Let's Make a Deal
Monty Hall
August 25, 1921 - September 30, 2017.
Famous Canadian-American TV game show host, born in Winnipeg, Manitoba. I watched his popular TV show "Let's Make a Deal" when I was a kid.
Hall began in Canadian radio then graduated to Canadian TV from which he was picked for American TV.
"Let's Make a Deal," which debuted in 1963 but then ran through many seasons plus re-runs, was raw gambling as well as mathematical probability fully exposed. Contestants were chosen from the studio audience - outlandishly dressed to attract Monty’s attention - and would start the game by trading an item of their own for a prize or money. After that it was a matter of swapping the prize in hand for others hidden behind doors, curtains, or in boxes seductively presented by the eye candy female assistants. They always had a simple 2-or-3-way choice: sell one of their personal items to Monty on the spot for cash; after that, either sit down and retire or else continue pursuing the chance for more valuable prizes by gambling what they have for what's hidden under Box Number 1,2,or 3; and, finally face the big prize behind Curtain Number 1, 2, or 3.
People over-estimated their chances of winning, not realizing that sometimes there was nothing at all under a particular box or behind a particular curtain.
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The motivation to advance through risk-taking was hard to resist because it's based on the false notion that if they keep playing then their chances of "winning" increase.
It was all very fast-paced. Naturally, as in life, people over-estimated their chances of winning, not realizing that sometimes there was nothing at all under a particular box or behind a particular curtain. Contestants knew they could lose, but the motivation to advance through risk-taking was hard to resist because it's based on the false notion that if they keep playing then their chances of "winning" increase. I loved watching it. The ultimate prize was usually either a new automobile or an all expenses paid vacation package.
The query “Do you want Door No. 1, No. 2 or No3?” became a pop culture phrase.