Editing Dead pool

{{Short description|Game which involves guessing when someone will die}}
{{about|the game of chance|other uses}}
{{confused|Tontine}}

A '''dead pool''', also known as a '''deadpool''' or '''death pool''', is a game of prediction which involves guessing when someone will die. Sometimes it is a bet where money is involved.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/life/columnist/popcandy/2004-07-06-pop-candy_x.htm |title=Celebrity obsession extends beyond the grave |work=[[USA Today]] |first=Whitney |last=Matheson |agency=Pop Candy (column) |date=July 6, 2004 |access-date=August 19, 2014}}</ref>

== Modern application ==
In the early 20th century, dead pools were popular in dangerous sports such as motorsport, for example the [[1911 Indianapolis 500|first edition]] of the [[Indianapolis 500]].<ref>{{cite news |title=The Indy 500: Born Out Of 'Blood And Smoke' |url=https://www.npr.org/2011/05/29/136714920/the-indy-500-born-out-of-blood-and-smoke |access-date=11 April 2019 |work=NPR.org |agency=National Public Radio |date=28 May 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170612181001/https://www.npr.org/2011/05/29/136714920/the-indy-500-born-out-of-blood-and-smoke |archive-date=12 June 2017 |language=en}}</ref>

=== Variants ===
A typical modern dead pool might have players pick out celebrities who they think will die within the year. Most games start on January 1 and run for 12 months, although there are some variations on game length and timing.{{cn|date=January 2014}} 

In 2000, website [[Fucked Company]] claimed to be a "dot-com dead pool" which invited users to predict the next [[dot-com bubble|Internet startups]] to fail during that era's [[dot com bust]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Festa|first=Paul |url=http://news.cnet.com/2100-1023-955447.html?hhTest=1 |title=Dot-com dead pool brakes for Ford |work=CNet News |date=2002-08-26|access-date=8 August 2012}}</ref> The site itself folded in 2007 after a long history as a target for [[strategic lawsuit against public participation|strategic lawsuits against public participation]] by companies.<ref name="rowan">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/Archive/Article/0,4273,4064822,00.html|last=Rowan|first=David|title=The dead list|date=17 September 2000 |work=The Guardian |access-date=8 August 2012}}</ref>

Because of the high body count in the first seven seasons of the popular fantasy television series ''[[Game of Thrones]]'', dead pools were launched for its final season.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Julianelle |first1=Mike |title=Genius Boss Creates Game of Thrones Season 8 Death Pool Contest [SPOILERS] |url=https://www.thedad.com/genius-boss-creates-game-of-thrones-death-pool-contest-spoilers/ |website=thedad.com |date=4 February 2019 |publisher=Some Spider Studios |access-date=12 April 2019}}</ref>

=== Application in contemporary society ===
Britain's premier dead pool in recent years has been the Derby Dead Pool,<ref>{{Cite web|title=Derby Dead Pool - Death happens. Why not make it interesting?|url=http://www.derbydeadpool.co.uk/|access-date=2020-08-12|website=Derby Dead Pool|language=en-US}}</ref> which has run for over 25 years and received an article detailing its players on the BBC website.<ref>{{Cite web|title=BBC - Derby - Features - Dead celebs society|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/derby/content/articles/2005/01/31/derby_dead_pool_2005_feature.shtml|access-date=2020-08-12|website=www.bbc.co.uk}}</ref>

The ''[[Rotten.com]] Dead Pool'', formerly largest in the world,<ref>{{citation |url = http://www.macleans.ca/canada/features/article.jsp?content=20080201_143436_5540|title = Who's in your celebrity dead pool?|first = Kathleen|last = Kennedy|publisher = Maclean|date = February 1, 2008|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140112063126/http://www.macleans.ca/canada/features/article.jsp?content=20080201_143436_5540|archive-date = 12 January 2014}}</ref> uses [[NNDB]] as its source of qualified celebrities, and as arbiter of their life status. 

The concept and success strategies are also detailed in a (previously) annual guide called ''The Dead Pool,'' written by [[KQRS-FM]] radio personality Mike Gelfand and author Mike Wilkinson. KQRS-FM in [[Minneapolis/St. Paul]], Minnesota also does an annual on air dead pool contest, where show hosts and listeners will attempt to pick which celebrity will die in that calendar year.

In his AP news article "Some say death pools are in poor taste"<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.heraldtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061229/NEWS/612290302 |title=Some say death pools are in poor taste |publisher=Herald Tribune |first=Matt |last=Sedensky |date=December 29, 2006}}</ref> (which brought national attention to ''The Old Blue Eyes Celebrity Death Watch''), author Matt Sedensky writes, "Players scour newspapers and Web sites for news on celebrities' health; they rely on tips from insiders; and they consider a public figure's lifestyle, absence of recent appearances and rumors of illness."

==In popular culture==
A dead pool is a key plot element of the 1988 final installment of the ''[[Dirty Harry (film series)|Dirty Harry]]'' film series, ''[[The Dead Pool]]''. Harry investigates the players, when several people listed in a game of dead pool die in suspicious circumstances.

The [[Marvel Comics]] character [[Deadpool]] (first appearing in 1991) takes his name after escaping from [[Francis Fanny|Ajax]] and [[List of Weapon X members|Dr. Killebrew]], who formed their own dead pool based on which of their experimental subjects would die first.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Truffaut-Wong|first1=Olivia|title=How Did 'Deadpool' Get His Name? The Answer Is Way More Obvious Than You'd Think|url=http://www.bustle.com/articles/140676-how-did-deadpool-get-his-name-the-answer-is-way-more-obvious-than-youd-think|website=Bustle|date=9 February 2016 |access-date=27 May 2016}}</ref> In the 2016 film ''[[Deadpool (film)|Deadpool]]'', the titular character takes his hero name from a dead pool of mercenaries, himself included, who are regular patrons at his favorite bar.

In the [[MTV]] show ''[[Teen Wolf (2011 TV series)|Teen Wolf]]'', the main plotline of [[Teen Wolf (season 4)|Season 4]] (2014) revolves around a dead pool specifically targeting the supernaturals of [[Beacon Hills]], which is set up by a mysterious character named The Benefactor.

==See also==
*[[Assassination market]]
*[[Tontine]]
*[[Policy Analysis Market]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dead Pool}}
[[Category:Death]]
[[Category:Gambling games]]
[[Category:Prediction markets]]