History Series / TheGongShow

--> '''Maya, discussing her score:''' ''...Shi arimasu'' (It is to be a 4).

(In Japanese the words for the numbers 4 and 7 both have the syllable "shi" which sounds like the word for death. Japanese people usually say 'yon" and "nana" for 4 and 7 respectively, so this could be a bilingual backfire. Bigger backfire: The performer is a Korean-American named Robert Kim, even though he is playing what he calls a Japanese tourist character.)

The show has had several {{revival}}s, mostly in ten-year intervals. The first was in 1988 with Don Bleu as host, a version which lasted for only one season. Game Show Network revived it as ''Extreme Gong'' in 1998 with George Gray at the helm, and kept it going for two seasons. The next revival was in 2008 on Creator/ComedyCentral, also lasting for only a season with Dave Attell as host. Since 2012, a [[http://www.gongshowlive.net Sony-approved live stage version]] has been running in the New York City area. In 2017, right on schedule, Creator/{{ABC}} [[http://www.buzzerblog.com/2016/10/03/abc-orders-the-gong-show-revival/ revived the show]] with Creator/WillArnett at the helm, following in the footsteps of ABC's multiple summer game shows (''Celebrity Series/FamilyFeud'', ''Series/ToTellTheTruth'', ''Series/MatchGame'', and fellow Sony property ''[[Series/{{Pyramid}} The $100,000 Pyramid]]''). This particular revival was hosted by British TV personality Tommy Maitland; if that name doesn't ring a bell to anyone on either side of the Pond, it's probably because [[http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/abcs-gong-show-reboot-taps-one-very-interesting-host-998339 he's a fictional character played by]] Creator/MikeMyers (who also served as executive producer in season two). Unlike other remakes, the 2017 version adopted a lot of the motifs of the original version; a second season aired in 2018 before being given the gong itself by ABC.

(In Japanese the words for the numbers 4 and 7 both have the syllable "shi" which sounds like the word for death. Japanese people usually say 'yon" and "nana" for 4 and 7 respectively, so this could be a bilingual backfire.)

** '''First week or so of the 1976-80 version:''' "From Hollywood, it's ''The Gong Show''! Yes, it's ''The Gong Show''! And here's the star of ''The Gong Show'', [John Barbour/Chuck Barris]!"

%% * GettingCrapPastThe Radar: Due to overwhelming and persistent misuse, GCPTR is on-page examples only until 01 June 2021. If you are reading this in the future, please check the trope page to make sure your example fits the current definition.

** The judges, themselves, have to gong an act before the act ends. If they gonged too late, then they would still have to give a score even if they thought an act didn't deserve one. Also, they have to actually ''hit'' the gong for it to count. Sometimes, disgusted judges would try to ''throw'' things at the gong...''and miss''. Other times, one judge would try to stop another from doing it, but the rules only state the gong must be ''hit'', not necessarily with the striker.

* PantyShot: A group of young ladies in very short Catholic school dresses did a cheerleader-like routine to Barry Manilow's "Miracle." Light blue and light yellow panties were abundant.

** "It Takes an 'E' Ticket to Get In"

* InflationNegation: The 2017 version's top prize $2,000.17 fits this trope well.
** In the second season, aired in 2018, the prize was upped to $2,000.18.

* ArcNumber: The cash prize payouts were of a non-standard amount, from the original version's $516.32 to the 2017 revival's [[DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment $2,000.17]].

* DropTheCow: The Gong. Sometimes, if an act is ''really'' bad, the judges will hit the gong in some silly way, such as kicking it, throwing things (including the mallet) at it, or "Gang-Gonging" (two or even all three judges gonging the act at once). Every once in a great while, a judge would even go onstage, hand the performer a mallet, and lead them back to the table so they could gong ''themselves'' out. If a judge hit the gong before an act's minimum time was up, the act still had to finish out that time even though they knew they were out.

** Averted for the Christmas episodes, when the judges weren't allowed to gong anyone.