For other national versions, see the main Deal or No Deal article.

Deal or No Deal
Deal or No Deal logo.
Created by	John de Mol
Starring	Howie Mandel The Models Peter Abbay (The Banker)
Narrated by	Joe Cipriano
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	146
Production
Executive producers	Scott St. John, Endemol
Running time	44 min.
Original release
Network	NBC
Release	December 19, 2005 – present

The United States version of the game show, Deal or No Deal, is hosted by Canadian actor-comedian Howie Mandel, and premiered on December 19, 2005 on NBC. After an initial weeklong event and another in February 2006, the show aired multi-weekly from March to June 2006, typically on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.

Season Two of the show kicked off on September 18, 2006 with another weeklong event, followed by regular airings through June 2007; a Monday night edition aired all season, with additional airings at various times throughout the season on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Sundays.

Season Three started on September 17, 2007, and aired every Wednesdays & Fridays at the start of the season before changing it to Fridays only midway through.^[1] As of January 2008, the series is seen Monday nights at 9PM ET/PT, and Wednesday nights at 8PM ET/PT.

Game Play

Before the game, a third party randomly places the cash-amount markers in the cases, which are distributed to 26 identically-dressed models who reveal the contents during the game. No one involved in the show, including Howie, the models, the Banker, or even the production crew, knows which amounts are in the cases. Unlike many international versions of the show, the briefcases in the U.S. gallery are not distributed to audience members.

After picking one of the cases, the contestant then selects 6 of the remaining 25 cases to revealed one at a time. Each figure appears in only one case, so any values revealed this way are not in the contestant's case. This is followed by a phone call from the Banker, a mysterious figure shown only in silhouette. He purportedly sits in a skybox (situated between the two audience sections) and makes an offer to Howie via telephone to buy the contestant's case based primarily on the average of the cash amounts still in play. It should be noted that early offers tend to be far lower than the average. After revealing the Banker's offer, Howie then asks the contestant the title question: "Deal or No Deal?"

If the contestant accepts the "Deal" by pressing the flashing-red button in the enclosed glass case, the game ends. However, Howie may continue the game unofficially to see if future offers were better than the one the contestant accepted. Eventually, all 26 cases will be revealed when everything is said and done. Should the contestant refuse the offer (by saying "No deal" and/or closing the glass case), he or she must choose five of the remaining cases to eliminate from consideration. The Banker makes another offer, and play continues as before. The Banker's offer may be higher or lower than the previous offer (if a top prize is eliminated, generally the offer decreases; conversely, if only lower amounts are eliminated the offer increases significantly).

Subsequent rounds have the contestant withdrawing four, three, then two cases from play. Should the contestant continue to decline the Banker's offer after this point, the contestant then eliminates one case each time (with an offer from the Banker after each case elimination) until an offer is accepted or two cases are left. If the player rejects the final offer, the player is given the opportunity to switch cases with the one remaining case before seeing his or her prize.

Each contestant has several supporters (usually three), who sit in a special section just off stage during his or her game. As the field of cases dwindles, one or more of the supporters are asked to consult with the contestant and help him/her make a decision. The contestant's supporters are typically revealed during the second Bank offer.

Odds and probabilities

When a contestant is presented with the original 26 cases, he or she has a 3.85% (1 in 26) chance of selecting a case containing any of the available dollar amounts. (Compare this to the standard American roulette wheel, where selecting any of the available 38 numbers offers casino players just 2.63% (1 in 38) of selecting a winning number.)

If the contestant were allowed to open this case immediately, theoretically it would contain $750 or less half the time (13 of 26 cases) and $1,000 or more half the time (13 of 26 cases); the median case value is $875. However, because of the very large top prizes, the average value of that case is $131,477.54. If every contestant refused every deal (eventually being able to open their initial choice), the game show would expect to pay out approximately $131,131 per contestant on average. However, most of the game show's payouts would be concentrated in a few big winners -- and most contestants would leave with very disappointing earnings.

The Models

While most of the models hold the same numbered case each week, a few of the models hold a different case number each game. All 26 models wear identical dresses, jewelry and shoes, though the style changes for each episode. For more information about all the models, please click on the following link below.

Lucky Case Game

Besides the contestants, viewers at home also have the chance to win cash in what is called the Lucky Case Game. Before each commercial break, the attention is turned to six separate cases held by six models (as shown in the picture to the right). It is up to the viewers to decide which of the six cases holds the cash, hence the Lucky Case. To make their selection, viewers have the choice of either text messaging it in to 59595, or going online to the official Deal or No Deal website and make their selection there. A maximum of ten text entries is allowed per game. The Lucky Case number is revealed just before the show’s last commercial break. The winner’s name would be displayed at the end of the show just before it goes off the air. Normally, only the winner’s first name, first letter of their last name, and hometown would be displayed.

Because of time zone discrepancies, three different Lucky Case Games occur per episode, one for the viewers living in the Eastern & Central time zones, one for the viewers in the Mountain, and one for the viewers in the Pacific. In Arizona during Daylight Saving Time, (when most of the state does not turn the clocks ahead with the rest of the nation), viewers have to call one hour before the show airs.

For more information about the Lucky Case Game, please click on the following link below.

Special Games

To keep the game play exciting and to preserve interest in the program, the show occasionally introduces one-time or short term special gimmicks to the games. For more information about these Special Games, please click on the following link below.

Special Theme Episodes

Occasionally, the show will incorporate special themes as backdrops to the actual game. For more information about these Special Theme Episodes, please click on the following link below.

The Banker’s Special Offers

From time to time, the Banker will entice contestants not just with money, but with prizes. Few times, these prizes are gags to insult the contestant, but many times it may bring to their knees. To see what kind of prizes the Banker has offered, please click on the following link below.

Special Guest Stars

Celebrities like movie stars or professional athletes have made appearances on Deal or No Deal. Most of the time, they were there to provide support to contestants who are big fan of theirs. To see which celebrities have made guest appearances, please click on the following link below.

Merchandise

Other than novelty items like coffee mugs, key chains, or T-shirts, there are also different game variations of the show that makes Deal or No Deal fans keep on coming back for more. To see a list of different formats, please click on the following link below.

Scheduling, Ratings & Production Notes

For more information pertaining the scheduling, ratings and production of the show, please click on the following link below.

References

External links

• Official website

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