A TV game show is where contestants answer questions or solve puzzles to win prizes. The very first game show that was broadcast in the late 1930’s was “Spelling Bee” and has become a TV phenomenon ever since. Game shows such as “Jeopardy,” “Wheel of Fortune” and “Family Feud” have been on the air for more than three decades.
Becoming a contestant in one of these popular TV game shows is quite difficult as thousands of applicants apply and hope to be the next big winner. That is why a few people who were able to become contestants will do anything to win, even as low as cheating.
Michael Larson – “Press Your Luck”
Michael Larson became a contestant on a game show called “Press Your Luck” in May 1984. He was an ice cream truck driver who dreamed of winning it big someday. His dream came true, as he walked away with $110,237, the most in game show history at that time.
The game show featured an illuminated board with 18 squares which light up in sequence. A contestant answers trivia questions to earn “spins” for the board and earns cash prizes from whatever their spin lands on, with the exception of a “whammy,” in which a contestant loses his or her earnings.
Larson began to study and memorize the pattern of the illuminated squares of the board. Eventually, he was able to predict the right time to press the button to avoid the whammies.
During the taping of the show, Larson was able to spin 45 consecutive times without landing on a whammy before he passed the turn onto another contestant.
Charles Ingram – “Who Wants To Be a Millionaire”
Charles Ingram was able to win the grand prize from the popular game show, “Who Wants to be a Millionaire,” with the help of his two accomplices, his wife Diana and Tecwen Whittock.
Their plan was Charles would read the choices one by one out loud for a particular question, and after he said the correct answer, Diana would cough as a signal to Charles that it was the right answer. Initially, they only intended to win enough cash to pay off debts. However, Charles got greedy and went all the way to the one million cash prize.
This eventually led to their downfall, as producers of the show were prompted to review the taping of the show.
After reviewing the tape, the producers have noticed that someone from the audience was coughing every time Charles was reading out the answers. They later found out that the person coughing in the background was Charles’ wife.
In the end, producers have suspended Charles’ winnings and have filed appropriate charges against the three.
