HOBART

Things we want for HOBART #13: LUCK:

an essay about / profile on / something regarding this guy.

kissmeimlazy:

Big Money, Big Money, No Whammy, STOP!-

Like many people when it first aired in September, 1983, Michael Larson became a fan of CBS’ new game show Press Your Luck. But Larson, a 34 year-old occasionally employed ice cream truck driver from Ohio had a hunch. He felt that the seemingly random way in which the 18 squares on the game’s Big Board lit up, revealing either money, a prize, money and an extra spin, or a whammy- which erased the players winning- when stopped upon, was not actually random at all. Purchasing a VCR with a pause button solely for the purpose, Larson began recording and meticulously analyzing every episode of Press Your Luck. From the tapes, he discovered two things- there were only six different patterns in which the lights went around the board, and that the fourth and eighth squares never held a whammy, only revealing money and an extra spin. Larson concluded that with patience and a steady hand, he would be able to land on either of those squares every single time. Borrowing money for a flight to Los Angeles, Larson auditioned for the show and was chosen as a contestant for a taping on May 19th, 1984. Eager to put his practice and theory to work, Larson took his first spin, and landed on a Whammy. Yet only Larson realized that if he had hit the stopper just one second later it would have safely landed on number 8. Larson would manage to land on squares 4 or 8 on eleven of his next fourteen spins. He managed to avoid whammys on his three “incorrect” spins, winning instead a trip to Kauai, a sailboat, and $1,000 plus an extra spin. It was on his 16th spin that Larson truly hit his stride. For his next thirty spins, Larson would land on the eighth or fourth square every single time, always winning money and an additional spin. Larson’s winning streak went on for so long that his appearance had to be aired as two separate episodes. When he finally slipped up again on his 47th spin, landing instead on square 17 and winning a trip to the Bahamas, Larson passed his remaining spins to one of his flabbergasted opponents. Larson would walk away with a total haul worth $110,237, $104,950 of which was in cash. After his appearance the show’s creators would add an additional 16 patterns to the lights, and Michael Larson would remain, by a wide margin, the most successful contestant to ever appear on the show.

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Press Your Luck luck no whammy HO13 wishlist

Things we want for HOBART #13: LUCK, take 2:

a reverie about / consideration of / essay growing outward from Vern’s “goocher” warning in Stand By Me.

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Stand By Me Vern goocher luck HO13 wishlist

We love stuff like this.

File “some kind of chart or graph about luck” as yet another item under the list of wants for HOBART #13: luck. 

laphamsquarterly:

There’s a sneak peek of our Fall issue “The Future” now up at Brain Pickings, including one of our favorite charts from the issue, The Robot Matrix. Where do your favorite robots fall on the scale of cuddly to creepy? 

Like what you see here? Well then it looks like you are going to need to subscribe. “The Future” is shipping now, you cannot escape it!

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charts&graphs HO13 wishlist

Another chart! Two in one day!! (Chartmakers… get busy working on “luck”-related graphics.)

good:

The top ten social TV events, from Bluefin Labs Social TV rating data. 

Our business editor, Tim Fernholz, took a look at the most social-media active televised events from this past year. Turns out people still really like watching those moon men statues getting passed out. Or maybe it was Bey’s baby announcement that captivated our attention.  

Read more on GOOD →

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charts charts&graphs HO13 wishlist

Something else we would love to see for HOBART 13: luck…

flow charts!
like the above (which is apparently broken into 3 different images, so you actually need to follow this link: via Flavorwire » Essential Flowchart: What Would Don Draper Do?)

or this (The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time).

or this (Jim Beam bourbon process).

or this (“Total Eclipse of the Heart”).

etc…

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HO13 wishlist charts&graphs flowchart Don Draper Mad Men The Oatmeal Legend of Zelda Jim Beam