Gambling Reality TV Idea

What would you guys/gals think of this idea?? You could have 4 or 5 contestants try to live for a year or season by just gambling. They could be given a starting bankroll that would have to cover their gambling and living expenses. They then are let loose to gamble as they seem fit. The one at the end that has the most money left wins some amount. I had first put this idea in another thread but I think it deserves its own. As I said in that thread, this idea cant be any worse than watching people sell their stuff at a pawn shop. Include other suggestions that would make it better.

The smart one wouldn't gamble at all, so you'd have to build some kind of mandatory gambling activity into it somehow. Something like you have to gamble x amount of time per day/week(whatever) or you have to gamble x amount of dollars per day/week(whatever) or some other stipulation(s). But I agree that it couldn't be any worse than the pawnshop shows, unless you have to watch them drop coins in a slot machine for an hour(or however long the tv show is)..ugh!!

And then you'd have the problem of live / delay broadcasting. Do you tape the whole show up front, in anonymity, or do you do an American Idol-style popularity contest? If the latter, what's to prevent someone else from going to Vegas and playing poker with one of the contestants in an effort to bolster their bankroll? That'd be my strategy: set up a website with dates/locations of where I'd be "playing" and offer a fee to play against me. If the other contestants are out playing roulette or slots, I'd win in a landslide. And then split the prize money with my "investors"...

I think it would have to be a taped show with rules preventing that.

Quote: Alan

The smart one wouldn't gamble at all, so you'd have to build some kind of mandatory gambling activity into it somehow.

Just change the starting conditions:

Participants will receive $500 per month. They can't take a job, invet, day-trade, take loans, etc etc. All they can do to generate income is gamble. They ahve to pay all their expenses such as food, housing, transportation, clothes, etc. $500 a month just doesn't cover much.

Now get a large number of volunteers. Let them play individually, in teams, pool their money, count, hole card, dice set, etc etc.

Not that I'd ever watch it.

I figured it would work based on a playthrough requirement. Players would have to provide a certain amount of playthrough before being allowed to cash out any money the show gave them as bankroll -- like an online casino bonus.

But there's the question of what games to permit. If you gave players $50,000 to play with, at least one of them will think to sit there dumping it into slot machines until they jackpot. A successful run at that could score more money in the short term than a similar amount of time at the tables, but make for far less interesting television.

Where to draw the line? Would racehorse and sports handicapping be okay? What about futures arbitrage, or investments in general? Can I spend the $50,000 on lottery tickets? Can I buy my own racehorse and take odds on it? Or buy and operate my own slot machine? If the rules specify that I can play craps, would it be a problem it I decided to operate the game out of the trunk of my car?

I'd watch it if it were produced well. Perhaps they could each be put up in an apartment or condo rent-free for the required period of time, and other than that, their money would have to get them food, transportation, etc.

In order to avoid someone just camping on their money, perhaps you could require each contestant to participate in at least 3 different games per week for a minimum amount of time per game. It might be interesting to have a mix of seasoned gamblers, recreational gamblers, and members of the American public (i.e., the idiots). Maybe 4 of each. I think throwing in the recreational gamblers and random idiots would add the rollercoaster effect and drama required of reality TV viewing. Obviously, seasoned/professional gamblers are unlikely to get drunk and place a $10k bet or do anything too crazy, so the other two categories of contestant would make up for their calculated attack.

Maybe you could even make it a contest for just 1 month at a time: Start with 12 and the top 4 at the end of the month move on to the next phase, where the winner gets $X (+ their winnings), 2nd place gets $X (+ winnings) etc. There are plenty of formats that would work. I think for a year it may get difficult to keep all the ponies in the race, especially if you're requiring a certain number of hours per week.

You avoid the campers possibly by giving a bonus each week to the player who increases their bank roll the most. This bonus would be banked (as in it's there's whatever but they can't use it in the show).

Gives an incentive to play or bust.

In fact, you could also just ditch the player with the lowest bankroll each week, if no-one busts. But, yeah, some sort of incentive/penalty would be needed to counteract the for the "smart" move of sitting on your bankroll.

where do i sign up to compete?.........

How about the following format:

A group of 10 to 12 contestants live in the same huge suite/villa in Las Vegas for a month. To make it more "reality t.v." friendly, I am sure that they would have to be young and good looking, with a chance of hooking up with one another. Personally, however, I would think it would be more interesting if they have a wide range of contestants so everyone can relate to the "gamblers". From grandparents, to businessmen, to hot, young sexy 20-somethings. The loser of the episode (every 3 or 4 days) would get booted from the show.

Each are given $100,000 in special (fake) casino chips or casino credit that can not be taken out and spent elsewhere.

They are required to play a certain number of hours per day, and during the first week or two would be required to play different games. This would allow the casino to "teach" the players about the game. The last two weeks, the contestants can play any game that they want.

There would be "challenges" every episode, where the winner of the challenge would get some type of Vegas prize, like a trip to the spa, show, fancy dinner, strip club, night club etc. The loser of the challenge would go home.

After every challenge, everyone still around gets a boost to their bankroll, though the challenge winner would get the biggest boost. This will give the appearance that after a month, people have made money gambling.

There would be a cash grand prize for the top three winners at the end of the show.

Main title sponsor would be a large casino resort (MGM or Ceasars comes to mind). I could see a station like the Travel Channel picking this up. Or MTV. It would show off Vegas in all its glory, and give people an idea about how to play all of the games that you could find in the casino.

What about Strip Poker After Dark ?

@gambler I don't think giving them fake money would make for a realistic event. Plus, what casino would want to dedicate that much extra time/staff to paying these people in fake chips? They would have to dedicate an entire table/staff just to the special chip people, and I'm not sure the publicity alone would make up for all the extra hassle for the casinos. I do like the idea of them all living together in the same space to up the drama/hook-up possibilities, though

Quote: Nareed

Just change the starting conditions:

Participants will receive $500 per month. They can't take a job, invet, day-trade, take loans, etc etc. All they can do to generate income is gamble. They ahve to pay all their expenses such as food, housing, transportation, clothes, etc. $500 a month just doesn't cover much.

Strategy would be simple. Make a $500 single number bet on roulette. If you win, don't play at all - pay your expenses from the winning and the additional $500 each month. If you lose this bet, quit the show and take on with your life.

The problem with this is, who would be interested in watching the contestants gamble - especially at slot / video poker machines? The only games that might be interesting for any particular length of time are poker and blackjack, and there are enough poker shows as it is (and these have players who know what they're doing). Maybe a Survivor-style show, where most of the time, the contestants are followed around Vegas (shows, clubs, pools, restaurants, that sort of thing), and they would each play the same game(s) every day, would work.

Fox tried a show about a casino (it was about the Golden Nugget after it was purchased in 2004); it crashed and burned pretty quickly.

I'm surprised nobody mentioned that British show where somebody had to sell everything he owned (I think the show gave him some clothes for the event), was flown to Vegas, and had to bet everything on one even-money roulette bet.

Quote: MangoJ

Strategy would be simple. Make a $500 single number bet on roulette. If you win, don't play at all - pay your expenses from the winning and the additional $500 each month. If you lose this bet, quit the show and take on with your life.

Better to put a $500 pass line bet. If you win with a 7 or 11, pocket the winnings and let the original bet stand. If you get lucky, you cna win two ro three come out rolls and you're done for the month :)

Even better, give the contestants $505 a month. That way you can place a $5 bet with $500 odds at Casino Royale.

Quote: ThatDonGuy

The problem with this is, who would be interested in watching the contestants gamble - especially at slot / video poker machines? The only games that might be interesting for any particular length of time are poker and blackjack, and there are enough poker shows as it is (and these have players who know what they're doing). Maybe a Survivor-style show, where most of the time, the contestants are followed around Vegas (shows, clubs, pools, restaurants, that sort of thing), and they would each play the same game(s) every day, would work.

Fox tried a show about a casino (it was about the Golden Nugget after it was purchased in 2004); it crashed and burned pretty quickly.

I'm surprised nobody mentioned that British show where somebody had to sell everything he owned (I think the show gave him some clothes for the event), was flown to Vegas, and had to bet everything on one even-money roulette bet.

I think only the truly degenerate would enjoy people they didn't know gambling for long periods of time. But, like any other reality show, the footage could be edited to show the peaks and valleys of each person's adventure. Whether it be losing a quick $200 in slots and then hitting a jackpot or the ups and downs (with a few pivotal hands) of blackjack/baccarat, I think that format could work. MTV or Fox Reality needs to grab a hold of this concept and run with it...

As for the British guy ... I think it has been discussed previously on this board, but wasn't that a double-zero wheel?

"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashley_Revell" : he decided to do the challenge on his own. of course, the risk was lessened in that no doubt he was getting paid for the show and probably some writing afterwards if he lost.

He won after betting on Red. At the Plaza, downtown Vegas.

Quote: thecesspit

"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashley_Revell" : he decided to do the challenge on his own.

He won after betting on Red. At the Plaza, downtown Vegas.

wow. He brings $135,000 to Vegas and chooses The Plaza to put it all on red??? Was El Cortez busy that night? Are London tourists coming halfway around the world and making The Plaza a destination resort? lol

Quote: Ashley Revell & Wikipedia

Ashley Revell (born 1972) is a London resident who briefly achieved fame for selling all his possessions (including all his clothes) and gambling US$135,300 on a single spin of a roulette wheel in the Plaza Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada on 11 April 2004. Revell placed his bet on red; the ball ended up on 7 red, and Revell had doubled his money. Everybody waited for new bets from him, but he gave $600 to a dealer as a tip, said "thank you!", and left the casino.

A fool and his money are soon parted.

If you want to sell ads on the show its got to be more interesting than watching paint dry or watching some slot machine go from 20 credits to 22 credits. Players have enough trouble with blackjack... you think a tv audience is going to sit with bated breath about 'he split 10s'.

This would be narrow casting but you would have to make as broad as possible.

You could use non-cashable chips with the weekly prize being to the highest winner.

Perhaps all contestants get the same game but at different times. Perhaps a question and answer period before and after so as the audience sees their knowledge or lack of it. Then some post game replays of major losses and major wins but here too I'd think you might be close to watching paint dry.

For a controlled environment you could use a gambling school but casinos are not that crazy about cameras, they just want their logo and main entrance sign getting airtime, not the businessman from Peoria in the background who is there with his partner's wife.

Teams might be: male and female or Neophyte vs. Sharpies.

Quote: zippyboy

Quote: thecesspit

"" : he decided to do the challenge on his own.

He won after betting on Red. At the Plaza, downtown Vegas.

wow. He brings $135,000 to Vegas and chooses The Plaza to put it all on red??? Was El Cortez busy that night? Are London tourists coming halfway around the world and making The Plaza a destination resort? lol

It was the only place that would allow him to film while making a single, big action bet. Or at least the only place he said he could find. It was going to be the Hard Rock, but they pulled out. Several places didn't want to give 135,000 in action when it was double or nothing.... not enough exposure to his bank roll for their tastes, with all the hassle of filming.

Quote: Ashley Revell & Wikipedia

Ashley Revell (born 1972) is a London resident who briefly achieved fame for selling all his possessions (including all his clothes) and gambling US$135,300 on a single spin of a roulette wheel in the Plaza Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada on 11 April 2004. Revell placed his bet on red; the ball ended up on 7 red, and Revell had doubled his money. Everybody waited for new bets from him, but he gave $600 to a dealer as a tip, said "thank you!", and left the casino.

A fool and his money are soon parted.

Apparently he's done okay since then...

Quote: ThatDonGuy

The problem with this is, who would be interested in watching the contestants gamble - especially at slot / video poker machines?

You're asking me? I've never seen a "reality" show because I've never heard of one that seemed remotely interesting. From what i've read about them, people enjoy seeing random strangers argue, fight and engage in betrayal. So, maybe a show about people making and breaking alliances about whom to bet on for another "reality" show?

No, still not interesting in the least...