Singled Out is an American dating game show created by Burt Wheeler & Sharon Sussman which originally ran on MTV from 1995 to 1998. Each episode was split between 50 single women competing for a date with one male contestant & 50 single men competing for a date with one female contestant.
The original hosts were Chris Hardwick and Jenny McCarthy. When McCarthy left the show in early 1997 to star in her own sitcom, Jenny, MTV hired Carmen Electra to replace her for the last season and a half.
The show became a cult classic, putting a more comedic spin on traditional and formal dating shows. Contestants would most likely be unconventional and cast purely for entertainment, without any assumed compatibility put into effect.
MTV relaunched the series November 19, 2018 as S1NGLED OUT on its YouTube channel. Despite attempts to modernize the format by incorporating a social media aspect and implementing MTV’s Wild 'N Out cast members: Justina Valentine & Conceited as hosts to appeal to its urban contemporary & hip hop audience, the series reboot only lasted seven episodes.
On June 4, 2019, it was announced that a reboot of the series would premiere on April 6, 2020 on Quibi with Keke Palmer & Joel Kim Booster as hosts.
Format (1995–1998) Each game began with one main contestant, the "Picker", being escorted onto the set blindfolded in front of the 50 potential dates in the "Dating Pool" while the announcer described him/her. The Picker was then led to a seat facing away from the Dating Pool and further divided from the potential dates by a wall.
Round 1
The Picker was presented with a board showing six categories, which ranged from physical attributes to preferences in love-making to leisure activities. They generally were expressed in a humorous style, often with various pop-culture references. After choosing a category, two or three choices were listed (for example, a category on hair might be divided into blonde, brunette, and redhead), and the Picker was asked to eliminate one of the choices. After eliminating a choice, all the contestants who fit that choice left the Dating Pool, in view of the Picker. This process was repeated until five to eight potentials were left, at which point they advanced to the next round.
In the third season, a Golden Ticket was introduced, which allowed the Picker to save one eliminated player as he or she walked in front of him on the way out of the studio. This contestant automatically advanced to the semifinals. For episodes taped outside, the "Golden Ticket" was replaced with a Golden Lifesaver, with the same rules.
Round 2
At that point, the Picker asked a series of questions which ranged from Dating Game–style questions (example, "if you had me alone in a limousine for three hours, what would you do to me?") to stunt-oriented questions (example, hitting a paddle ball a number of times, with the female host relaying the potential date's performance to the Picker). If the Picker was satisfied with the answer or performance, he or she would "keep" the contestant, advancing them to the final round. If the Picker was not satisfied, he or she would "dump" the contestant, eliminating him or her from further play. "Dumped" contestants were not shown to the Picker as in the first round, but were instead marked with some sort of prop, such as a toilet seat around the neck, a bag with a sad face on it on the male player's head, or a pageant sash labeled "Dumped". This round continued either until three contestants were "kept," or all but three had been "dumped." If the potential date received the golden ticket, then sometimes the host would show him or her to the picker.
Round 3
The wall was removed from behind the Picker to reveal a walkway with several spaces behind him or her. The three finalists started on the back step, and were asked a series of two-choice questions. Each time a contestant's answer matched the Picker's, the player advanced one space on the walkway (occasionally, a question might be worth two steps). The first player to make it to the circle on which the Picker was sitting won a date with the Picker. In case of a tie, a final question was asked to the tying contestants, such as "How many girls did (Picker's name) say he dated last year?". The contestant who guessed the closest without going over won the date. On a few amusing occasions, the finalists visibly and audibly were not pleased by the looks or personality of the Picker, and were trying to guess the WRONG answers so they didn't have to go out with him, with one "winner" bluntly telling Chris Hardwick and Jenny McCarthy that she would not accept the date and walking off the set.