McMillion$ on HBO

Everyone Played It. One Man Rigged It.

          
Watch LP leader Rob Holm, Director, Global Safety & Security - Global Business Services, McDonalds,
in the trailer (at 41-sec. mark) and throughout the series.

Everything You Need to Know About HBO's 'McMillion$'

A six-part documentary series from Executive Producer Mark Wahlberg, McMillion$ chronicles the stranger-than-fiction true story of how $24 million-dollars was stolen from the McDonald’s Monopoly game of the 1990s, the mystery mastermind behind the scam and the intrepid FBI agents on his trail.

For over a decade, McDonald’s fast-food empire awarded prizes in its Monopoly promotional game tie-in, unaware that the biggest winning tickets were being stolen and sold to undeserving winners through a complex web of family and friends who became co-conspirators. An anonymous tip to the FBI in 2001 triggers a far-reaching chain of events that will come to include dogged and unorthodox investigative work, undercover sting operations and dirty dealings by shifty ex-cons with ties to the mafia.

The series unravels the twisted threads of the fast-food fraud through exclusive firsthand accounts and archival footage featuring the FBI agents who brought down the gaming scam, McDonald’s corporate executives who were themselves defrauded, the lawyers who tried the case and the culprits and prizewinners who profited from the complicated scheme, as well as individuals who were often unwittingly duped into being a part of the ruse. hbo.com

Episode 1
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Series premiere. In 2001, FBI Agent Doug Mathews of the Jacksonville, FL, branch clocks an intriguing Post-it note that piques his interest. The anonymous tip speaks of a con surrounding the much-beloved McDonald’s Monopoly game and a mysterious mastermind behind it all: a man going by the moniker of “Uncle Jerry.”

‌With the help of McDonald’s employee Amy Murray, the investigation, codenamed “Operation Final Answer,” prompts Agent Mathews to propose an unorthodox undercover sting involving a video production crew. The operation tests nerves but leads to an early breakthrough in what promises to be a bizarre but unforgettable case.

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Episode 2 ‌

Hoping to unmask the mysterious “Uncle Jerry,” the FBI investigates two prominent figures they believe are connected to the scam. The first, Jerome “Jerry” Jacobson, is a former cop who works security for Simon Marketing, the company hired to run the McDonald’s Monopoly game. The second, Gennaro “Jerry” Colombo, hails from a notorious East Coast mob family and is no stranger to unsavory activities.

Meanwhile, Agent Mathews and McDonald’s employee Amy Murray team up once again to pay a visit to prior winner, Buddy Fisher, who sweats and mumbles through his story about “winning” a million dollars as their cameras are rolling.

‌Click here to stream episode 2


Episode 3

Frank Colombo, the brother of Gennaro “Jerry” Colombo, reveals the inner workings of the scam whereby “Uncle Jerry” would sell the winning tickets to his brother for a premium. Colombo would then find willing takers for the game tickets in exchange for a cut of the prize money. ‌Robin Colombo shares more about the recruitment operation and details the night when she and Jerry Colombo went for a car ride and faced sudden danger.

‌Meanwhile, under the pretense of organizing a reunion for past winners, the undercover FBI video crew interviews Gloria Brown, a single mom and million-dollar “winner” in South Carolina, who tries to obscure her past in Jacksonville and the origins of her winning game ticket.

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Episode 4

A car accident lands Gennaro "Jerry" Colombo in the ICU, leading Jerome "Jerry" Jacobson to scout for new recruiters. Among those who join the operation are ex-con Andrew Glomb and Mormon real estate developer Dwight Baker, who convinces his foster son George Chandler to redeem a winning ticket. With "Operation: Final Answer" gaining speed, the FBI gathers intel on "Uncle Jerry's" middlemen and ends up tailing Dwight to the airport, where they worry a family confrontation may turn violent.

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Episode 5

Focusing their attention on Dwight Baker, the FBI intercepts a call with "Uncle Jerry" that leads them to capture crucial evidence of a game piece exchange. With the latest Monopoly game drawing to an end, the FBI works overtime to launch a coordinated cross-country day of indictments, though a last-minute technical error threatens to upend their carefully-laid plans. As the conspiracy becomes front-page news and those charged deal with the fallout, questions remain about how Jerome "Jerry" Jacobson actually got ahold of the Monopoly game pieces and who was the person who tipped off the FBI with that initial phone call.

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Episode 6

As the trial nears, many of the defendants take plea deals and cooperate with the government, but George Chandler and a handful of others decide to fight to prove their innocence.

When a previously uncooperative Jerome "Jerry" Jacobson takes the stand, the remaining details of how he pulled off his scheme are disclosed. Almost twenty years later, new information is revealed, and those involved – from "winners," to co-conspirators, to family members and government officials – reflect on what they learned, their regrets and the ripple effects that one man's greed had on so many people nationwide.

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