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| Cunningham and Penzo had an unforgettable April Fool's Day In 1984. (c)Getty Images |
On This Day In 1984, the world's "most valuable tip" was handed to waitress, Phyllis Penzo in New York City after serving her friend of 15 years, New York City police detective Robert Cunningham.
At a South Pizzeria in Yonkers, Cunningham joked with Penzo that he would rather split a lottery ticket with her instead of leaving a tip. He promised to split the earnings with her and both chose the lottery ticket numbers.
Two days later on April Fool's Day at 9:00 am, Penzo would receive a phone call from Cunningham about the life-changing news. The ticket they both played won the lottery for $6 million. As this was April Fool's Day, Penzo refused to believe the news initially.
As a man of his word, Cunningham split the ticket 50/50 with Penzo and her husband.
Robert Cunningham and Phyllis Penzo were awarded $287,815....for the next 21 years annually.
This would later be the inspiration for the 1994 film, 'It Could Happen To You' which starred Bridget Fonda, Nicholas Cage, Rosie Perez and Wendell Pierce.
Check out Cunningham and Penzo's 1994 lottery commercial.
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