Information AboutRollergames |
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ABOUT THE SHOW In 1989, Emmy Award -winning television producers David Sams (who helped launch '' Wheel Of Fortune '', '' Jeopardy '', and '' The Oprah Winfrey Show '' while head of global marketing and creative affairs at King World ) and Mike Miller (who went on to produce shows like '' When Animals Attack '') teamed with Roller Games owner Bill Griffiths, Sr. to create a modern version of the sport called ''RollerGames''. Instead of a banked oval track, a Figure Eight track was used where one side heavily banked, and included obstacles such as the "Wall of Death" (which was located on the heavily banked side) and the "Jet Jump". As a Tiebreaker , two skaters would skate around a pit full of Alligator s. The first skater to skate around the pit five times or to throw his opponent into the alligator pit was declared the winner. The show also included halftime entertainment by musical performers like Lita Ford , Warrant , Exposé and commentary by Wally George . Main commentators for the show were former Ohio State football and basketball announcer Chuck Underwood and David Sams himself. Former Phoenix, Arizona news reporter Shelley Jamison (who also appeared nude in Playboy ) served as sideline reporter. ''RollerGames'' premiered in 95% of the country, and, though generally panned by critics, was well-received among teenagers and college students. The "world famous" Los Angeles T-Birds were one of the teams used for the show. Other teams were The Rockers, Hot Flash, The Violators, Bad Attitude, and The Maniacs. Many of the athletes that skated for Griffiths in the past were used for ''RollerGames''. Some of the most visible skaters included the T-Bird Twins (two blonde waitresses that Sams recruited while dining at a trendy LA area eatery), "The IceBox" Robert Smith, "Mr. Mean" Harold Jackson, "Electric" Randi Whitman (who got her nickname because of her hair), "Stars and Stripes" Matt Beckham, Dar The Star, Patsy Delgato, and the late Ralphie Valladares, whose daughter, Gina, skated for Hot Flash. Former ABC '' Monday Night Football '' director Chet Forte was recruited to direct the show. Many of the graphics and camera techniques were unique for the day, like the cameras on the skaters. Some of the storylines were off-the-wall, but tame by today's standards—the main storyline was a controversy involving the T-Bird Twins being drafted as one person, rather than two. Hair-pulling and catfights were crowd favorites. The show only lasted one season before getting cancelled because the distributor went Bankrupt , which was not a result of ''RollerGames''. Ironically, the ratings were quite good, even beating out the popular '' American Gladiators ''. In many cities, ''RollerGames'' aired late at night, against '' Saturday Night Live '', while in others it aired mid-day on Saturdays. The last ''RollerGames'' events, and the only ones held in the 1990s, were held in 1990 and 1993:
All three events were T-Birds vs. RGI All-Stars. Post by "williamwsl1" on bankedtracknews, February 24 , 2000 . It is not clear whether these were televised. REFERENCES SEE ALSO
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