Entertainment

HIS LAST GAME

HERE’S the clue: An expression of delight – six letters.

The answer: “Oooooh.”

That was hopefully Merv Griffin’s reaction to “Crosswords,” the new quiz show he was working on when he died Aug. 12.

Actually, he first began trying to figure out a way to adapt crossword puzzles for a TV game show more than 40 years ago.

With this new show – full name: “Merv Griffin’s Crosswords” – it looks like he largely succeeded, though he won’t be around to celebrate the show’s premiere Sept. 10 (4 p.m. on WNBC/Ch. 4).

How’d he do it? With simplicity, plus the answers arrayed in grid patterns, just like in his other iconic game shows, “Jeopardy!” and “Wheel of Fortune.”

The new half-hour “Crosswords” begins with two contestants – called “solvers” – squaring off for cash and prizes by answering crossword puzzle clues announced by host Ty Treadway.

Since they both have a chance to answer the same questions, a lot depends on their dexterity with a buzzer, as in “Jeopardy!”

As revealed in a preview DVD of an upcoming episode of “Crosswords” that was provided to TV critics this week, the “clues” are not nearly as difficult as “Jeopardy!,” but they do present some challenges, especially since the time allotted for answering the questions is only a few seconds.

In the episode, the clues ranged from very easy (“slang for Internet businesses, three letters, ‘Dot [blank]’ – answer: ‘com'”) to more difficult (“Pan’s place, nine letters – answer: ‘Neverland’ “).

In Round Two, the game becomes somewhat more complicated when the two contestants are joined by three new ones called “spoilers” who take positions at their own podiums positioned behind the first two solvers.

These new solvers then join the game and if any one of them answers a question correctly, they get to replace one of the original contestants in the front row.

As a result, contestants switch back and forth from the front row to the back row throughout the show until time runs out, when the contestant in the front row with the most money is declared the winner.

But the game isn’t over yet. That winner then has to complete the remaining parts of the entire crossword puzzle in a minute and a half.

This probably sounds more complicated than it really is. And on the preview DVD, a 19-year-old contestant’s effort to complete the puzzle before the buzzer sounded was more suspenseful than I ever would have expected a game show to be.

Here’s another clue: Quiz-show king – four letters.

The answer: “Merv,” of course.