July 16, 2010

Million Dollar Idea

Back in the 1980s Michael Larson made the most money ever on the game show Press Your Luck. And it was no accident—Larson had a plan to get rich that surprised everyone: The home viewers, the show's producers and mostly Larson himself. This and other stories of million dollar ideas, including some from our listeners.

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Transcript

Larson on Press Your Luck, where he won a record $110,237 in 1984.

Prologue

Hanco's and Henry's are two restaurants in Brooklyn that sell Vietnamese sandwiches and bubble tea. Their menus are identical, down to the order of the items, the layout, the fonts. Ira Glass investigates, and finds out about Henry's million dollar idea. (8 1/2 minutes)

By

Ira Glass

Act One

Going Up?

In the world of engineers and investors, there's something called the "elevator pitch." It's what you'd say if you ran into a rich investor in an elevator, and had only 60 seconds to sell your product. The concept is so common that MIT actually hosts a contest for the best elevator pitch. Ira speaks with the contest's judge, Tim Rowe of the Cambridge Innovation Center. (11 minutes)

By

Ira Glass

Song:

“Sexy Pitch” by MIT $100K Entrepreneurship Competition

Act Two

The Invention of Cheese

Comedian Kumail Nanjiani makes his pitch for a product you may have heard of. His story was recorded at Comix in New York. You can get Kumail's tour dates on Twitter. (2 1/2 minutes)

By

Kumail Nanjiani

Act Three

Get Rich or Die Trying

Planet Money's Chana Joffe-Walt has this story about a really ambitious million dollar idea: Getting people to see the good side of death. Planet Money is a collaboration between NPR and This American Life. Check out their blog and twice weekly podcast. (15 minutes)

By

Chana Joffe-Walt

Planet Money

Song:

“Winners Never Quit” by Pedro the Lion

Act Four

Don't Hate The Player

Shawn Allee tells a story of the oldest kind of million dollar idea, the scam. Or was it an honest venture? Back in the 1980s Michael Larson made the most money ever on the game show Press Your Luck. And it was no accident. Larson had a plan to get rich that surprised everyone. (18 minutes)