Bigger problem is that there are 11.7 B one dollar bills in circulation [1]. Even having that $100k sorted you still only stand 1: 117000 chance of winning.
[1] https://www.titlemax.com/discovery-center/money-finance/how-...
[1] https://www.titlemax.com/discovery-center/money-finance/how-...
What is interesting is that you could theoretically deposit (part of) the money into your account and then withdraw somewhere else, so change the odds slightly.
This was the mid-to-late 80's... it wasn't THAT long ago. The majority of people reading this were alive back then. Yes interest rates were higher in the 80s and 90s, but not as high as you are insinuating. At this time (from my memory) you could expect about 1% per year in interest. Maybe upwards of 2% annual interest if you had a very generous deal with a bank, but even that is unlikely.
At 1% a year, his $100,000 is generating ~$83 per month in interest.
Granted he could do other things with his money to appreciate it. Which would increase his time value of money. But the opportunity cost of checking/savings account interest was pretty small.
Granted the guy was stupid to begin with for even thinking he could win this contest and for putting $100k in cash in his house in case... I don't know, someone broke in or something... wait, that's what happened.
https://www.bankrate.com/banking/cds/historical-cd-interest-...
https://barbarafriedbergpersonalfinance.com/savings-account-...
Also, due to inflation, if you want to compare with today's dollars you need to multiply the amounts by approximately 4.
MARCH 31, 1986
"A wealthy San Francisco socialite in her 80s keeps $1 million in a passbook savings account earning a mere 5.5% interest."
A "mere" 5.5% is quite higher than 1%.