$25 Million Dollar Hoax
Encyclopedia
$25 Million Dollar Hoax is an unscripted television series that was originally shown on American
network
NBC
in November 2004. It is based on a United Kingdom
show titled The Million Pound Hoax, broadcast on Sky One
earlier that year.
$25 Million Dollar Hoax consists of three unscripted hour-long episodes in which small-town girl Chrissy Sanford plays a hoax
on her family by convincing them she had won a $
5,000,000 lottery
prize through the internet
, and that it had changed her from a sweet girl into a spend-a-holic. This program is an example of reality television
.
$25 Million Dollar Hoax contained guest appearances by Ed McMahon
, George Gray, and N*SYNC's Lance Bass
.
Chrissy successfully pulled off the hoax, which won her and her family over $400,000 in cash and prizes.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
network
Television network
A television network is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, whereby a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay TV providers. Until the mid-1980s, television programming in most countries of the world was dominated by a small...
NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
in November 2004. It is based on a United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
show titled The Million Pound Hoax, broadcast on Sky One
Sky One
Sky1 is the flagship BSkyB entertainment channel available in the United Kingdom and Ireland.The channel first launched on 26 April 1982 as Satellite Television, and is the fourth-oldest TV channel in the United Kingdom, behind BBC One , ITV and BBC Two...
earlier that year.
$25 Million Dollar Hoax consists of three unscripted hour-long episodes in which small-town girl Chrissy Sanford plays a hoax
Hoax
A hoax is a deliberately fabricated falsehood made to masquerade as truth. It is distinguishable from errors in observation or judgment, or rumors, urban legends, pseudosciences or April Fools' Day events that are passed along in good faith by believers or as jokes.-Definition:The British...
on her family by convincing them she had won a $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
5,000,000 lottery
Lottery
A lottery is a form of gambling which involves the drawing of lots for a prize.Lottery is outlawed by some governments, while others endorse it to the extent of organizing a national or state lottery. It is common to find some degree of regulation of lottery by governments...
prize through the internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
, and that it had changed her from a sweet girl into a spend-a-holic. This program is an example of reality television
Reality television
Reality television is a genre of television programming that presents purportedly unscripted dramatic or humorous situations, documents actual events, and usually features ordinary people instead of professional actors, sometimes in a contest or other situation where a prize is awarded...
.
$25 Million Dollar Hoax contained guest appearances by Ed McMahon
Ed McMahon
Edward Peter "Ed" McMahon, Jr. was an American comedian, game show host and announcer. He is most famous for his work on television as Johnny Carson's sidekick and announcer on The Tonight Show from 1962 to 1992. He also hosted the original version of the talent show Star Search from 1983 to 1995...
, George Gray, and N*SYNC's Lance Bass
Lance Bass
James Lance Bass , best known as Lance Bass, is an American pop singer, dancer, actor, film and television producer, and author. He grew up in Mississippi and rose to fame as the bass singer for the American pop boy band 'N Sync. 'N Sync's success led Bass to work in film and television...
.
Chrissy successfully pulled off the hoax, which won her and her family over $400,000 in cash and prizes.
Cast
- Chrissy Sanford - As herself
- Guy Sanford (father) - As himself
- Lois Sanford (mother) - As herself
- Paul Sanford (brother) - As himself
- Eric Sanford (brother) - As himself
- Andrew Sanford (brother) - As himself
- David Sanford (brother) - As himself
- Phillip Sanford (brother) - As himself
- Matthew Sanford (brother) - As himself
- Jameson Karns (friend) - As himself
- Ed McMahon - As himself
- George Gray - As himself
- Lance Bass - As himself
Broadcasters
- NBCNBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
(United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) - GlobalGlobal Television NetworkGlobal Television Network is an English language privately owned television network in Canada, owned by Calgary-based Shaw Communications, as part of its Shaw Media division...
(CanadaCanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
) - TenNetwork TenNetwork Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...
(AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
) - 8TV8TV (Malaysia)8TV is a private Malaysian Chinese television station, previously known as MetroVision Channel 8. Metrovision closed on 1 November 1999. 8TV was officially launched on Thursday, 8 January 2004 as 8TV after being acquired by Media Prima Berhad....
(Malaysia) - Challenge (United KingdomUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
) - RTL5 (NetherlandsNetherlandsThe Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
)