Monopoly Millionaires' Club (TV series)

Monopoly Millionaires' Club (MMC) is an American game show hosted by Mike & Molly‍ '​s Billy Gardell. It is based on a failed multi-state drawing game coordinated by the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL), using the Monopoly board game brand under license from Hasbro. In spring 2015, MMC returned as a scratch-off game.

Format

Each week, winners of a second chance drawing (through an online website) and flown to Las Vegas participate in an MMC game show episode. Selected contestants, one from each of five sections (represented by a Monopoly token) play a series of games based on the popular board game. One player from each section plays a Monopoly-style game (see list of games below.) Each game is played for up to $100,000; all money won is split (half for the player and the other half is split by the player's section.)

Games

• Electric Company: The player faces a game board of 25 light bulbs and a display of 10 switches, each of which lights up a different number of bulbs (from 1 to 10) on the board. The player "flips the switches" one at a time; the player's bank increases with each bulb lit. If the player lights up every bulb except the final red bulb, s/he wins $100,000 to split with their section. Once the player has lit at least 15 bulbs, s/he can choose to stop and take the money in the bank. The 25th light bulb is a red bulb and if a contestant's switch selection lights up the red bulb, a "blackout" occurs, ending the game and any money earned is lost.

• Ride the Rails: Ten different railroad names are listed (four of which are Monopoly railroads); each one has a different number of railroad cars (from 1 to 10), plus a caboose. Each time the player picks a railroad, the train arrives with the number of cars attached to the selected railroad. The cars are revealed one at a time at approximately one-second intervals, in a similar fashion to the British game show The Colour of Money. The player is given a brake button which s/he may press at any time to stop the train and bank the money. If the caboose appears before the brake button is pressed, all the money from that round is lost. The game is played in four rounds; cars in the first round are worth $1,000; in the second round, $2,000; in the third round, $3,000; and in the fourth round, $5,000. If the player reaches $50,000 within four rounds, the winnings are increased to $100,000.

• Block Party: The player faces a board of 12 cards, with 8 representing the "color groups" on a regulation Monopoly board (Brown: $1,000/Light Blue: $2,000/Pink: $3,000/Orange: $4,000/Red: $5,000/Yellow: $6,000/Green: $10,000/Dark Blue: $20,000), three are strike cards, and one is the "Block Party" card which will light up any two properties of the player's choosing; the cards with the chosen colors are then discarded. If two strikes are found, the bank is cut in half; finding all three strikes ends the game and loses the money. Finding all eight color-coded property cards (or six property cards plus the Block Party card) wins $100,000.

• No Vacancy: A three-story hotel divided into 21 sections (seven per row) is presented. The player is shown five limos at a time; each limo has one to five passengers to be placed, all on one of the floors (level 1: $1,000-per person, level 2: $2,000 per person, and level 3: $3,000 per person. Each time a room is lit (indicating a guest has the room), the money attached to the chosen floor is added to the bank. Overbooking any floor ends the game and loses the money; lighting up all 21 spaces wins $100,000.

• Advance to Boardwalk: A path is displayed on the LED floor monitor; the first 13 spaces have money amounts on them, starting at $1,000 with each following space increasing in value by $1,000 up to $13,000. The final space (#14) is "BOARDWALK". The player rolls an oversized die which has its sides lit up in blue LEDs. Whatever number comes up is how many spaces the model moves; the money amount of the space the model lands on is added to the player's Bank. The other model takes the die and turns that number red, indicating that number that cannot be rolled again for the remainder of the game. The object of the game is to reach Boardwalk without rolling a number twice. Completing the task wins the player $100,000. The player can stop at any time, splitting the accumulated money with their section. All money won is added to the player's Bank; however, landing on Boardwalk automatically augments the bank to $100,000. The player is given a Free Roll token at the start of the game, with which they can roll a "repeat" number once and continue playing, but the second bad roll ends the game and loses the money. Should the contestant not make it to "Boardwalk" exactly because the number(s) needed to get there were already taken out of the game, that player automatically stops and takes the money.

• Park It: There are 10 colored cars on either side of the gameboard with five levels of parking spaces. Each is worth a dollar amount ($1,000 to $10,000 in $1,000 increments.) The contestant picks a car; the dollar amount attached to the car is revealed. Then the contestant must decide which level to park the chosen car on. To win the $100,000, one car has to be parked on each of the five levels and the cars must be arranged so that they are in ascending order of value, with the lowest-valued car on the bottom level, and the highest-valued car on top. The player may stop at any time and take the money; if the player selects a car that cannot be placed, the game ends and the player loses the money.

• Community Chest: Ten "community chests" are presented, each filled with dollar amounts ranging from $500 to $5,000 (in $500 increments). The contestant picks a chest and after the amount inside the chest is revealed, s/he can either keep that or give it back and pick another chest. With each new round, the remaining dollar amounts will double (and redouble, etc.); the maximum value that can be reached is $100,000. The contestant may stop with the current amount at any time; if he or she selects an amount less than the amount given back, s/he loses the game and the money.

• Bank Buster: A simulated vault door has 6 locks. Each lock has a dollar amount ($6,000, $7,000, $8,000, $9,000, $10,000, or $20,000.) On display are 12 keys, 2 copies of keys for each lock. The contestant picks a key to unlock one of the locks. With each lock unlocked, the contestant wins the amount of the money on that lock. If s/he picks the duplicate copy of a key, the lock relocks itself, and that amount of money is deducted from the bank. If the contestant picks another key that opens another opened lock a second time, s/he loses the game and all the money. If the player manages to unlock 5 locks, s/he splits $100,000 with their section.

Go For A Million

Each episode ends with one of the five players from that night's show going for a chance to win $1,000,000 cash. Each player has the option to surrender their (and their section's) cash winnings to play the final game. If the word "Go" appears beneath the player's feet, they have elected to play Go For A Million. If more than one player chooses to play, the player with the highest total gets to play. If more than one player choose to play and they have the same amount, a computer randomizer chooses who plays. (The other contestants keep their winnings, with half shared among that player's section.)

The final game is played in a fashion similar to the bonus game from the failed 1990 Monopoly show. The objective is go around the board one time, landing on "GO". The player gets five rolls of the dice with doubles earning an extra roll. The dice are rolled in an oversized dice shaker known as the "Monopoly Rock-and-Roller" placed in the center of the board; the player stops the machine by pressing a button on a handheld device. The player and Gardell then move the appropriate number of spaces.

Each property has a cash amount behind it, while other spaces (except "GO TO JAIL") hide prizes (e.g., the railroads hide trips; Electric Company results in the player's electric bills being paid by the show for one year; the "JUST VISITING" space hides a trip to San Francisco (including Alcatraz.) The card spaces (Chance and Community Chest) are played similar to that of the board game; the player has a choice of four cards on the appropriate space. Similarly, Water Works has four faucets, each representing a prize.

Should the player roll three consecutive doubles, land on "GO TO JAIL", or select a "GO TO JAIL" card on Chance or Community Chest, the game is over and the banked money and prizes are lost. The player can stop at any time and split their endgame cash winnings with their section. If the player can make it around the board, the player's money is augmented. Getting past "GO" wins $200,000 to be split by the player and their section, while landing on "GO" (whether by rolling the dice or selecting "ADVANCE TO GO" from Chance or Community Chest) wins the top prize of $1,000,000. If the $1,000,000 is won, the player will receive that amount in lump sum, while their section will share in a $200,000 "Audience Jackpot" prize. If the player runs out of rolls, but does not go to jail, the contestant still keeps any prizes won and splits any cash won with their section.

External links

• Official Site