47 Fun Facts About Double Dare

In what year did Double Dare premiere as Nickelodeon's first game show?

Double Dare premiered on Nickelodeon on October 6, 1986, hosted by Marc Summers; a syndicated version followed in 1988.

What protective gear were kids given before running the obstacle course?

Before the obstacle course, kids suited up in helmets, elbow pads and knee pads, since the timed run had them diving, climbing and sliding through goo.

What were the messy stunts on Double Dare officially called?

The stunts were officially 'physical challenges', taken when a team would rather not answer a question; both kids on a team took part in each one.

On the original Double Dare, how much was a question initially worth?

Questions started at $10 in the first round and $20 in the second; taking the stunt instead paid the same as a double-dared question.

After a dare and a double dare, a question is worth how many times its original value?

The team in control then has to answer or take the physical challenge.

How many obstacles make up the Double Dare obstacle course?

The course has eight obstacles; teams get a single minute, passing a flag from one partner to the next after each one, with a prize for every flag grabbed.

The messy stunts usually had to be completed within what time limit?

The stunts usually had a limit of 20 or 30 seconds, announced by the host before each began, and the money was won only if the stunt was completed in time.

The obstacle called Pick It was a giant version of what?

Pick It was a giant human nose; a contestant had to reach up a nostril, through the 'snot', to find the flag hidden inside.

Which obstacle sent kids down a chocolate-covered ramp into ice cream?

The Sundae Slide sent contestants down a ramp coated in chocolate syrup into a pool of ice cream, with the flag waiting at the bottom.

The oversized rodent exercise contraption on the obstacle course was known by what name?

The One-Ton Human Hamster Wheel had a contestant run inside a giant wheel to spin it until the flag came within reach; it became one of the course's signature obstacles.

On the Gum Drop obstacle, contestants leapt into a giant version of what?

Gum Drop was a giant gumball machine: contestants leapt into the globe full of plastic balls and slid out through the dispensing hatch at the bottom to grab the flag.

On Double Dare, the grand prize for finishing the obstacle course was usually a vacation or a trip to what?

A trip to Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama was the classic obstacle-course grand prize, alongside family vacations; smaller prizes waited at each earlier obstacle.

The 1988 Family Double Dare episodes aired on Saturday nights on which network?

Family Double Dare aired on Fox in 1988, a short first-run stint on the young broadcast network before the format moved to Nickelodeon in 1990.

Who hosted the 2000 revival, Double Dare 2000?

Jason Harris hosted Double Dare 2000, Nickelodeon's year-2000 revival, which kept the messy stunts and obstacle course of the original.

Which YouTube star hosted the 2018 Double Dare revival alongside Marc Summers?

YouTuber Liza Koshy hosted the 2018 revival on Nickelodeon, with original host Marc Summers returning as announcer and sidekick.

What new option did the 2000 revival add to round two?

Double Dare 2000 added the Triple Dare Challenge to round two, a harder stunt that paid more than a standard one and came with a bonus prize.

The original Double Dare announcer, a local radio host, was known on air simply as what?

John Harvey skipped the final Family Double Dare season to be with his newborn son and was replaced by a Florida DJ, Doc Holliday.

Along with Dave Shikiar, who was one of the two original on-camera stage assistants on Double Dare?

Robin Marrella and Dave Shikiar were the original on-camera stage assistants, demonstrating each stunt and resetting the messy set between them.

The original set's glass bricks and pink-and-yellow checkerboards were inspired by which 1980s Italian design group?

The set's glass bricks, squiggles and pink-and-yellow checkerboards echoed Memphis, the Milan design collective founded by Ettore Sottsass in 1981.

Producer Geoffrey Darby directed that the original set should resemble what kind of building?

Darby wanted the set to look like a natatorium, an indoor swimming pool building, which suited a show built on getting soaked; hence the tiles and glass brick.

Double Dare's developers based the format on trivia, truth or dare, and which board game?

Dee LaDuke, Robert Mittenthal, Michael Klinghoffer and Geoffrey Darby put the combination together.

Which comedian was among the initial candidates considered to host Double Dare?

Soupy Sales was another early name; Marc Summers won a two-man final audition.

Why was Marc Summers obligated by the network not to mention his age publicly for years?

Focus groups thought Summers was much younger than his 34 years when the show began, so the network told him to keep his age to himself.

The original Double Dare was taped at the studios of PBS station WHYY-TV in which city?

Double Dare was taped at WHYY-TV in Philadelphia, where the public broadcaster's studio was far cheaper to use than a New York facility.

How many days did it take to record the entire 65-episode first season?

Taping began on September 18, 1986, less than three weeks before the premiere.

Family Double Dare and later Super Sloppy Double Dare were produced at Universal Studios where?

Nickelodeon Studios opened at Universal Studios Florida in Orlando in June 1990, and Family Double Dare and Super Sloppy Double Dare were taped there.

Who composed all of the original Double Dare music?

Edd Kalehoff, the composer behind The Price Is Right's theme and many game-show cues, wrote all of the original Double Dare music.

Before Double Dare entered syndication in 1988, what colour uniforms did both teams wear?

In the original Nickelodeon seasons both teams wore red shirts; only when the show went into syndication in 1988 did one team switch to blue so viewers could tell them apart.

In 1987, Viacom produced adult-player Double Dare pilots hosted by which Olympic gold medallist?

Caitlyn Jenner, then known as Bruce, the 1976 Olympic decathlon champion, hosted the 1987 adult Double Dare pilots, which never made it to air.

How many stations was Super Sloppy Double Dare syndicated to by the end of its run?

The series left syndication on September 8, 1989.

What colour were the flags contestants grabbed at each obstacle on the course?

Each obstacle hid an orange flag; a contestant grabbed it and handed it to a partner for the next obstacle, and every flag collected won that obstacle's prize.

Family Double Dare ended on February 7, 1993, with a one-hour episode of what kind?

It included a 'brains vs. brawn' mini-tournament.

In 2001, TV Guide ranked Double Dare where on its list of the 50 Greatest Game Shows?

TV Guide placed Double Dare 29th on its 2001 list of the 50 Greatest Game Shows, a rare kids' show in a ranking dominated by primetime and daytime classics.

On the 2018 revival, which side got to keep the money it earned?

Every earlier version let both teams keep their winnings regardless of the result.

The 2018 Double Dare episodes were recorded at which Los Angeles lot?

Nickelodeon ordered 40 episodes and shot them all in June 2018.

Which NBA star raced Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps through the obstacle course on the 2018 revival?

Other episodes brought back All That alumni Jamie Lynn Spears and Josh Server as contestants.

A 2019 Double Dare special with NFL players was simulcast on the day of which NFL championship game?

The special aired on February 3, 2019, the day of Super Bowl LIII in Atlanta, where the Patriots beat the Rams 13-3.

Double Dare Challenge opened in 2016 at Nickelodeon Universe inside which giant mall?

Before that, Double Dare Live ran nightly for guests of a Nickelodeon-branded Florida resort from 2012 to 2016.

Stages based on Double Dare are playable in which 2020 video game?

The show also turned up as downloadable content in the 2021 fighter Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl.

Marc Summers was born under what surname?

Marc Summers was born Marc Berkowitz in Indianapolis, Indiana, in 1951 and adopted the stage name Summers early in his broadcasting career.

After Double Dare, Marc Summers became best known for hosting which Food Network series?

Unwrapped, which Summers hosted on Food Network from 2001, toured candy and snack factories to show how treats are made.

How many viewers watched the June 2018 revival premiere, making it Nickelodeon's top show that day?

The 2016 30th-anniversary reunion special had drawn 1.126 million on Nick at Nite.

Reruns of every Double Dare version cycled from 1999 to 2009 on which Nickelodeon spin-off channel?

Nick GAS, short for Nickelodeon Games and Sports for Kids, launched in 1999 and ran Double Dare reruns alongside other Nick game shows until the channel went dark.

Which shoe company sponsored Double Dare throughout its run?

Nickelodeon turned down other tie-ins, including a Casio logo on the stage clock and a Double Dare breakfast cereal.

Which magazine spoofed the show in 1988 as 'Double Damp', hosted by 'Muck Slummers' and 'Hardly'?

Both Marc Summers and Harvey consider being parodied there a high point of their careers.

Which band's 2011 video for 'Last Night' staged a game of Family Double Dare?

Good Charlotte's 2011 'Last Night' video recreated Family Double Dare, with the band running the questions, stunts and obstacle course of the show.

Which company published a Double Dare video game for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1990?

GameTek, the Florida publisher behind the NES versions of Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune, released Double Dare for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1990.