‘Cash Cab’ is heading to Chicago

Associated Press

NEW YORK

“Cash Cab” is spreading the wealth.

The Discovery Network show that turns a New York City cab ride into an instant game show is launching a spinoff version based in Chicago in the spring. Comic Beth Melewski will be behind the wheel.

The expansion comes after a triumphant year for “Cash Cab.” The series, itself a remake of a British TV’s similar game based in London, won its second Daytime Emmy award for best game show. Ben Bailey won his first Emmy as best host.

The idea for the Chicago version came when Bailey did a handful of tapings in Las Vegas, some that included entertainers such as Carrot Top playing for charity, and Discovery recognized how a new city with new people and new sites could give “Cash Cab” an entirely different feel, said Clark Bunting, Discovery’s CEO.

Bunting is from Michigan, and he wanted to get the Midwest involved. Chicago, a city similar to New York with many cabs, seemed like it could work in a way that Los Angeles, for example, couldn’t since there’s relatively little cab use.

Melewski had the combination of smarts and knowledge of her city to work well in the cab, he said.

“Beth feels real-deal Chicago,” he said. “You’ve got to have, for these shows at least, a feel for the city.”

He doesn’t expect expansion beyond these two cities in the United States, Bunting said. Other “Cash Cab” versions air in Canada, Japan and Australia.

The Chicago shows will air within the two-hour block of four “Cash Cab” episodes that Discovery airs from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.