Who Wants to Be a Millionaire - Backstory Time!

Hello, everyone! I want to thank everyone for the outpouring of support and congratulations that have come my way since my 'Millionaire' episode aired in September. I wanted to blog about my experience, but ended up taking far longer than I expected to coherently put a post together! It ended up being very long, so I've split it into three parts. I hope that you enjoy reading...perhaps it will inspire you to take the plunge and try out for the show!

My family has always loved game shows. Since childhood, every night at 7PM, Jeopardy takes over our television and we fight to see who knows the most answers and thus wins the game. Each day at 12:30 PM, whoever is home settles in after lunch to watch “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.” It’s our daily routine, and while we have always hoped to play on one of these shows someday, I never imagined that I would actually have the opportunity to be a contestant.

Let’s go back to earlier this summer. I headed into the city to take the “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” qualifying test with my mother and sister…and I failed. I watched my mom and sister, who both passed, be ushered away to speak with producers. I was ushered out the door, left to wait for them to finish their mini-interviews. When they emerged half an hour later, I was nursing a frappucino and already planning to come back to take the test again (you can take it up to five times in one year). I was determined to live up to my family legacy (I take things a bit seriously) and pass the test as well.

When I returned to take the test two weeks later, I passed! Like my mother and sister before me, I was ushered aside to speak with a producer. Then, I found myself pulled to the side yet again and waiting to be put on camera to speak with another producer and answer a few test questions. We talked about my pageant experiences, I made an attempt at the moonwalk (poorly), and when it was all said and done, I walked away after being told they’d be in touch. A few weeks later, I received a postcard placing me in the contestant’s pool. I was incredibly excited, but didn't get my hopes up—after all, that didn't mean they’d necessarily pick me to film.

Imagine my surprise when just a few weeks later, I was called and offered the chance to film an episode. Now imagine my disappointment when I had to say “Sorry…I can’t.” The date I was asked to film was the same date as my first day of work at my new job. I couldn't miss it—while the chance to play for a million dollars is an incredible opportunity, it is just that: a chance. I couldn't risk my future and potentially lose a great full-time job.

Thankfully, the team at Millionaire is extremely kind and understanding. They were willing to work with me, and I was given a new film date: August 29, 2013. I marked the day of my calendar, and began to countdown the days.