GSN ANNOUNCES A NEW LINEUP OF COMPETITORS
FOR THIRD SEASON OF “THE AMERICAN BIBLE CHALLENGE,”
PREMIERING THURSDAY, MAY 22 AT 8 PM (ET/PT)
Comedian and Author Jeff Foxworthy Leads the Fun and Excitement
as Players Compete on Behalf of Their Favorite Charities
Santa Monica, CA – April 16, 2014 – Today GSN announced the lineup of competitors for the third season of its highest rated original series of all time, THE AMERICAN BIBLE CHALLENGE. Jeff Foxworthy hosts this one-hour game show in which contestants compete based on their knowledge of the Bible. Season three premieres with two back-to-back original episodes on Thursday, May 22nd at 8 PM (ET/PT), and will air new episodes every Thursday at 8 PM (ET/PT) on GSN.
Season three of THE AMERICAN BIBLE CHALLENGE will bring a new set of diverse, fun and colorful contestants which include a team of former beauty queens, motorcycle ridingpriests, police officers and Mormon moms. Comedian Jeff Foxworthy is reunited with GRAMMY® winner and multi-platinum-selling musician and producer Kirk Franklin as musical co-host.
THE AMERICAN BIBLE CHALLENGE has added brand new games that put the contestant’s spiritual and physical talents to the test with new categories that include “Christ or Klingon” in which contestants have to guess whether words are from the Bible or Star Trek’s Klingon language; “Curse You Autocorrect” where contestants must decipher a typed Bible passage that has been “autocorrected” and “Nazareth Enquirer” with sensational Biblical headlines that could have appeared in atabloid.
Aside from showcasing their knowledge of the world’s best-selling book, each team will compete on behalf of a charitable organization. The tournament starts with 18 three-person teams—three teams in each of the first six episodes of the season. The winning teams from each of those six episodes advance to play in two semi-final games. During the final round, one team will be named champions of THE AMERICAN BIBLE CHALLENGE.
The 18 teams who will kick off Season 3 of THE AMERICAN BIBLE CHALLENGE are below.
TEAM BAREFOOT AMBASSADORS
Hometown: Charlotte, NC
Charity: Samaritan’s Feet, which gives shoes to needy kids
Team Members: Natychia Young, Catrina Reese and Belinda Jackson
TEAM BIBLE BELTS
Hometown: Otway, OH
Charity: Kicks For Jesus, which offers free martial arts instruction
Team Members: Jonathan King, Matt Phipps and Brad Harris
TEAM CHEFS TO THE RESCUE
Hometown: Portsmouth, VA
Charity: Mercy Chefs, exists to serve professionally prepared, high-quality meals to the victims of local, state and national emergencies
Team Members: Walter Taylor, Gary LeBlanc and Peggy Williford
TEAM CROWN JEWELS
Hometown: Lumberton, NC
Charity: The Vs Cancer Foundation works with sports teams to do fundraising drives for cancer
Team Members: Hannah Webb, Victoria Huggins and Kelly Glendennin
TEAM DEVOTED DIVAS
Hometown: Akron, OH
Charity: Unity in the Community, which provides education, community enhancement and public services
Team Members: Patrice Smith, Gloria Williams and Randi Bibbs
TEAM FASHION OF THE CHRIST
Hometown: New York, NY
Charity: Uniting Against Lung Cancer raises money to research and help prevent lung cancer
Team Members: Glen Proctor, Bruce Proctor and Robby Cecil
TEAM GOSPEL FOR TEENS
Hometown: New York, NY
Charity: The Mama Foundation of the Arts aims to present, promote and preserve the history and fundamentals of gospel music, jazz and blues
Team Members: Tru Osborne, Trystan Fields-Newton and Percy Henry
TEAM HEARTLAND GUARDS
Hometown: Buda, IL
Charity: Make-A-Wish Foundation, which grants the wishes of children diagnosed with life-threatening medical conditions in the United States and its territories.
Team Members: Dane Barnett, Ryan Beach and Quinn Brandt
TEAM KORI’S CRUSADERS
Hometown: Bunker Hill, IN
Charity: The Irok Foundation assists families with day-to-day expenses that are not covered under insurance.
Team Members: Andre Mitchell, Heather Morgan and Andrew Draper
TEAM LIFT YOUR VOICE
Hometown: Hilliard, OH
Charity: The National MPS Society
Team Members: David Faile, Rachel Wojnarowski and Matt Wojnarowski.
TEAM THREE WISE WOMEN
Hometown: Providence, UT
Charity: One Heart for Bulgaria, which provides a quality life for Bulgarian orphans
Team Members: Jill Mason, Deborah Gardner and Heidi Barker
TEAM PEARLY SKATES
Hometown: Raleigh, NC
Charity: Donate Life (North Carolina) helps families cover the costs of donation surgeries
Team Members: Bethany Pergerson, Millie Bomar, and Ciara Healy
TEAM PRAYER PATROL
Hometown: Joplin, MO
Charity: Rebuild Joplin, a non-profit that builds homes for those who suffered from the Joplin tornado
Team Members: Brian Lewis, Matthew Stewart and Shane Dotson
TEAM QUEENS OF ARTS
Hometown: Queens, NY
Charity: The Arts & Education Continuum provides music art programs for kids
Team Members: Christine George, Cladusia Smartt, and Theresa Stembridge
TEAM RHYMZ WITH GRACE
Hometown: Mobile, AL
Charity: Home of Grace helps victims of abuse
Team Members: Seth Brasher, Harrison Hughes and Kory Van Matre
TEAM FAITHFUL FATHERS
Hometown: St. Paul, MN
Charity: NET Ministries hosts getaways for young people where they are able to learn life skills and build their character in an optimistic setting
Team Members: Marc Paveglio, Mark Pavlak and Chad Van Hoose
TEAM WE’RE IN TENTS
Hometown: Grand Rapids, MI
Charity: Camp Michawana awards kids who would not otherwise get to go to camp
Team Members: Jessica Taber, Rochelle Visser and Brittni Hill AKA “Red Thunder”, “Spitfire”, and “Heartbreaker”
TEAM WORDS WITH FRIENDS
Hometown: Charlotte, NC
Charity: The VCC Church in the City Women’s Shelter offers money to underprivileged children
Team Members: Lisa Moorehead, Shawn Cunningham and Cheryl Riley
For additional contestant information, go to http://gsntv.com/shows/the-american-bible-challenge/team-announcement/. Press can register to download photos at http://corp.gsn.com/
THE AMERICAN BIBLE CHALLENGE garnered the network’s highest delivery in its 18-year history with 1.7 million total viewers for its August 23, 2012 series premiere. Factoring in the encore airing, the premiere episode was watched by over 2 million viewers. The second season premiered on March 21, 2013 and built upon the success of season one with year-to-year increases of +34% W18-49 and +17% W25-54. THE AMERICAN BIBLE CHALLENGE has now been seen by over 21 million viewers.
THE AMERICAN BIBLE CHALLENGE is produced by Relativity Television for GSN, with Relativity Television’s Tom Forman (“Extreme Makeover: Home Edition”) serving as Executive Producer. Barry Poznick (“Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader,” “Lingo) also serves as Executive Producer. Nick Stuart and Maura Dunbar of Odyssey Networks are Consulting Producers. Odyssey Networks is the country’s largest multi-faith coalition dedicated to producing and distributing media that creates understanding among people of different beliefs and perspectives. Jeff Foxworthy also serves as Producer. Embassy Row’s Michael Davies as well as Parallel Entertainment’s J.P. Williams and Jennifer Novak serve as Executive Producers.
About Relativity Television
Relativity Television, led by CEO Tom Forman, is one of the largest suppliers of television programming in the United States. Since its inception in 2008, Relativity Television has produced more than 750 hours of programming for more than 40 networks, including NBC, MTV, Showtime, A&E, Discovery Channel, Food Network and Disney Channel. In 2013, Relativity Television produced 36 series including “Catfish: The TV Show” (MTV), “The Great Food Truck Race” (Food) and “The American Bible Challenge” (Game Show Network).
About GSN
GSN is a multimedia entertainment company that offers original and classic game programming andcompetitive entertainment via its 80-million subscriber television network and digital game sites. GSN’s cross-platform content gives game lovers the opportunity to win cash and prizes, through GSN’s popular TV game shows and GSN Games’ free casual games, mobile and social games, and skill-game tournaments. GSN’s television network is distributed throughout the U.S., Caribbean and Canada by all major cable operators, satellite providers and telcos. GSN isowned by Sony Pictures Entertainment and DIRECTV. For further information, please visit GSNTV.com.
