your Luck.

The virus exploited a vulnerability point in programs compiled in Visual Basic that allowed for execution of remote code while we were working on improvements and bug fixes to our signature Press Your Luck game engine. For more information on these vulnerabilities, please read more on Microsoft’s website. At this time, the virus damage has been quarantined to Press Your Luck and no other show engines.

Seeing as the current build of Press Your Luck (Version 6.5.1) took a year to fully develop and become bug free, and 4 months just to get a stable build out, at this time, it is not in our best interests to attempt to rush the redevelopment of Press Your Luck at this time.

If you actually believed that previous post, then you might want to watch this clip below.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Let me introduce you to FWE’s latest game show to enter development and with that ten of the most blackhearted brigands who ever stood between a convention game show contestant and their money; and HERE THEY ARE!

Click here to view the embedded video.

You all thought Jackpot! played fast, you really better be on your toes for this show!  Here’s a screenshot of our display, and we’ll let you know when this Tom Kennedy classic will debut once it’s been successfully billed!

CHARGE!

CLW83
GSNN
GSNN:WLTI
WLTI Live
WLTI Episode 1

That’s right folks, our old podcast “The Gurus Weekly”, is now back and under a new name!

Starting Friday, August 31st, we’ll be reviving “The Gurus Weekly” under it’s new name “The Whammy Minute”!!

Our first episode will be covering the preview debut of GSN’s new “The Pyramid” game show with special guests Brian Sapinski of Sonic Whammy Enterprises, and Dino Alexander of Game Show News Net, and is co-hosted by FWE Executive Producer Bryan Espinoza and Executive Director Jonathan Nielsen.

Podcasts will be delivered via www.floridawhammy.com/podcast and we will be working to be available through the Apple iTunes store and other podcast distribution services.

Stay tuned, The Whammy Minute is coming on strong!!

Fresh from the most exciting Press Your Luck ever at AFO last month, I’ve decided to ride the enthusiasm of this 33 second clip to start work on another brand new engine.

“From Florida Whammy Headquarters in Lakeland, FL; it’s everybody’s game of strategy, knowledge & fun. It’s ‘Tic Tac Dough’! And now, here’s our host, Jon Nielsen!”

Our engine of course will run all versions of the show, namely those hosted by:
Jack Barry, Gene Rayburn, Bill Wendell, Jay Jackson, and Win Elliot (1956-1958)
Wink Martindale (1978-1985)
Jim Caldwell (1985-1986)
Patrick Wayne (1990-1991)

Hat’s off to the team for helping FWE face down this proverbial Dragon of a project!

Florida Whammy Entertainment’s revised statement in regards to Lawrence Brenner

On July 2, 2012, Florida Whammy Entertainment made a press release which is that this point has been removed from our website; allow me to make some updates upon the situation.

Florida Whammy Entertainment, in the end of June of this year, had received significant amounts of complaints against content hosted on our website which describes the biography of Lawrence Brenner, former Director of Website Development.

It had come to our attention that parties were alleging that Mr. Brenner was falsely misrepresenting his involvement and professional connections and relationships with a large amount of people and organizations. Florida Whammy Entertainment launched an internal inquiry as to the validity of these claims. Florida Whammy Entertainment’s own internal inquiry found no prima facie evidence supporting or denying any claims made against Mr. Brenner, mainly due in part to geographical differences in where the alleging organizations operate as opposed to where Florida Whammy mainly operates.

Due to these allegations and substantial negative PR that Florida Whammy has received, Florida Whammy Entertainment has terminated and severed all ties with Mr. Brenner, the last point at which Mr. Brenner served in any capacity with Florida Whammy Entertainment being in December of 2011. Since December 2011, Mr. Brenner has not served in any capacity with Florida Whammy Entertainment.

Florida Whammy Entertainment has removed all association with Mr. Brenner from their website. Florida Whammy Entertainment was not responsible for the content in Mr. Brenner’s bio, it was supplied by him, and originally glanced over and approved by our founders to not have any objectionable content.

Florida Whammy Entertainment would also like to state that since Mr. Brenner no longer has an affiliation with Florida Whammy Entertainment, and any potentially misrepresented content or claims by him are no longer hosted on our website or webservers upon request of outside organizations, and the subsequent removal of Mr. Brenner from Florida Whammy Entertainment, that Florida Whammy Entertainment, nor any of its owners, officers, employees, volunteers, or anyone working within direct association with Florida Whammy Entertainment will be a party to any legal actions taken either for against Mr. Brenner. We wish to have no further involvement in this matter, and ask that you please respect the organization’s wishes.

Florida Whammy Entertainment is in full belief that this problem has been resolved as it regards to their organization, and that this is no longer a matter that concerns Florida Whammy Entertainment nor one that Florida Whammy Entertainment needs to be a party to. Florida Whammy Entertainment has only performed and operated within Florida, given the exception that we did have one event scheduled for outside of Florida until it was cancelled. Florida Whammy Entertainment is geographically in another region from where these allegations have taken place, and as such, is not a suitable party, nor a capable party to determine the validity of these allegations.

Florida Whammy Entertainment is a panelist organization based out of Lakeland, FL that provides authentic recreations of Classic, Modern, and original concept Game Shows for anime, gaming, sci-fi, comic, and other types of fan conventions, as well as for corporate events and outings. Florida Whammy Entertainment is a nonprofit group, and is staffed entirely by volunteers.

Contact:
Bryan Espinoza
bryan@floridawhammy.com
www.facebook.com/bryanespinoza

Office VM:  (405) 2-WHAMMY (294-2669)
Personal VM: (904) 404-9150

OR

Jonathan Nielsen
jon@floridawhammy.com
www.facebook.com/jtn2002

Office VM: (405) 2-WHAMMY (294-2669)
Personal Cell: (352) 328-5504

### (___ words total, ___ body)

Click here to view the embedded video.

If you didn’t know the first one, you’ll probably know this second one above. It’s the theme to the $25,000, “The New $25,000″ and the $100,000 pyramid.

As you may have guessed, 35 years of pyramid, and all hosted by one man: Dick Clark.

The $100,000 Pyramid did indeed come on strong.
It was yet another success for Dick Clark.

Most people like myself, only rembember the $100,000 Pyramid or the $25,000 pyramid, but to me, $25,000 and $100,000 Pyramid was more than just a game show. It was a foray into something more.

Click here to view the embedded video.

I grew up watching The $25,000 and the $100,000 Pyramid on television. Seeing all those people win all that money made me feel good inside, and that’s something Dick Clark was always good at. I would sit anxiously at school, waiting to get home just to see either the $25,000 or the $100,000 pyramid come on Game Show Network right as I got home. Pyramid is part of the reason I have developed the extensive vocabulary that I have. Pyramid was more than a game show, Pyramid taught everyone things they didn’t know, and they also showed people the value of good whole-hearted television.

If you were on pyramid in those days, you were what was big in popular culture. From Vicki Lawrence to Levar Burton to Soupy Sales to Betty White to Burt Reynolds, to Billy Crystal, Pyramid was the place to be if you were on TV.

Pyramid and Dick Clark also have a special place in my heart because it was my mother’s favorite game show, and her favorite host. Whenever she was in a bad mood, or even if Pyramid just came on the television, my mom would always brighten up and we’d both just sit there and try to play along with the TV.

Dick Clark has always been a staple and a household name. My counterparts have already discussed American Bandstand and Dick Clark’s New Years Rockin’ Eve, and those shows are great in their own regards, but I will always remember Dick Clark for being the host of 35 wonderful years of Pyramid. From his banter and “feud” with Vicki Lawrence, to the odd way he added up totals in the Winner’s Circle, that’s what i’ll always remember the most about the legend that is Dick Clark.

Dick Clark will certainly be missed, from his caring demeanor, to making sure that the camera got the shot of the picture of the newborn son, or helping console a contestant that missed the top of the pyramid by mere seconds. He brought wholesome, good quality, heartwarming entertainment to millions, if not billions of people.

Click here to view the embedded video.

For now, Dick Clark, thanks for the memories! So long!

I’ll leave you with a series of Clips in tribute to Dick Clark’s 35 Years of Pyramid.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

And we leave you with one of my personal favorites, and #13 on Florida Whammy Entertainment’s Greatest Game Show Moments list:

Click here to view the embedded video.

He would go on to host the show for forty-three straight years. The only exception during that run: ABC 2000 Today, where the network aired celebrations heralding the new millenium around the world. While there was no NYRE, Dick was still there in his famous spot at Times Square, counting down like always.

The beginning of the end of the era began on December 6, 2004. It was on that day when news broke that he has been hospitalized after suffering from a minor stroke. While he said that he would still be good to go, eight days later on December 14, the official announcement came that Regis Philbin would fill in for NYRE 2005. While he wasn’t there in person, he was there in spirit with signs from fans and celebrity messages throughout the night.

Clark returned in 2006, but he would no longer be solo. American Idol and Top 40 host Ryan Seacrest became his new co-host and started his tenure joining Clark in his first television experience since the stroke. Ratings were there to welcome him, as the show drew in over 20 million viewers.

In 2009, the show was officially renamed Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest, as Seacrest started to become the primary host while Clark made limited appearances including his traditional midnight countdown.

Dick Clark’s final appearance on the show celebrated its 40 year history with a two-hour retrospective highlighting the most memorable performances in the show’s history.

NYRE has seen everyone from The Pointer Sisters to Lady Gaga do what they do best while Dick Clark did what he did best.  Now with his passing, there’s a hole in all of us, and potentially a hole in ABC’s schedule.  They’ve yet to comment on the future of the show, but if it does continue, I can safely say that it will never be the same.

To me personally, I can say I’ve watched at least part of that show ever since I was a kid.  Each year I got to stay up to see the ball drop and to drink apple cider at midnight.  Then, as I grew older, the apple cider turned to something else, but watching Dick Clark stayed the same.  As I was old enough to start participating in family New Year’s traditions, it was still centered around the countdown, which I wanted to see every year just to see how they did it.  I don’t know if I can watch it this year.

Hello, Jon Nielsen here first; and I’m going to focus a bit on Clark’s early achievements. I’ll let Ralph Edwards begin my segment, from an episode of “This Is Your Life”.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Ever since I was young and listening to music, I always had a passion for ‘oldies’ as people now call it. From the 1950s and the Big Bopper to the beginnings of the 80s when disco was still alive and the Soul Train started to roll into living rooms across the country; I had no idea it was all possible thanks to a radio DJ from a Philadelphia station finding these great artists of the era and bringing them to the public ear; and with Dick every moment of the way with that show was Charlie O’Donnell (whose passing started this blog off the ground).

But it was later, in my lifetime, when I became more familiar with America’s Oldest Teenager. From $10,000 to $100,000, and almost to $1,000,000; the Pyramid series of game shows was part of the television bread and butter fo my youth. Many popular starts of stage, screen, and radio partnered with regular people for a chance to sit in the Winner’s Circle. It was easy to play along; and with the clues at the bottom of the screen, may have actually helped teach me to read partially when I was extremely young. This however, is not what the man is known for the most.

Trumping Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians; from 1972 through 1999, 2001 through 2003, and again from 2005 through 2012; Dick Clark has rung in the New Year the way only it can be done. Since the first year I can remember, I have always; without fail set my watch by Dick Clark and his countdown. We missed him in 2000 (stupid ABC and their Y2K special), and in 2004 when recovering from his stroke; but even after that, New Year’s Rockin’ Eve had him on television for 40 years. What else is there to say? It’s the only way to celebrate; and as 2013 begins in a little over eight months; everyone’ll be toasting him.

For now this is Jon Nielsen, so long.