ianoflccc
In the wake of the success of Nickelodeon's game show slop fest called "Double Dare", Bob Synes and Scott Stone, producers of the groundbreaking "$1,000,000 Chance of a Lifetime", broke more ground with "Fun House", the messiest game show ever shown in syndication. If none of the stations in your market aired the show, you could catch it on "Chicago's Very Own" super station, WGN, that is, if you had cable. Getting back to the show, it was given a hip, youthful look, unlike the big money, tight security look of "$1M COAL". It featured a college-aged host named J.D. Roth (this would prove to be his best work), cheerleaders to support each team (Samantha "Sammi" Forrest supported the Red team; her twin sister, Jacqueline "Jackie" Forrest supported the Gold team), an exciting announcer in John "Tiny" Hurley, great synthesized-rock hybrid theme music by Score Productions (who provided the $1M COAL music), and a marvelous set, designed for messy stunts, the awesome Grand Prix race, and of course, the little thing known as the Fun House, filled with obstacles galore, crate loads of cash, and a plethora of prizes--which of those cash/prize tags was the Power Prize? Fun House was one of the best syndicated children's game shows of all-time...okay, it was probably THE best, considering that there weren't too many successful children's game shows made for syndication! When you ask people if they remember "Fun House", many would tell you about the people, but I personally remember the Whitewater Slide that went to the pool. That was one of the hundreds of ways to go in the Fun House, and I think that was a great idea, having its participants go their own way; Stone-Stanley believed in the policy that "the choices are yours and yours alone." The funny thing is that Stone-Stanley did quite well when it came to children's game shows, but not as well when it came to adult game shows! (The only exception is "$1M COAL", but that was before the Stone-Stanley name was established!) But of all the game shows they've done, "Fun House" will forever stand out as their best game show. It was the only show where they would put together silly stunts, crazy races and a massive, magnificent obstacle course and target them to those who handle them best--preteens. Too bad this show didn't last as long as it deserved (unlike "Shop 'til You Drop", which lasted longer than it deserved), or else Stone-Stanley's potential would really have been known. I hope that "Fun House" is rerun again (like on GSN or some other network), and in the words of J.D. Roth, "I hope your house is a fun house!"
agntorng
He ain't nothing compared to Marc Summers and his everlasting career, even today. (Food TV) JD Roth felt the need, to ask kids questions randomly during intro that would make them look like complete idiots. I would be more clear on words if JD Roth had not been putting 10 year olds on the spot asking questions about their interests, that mostly, none of them could answer, on the spot, on camera. He bombed on hosting a Double Dare clone that producers shouldve just hired, Mike O'Malley or Summer Sanders. At least Summer Sanders is worth having a crush over... Did JD Roth ever grow past the age of 21? If anything the show FunHouse was good, but had a bad choice of a host. He is not the type like a high profile Marc Summers was, as Marc was highly interactive to the children on his game shows. Marc always involved the stage cast as well as getting himself gacked up in the process. My honest, and long lived opinion. JD Roth is not Marc Summers, and I'm glad he is off Nick TV and onto Discovery Kids. He needs his own identity away from the Double Dare clones. This is not to flame JD Roth, but its a shame he was subjected to be compared to the legendary Marc Summers.
bfrancini
While the show was clearly an attempt to build on the success of Nickelodeon's Double Dare, this syndicated show actually improved on the formula. The stunt and question rounds were paced properly, and some of the stunts were quite creative in nature, including a few (such as "Dumpo"), that developed quite a following among children.Hands down the best part of the show was the Fun House itself, an amazingly elaborate labyrinth of obstacles that, as a child, I found mesmerizing. The show's second season featured a complete revamp of the house to include a water slide and a pool. The Fun House set is considered one of the best game show sets of all time, and the challenges of filming it led to the director of the show winning the Daytime Emmy for Best Game Show Director in 1989.After the show's second season in 1990, the program left syndication and ran on Saturday mornings as Fox's Fun House on Fox. The Fun House was revamped again, featuring all new challenges.Presumably the episodes exist on tape, and while they would be a good fit for Game Show Network or Nick Games and Sports reruns, they have not reaired since last broadcast in 1991.
