Ton of Cash

Last updated
Ton of Cash
Ton of cash logo.png
Genre Reality television
Created by Cris Abrego
Mark Cronin
Presented by Dhani Jones
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes10
Production
Production company 51 Minds Entertainment
Original release
Network VH1
ReleaseAugust 17 (2011-08-17) 
October 26, 2011 (2011-10-26)

Ton of Cash is a reality competition that premiered on VH1 on August 17, 2011. Hosted by Dhani Jones, the show centers on a group of contestants trying to win up to $1 million in cash by hauling it along a series of challenge courses ranging from Los Angeles to Las Vegas. It premiered on prime time but was moved to Thursday mornings at 2AM Eastern time slot after the premiere due to low ratings.

Contents

Format

Fourteen contestants, all in serious financial trouble, initially gathered on a beach in Malibu, California and were presented with $1 million in prop $1 bills. The money was bundled into 167 bricks weighing 12 pounds each, for a total weight of 2,004 pounds.

On each episode, the host challenged the team to carry the money along a specified route over rugged terrain and deliver as much of it as possible to a marked goal area ("cash point") within a time limit. The team chose one member to serve as a captain ("financial advisor") for the day. At any time, the financial advisor could press a button at the cash point to end the challenge; upon doing so, however, any money that had not yet been delivered was forfeited and deducted from the $1 million prize.

If the financial advisor pressed the button before time ran out, they were safe for the day and could nominate three teammates for elimination. if time ran out, the team began to lose money at a rate of $1,000 per minute for the first half-hour, $5,000 per minute for the second, and $50,000 per minute thereafter. The financial advisor still had to press the button in order to end the challenge, forfeiting any undelivered money; they became eligible for elimination and had to nominate two other contestants as well.

The team and the remaining money were transported by bus overnight, bringing them closer to Las Vegas and their final goal. The next morning, all contestants who were not up for elimination (with the exception of the financial advisor, when applicable) each cast one vote for the candidate they wanted to keep in the game. The one with the most votes received immunity and the title of "Safe Investment," while a "Prove Your Worth" challenge was held between the other two. The loser of this challenge was eliminated with no winnings, but viewers could participate in a text-message poll at the end of the episode to decide if that contestant should receive a consolation prize of $1,000. Surviving candidates for elimination in any given episode could not be chosen as the financial advisor for the next one.

The second half of the season introduced rule modifications as follows.

The winner of the final challenge in Episode 10 won all the cash they found, up to a maximum of $210,000 - the amount that remained of the original $1 million.

Episodes

Cast Ton of cash cast.jpg
Cast
EpisodeU.S. Air DateViewers
"Ton of Cash"August 17, 2011312,000
"Under the Bus"August 24, 2011201,000
"Queen for a Day"August 30, 2011267,000 [1]
"If Lakes Could Kill"September 7, 2011208,000
"Frozen ASSets"September 14, 2011171,000
"When the Trailer's Rockin' Don't Come Knockin"September 21, 2011N/A
"Cash of the Titans"September 28, 2011N/A
"Impending Dune"October 12, 2011321,000
"Zippity-Dough-Dah"October 19, 2011N/A
"Stuck Between a Place and a Hard Rock"October 26, 2011N/A

Episode Progress

RankContestants12345678910 (1st half)10 (2nd half)
1AmieSAFESAFESAFENOMSAFESAFESAFENOMBTM 3SAFEWINNER
2RustySAFESAFESAFESAFESAFESAFESAFESAFESAFESAFEOUT
3JustinSAFEBTM 2SAFESAFESAFESAFESAFESAFESAFESAFEOUT
4VanessaSAFESAFENOMSAFENOMBTM 3SAFEBTM 2SAFEOUT
5JamesSAFESAFESAFESAFESAFESAFEBTM 2SAFEOUT
6TemicaSAFESAFESAFESAFESAFESAFENOMBTM 2OUT
7ChuckNOMNOMBTM 2BTM 2SAFESAFEOUT
8AshleySAFESAFESAFESAFESAFEOUT
9Willy GilleySAFESAFESAFESAFEBTM 2OUT
10AvaSAFESAFESAFESAFEOUT
11JonnySAFESAFESAFEOUT
12VioletSAFESAFEOUT
13JaimeBTM 2OUT
14DeseanOUT
  (WINNER) The contestant won Ton of Cash.
  (SAFE) The contestant was not up for elimination.
  (SAFE) The contestant was the Financial Advisor and saved themselves from elimination or got all the money on time.
  (NOM) The contestant was the Financial Advisor, was automatically nominated for elimination, and was chosen as the Safe Investment.
  (NOM) The contestant was nominated for the elimination by the Financial Advisor but was chosen as the Safe Investment.
  (BTM 2/3) The contestant was nominated for elimination by the Financial Advisor, but won the Prove Your Worth challenge.
  (OUT) The contestant was nominated for elimination by the Financial Advisor, and lost the Prove Your Worth challenge.
  The contestant was a member of the Black Team in the Episode 6 challenge.
  The contestant was a member of the Red Team in the Episode 6 challenge.
  The contestant was a member of the Blue Team in the Episode 6 challenge.

Reception

Elka Karl from Common Sense Media gave the show a 1 out of 5 stars. [2]

Trivia

In 2012, contestant Vanessa appeared as a contestant on episodes of Fox's Take Me Out, a dating television show.

Related Research Articles

<i>Press Your Luck</i> American game show

Press Your Luck is an American television game show created by Bill Carruthers and Jan McCormack. Contestants answer trivia questions to earn "spins" on a randomly cycling game board. The board's spaces display cash, prizes, extra spins, special items, or the show's mascot, a cartoon creature known as the Whammy. Landing on a Whammy eliminates any cash and prizes accumulated while also displaying a short comedic animation. Its format is a revival of an earlier Carruthers production, Second Chance, which was hosted by Jim Peck and aired on ABC in 1977. The original version of Press Your Luck aired on CBS between 1983 and 1986. This version featured Peter Tomarken as host, Rod Roddy as announcer, and Carruthers as both director and voice of the Whammy. The original incarnation of the show gained significant media attention in 1984 for contestant Michael Larson, who won over $100,000 after memorizing the original pattern of the game board.

Bullseye is a British darts-themed television game show created by Andrew Wood and Norman Vaughan. The show features three pairs of contestants, each consisting of an amateur darts player and a quizzer, competing in darts games and quizzes to win cash and prizes.

<i>Russian Roulette</i> (game show) Game show

Russian Roulette is an American game show created and executive produced by Gunnar Wetterberg that ran for two seasons on Game Show Network from June 3, 2002, to June 13, 2003. The show was hosted by Mark L. Walberg and announced by Burton Richardson.

The Joker's Wild is an American television game show that aired at different times between 1972 and 2019. Contestants answer trivia questions based on categories determined randomly by a mechanism resembling a slot machine. The show's title refers to the game's slot-machine mechanism also having jokers, which may be used to represent any category.

<i>Strike It Lucky</i> British television game show (1986–1999)

Strike It Lucky is a British television game show that ran from 29 October 1986 to 23 August 1999, originally produced by Thames Television for ITV, and presented by the British comedian Michael Barrymore. It was based on the American game show Strike It Rich that aired in 1986.

Illinois Instant Riches is a lottery game show airing in the state of Illinois, as well as nationally on Chicago-based Superstation WGN-TV. The show was hosted by Mark Goodman, with Linda Kollmeyer as his co-host and Bill Barber as announcer.

Sale of the Century is an Australian prime time game show that aired on the Nine Network from 14 July 1980 to 29 November 2001. It is based on both Great Temptation that aired from 1970 to 1974 and on the original Sale that first aired in the United States from 1969 to 1973. The Australian format of Sale has since been used internationally, including in a revived US version that aired from 1983 to 1989.

<i>Real World/Road Rules Challenge: The Duel</i> 13th season of the reality television series

Real World/Road Rules Challenge: The Duel is the 13th season of the MTV reality game show, The Challenge. This is the first edition of The Duel series, with The Duel II following in 2009.

<i>Cash Explosion</i> American lottery television show

Cash Explosion, known as Cash Explosion: Double Play from 1989 until 2012, is the official Ohio Lottery TV game show, which is broadcast on television stations throughout Ohio. The show originated in Cleveland and is now taped by Mills James Productions in Columbus, Ohio.

<i>Cash Cab</i> (American game show) American television game show

Cash Cab is an American game show that originally premiered in 2005, on the Discovery Channel, hosted by stand-up comedian Ben Bailey. It is part of the global Cash Cab franchise that originated in the United Kingdom.

<i>Estate of Panic</i> 2008 American TV series or program

Estate of Panic is an American reality competition show in which seven strangers compete to find cash in a large estate. The show is hosted by Steve Valentine, and produced by Endemol USA.

<i>Real World/Road Rules Challenge: The Ruins</i> 18th season of the reality television series

Real World Road Rules Challenge: The Ruins is the 18th season of the MTV reality television game show, The Challenge. This is the last season to use Real World/Road Rules in the on-screen title, before being shortened to The Challenge in the 19th season.

<i>Top Shot</i> 2010 American TV series or program

Top Shot is an American reality television show that debuted on the History Channel on June 6, 2010. In the show, 16 contestants, split into two teams of eight, compete in various types of shooting challenges. One by one, the contestants are eliminated until only one remains. That contestant receives a $100,000 grand prize and the title of "Top Shot." Survivor Runner Up Colby Donaldson is the host.

Face the Clock is a game show that was broadcast on Channel 4 from 7 January to 22 February 2013, and was hosted by Rory Bremner. On each episode, six contestants compete to build up a cash prize and eliminate one another in a series of timed rounds until one is left to play for the money.

<i>Are You the One?</i> American reality television series

Are You the One? is an American reality television series featuring a group of men and women that are secretly paired into couples via a matchmaking algorithm. While living together, the contestants try to identify all of these "perfect matches." If they succeed, the entire group shares a prize of up to $1 million. All couples in the first seven seasons were male-female, while in the eighth season a contestant's match could be someone of any gender.

<i>Hellevator</i> American horror game show

Hellevator is an American horror game show produced by Jason Blum for his Blumhouse Productions banner and Todd Lubin in which a team of three contestants rides a haunted elevator through an abandoned slaughterhouse. The show is hosted by Jen and Sylvia Soska and premiered on October 21, 2015, on Game Show Network. The debut episode was watched by 503,000 viewers.

<i>Cash Trapped</i> British game show

Cash Trapped is a British game show which aired on ITV from 1 August 2016 to 20 December 2019. Presented and based on an idea by Bradley Walsh, the show pits contestants against one another in a contest to amass and win prize money by answering questions in various categories.

<i>Ellens Game of Games</i> 2017 American TV series or program

Ellen's Game of Games, also known as Game of Games and stylized as ellen's GAME OF GAMES, is an American television game show that aired on NBC. In March 2017, NBC ordered six hour-long episodes of the series. Ellen DeGeneres serves as host, while Stephen "tWitch" Boss appears as announcer/sidekick. The series is based on game segments from DeGeneres' daytime talk show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show. The series premiered on December 18, 2017. On February 18, 2020, DeGeneres announced on The Ellen DeGeneres Show that the series was renewed for a fourth season, which began airing on October 6, 2020. In January 2022, the series was canceled after four seasons.

<i>The Switch Drag Race</i> season 1 Season of television series

The first season of The Switch Drag Race began airing on 8 October 2015 on the MEGA and WOW Presents Plus's WOW Presents Plus streaming service. It ran for twenty-four episodes.

The sixth season of the American version of The Mole, which is the first instalment by Netflix, premiered on October 7, 2022. The season saw the series rebooted after a fourteen-year hiatus and leaving its former network, ABC. The season was produced by Eureka Productions with a new host, Alex Wagner. The cast was revealed on 21 September 2022, with the season's location confirmed to be Australia.

References

  1. "Wednesday's Cable Ratings: "Royal Pains" Goes Out on Top". The Futon Critic. September 9, 2011. Retrieved September 27, 2012.
  2. Movie & TV reviews for parents. "Ton of Cash TV Review". Common Sense Media. Retrieved 2024-11-15.