Is the Monty Hall Problem based on a real game show game?

Question

I first encountered the Monty Hall Problem in a book of mathematical puzzles, presented such that the answer was obviously 2/3. Supposedly, a majority of readers get that answer wrong.

My question is not about math. My question is, what were the rules of the real game that that majority was thinking of instead of the carefully-defined puzzle that I read?

The puzzle is named for the host of Let's Make a Deal. In the puzzle, there is a prize behind one of three doors. The contestant chooses a door, the host opens a door with nothing behind it, and the contestant has an opportunity to switch her choice to the third door.

If this game really happened: did Monty Hall always open a door that contained nothing? Did he even know beforehand which door contained the prize?

PoohBearPenguin · Accepted Answer

Yes, there used to be a TV gameshow in the 50s called "Let's Make A Deal" and the host was Monty Hall.  You can probably find examples of it on Youtube.

At the end of the show, a contestant is presented with a choice of 3 doors as the question describes.

The contestant was always offered a choice, but depending on what he initially chose, Monty wouldn't always open a door.

Simpson G. · Answer

Let's Make A Deal is back on the air with Wayne Brady as the host. The format is nearly identical, so you can watch it to get a feeling of the original show.  The show has run in various forms and time slots since 1963, intermittently.

The deal do not always include doors. It's often boxes or envelopes, but it usually involves selecting one item and then being offered money, prizes, or mystery gifts to change your selection or to walk away.

While the answer is 2/3, it's not obvious. Nobel prize winners and PhD mathematicians have vehemently and loudly fought against the 2/3 answer. Reason being that most folks assume that the chances switch to 1/2 after the initial door is removed. Mythbusters did a segment on this and found that in a randomized actual application (assuming we take them at the word) and found 2/3 of the time, the person who switched choices after one door was opened, won. The person who stayed with his initial choice was only correct 1/3 of the time.

M S · Answer

yes and, 
there are 20+ life support conditions on earth which has nothing to do with "evolving" 
evolution is a theory came alive lately based on similarity than actual observations. in the last 10,000 years, we never heard or saw a 1/2 ape 1/2 man or so

? · Answer

I heard of someone that went into Hell, and returned to tell about it; the Devil gave that person a choice between three Doors to spend Eternity: Door #1) People were up to their waist in FECES, and drinking Coffee. #2) People were up to their Chins in Feces, gasping for Air. #3) People were being dipped in and out of Feces, with long Ropes. The Person said he picked Door #1, and as he was given a Cup of Coffee, within 1 - 2 minuets he hears over a loud Speaker, " OK everyone, Coffee Breaks over, back down! " ...0507/2015

Is the Monty Hall Problem based on a real game show game?

4 Answers