Ep 6. Games

In season 3 episode 6 of Drunk History, called "Games," the focus is on various games throughout history and the interesting stories that have arisen from them. As always, the show features comedians getting drunk and attempting to recount historical events, often with hilarious results.

The first segment focuses on the game of bridge, and specifically the story of Ely Culbertson, who revolutionized the game in the 1930s. By introducing new rules and strategies, Culbertson made bridge more exciting and accessible, and he became a celebrity in the process. However, his egotistical personality and tendency to play fast and loose with the rules eventually caught up with him.

Next up is the story of Bobby Fischer, the eccentric and volatile chess genius who became the youngest-ever U.S. chess champion at the age of 14. Fischer's rise to fame was meteoric, and he became a Cold War-era sensation when he faced off against the Soviet Union's reigning world champion, Boris Spassky, in a highly-publicized match in 1972. However, Fischer's erratic behavior and political beliefs caused him to withdraw from competition for years at a time, and his legacy is a complicated one.

The third segment takes us back to ancient Greece and the original Olympic Games. The story centers around Milo of Croton, a legendary wrestler who won six Olympic titles in a row in the 6th century BC. Milo's incredible strength and athleticism were the stuff of legend, and he was also known for his quirky training habits, which included carrying a calf on his back every day until it grew too heavy. Despite his impressive record, Milo's downfall came in a most ironic way.

Moving on to a more recent game, the fourth segment tells the story of the creation of Trivial Pursuit. The game's inventors, Chris Haney and Scott Abbott, were two Canadian journalists who came up with the idea while playing Scrabble. Their initial concept was to create a game based on geography, but they soon realized that the real money was in trivia. Trivial Pursuit became a cultural phenomenon in the 1980s, spawning countless spin-offs and imitators.

The final segment of the episode is perhaps the most bizarre and hilarious of all. It tells the story of the time that Harry Houdini, the world-famous magician and escape artist, challenged Robert E. Kennedy, the mayor of Atlantic City, to a game of bridge. The stakes were high, with Houdini putting up $50,000 and Kennedy wagering his entire city budget. The game itself was a spectacle, with Houdini performing magic tricks and sleight of hand the whole time. However, the outcome was not what anyone expected.

Overall, "Games" is another entertaining and informative episode of Drunk History, with plenty of laughs and fascinating historical tidbits. Whether you're a fan of trivia, chess, or just good old-fashioned Olympic wrestling, there's something in this episode for everyone. So grab a drink and settle in for some hilarious history!