But there's one big difference between Italian and American quiz shows: breasts.
I've blogged about this topic before (breasts and their place in Italian culture), but quiz shows are the perfect example to illustrate this.
Take a look at this photo:
The guy on the right is the host of a popular quiz show called L'Eredità (Inheritance). And the ladies on the left? Think Vanna White after a few stiff drinks. The show is on prime time--right smack dab in the middle of family hour tv. Here's how it goes:
First, the guests all introduce themselves. Fairly standard.
Now the show begins...trivia questions, close-ups of contestants' family members biting their fingernails, brilliant contestants wowing the audience with their trivia prowess, nervous contestants flubbing obvious questions (which are never obvious to me, mind you, since I'm not Italian), etc. Again, nothing new here.
Then, just when the Italian public can't take the seriousness any longer, cue the raunchy music and out comes the group of scantily-clad women shown in the picture above, who writhe and wiggle to the music for about 30 seconds. As the last note of the song hangs in the air, they strike a suggestive pose and the audience breaks into enthusiastic applause.
Then the dancing ladies slink off-stage, the host comes back, and the game recommences.
All game shows have this half-time show, dancing-girl element, not just this one. And in the photo above, I think it's significant that the women are pictured first, and the host (who is on camera for all but 30 seconds of the show) is pictured last.
Answer (for 200 Euro): The two things that make the Italian quiz-show world go 'round.
Question: Um, Alex, what are breasts?
Ding! Ding! Ding! Thaaaaaaaat's correct!
:-)
