Teacher Richard Curtis to host game show

PHILADELPHIA >> Richard Curtis isn’t giving any hints about who the winners were when the first batch of “The ClassH-Room” episodes were made.

For that, you’ll have to watch the game show, which, beginning Oct. 1, will run from noon to 12:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays on Fox 29.

“My lips are sealed. I will say it’s a very exciting finish on a lot of these episodes,” Curtis, a Souderton Area High School technology education teacher and host of the show, said in a telephone interview.

“The ClassH-Room” pits three-person teams of students in grades seven through 12 against threeperson teams of teachers from the same school to see which can correctly answer the most questions of general knowledge, pop culture trivia and other topic areas, he said.

“Honestly, truly, it’s anybody’s game, but the winner walks away with $500, but I think most importantly, the bragging rights,” Curtis said.

The $500 goes to the school no matter which team wins, but the winning team decides what the school will spend it on, he said.

The shows are done in front of a live studio audience of about 60 to 80 of the students’ and teachers’ family and friends, he said.

Audience members are encouraged to wear the school colors, bring big foam fingers and weird headdresses, he said. School mascots are also invited.

“The audience is such an important part of the show. We highlight them a bunch of times because, let’s be honest, the biggest fans of the students are their parents, right?” Curtis said. “And you get to see that live and in person when they’re wearing the colors and whipping around their rally flags. It’s really cool, something to see.”

Curtis’s second career as a television personality started with his 2016 win to co-host “Live! With Kelly” with Kelly Ripa. Follow-ups have included hosting Varsity Spirits National Dance Championships on ESPN/ ESPN2 and CBS Sports and appearances on “Good Day Philadelphia.” Off-screen appearances in the local area have included being master of ceremonies for the Penn Foundation’s Autumn Event and keynote speaker at the Indian Valley Chamber of Commerce annual awards dinner.

Having the teaching job that he loves takes the pressure off everything else, including what is a great opportunity to do the new game show, he said.

“Honestly, I don’t feel any pressure because at the end of the day, I have a classroom of kids that I love going to every day and doing the teaching thing,” Curtis said.

The show is taped on Saturdays, he said.

“We have six schools come in,” Curtis said. “We do three in the morning, three in the afternoon and we bank them.” CURTIS >> PAGE 8

PHOTO COURTESY OF FOX TELEVISION Souderton Area High School teacher Richard Curtis, who hosts “The ClassH-Room,” is seen on the show’s set. The game show that pits students against teachers from the same school begins airing Oct. 1. Show time is noon to 12:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays on Fox 29.

PHOTO COURTESY OF FOX TELEVISION The ClassH-Room, a game show hosted by Souderton Area High School teacher Richard Curtis, will air at noon Mondays through Fridays, beginning Oct. 1, on Fox 29.