Lingo

TV Rating:
Canada: (Varies by episode from G to 14+)
USA: (Varies by episode from TV-G to TV-14)

Lingo is the word game that's taken the Game Show Network by storm. Hosted by Chuck Woolery (Greed/Love Connection/Scrabble), with assistance by 2004 Miss America, Shandi Finnessey, who directs the play and acts as word judge.

The team in control has up to 5 chances to guess the mystery word. The first letter is provided to start. Each guess must be spelt out, and must begin with the given letter. It doesn't really matter what word is said, as long as they spell a five-letter word. The board will then indicate whether each letter is in the word and if it is in the right place. The team that gets the word will then draw two Lingo balls that correspond to their own board. To get a Lingo you need 5 across, up and down, or diagonally. The team will lose control if they fail to spell a five letter word, if they run out of time, if they draw a red ball, or if they haven't correctly answered after five attempts.

The point values are 25 for a word and 50 for a LINGO. In round 2 the points are doubled and 3 "?" balls are added, which act as wild cards. This means that they can be used anywhere on the Lingo board. Bonus Lingo:

The team that wins then goes on to play bonus Lingo. They get two minutes to try to guess as many words as they possibly can - this time instead of 1 letter they get 2 letters to start each word, with an option to enter bonus letters which help them. They get 1 bonus letter for winning the game and 1 for every Lingo they get during the game. In this round, the team gets $100 and one LINGO ball for each word they get right. A new board is presented with 12 spaces already filled. They then draw those balls for the chance to win $5,000.

If a team gets a LINGO on the first pull, prizes are as follows: Season 2: Trip to Jamaica and the $5000. Season 3: Trip to Lake Tahoe and the $5,000. Season 4: $10,000 cash. Season 5 forward: Progressive, starting at $10,000 and rising by $1,000 each game until won.

Lingo became GSN's top rated original series of all time upon its debut, almost singlehandedly rescuing the network from ratings failure, and has retained that title through season 6.

At the start of season 5, a new interactive Lingo tournament was added for viewers, who can compete for cash prizes, and a chance to play on future episodes. Some of the best contests have been between teams of online winners and former champions. There have been some celebrity and 'themed' episodes where the prizes were higher, and a tournament of champions at the end of season 3.