Hollywood Squares

Hollywood Squares is an American panel game show in which two contestants play tic-tac-toe to win cash and prizes. The game board consists of a 3 × 3 vertical stack of open-faced cubes, each occupied by a celebrity seated at a desk and facing the contestants. The stars are asked questions by the host, or "Square-Master," and the contestants judge the truth of their answers to determine the outcome of the game. Although Hollywood Squares was a legitimate game show, the gameplay often served as a backdrop for the show's comedic elements, particularly in the form of joke answers. These jokes were frequently provided by the celebrities before they gave their "real" answers. The show's writers typically supplied the joke material, and the stars were given question topics and plausible incorrect answers in advance. While the show was scripted in this regard, the gameplay itself was not. As host Peter Marshall, the best-known "Square-Master," explained at the beginning of the Secret Square game, the celebrities were briefed beforehand to help them with bluff answers, but otherwise heard the actual questions for the first time as they were asked on air. The term "Square-Master" was coined by the show's first announcer, Kenny Williams, in honor of Marshall.