100 mexicanos dijeron

Yes, it is Family Feud (although the host is not nearly as annoying as Richard Dawson, and doesn't kiss all the women). But as a Spanish language student, I find it a very useful tool for learning. At first, it's difficult to follow, like any other show with rapid speech. But, after awhile, you'll find you can follow it. And what you'll find is a great source of expressions and vocabulary, prioritized by popularity.

For example, a few days ago the question was: name another way to say "Pienso que...". Of course, "Creo que..." was the number one answer. But some that I would have thought reasonable answers ("Supongo ...") were not in the top 4, some were mentioned that I would not have thought of but are connected in native Spanish speakers minds ("Tal vez"), and others that made sense but I would not have thought of came up ("Imagino que...").

So, it's not the most dignified show on TV. But if you want to improve your Spanish, check it out.

If you happen to be up on your Spanish or wish to learn to speak it better like I do, you'll really enjoy "100 Mexicanos Dijeron" (literally, "100 Mexicans Said..."). The show is the Mexican version of Goodson-Todman's 1976 hit, "Family Feud", and features local television personality Marco Antonio Regil as host. Unlike the American version, this version, produced by Televisa for the Telefutura network, lasts a full 60 minutes.

In the first half of the show, two new families compete in a race to 300 points. At the start of each round, Regil asks a survey question previously asked to 100 Mexicans (e.g., "Name an occupation that requires you to be clean"). One player from each family sounds in and gives an answer. The player giving the highest (most popular) answer in the survey automatically gains control of the question for his/her family. This differs from the American version in which the family decides on whether to play the question or pass to their opponents, hoping they can steal it back later.

One by one, each member of the five-person family team gives answers they think will appear in the list of answers from the survey. The more popular the answer, the more points - 55 responses equal 55 points. An answer must have been given by at least two people to make the list of answers, so in most rounds the number of points does not equal 100.

If an answer does not appear on this list, it's a strike (signified by a buzzer offstage); if a family gets three strikes the opposing family can claim the points in the bank by giving one unrevealed answer not mentioned by the first family. Unlike the American version of the game, the value of this final answer is added to the bank if given; on the American version of the show, the value of the bank is effectively frozen after a third strike. This occasionally led to some meager banks (imagine a 6-part question where the bottom two answers were given for a total of 18 points) and a team giving a #1 answer couldn't improve the bank.

The first three rounds are played for points at face value, with the fourth round played for double points and the fifth round, if necessary, played for triple points. If no family has reached 300 points by the end of the fifth round, then a sixth and final round is played, "Subita Muerta" or sudden death, also for triple points (to ensure a winner). This is the only round of the game where a pass or play option is present, but it is also the only round where one strike is allowed (similar to the 2000 production of "Family Feud"). Often the sudden death round has only three answers so the pass/play strategy makes sense: does a family risk playing in order to give two correct answers, or pass to their opponents hoping they can get one final chance? The first family reaching 300 points receives a flat 5,000 pesos (at the exchange rates current to this writing, about $450). This is not substantially different from the 1976 version of "Family Feud", in which winning families received between $300 and $600 for winning a game.

The winning family goes on to play "Dinero Rapido" (literally, "Fast Money") for a chance to win 100,000 pesos (or close to $10,000). As in the American version of the show, two players answer the same five survey questions in 15 seconds (first player) and 20 seconds (second player), with a total of 200 combined points resulting in the big prize.

Win or lose, the family advances to the second half-hour of the program, in which they meet the defending champion family from the previous night's show. Game play is the same for the second half of the show, with the winner of the game declared the day's champion and advancing to Fast Money for a larger prize of up to 200,000 pesos.

Before the second Fast Money round, the first player selects a piece of candy from a large basket on stage (this is reminiscent of when Richard Dawson had players on the end of the stage pull a lollipop; certain marked pieces carried a $100 bonus). Many pieces are simply labeled "Buena Suerte" (Good Luck) but some pieces are labeled with special additional prizes (5,000 pesos), extra points (a random number of points added at the end of the game if the family has less than 200 points), or "Double" (raising the prize to the 200,000 peso maximum).

The pace of "100 Mexicanos Dijeron" is brisk and Regil's sense of humor is delightful. The audience's and players' enthusiasm is far more palpable than that of the American version. The scoreboard and game resemble those you'd see in a soccer stadium, complete with cartoon animations. The celebrity specials that run occasionally carry the designation "V.I.P." and feature Mexican stars playing for charities.

"100 Mexicanos Dijeron", at the time of this writing, aired on the Univision/Telefutura television networks, in prime time, at 8pm Eastern and 7pm Central.

It's not fair to say this program is a Mexican version of Family Feud any more than to say Family Feud is an American version of 100 Mexicanos Dijeron. The south-of-the-border rendition is a great deal more fun, and exciting, without all those pesky hosts committing suicide.

The format of the show is familiar yet fresh, and the Mexican version has added two scintillating dancing models. The prizes are unchanged aside from the currency, with 5000 pesos = $455.00 USD -- maybe not life-changing for you, me, and Roy Combs, but it certainly makes for great TV programming.

I used to watch this show on a regular basis when living in California. I liked it then; now, living next to Ciudad Juarez, Spanish is more in my environment. I've not seen Family Feud in many years, but Marco Antonio Regil is so much more expressive and animated than Richard Dawson was in his dreams. This is a good starting point for anyone interested in improving their Spanish and learning more on Mexican culture. The responses from the surveyed Mxican Families may surprise you. I was really fascinated with the question: Name a U.S. football team. My Favorite, Dallas Cowboys, was the number one answer. I can recommend this show to anyone who likes to see "dinnertime" entertainment. This is a fun show to watch.