The Story of Truth or Consequences, New Mexico

Have you ever heard of a town named after a game show? Welcome to Truth or Consequences, New Mexico—a real place with a name that sounds like a dare. But this quirky rebrand wasn’t just for laughs. It was a last-ditch effort to save a dying spa town, and it worked… at least for a while.

Originally called Hot Springs, the town was once a desert retreat drawing presidents, movie stars, and thousands of tourists. But by the 1940s, its glory days were fading—until a national game show offered a strange lifeline. When the town agreed to rename itself after Truth or Consequences, it became an instant media sensation. The name stuck, the tourists came back, and the town became a symbol of offbeat Americana.\n\nIn this episode, we dive into the bizarre but true story of how one New Mexico town risked its identity—and became a legend in the process.