Squeeze Play (pricing game)

Host Drew Carey and a contestant about to play "Squeeze Play".

Squeeze Play is a pricing game on the American television game show The Price Is Right. Debuting on September 13, 1977, this game is played for a prize with four digits in its price, worth more than $2,000. The game is occasionally played for prizes worth more than $10,000, such as an expensive trip, boat, trailer or car.

Gameplay

The contestant is shown a string of five digits, four of which are the actual price of the prize in the proper order with an extra digit placed somewhere in the middle. The first and last digits in the string are always in their correct position. The contestant must select which of the three numbers is the extraneous digit, which is then removed, leaving the other four digits to squeeze together, closing the gap and forming a final price. If the resulting price is the actual price, they win the prize.

Since February 5, 2003, Squeeze Play has occasionally been played for cars and other prizes with five-digit prices. In this format, the contestant is shown six digits, with one of the middle four being the extraneous digit.

History and behind the scenes

From the game's debut in 1977 until 1982, Squeeze Play was played at center stage and concealed by the giant price tag. In 1982, the game moved to its current position on the turntable. The board originally had a blue and white color scheme which was changed to gray and gold on March 2, 2001. On the 1994 syndicated version Squeeze Play was played at its original position at center stage, although occasionally it was played on the platform in front of the video wall.

The sound effect for the numbers squeezing together is the same heard when the safe is opened and closed in Safe Crackers.

Squeeze Play has been fraught with mechanical problems throughout its history. Numbers have been stuck and misaligned, the "squeeze" has failed to operate promptly, and the door that opens the reveal has malfunctioned several times. The latter two led to a change in the prop in that a grip now controls the "squeeze" instead of it being mechanical.