E! Television to air 'Curse of the Lottery' Sunday

Sep 20, 2006, 3:54 pm (99 comments)

After the Big Win

It's what dreams are made of:  buy anything you want and more.  But for some, winning the lottery is not all champagne, limousines and mansions, and brings only misery and regret.

The sudden influx of cash can lead down a dark road to drugs, bankruptcy and even death. Why does blissful prosperity rarely ensue? Are those who win big truly destined for doom?

Uncovering the stories behind 10 real-life lucky ticket holders, E! sits with lottery winners, their friends and family, as well as financial planners and lottery experts, to find out why some who score jackpot rise to the top, while others fall rock bottom.

The two-hour special episode "THS Investigates: The Curse of the Lottery" premieres Sunday, September 24 at 8pm et/pt.

The lottery is a multi-billion dollar business that is fueled by the fantasy that one ticket can mean instant fortune and happiness. For lottery winners Jack Whittaker, William "Bud" Post, Victoria Zell and Billie Bob Harrell Jr., the dream of winning big-time bucks came true, but what they ended up losing as a result was tragic.

Jack Whittaker of West Virginia won the largest Powerball jackpot in history, only to be robbed, confronted with serious legal issues and eventually have his family torn apart by alcohol and drug abuse.

Lottery winner Bud Post of Pennsylvania was almost murdered for his money when his own brother hired a hit-man to kill him in an attempt to rake in his cash.

Victoria Zell struck lottery gold in Minnesota but landed in jail after being found guilty on multiple counts of vehicular homicide.

And Texan lottery winner Billie Bob Harrell sadly ended his own life after out-of-control spending sprees and an affair left him deeply in debt and divorced.

"THS Investigates: The Curse of the Lottery" reveals the true stories behind these lottery winners and others who were transformed instantly from ordinary people into mega-millionaires.  and the troubles that seem to have inevitably followed. In this two-hour episode:

About E! Networks

Based in Los Angeles, E! Networks is the world's largest producer and distributor of entertainment news and lifestyle-related programming. The company operates E! Entertainment Television, the 24-hour network with programming dedicated to the world of entertainment; The Style Network, the destination for women 18-49 with a passion for the best in relatable and inspiring lifestyle programming, and E! Online, located at Eonline.com. E! is currently available to 87 million cable and direct broadcast satellite subscribers in the U.S. The Style Network currently counts 42 million subscribers. Internationally, E! programming can be seen in more than 120 countries worldwide, reaching 600 million homes. In addition to its ventures for locally programmed E! branded channels outside the U.S., the company operates the E! International Network, a 24-hour English language global entertainment channel available via satellite in Europe, Africa, Asia Pacific and the Middle East.

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Guest

All you hear are the B A D stories Please Tell some of the Good ones.

justxploring's avatarjustxploring

We've all seen stories like this on TV and in the newspaper.  I guess they're becoming more popular these days.  I was watching Deal or No Deal the other night and a contestant's wife was screaming at him because he kept turning down a lot of money.  I joined her!  Finally he accepted $675,000 and it turned out he actually did have $2 million in his case. But if he had taken the risk and ended up with only a dollar, it would have been much, much worse.  After taxes $675K is a lot more than he started with and a record for that show but, from the look on that guy's face, I don't think he was too happy. Sometimes when I see those couples, I wonder what happened on the way home. To the best of my knowledge, no cases of spousal homicide have been reported following a game show.

Getting back to this particular story, I think I will take my chances and continue to play the Lottery. 

 Michael Begin, certified financial planner — "If you're miserable with 10 dollars, you'll be miserable with a million dollars."

On a spiritual level, this statement is true.  Same goes for moving to a new location or changing jobs or anything else in life.  However, if the reason you're unhappy is because you live in a bad neighborhood and can't afford the rent or you're working 60 hours and your boss is always yelling at you, or you can't get rid of that toothache because a dentist wants $500 for a root canal,  then I disagree with it wholeheartedly.  My version of the above statement is "it's a heck of a lot better to be rich and miserable than poor and miserable. At least if you are rich and miserable you can take a long vacation and be miserable sipping margaritas on your boat."

sirbrad's avatarsirbrad

Good stories are too boring, and there are far more good than bad. However the media likes to focus on the negative ones, as that is what human nature is typically attracted to. Misery loves company. Of course a sudden windfall is not going to buy intelligence and wisdom. But I think they are taking the most extreme cases to show what can "possibly" happen but actually rarely ever does.

Most of the winners already had messed up lives to begin with, and was ill-prepared to handle such money. Most are not like the players here, like myself, who have spent many years planning for a windfall and are tailor-made for it when it happens. But that is a story that is far too perfect and positive to publish.

The majority of the miserable population wants to hear that those who won more money than they will ever have, somehow lost it all and became worse than they originally were. Flukes can happen, but for the most part those cases occurred from pure stupidity and overall lack preparedness. I have already been through the worst, so bring on the lottery curse. Please.

DoubleDown

Quote: Originally posted by justxploring on Sep 20, 2006

We've all seen stories like this on TV and in the newspaper.  I guess they're becoming more popular these days.  I was watching Deal or No Deal the other night and a contestant's wife was screaming at him because he kept turning down a lot of money.  I joined her!  Finally he accepted $675,000 and it turned out he actually did have $2 million in his case. But if he had taken the risk and ended up with only a dollar, it would have been much, much worse.  After taxes $675K is a lot more than he started with and a record for that show but, from the look on that guy's face, I don't think he was too happy. Sometimes when I see those couples, I wonder what happened on the way home. To the best of my knowledge, no cases of spousal homicide have been reported following a game show.

Getting back to this particular story, I think I will take my chances and continue to play the Lottery. 

 Michael Begin, certified financial planner — "If you're miserable with 10 dollars, you'll be miserable with a million dollars."

On a spiritual level, this statement is true.  Same goes for moving to a new location or changing jobs or anything else in life.  However, if the reason you're unhappy is because you live in a bad neighborhood and can't afford the rent or you're working 60 hours and your boss is always yelling at you, or you can't get rid of that toothache because a dentist wants $500 for a root canal,  then I disagree with it wholeheartedly.  My version of the above statement is "it's a heck of a lot better to be rich and miserable than poor and miserable. At least if you are rich and miserable you can take a long vacation and be miserable sipping margaritas on your boat."

I saw that show too... He actually had $ 3 Million in his case...he correctly picked his case from among , what is it, 25 ?

He turned down $600K , then accepted $675K, but had he went on...

He would have been offered $1.1 Million...

I bet he sure would have taken that and walked !!!!

 

DD

TheGameGrl's avatarTheGameGrl

I concur whole heartedly with Sirbrads comments! Bring on the curse, and I will gladly bless it with wonderous results!

As to the tv drama, its A-typical for the meida to spruce up the negative. Thus why reading a good book and sipping sweet southern tea is a dream come true no matter what income ya have :)

justxploring's avatarjustxploring

DD, I wasn't sure. $3 million.  Ouch!  That makes it even worse.  I think he was going for that one extra shot and his wife was going crazy and he was sweating so much that he caved in, but that must have really hurt!  Still, I'd love to win $675,000 but walking away knowing you actually had the $3 million in your case....  You're right - it was #25, which I think was his wedding anniversary or some special date.  Still, I probably would have walked away sooner, so I think he was very lucky. I wonder how many people would actually go for it when there was still a $1 case?

jeffrey's avatarjeffrey

People are as happy as they want to be; after they have the basics of living. Most people don't need more.

All lottery winners have the chore of saying no and the crazies who chase their money. Keep the secret and find your joy.

DoubleDown

Quote: Originally posted by justxploring on Sep 20, 2006

DD, I wasn't sure. $3 million.  Ouch!  That makes it even worse.  I think he was going for that one extra shot and his wife was going crazy and he was sweating so much that he caved in, but that must have really hurt!  Still, I'd love to win $675,000 but walking away knowing you actually had the $3 million in your case....  You're right - it was #25, which I think was his wedding anniversary or some special date.  Still, I probably would have walked away sooner, so I think he was very lucky. I wonder how many people would actually go for it when there was still a $1 case?

JXP, hindsight is 20/20 as they say, but he was dead-on right .

How many people are that lucky to nail the right case  ? 

Anyway, he should be ( and I'm sure he is ) happy to get the $675K, and yes, he was sweating like a ( well...you know )....____ in church...

 

DD

DoubleDown

Regarding the original story here, just let me win a PB or MM jackpot and I will show everyone that it is NOT a curse. Banana

They can choose to portray the "losers" if they like because after all, it's ratings they are after and sad stories sell....No Pity!

 

I would bust their little bubble..Boxing 

DD

justxploring's avatarjustxploring

 All I can say is......

                                       I Agree!

Coin Toss's avatarCoin Toss

Quote: Originally posted by DoubleDown on Sep 21, 2006

Regarding the original story here, just let me win a PB or MM jackpot and I will show everyone that it is NOT a curse. Banana

They can choose to portray the "losers" if they like because after all, it's ratings they are after and sad stories sell....No Pity!

 

I would bust their little bubble..Boxing 

DD

Touche. 

Don't forget though guys, statistics say that three out of five lottery winners are bankrupt within five years, and has been pointed out in this thread, that's what makes news!

I'm going to try and watch this, hoping that a couple of heavy players I know watch it.  

toot

Me to the lotto winners:

"Awwww, I'm so gosh awful sorry that you guys won the lotto. What a curse."

 

Me to God:

"Dear Lord, will you please curse me to win the PB lottery today. Amen."

tntea's avatartntea

A person is as happy as they allow themselves to be...

It doesn't take Money to make one happy...  

LckyLary

It's something how virtually every negative story about Lottery winners mentions Jack Whittaker. (I could not find the slot machine he supposedly invented at Caesars)

Often a Lottery win became a curse because of events and situations leading up to the day of the win. The more ex-lovers and the more a person depended on others plus their intelligence and their caring or not caring what others think of them, the more these situations are magnified after a win. I always say that whoever was there for me in the past, I would be there for them in the future. I wouldn't care the least if someone stopped liking me because I didn't give them money.

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