Live From Everywhere Except Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada, And Utah: It’s The Lottery!

This Sunday night, there will be a massive celebration of Saturday night. Yes, the 50th anniversary of Saturday Night Live — they’re calling it SNL 50 — will be broadcast live Sunday evening, a three-hour “show of shows” that will feature just about every living SNL and SNL-adjacent personality.

An incomplete list of confirmed stars set to appear includes Adam Sandler, Chevy Chase, Eddie Murphy, Kristen Wiig, and Will Ferrell. 

More? More.

Amy Poehler, Andy Samberg, Chris Rock, Fred Armisen, Garrett Morris, Jane Curtin, Jason Sudeikis, Jimmy Fallon, Kate McKinnon, Kenan Thompson, Laraine Newman, Maya Rudolph, Molly Shannon, Pete Davidson, Seth Meyers, Tina Fey, Tracy Morgan, Will Forte, and more, per Variety.

What does any of this have to do with the lottery, you may ask? Well, did you know SNL ran a Powerball sketch three years ago featuring Kim Kardashian?

“And the last is … condoms.”

Now you know.

And now you also know Powerball is leading the lottery charge this week, as nobody won Monday night’s drawing — winning numbers 2, 17, 18, 29, 43, and a red Powerball of 3 — making Wednesday’s drawing worth an estimated $155 million, with a $71.4 million cash value.

Although nobody hit the jackpot, one ticket-buyer in Wisconsin matched all five white balls to take home a million-dollar prize.

Lottery Geeks estimates 8.7 million tickets were sold for Monday’s drawing.

Mega Millions over $100 million also

Though not quite as large as the Powerball grand prize, Mega Millions’ estimated jackpot has grown to $110 million, with a $50.2 million cash option, for Tuesday night’s drawing. 

Last Friday’s numbers — 4, 24, 32, 41, 55, and gold Mega Ball of 16 — yielded one Match 5 winner from Michigan. That ticket is worth a million dollars.

Lottery Geeks estimates 9.3 million tickets were sold for Friday’s drawing.

Tickets for either lottery cost $2, with most states offering the multiplier option — which impacts any prize won except the jackpot — for an additional $1.

Both Powerball and Mega Millions are legal in all states except Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada, and Utah. Tickets for both draw games are also sold in Washington, D.C. and the U.S. Virgin Islands. In Puerto Rico, customers can buy tickets for Powerball, but not for Mega Millions.

All-time biggest jackpots

Here is a list of the all-time top 10 U.S. lottery jackpots:

1. $2.04 billion, Powerball, Nov. 7, 2022, won in California
2. $1.76 billion, Powerball, Oct. 11, 2023, won in California
3. $1.6 billion, Mega Millions, Aug. 8, 2023, won in Florida
4. $1.59 billion, Powerball, Jan. 13, 2016, won in California, Florida, and Tennessee
5. $1.54 billion, Mega Millions, Oct. 23, 2018, won in South Carolina
6. $1.35 billion, Mega Millions, Jan. 13, 2023, won in Maine
7. $1.34 billion, Mega Millions, July 29, 2022, won in Illinois
8. $1.33 billion, Powerball, April 6, 2024, won in Oregon
9. $1.22 billion, Mega Millions, Dec. 27, 2024, won in California
10. $1.13 billion, Mega Millions, March 26, 2024, won in New Jersey

And here’s the all-time top 10 by lump-sum cash value:

1. $997.6 million, Powerball, Nov. 7, 2022, won in California
2. $983.5 million, Powerball, Jan. 13, 2016, won in California, Florida, and Tennessee
3. $877.8 million, Mega Millions, Oct. 23, 2018, won in South Carolina
4. $794.2 million, Mega Millions, Aug. 8, 2023, won in Florida
5. $780.5 million, Mega Millions, July 29, 2022, won in Illinois
6. $776.6 million, Mega Millions, Jan. 22, 2021, won in Michigan
7. $774.1 million, Powerball, Oct. 11, 2023, won in California
8. $723.5 million, Mega Millions, Jan. 13, 2023, won in Maine
9. $621 million, Powerball, April 6, 2024, won in Oregon
10. $571.9 million, Mega Millions, Dec. 27, 2024, won in California