Nicolae Daraban, from Galați, appeared as a contestant twice on Vrei să fii miliardar?, the first Romanian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?. In his first game, he left with 5.000.000 lei on Series 2 in November 2001. He reappeared on Series 5 on the final episode, broadcast on July 1, 2003, as the very last contestant of the show, winning 125.000.000 lei.
A decade later, he returned as a contestant on Series 2 of the second Romanian version of the show, Vrei să fii milionar?, on 5 April 2012. He won 7.500 lei.
Nicolae's First Run[]
Nicolae's Run to the 1.000.000.000 lei[]
| 1,000,000 lei (1 of 15) - Not Timed | |
| Who won the Rome Prize with the musical work 'The Wonder Child' in 1884? | |
| ⬥ A: Claude Debussy | ⬥ B: Costi Ioniță |
| ⬥ C: Vali Vijelie | ⬥ D: Adrian Copilul Minune |
| 2,000,000 lei (2 of 15) - Not Timed | |
| Only one of the following variants defines a shrub. What is it? | |
| ⬥ A: tomcat | ⬥ B: hawthorn |
| ⬥ C: mosquito | ⬥ D: bumblebee |
| 3,000,000 lei (3 of 15) - Not Timed | |
| Only one of the following states is in South America. What is it? | |
| ⬥ A: Bolivia | ⬥ B: Chad |
| ⬥ C: Ethiopia | ⬥ D: Mauritania |
| 4,000,000 lei (4 of 15) - Not Timed | |
| What is the meaning of the Honoris Causa? | |
| ⬥ A: don't touch me! | ⬥ B: for honor |
| ⬥ C: be good | ⬥ D: few, but good |
| 5,000,000 lei (5 of 15) - Not Timed | |
| What do you define as a niche in the walls or the stoves of the peasant houses? | |
| ⬥ A: recess | ⬥ B: swan |
| ⬥ C: paving stone | ⬥ D: round |
| 10,000,000 lei (6 of 15) - Not Timed | |
| What word does not fit in a characterization of Ernst Barlach? | |
| ⬥ A: sculptor | ⬥ B: poet |
| ⬥ C: informatician | ⬥ D: playwright |
| 15,000,000 lei (7 of 15) - Not Timed | |
| What is the official currency of Malta? | |
| ⬥ A: franc | ⬥ B: lira |
| ⬥ C: drachma | ⬥ D: dinar |
| 25,000,000 lei (8 of 15) - Not Timed | |
| Which of the following words is used to express the accuracy and rigor of scientific research? '50:50' and 'Phone a Friend' lifelines used | |
| ⬥ A: logoclonia | ⬥ B: exactingness |
| ⬥ C: proplasm | ⬥ D: overthrust |
| After using two of his lifelines, Nicolae plumped for A, yet the right answer was B. Total Winnings: 5.000.000 lei |
Nicolae's Second Run[]
Fastest Finger First[]
| Fastest Finger First Question | |
| Order chronologically the following directors by their dates of birth. | |
| ⬥ A: Warren Beatty | ⬥ B: Federico Fellini |
| ⬥ C: Robert Zemeckis | ⬥ D: Marcel Carné |
| The correct sequence is D-B-A-C. Out of 10 contestants, only Nicolae answered correctly, in 6.82 seconds. |
Nicolae's Run to 1 000 000 000 Lei[]
| 1.000.000 Lei (1 of 15) - Not timed | |
| Where was Dostoyevsky sent after his arrest? | |
| ⬥ A: After cigarettes | ⬥ B: To Siberia |
| ⬥ C: Camping | ⬥ D: To the Big Brother House |
| 2.000.000 Lei (2 of 15) - Not timed | |
| What island is famous for gigantic turtles? | |
| ⬥ A: Sacalin Island | ⬥ B: Galapagos Islands |
| ⬥ C: Serpents' Island | ⬥ D: Terra Nova |
| 3.000.000 Lei (3 of 15) - Not timed | |
| What is the name of the WBA category boxing world champion of the year 2002? | |
| ⬥ A: Mihai Leu | ⬥ B: Francisc Vaștag |
| ⬥ C: Leonard Doroftei | ⬥ D: Florentin Petre |
| 4.000.000 Lei (4 of 15) - Not timed | |
| Which mountains do you have to go through to visit Pietrele Doamnei? | |
| ⬥ A: Bucegi | ⬥ B: Retezat |
| ⬥ C: Parâng | ⬥ D: Rarău |
| 5.000.000 Lei (5 of 15) - Not timed | |
| What is the name of the religious service which takes place every night of the week before Easter in Orthodoxy? | |
| ⬥ A: Purim | ⬥ B: Denie |
| ⬥ C: Agape | ⬥ D: Temenea |
| 10.000.000 Lei (6 of 15) - Not timed | |
| In which film did Dustin Hoffman play the role of an American comic? 'Ask the Audience' and 'Phone-a-Friend' lifelines used | |
| ⬥ A: Man on the Moon | ⬥ B: Lenny |
| ⬥ C: Păcală | ⬥ D: Uncle Marin, the Billionaire |
| Ask the Audience Results: A: 43% ⬥ B: 51% ⬥ C: 6% ⬥ D: 0% | |
| 15.000.000 Lei (7 of 15) - Not timed | |
| Where is the Sea of Tranquility? | |
| ⬥ A: On the Dalmastian coast | ⬥ B: In a Norwegian fjord |
| ⬥ C: In Cuba | ⬥ D: On the Moon |
| 20.000.000 Lei (8 of 15) - Not timed | |
| Who is the author of the essays united under the title 'Imposibila întoarcere'? '50:50' lifeline used | |
| ⬥ A: Mihail Sadoveanu | ⬥ B: Mircea Eliade |
| ⬥ C: Marin Sorescu | ⬥ D: Marin Preda |
| 25.000.000 Lei (9 of 15) - Not timed | |
| Which country is not found amongst the permanent members of the UN Security Council? | |
| ⬥ A: Germany | ⬥ B: France |
| ⬥ C: United Kingdom | ⬥ D: China |
| 30.000.000 Lei (10 of 15) - Not timed | |
| What band has been with John Mayall for many years? | |
| ⬥ A: The Rockets | ⬥ B: The Bluesbreakers |
| ⬥ C: The Heartbreakers | ⬥ D: The Comets |
| 60.000.000 Lei (11 of 15) - Not timed | |
| Who designed the architecture of the Palazzo Rucellai in Florence? | |
| ⬥ A: Giotto di Bondone | ⬥ B: Donatello |
| ⬥ C: Giorgio Vasari | ⬥ D: Leon Battista Alberti |
| 125.000.000 Lei (12 of 15) - Not timed | |
| What was the name of the father of Odysseus in Greek mythology? | |
| ⬥ A: Laertes | ⬥ B: Lacturnus |
| ⬥ C: Lahamu | ⬥ D: Labos |
| 250.000.000 Lei (13 of 15) - Not timed | |
| What is the name of a curve plotted on a map representing a globe, which intersects all meridians at the same angle? | |
| ⬥ A: Isogloss | ⬥ B: Termoclin |
| ⬥ C: Isobat | ⬥ D: Rhumb line |
| Unsure, and with all lifelines exhausted, Nicolae walked away. He would have said B, but the right answer was D. Total Prize Money: 125.000.000 Lei |
Third Run[]
Fastest Finger First[]
| Fastest Finger First Question | |
| Order in ascending order the following mountain ranges of the Southern Carpathians. | |
| ⬥ A: Cozia | ⬥ B: Făgăraş |
| ⬥ C: Piatra Craiului | ⬥ D: Retezat |
| The correct order is A-C-D-B. Out of 10 contestants, only Nicolae answered correctly, in 5.659 seconds. |
Nicolae's Run to the Million[]
| 100 Lei (1 of 15) - Not timed | |
| On what does a patient sit during a classic psychoanalysis session? | |
| ⬥ A: On nut sheets | ⬥ B: On shards of glass |
| ⬥ C: On rollers | ⬥ D: On a couch |
| 200 Lei (2 of 15) - Not timed | |
| Where did the Allies land in World War II? | |
| ⬥ A: Chilia Harbour | ⬥ B: Great Britain |
| ⬥ C: France | ⬥ D: Underwater |
| 300 Lei (3 of 15) - Not timed | |
| What is the name of the process of making game meat tender? | |
| ⬥ A: Fabling | ⬥ B: Farrowing |
| ⬥ C: Celebrating | ⬥ D: Flatulence |
| 500 Lei (4 of 15) - Not timed | |
| What is the name of the Dacia model released at the beginning of 2012? | |
| ⬥ A: Lodgy | ⬥ B: Logan |
| ⬥ C: Duster | ⬥ D: Sandero |
| 1.000 Lei (5 of 15) - Not timed | |
| In the territory of which current country is the Ottoman stronghold of Smardan? | |
| ⬥ A: Turkey | ⬥ B: Serbia |
| ⬥ C: Romania | ⬥ D: Bulgaria |
| 1.500 Lei (6 of 15) - Not timed | |
| What is the name of mastering one's attributes to be able to be present everywhere or in several places at the same time? | |
| ⬥ A: Promiscuity | ⬥ B: Sailing |
| ⬥ C: Omnipresence | ⬥ D: Clemency |
| 3.000 Lei (7 of 15) - Not timed | |
| Which of these noble terms used by a samurai is for a suicide ritual? | |
| ⬥ A: Seppuku | ⬥ B: Kamikaze |
| ⬥ C: Arigato | ⬥ D: Sayonara |
| 5.000 Lei (8 of 15) - Not timed | |
| Where is the city of Bilbao located? | |
| ⬥ A: In the Baleric Islands? | ⬥ B: In Northern Spain |
| ⬥ C: In Eastern Spain | ⬥ D: Near Lisbon |
| 7.500 Lei (9 of 15) - Not timed | |
| Continue the title of the recent Brad Pitt film: 'The Curious Case of...'? 'Ask the Audience' and '50:50' lifelines used | |
| ⬥ A: David Fincher | ⬥ B: John Malkovich |
| ⬥ C: Benjamin Button | ⬥ D: Butch Cassidy |
| Ask the Audience Results: A: 7% ⬥ B: 32% ⬥ C: 42% ⬥ D: 19% | |
| 15.000 Lei (10 of 15) - Not timed | |
| Who created for Madonna the legendary stage corset with a pointed bra? 'Phone-a-Friend' lifeline used | |
| ⬥ A: Jean-Paul Gaultier | ⬥ B: Kenzo Takada |
| ⬥ C: Calvin Klein | ⬥ D: John Galliano |
| After using his Phone-a-Friend, Nicolae was unsure, and so walked away. Had he played the question, he would have said C, but the correct answer was A. Total Prize Money: 7.500 Lei |
Trivia[]
- In addition to his three Millionaire appearances, Nicolae also won €28,000 on Cu banii jos, the Romanian version of The Million Pound Drop.
Sources[]
| Preceded by ? |
Romanian Contestant (Series 2) Nicolae Daraban |
Succeeded by ? |
| Preceded by Doru Popovici |
Romanian Contestant (Series 5) Nicolae Daraban |
Succeeded by ? |
| Preceded by ? |
Romanian Contestant (Series 7) Nicolae Daraban |
Succeeded by Florin Burlacu |