True American

True American is a fictional drinking game that appeared on the New Girl episode "Normal", which aired on April 10, 2012 and reran on July 4, 2012. The game captured the imagination of fans of the series and will be seen on an episode of the second season of New Girl.

"Normal" depicts True American being played with the main character Jess, her three roommates, and her then-boyfriend Russell, the latter of whom is unaware of the rules of the game. The rules are explained to Russell in a confused manner, making it impossible for the viewer to deduce the full rules of the game, or whether the scriptwriters intended for there to be a coherent set of rules. Nonetheless, the game became popular among fans of the show, who have created their own sets of rules. The characters in the show describe the game as various combinations of drinking game and life-sized Candy Land. The action in the show is rapid and confused, and Russell is often left in the dark. As shown in the episode, common actions in the game involve calling out the names of presidents of the United States or topics relating to them, keeping off the floor (which, in the game is lava), and of course drinking.

Executive producer Liz Meriwether has said that True American will be played in an episode of the second season of New Girl, saying "We want to tie it into the election. We air on Tuesdays, too, so I think we're going to do something fun with that." The show will, however, be pre-empted on election night itself.

The game inspired the name of the "New Girl True American Bus Tour" that took place in the summer of 2012.