Win Ben Stein's Money

1997
6.6| 0h30m| en
Synopsis

Win Ben Stein's Money is an American television game show created by Al Burton and Donnie Brainard that aired first-run episodes from July 28, 1997 to January 31, 2003 on the Comedy Central cable network, with repeat episodes airing until May 8, 2003. The show featured three contestants who competed to answer general knowledge questions in order to win the grand prize of $5,000 from the show's host, Ben Stein. In the second half of each episode, Stein participated as a "common contestant" in order to defend his money from being taken by his competitors. The show won five Daytime Emmy awards, with Stein and Jimmy Kimmel, the show's original co-host, sharing the Outstanding Game Show Host award in 1999. As noted in a disclaimer during the closing credits, prize money won by contestants was paid from a prize budget furnished by the producers of the show. Any money left over in that budget at the end of a season was given to Stein. If the total amount paid out during a season exceeded that budget, the production company paid the excess, so Stein was never at risk of losing money from his own pocket. Stein's co-host was Jimmy Kimmel for the first three years. Kimmel left in 2000 and was replaced by Nancy Pimental, who co-hosted the program through 2001. Kimmel's cousin, Sal Iacono, who took over the role in 2002, was the show's last co-host. Although Jimmy Kimmel left the program in 2000, he occasionally made guest appearances afterward, and hosted College Week episodes in 2001.

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Reviews

Stevecorp Don't listen to the negative reviews
Glucedee It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.
Kaelan Mccaffrey Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.
Logan By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.
michael_the_nermal "Win Ben Stein's Money" was one of the best shows that aired on Comedy Central when "South Park" and "The Daily Show" were rather new. It was highly creative and almost always witty and funny. Ben Stein, best known as a character actor and commercial spokesperson with a monotone voice and tweed sweater, comes to life as both host and contestant. He and co-host Jimmy Kimmell had an excellent chemistry, and their exchanges of jokes and insults were among Comedy Central's finest moments. Very few of the questions were dumbed down for mass consumption, and the show's entertaining and quick pace made it a welcome contrast to the dull and ridiculous "Who Wants to be a Millionaire." The show did suffer a bit when Nancy Pimental took over as co-host, as she lacked Jimmy's chemistry (he later went on to co-host the insipid "Man Show"), but she was fairly competent as a comedian. Ben showed his true talent as an entertainer here, and it resulted in his short-lived spin-off, "Turn Ben Stein On." If your cable providers offer The Game Show Network, due yourselves a favor a catch a rerun of "Win Ben Stein's Money" if you're not too busy. You won't regret it.
Hopper-2 Win Ben Stein's Money was a novel concept for a game show: contestants compete with each other and the host in a trivia contest to win some or all of the host's $5000. The show will always be memorable for me as the only game show I can stand to watch. Most game shows are too serious to be enjoyable, and those that aim to be more entertaining are usually too obvious and cheesy.Putting Ben Stein and Jimmy Kimmel together made this show different. Ben, aside from being very smart, is a very funny man. His boring monotone turned him into an icon through roles in Ferris Bueler's Day Off and The Wonder Years. He has the perfect voice for the crude humour of Win Ben Stein's Money. You can't help but laugh when this intelligent, dignified, expressionless and utterly uncool-looking old man swears at the judges, flips Jimmy the bird or knocks over a safe.Jimmy Kimmel was clearly chosen to create an "Odd Couple" contrast to Ben. He has raised the bar for shockingly inappropriate comments from a game show host.The questions are interesting, the topics are hilarious, and it's great fun to see a host actually compete with the contestants. You have to watch the end to see if Ben wins or loses. Giving Ben a vested interest in the outcome of the game adds great entertainment value because the competition brings out the best and worst in him. Truly a delightful game show experience.
Teenie-1 People really ought to start lightening up and enjoy humor for what it is, be it gross-out or straight-laced. This show offers both kinds of laughs with its off-the-wall categories and cocky comments from Jimmy Kimmel. To see Ben Stein's expressions when the categories are announced is a laugh in itself. When he makes a mistake, his expressions of shock are priceless. And Jimmy really manages to rub it in. Ben really gets his thinking cap on and it's really fun to see just how much this man really knows. The Clear Eyes commercials did nothing for him - this is his show, by all means. It's all harmless fun, offered by Game Show Network. If you're offended, change the channel! If you're not, then enjoy the fun and laugh a lot.
marileec I love this show. I'm usually not one for game shows, as they are usually very bland and boring. However, Stein's show is fantastic. It's funny, smart, and fun to play along with, even if I don't know most of the answers to the questions. Also, it's not a show where the prize is a couple million dollars or something ... and I like that. I like that it's a show to be fun, and not to win huge bucks. Also, if you win, why would you care about the money, anyway? You'd be happy to have just beat Ben Stein at his own game! Good work Ben!