Alphabetics is the bonus round of Password Plus and its later incarnations (one of which was under a different name). The celebrity gives the contestant clues for ten passwords, arranged alphabetically (hence the original name) from, for example, the letter "A" to the letter "J". Each time a password is conveyed, the contestant wins money. Getting all ten won a cash jackpot.
Original Alphabetics[]
Each correct password nets the contestant $100. Should the contestant get all ten, he or she wins $5,000! Should the celebrity give an illegal clue—the password or a form thereof, a two-word clue or a hyphenate, or (in later episodes) a direct opposite—the jackpot is reduced by a fifth of its value ($5,000 down to $4,000; $10,000 down to $8,000; $15,000 down to $12,000; etc.). For a brief time, each illegal clue decreased the jackpot by $2,500. In the final season, the jackpot began at $5,000 and increased that much every time it was not won, up to a maximum of $50,000. The highest it reached was $35,000, won by Terri Edler in 1982. This jackpot format would remain when the series was revived by NBC in 1984, as Super Password, and the bonus round would be renamed The Super Password End Game. The quickest Alphabetics win took 29 seconds. The record was set by Joanna Gleason in 1981. Betty White would tie it the same year. However, on the opposite end of the spectrum, Gina Hecht and her contestant got no words correct in 1980.
In the beginning, the Alphabetics board was located at the entrance were the show's logo doubled as a gate and the words were listed downward; it was later moved to a wall behind a set of doors, so that it wouldn't be in the way of the show's logo that closed the entrance. Allen Ludden called it "The Alphabetics Wall." Also the words were zigzagged down the board.
The Super Password End Game[]
The Super Password End Game is the bonus round of Super Password and was played the same way as Alphabetics, except that opposites were always legal. The celebrity gives the contestant clues for ten passwords, arranged alphabetically from, for example, the letter "A" to the letter "J". The letters appeared in computer animated boxes which flipped in side to side. Each time a word was answered, the appropriate letter turned into a dollar sign ("$"). If an illegal clue was given, the appropriate letter turned black. Each correct password nets the contestant $100. Should the contestant get all ten, he/she wins the jackpot which began at $5,000 and increased that much every time it was not won. Should the celebrity give an illegal clue—the password or a form thereof, a two-word clue or a hyphenate—the word is lost and the jackpot forfeited.
The highest the jackpot had reached was $55,000 (won twice; however, the latter winner forfeited his winnings after it was discovered he was wanted for insurance fraud).
2022 Bonus Round[]
The 2022 bonus round is the same Alphabetics round from Password Plus/Super Password. This time both celebrities will play and it is structured like Celebrity Name Game & The Hollywood Game. Plus the contestant will always be the giver. As usual, 10 passwords arranged in alphabetical order will be presented. The winning contestant will have 60 seconds (30 for each celebrity) to get the celebrities to say all 10 passwords. As always, the giver can pass if they're stuck and can come back to it if there's time left on the clock. After the first 30 seconds with the first celebrity (which will be of the contestant's choosing), the second 30 will be played with the second celebrity; and should an illegal clue be given on any word during the first 30 seconds, a new word will replace the discarded one. Each password is worth $1,000 and getting all ten is worth $25,000. Failure to convey all ten after the 60 seconds results in a playing of a "Redemption Round" for double the money (up to $18,000) at no risk whatsoever. The winning contestant will see one last password and gives just one clue to it. Then the contestant will put headphones on so (s)he won't hear a 30-second conference by the celebrities, as they confer on what they think the password is. At the end of the 30 seconds, the celebrities announce their answer and then the contestant reveals what the password is. An incorrect guess only kept the money from the main bonus round, but a correct guess doubles the money.