The $40,000 Chain Reaction (USA, Ep. 51)

[dougmorrisontheair]

George likes the upward mobility. Let's see if the champ's still liking it...









(ding)

...with the letter T.

[bighornbattle]

The Hedgehog.

[dougmorrisontheair]

Good guess -- but THE HEDGEHOG is not it. So we're back to David.

[gameboy2000]

I'll take a letter above Sonic.

[dougmorrisontheair]

David, let's see what you can do...









(ding)

...with T-A.

[gameboy2000]

Tails

[dougmorrisontheair]

That's it -- TAILS.









(ding; audience applause)

All we can say for now is, George, you were in the ballpark with your guess of THE HEDGEHOG. We'll explain later when the chain's complete. But -- if you're a fan of the video games, you probably know where we're going with TAILS and SONIC.

In any event, David, you're leading. Where are we going?


gameboy2000
bighornbattle

[gameboy2000]

I'll take a letter above TAILS.

[dougmorrisontheair]

David keeps it and takes...









(ding)

...the letter H.

[gameboy2000]

Heads

[dougmorrisontheair]

HEADS is right.









(ding; audience applause)

Okay, David, we're down to one more link. It's now worth a total of $1500 -- $750 for the right answer and $750 for completion of the chain.

David, if you complete the chain, you're the new champion. George, if you complete it, we'll be tied at $4500 and go to a fourth round to decide the game.

David, who gets the first letter of the remaining link?


gameboy2000
bighornbattle

[gameboy2000]

I'll take it. 

[dougmorrisontheair]

Then for the game, David...









(ding)

...the remaining link starts with T.

[gameboy2000]

Topic

[dougmorrisontheair]

If it's TOPIC, David, you're the new champion.










































(buzz)









Not TOPIC.

You're back in the game, George. Who gets the next letter?

[bighornbattle]

I do.

[dougmorrisontheair]

Okay, this is for a tie game, George...









(ding)

...T-A.

[bighornbattle]

Talking.

[dougmorrisontheair]

We've got a tie ballgame.









(ding; audience applause)

During a conversation, there's a lot of talking. Talking Heads was a great band from the 1980s. In a coin toss before a football game or other competition, a certain player calls the toss by saying "heads" or "tails". Miles "Tails" Prower is a character in the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise. When something travels through the air faster than the speed of sound, a sonic boom results. And "BOOM!" was often exclamated by John Madden when he analyzed NFL games.



gameboy2000
bighornbattle


That's the chain -- and there's our tie score. Next solve wins the game. Let's go ahead and set up that chain, please.










(ding)

Our fourth chain started with ELON and it ends with STUDY.

Each link in the chain is worth $1000. I doubt a lot of toes will be stubbed -- but completion of the chain is worth a total of $2000 if we get that far.

George, potential game winning decision is yours. How do you play the chain?

[bighornbattle]

I will play a letter below ELON please.

[dougmorrisontheair]

For the game, George...









(ding)

...the letter is M.

[bighornbattle]

MUSK.

[dougmorrisontheair]

If it's MUSK, you're still the champ.












































(dings; audience applause; win music plays)

It's MUSK.

Quickly, please, let's reveal the chain to prove you can connect MUSK to STUDY.










(ding)

Elon Musk, the businessman who recently rebranded Twitter as X. Musk ox, the hoofed animal. A famous ox in folklore is named Babe. Babe Ruth, the baseball legend. Ruth is a character in the Holy Bible. And Bible study can take place at church.

That's our chain. David, sorry we're not going to see you in the final chain. But you're taking home a nice piece of chain. Thanks to the extra extra cheddar you won from Round 2, you're taking home a total of $6000.

The money plus fine gifts and all this applause are yours, David.

(board rotates as part of the theme plays)

George, another victory is yours. And let's dive right into Missing Link. You know how the game works. It determines the top dollar value for the final chain. The more pennies you save, the more tens of thousands of dollars you *could* win.

So, let's set up that three-link chain.








(ding)

This chain starts with SPORT and it ends with OCEAN. The missing link starts with B.

George, solve this right now -- and all four of those pennies join you in the final chain -- which could swell into $40,000.

So what's that link starting with B?

[bighornbattle]

Beach.

[dougmorrisontheair]

Not BEACH. That'll cost you a penny.







(ding)

B-I.

[bighornbattle]

Birds.

[dougmorrisontheair]

Not BIRDS either. That'll cost you another penny.







(ding)

B-I-L. Solve it here for a possible $20,000 final chain. If you miss, you'll save one penny for a possible $10,000 final chain.

[bighornbattle]

Billy.

[dougmorrisontheair]

BILLY is right.







(ding; audience applause)

"Sport Billy" was an animated series -- one of Filmation's lesser known productions. And Billy Ocean is an R&B singer -- and a great one, too.

Two pennies are in the bank. We'll see if they become $20,000 -- when we come back.

(theme plays; audience applause)

[dougmorrisontheair]

(Doug in pre-recorded audio as theme plays)

If you'd like to be a contestant on The $40,000 Chain Reaction, call toll free 1-800-555-40CR. That's 1-800-555-4027.

Those are the digits George dialed. George went through the audition process. So far, George, you're $59,000 to the good.

(audience cheers)

Ready to win $20,000 more?