Michael Larson - Preparations

Preparations

Larson had began recording episodes of Press Your Luck. Through a careful study of the movement of the light indicator used for its 18-square "Big Board", Larson discovered that only five patterns determined the movements of the indicator.

By using his VCR to pause a recorded episode of the game, he proceeded frame-by-frame to learn the patterns. Armed with this knowledge, he found that it would be theoretically possible to hit squares containing money consistently without hitting a Whammy, a character which caused the player who hit it to lose all of his/her money. He also discovered that two of the eighteen squares on the game board—the fourth and eighth squares, when moving clockwise along the board—always contained cash and never had a Whammy in them. Square four also hid the highest dollar values on the board for any given round. In the second round, both of those squares also rewarded contestants with an extra spin of the board if they were hit. Square #4 contained $3000 + ONE SPIN, $4000 + ONE SPIN, and $5000 + ONE SPIN; Square #8 contained $500 + ONE SPIN, $750 + ONE SPIN, and $1000 + ONE SPIN. This meant that Larson, at least in the second round, could play on for as long as he dared and never have to stop at a Whammy, provided that he followed the patterns he discovered.

Carrying this knowledge and using nearly all of his saved money to make the trip, Larson headed for Hollywood, California to audition for Press Your Luck. The program's executive producer Bill Carruthers and contestant supervisor Bobby Edwards discussed whether to have him on the show after his tryout interview; Edwards was suspicious of Larson and his reasons for trying out, but Carruthers was not. The final decision was to let Larson on the show, so Michael was booked for the show and later chosen for the fifth taping of the day, intended as a Friday episode. For the rest of his life, Carruthers would say the he regretted not listening to Edwards.

While waiting in the green room, Larson met Ed Long, a Baptist preacher booked for the fourth taping. The two of them struck up a conversation. Long recalled that Larson, who had watched Press Your Luck a lot, asked him how many times he had seen the show, and Long replied that he had only seen it once. Long recalled that Larson responded by looking at him as though he "were from another planet." Soon, Long was called up to go on the show. As Long left the green room, Larson said to Long, "I hope we don't have to play against each other." As it turned out, Larson would in fact have to face Long, who won $11,516 on the fourth taped episode, and dental assistant Janie Litras.