Featured Image Credit: YouTube / Who Wants to Be a Millionaire
Topics: Reddit, Viral, Film and TV
Gerrard Kaonga
Topics: Reddit, Viral, Film and TV
Becoming a millionaire is pretty cool, but doing so in style must be one of the greatest feelings - and a game show contestant did that in the best way imaginable.
Who Wants to be a Millionaire at one point was the pinnacle of Saturday night game show viewing, and the first-ever person to win the top prize did so in great fashion.
John Carpenter was certainly able to mark this milestone for the show with a bold and confident move.
The game show is pretty straight forward: you are asked a question, and are given four choices, with one being the correct answer. Each correct answer moves you closer to the million-dollar top prize while banking you some money in the process.
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If you are stuck, you can use your three lifelines, a 50/50 option, which removes two of the wrong answers, ask the audience which sees the guests in the crowd take a stab at the question and show you what they picked and phone a friend, which is pretty self-explanatory.
In 1999, while on the American version of the show with host Regis Philbin, Carpenter managed to get to the final question without needing any of his lifelines.
But on this final question, he opted to phone a friend, his father, who had likely been waiting patiently by the phone while his son was on the show, just in case.
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He was asked, Which of these U.S. presidents appeared on the television series Laugh In.
The four potential answers were Lyndon Johnson, Jimmy Carter, Gerald Ford, and the correct answer Richard Nixon.
Speaking to his father, Carpenter confidently said: “Hi Dad, I don’t really need your help. I just wanted to let you know I'm about to win the million dollars.”
The crowd then erupted in cheers and laughter before Carpenter gave his answer of Nixon and was confirmed to be the first contestant to become a millionaire on the show.
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I can only wish to have half of this confidence when faced with a life-changing moment.
A clip of this moment has long circulated on social media, and Reddit users have repeatedly praised the “mad lad” for the iconic TV moment.
“I remember watching this live with my family when I was a kid, and we (mom, sister and I) just went wild, like crazy when he did this. It was insane just to watch him win like a boss, and be the first to do it,” one user wrote.
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“I was about to say this wasn't next level until he talked to his dad. That is such a boss fucking move. The confidence is real,” commented another user.
“I remember watching this with my parents when I was 10 and thinking he was such a badass. Strolled into my 5th grade class the next day and told all my friends the story. What a time,” another user said. What a time indeed.