2008 Woodie Awards
Millionaire contestant falls short
Ben Penn
Issue date: 4/15/08 Section: News
Senior criminology and criminal justice major John O'Connor certainly wanted to become a millionaire. He just came up $999,000 short.
O'Connor's appearance on the syndicated game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, which first aired on WUSA 9 last Friday and continued yesterday, ended when he incorrectly guessed the answer to the $16,000 question, dropping his winnings to $1,000.
O'Connor could have walked away with $8,000, but chose to attempt the $16,000 question: "Which of these animals is also known as a polecat? A) Skunk, B) Opossum, C) Hedgehog, D) Squirrel." O'Connor used his 50-50 lifeline to narrow the choices down to skunk and opossum, but incorrectly guessed opossum.
More than six months after the taping, O'Connor did not second-guess his decision, even though he left the "Phone-A-Friend" lifeline unused.
"I remember it seemed logical to me at the time, but when I got it wrong, I was in complete shock," he said. "But I don't have any regrets. It was a lot of fun."
O'Connor, who said he will graduate in May, originally intended to pay off college debt with his winnings, but now plans to put the money toward a down payment on a new car.
"It's not a huge amount of money, but it will help," O'Connor said.
penndbk@gmail.com
O'Connor's appearance on the syndicated game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, which first aired on WUSA 9 last Friday and continued yesterday, ended when he incorrectly guessed the answer to the $16,000 question, dropping his winnings to $1,000.
O'Connor could have walked away with $8,000, but chose to attempt the $16,000 question: "Which of these animals is also known as a polecat? A) Skunk, B) Opossum, C) Hedgehog, D) Squirrel." O'Connor used his 50-50 lifeline to narrow the choices down to skunk and opossum, but incorrectly guessed opossum.
More than six months after the taping, O'Connor did not second-guess his decision, even though he left the "Phone-A-Friend" lifeline unused.
"I remember it seemed logical to me at the time, but when I got it wrong, I was in complete shock," he said. "But I don't have any regrets. It was a lot of fun."
O'Connor, who said he will graduate in May, originally intended to pay off college debt with his winnings, but now plans to put the money toward a down payment on a new car.
"It's not a huge amount of money, but it will help," O'Connor said.
penndbk@gmail.com
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