The final question is the rarest moment in the program Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
Below is a list of contestants who have reached the last question of the U.S. version of the show, as well as the wording of the questions.
Contents
1 Contestants
1.1 Michael Shutterly: August 25th, 1999 1.2 John Carpenter: November 19th, 1999 1.3 David Fite: January 10th, 2000 1.4 Dan Blonsky: January 18th, 2000 1.5 Rob Coughlin: January 23rd, 2000 1.6 Stephanie Girardi: February 17th, 2000 1.7 Joe Trela: March 23rd, 2000 1.8 Mike Menz: April 27th, 2000 1.9 Drew Carey: May 2nd, 2000 1.10 Rosie O'Donnell: May 3rd, 2000 1.11 Tim Shields: ???, 2000 (alleged) 1.12 Tom O'Brien: June 11th, 2000 1.13 Bob House: June 13th, 2000 1.14 Kim Hunt: July 6th, 2000 1.15 David Goodman: July 11th, 2000 1.16 Joe Kelleher: July 23rd, 2000 1.17 Phil Gibbons: August 15th, 2000 1.18 Pat Thompson: November 8th, 2000 1.19 Norm Macdonald: November 19th, 2000 1.20 Justin Ray Castillo: November 26th, 2000 1.21 Jim Matthews: December 6th, 2000 1.22 Gary Gambino: March 1st, 2001 1.23 David Stewart: April 1st, 2001 1.24 Kevin Olmstead: April 10th, 2001 1.25 Bernie Cullen: April 15th, 2001 1.26 Steve Perry: April 22nd, 2001 1.27 Moe Cain: May 1st, 2001 1.28 Rob and Mary Beth McNally: May 17th, 2001 1.29 Tom Hoobler: June 5th, 2001 1.30 Mary Burke: June 14th, 2001 1.31 Ed Toutant: September 7th, 2001 1.32 Kevin Smith: February 18th, 2003 1.33 Nancy Christy: May 8th, 2003 1.34 Armand Kachigian: May 9th, 2003 1.35 Jeff Gross: November 18th, 2004 1.36 Ogi Ogas: November 8th, 2006 1.37 Lyn Payne: November 1st, 2007 1.38 Ken Basin: August 23rd, 2009 1.39 Alex Ortiz: November 9th, 2009 1.40 Tony Westmoreland: November 10th, 2009 1.41 Sam Murray: November 11th, 2009 1.42 Robin Schwartz: November 12th, 2009 1.43 Ralph Cambeis: November 13th, 2009 1.44 Tim Janus: November 16th, 2009 1.45 Matt Schultz: November 17th, 2009 1.46 Jeff Birt: November 18th, 2009 1.47 Keilani Goggins: November 19th, 2009 1.48 Jehan Shamsid-Deen: November 20th, 2009 1.49 Josina Reaves: September 25th, 2013 1.50 Charles Esten: November 21st, 2013 1.51 Lauren Lapkus: May 28th, 2020 1.52 Anderson Cooper: June 4th, 2020 1.53 Julie Bowen: November 1st, 2020 1.54 David Chang: November 29th, 2020 1.55 Ike and Alan Barinholtz: August 14th, 2024
2 Synopsis 3 Trivia
Contestants [ ] Michael Shutterly 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
On February 22, 1989, what group won the first Grammy award for Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance?
⬥ A: Metallica
⬥ B: AC/DC
⬥ C: Living Colour
⬥ D: Jethro Tull
The correct answer was D: Jethro Tull.
John Carpenter 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Which of these U.S. Presidents appeared on the television series "Laugh-In"?"Phone-a-Friend lifeline
⬥ A: Lyndon Johnson
⬥ B: Richard Nixon
⬥ C: Jimmy Carter
⬥ D: Gerald Ford
John had all three of his lifelines intact, but did not need them for this question as he knew the answer. He only used the Phone-a-Friend to call his dad that he was going to win the top prize.
David Fite : January 10th, 2000[ ] David Fite 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
In what language was Anne Frank's original diary first published? 'Phone-a-Friend' lifeline used
⬥ A: Dutch
⬥ B: English
⬥ C: French
⬥ D: German
The correct answer was A: Dutch.
Dan Blonsky 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
The Earth is approximately how many miles away from the Sun?
⬥ A: 9.3 million
⬥ B: 39 million
⬥ C: 93 million
⬥ D: 193 million
Rob Coughlin 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
In what country are all U.S. Major League baseballs currently manufactured?'50:50' lifeline used
⬥ A: Costa Rica
⬥ B: Haiti
⬥ C: Dominican Republic
⬥ D: Cuba
The correct answer was A: Costa Rica.
Stephanie Girardi 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
What Shakespeare character says, "Something is rotten in the state of Denmark"?
⬥ A: Hamlet
⬥ B: Marcellus
⬥ C: Horatio
⬥ D: Laertes
The correct answer was B: Marcellus.
Joe Trela : March 23rd, 2000[ ] Joe Trela 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Which insect shorted out an early supercomputer and inspired the term "computer bug"?
⬥ A: Moth
⬥ B: Roach
⬥ C: Fly
⬥ D: Japanese beetle
Mike Menz : April 27th, 2000[ ] Mike Menz 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Which of the following pieces of currency was the first to use the motto "In God We Trust"?
⬥ A: Nickel
⬥ B: One dollar bill
⬥ C: Two-cent piece
⬥ D: Five dollar bill
The correct answer is C: Two-cent piece.
Drew Carey 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Who was the first NFL player to answer "I'm going to Disneyland" in the popular series of TV ads?
⬥ A: Doug Williams
⬥ B: Marcus Allen
⬥ C: Phil Simms
⬥ D: Joe Montana
The correct answer was C: Phil Simms.
Rosie O'Donnell 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Playwright Anton Chekhov graduated from the University of Moscow with a degree in what?
⬥ A: Law
⬥ B: Medicine
⬥ C: Philosophy
⬥ D: Economics
The correct answer was B: Medicine.
Tim Shields : ???, 2000 (alleged)[ ]
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
What is the last word in the Old Testament?
⬥ A: Forever
⬥ B: True
⬥ C: Prayer
⬥ D: Curse
The correct answer was D: Curse.
Tom O'Brien 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Before the American colonies switched to the Gregorian calendar, on what date did their new year start?
⬥ A: March 25
⬥ B: July 1
⬥ C: September 25
⬥ D: December 1
The correct answer was A: March 25.
Bob House : June 13th, 2000[ ] Bob House 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Which of the following men does not have a chemical element named for him? '50:50' and 'Phone-a-Friend' lifelines used
⬥ A: Albert Einstein
⬥ B: Niels Bohr
⬥ C: Isaac Newton
⬥ D: Enrico Fermi
Kim Hunt : July 6th, 2000[ ] Kim Hunt 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Which of the following landlocked countries is entirely contained within another country?
⬥ A: Lesotho
⬥ B: Burkina Faso
⬥ C: Mongolia
⬥ D: Luxembourg
David Goodman 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
In the children's book series, where is Paddington Bear originally from?'50:50', 'Ask the Audience', and 'Phone-a-Friend' lifelines used
⬥ A: India
⬥ B: Peru
⬥ C: Canada
⬥ D: Iceland
Ask the Audience Results: A: 0% ⬥ B: 57% ⬥ C: 1% ⬥ D: 42%
Joe Kelleher 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
What best-selling author was born Howard Allen O'Brien?
⬥ A: Danielle Steel
⬥ B: Anne Rice
⬥ C: J.K. Rowling
⬥ D: Toni Morrison
The correct answer was B: Anne Rice.
Phil Gibbons ' $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
In the U.S., the Sony Walkman personal cassette player was originally marketed in 1979 under what name?
⬥ A: Soundabout
⬥ B: Listener
⬥ C: Eardrummer
⬥ D: Stowaway
The correct answer was A: Soundabout.
Pat Thompson 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
According to the United Nations, in what year was the world's population half of its present total?
⬥ A: 1950
⬥ B: 1960
⬥ C: 1970
⬥ D: 1940
The correct answer was B: 1960.
Norm Macdonald 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
During the Cold War, the U.S. government built a bunker to house Congress under what golf resort?
⬥ A: The Breakers
⬥ B: The Greenbrier
⬥ C: Pinehurst
⬥ D: The Broadmoor
Correct Answer: B: The Greenbrier.
Justin Ray Castillo 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
What plant is named after the first U.S. ambassador to Mexico, who brought it to the U.S.?
⬥ A: Fuchsia
⬥ B: Juniper
⬥ C: Camellia
⬥ D: Poinsettia
The correct answer was D: Poinsettia.
Jim Matthews ' $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Which of these network news anchors began his career at age 9, hosting a children's radio show?'Ask the Audience' lifeline used
⬥ A: Peter Jennings
⬥ B: Tom Brokaw
⬥ C: Dan Rather
⬥ D: Ted Koppel
Ask the Audience Results: A: 20% ⬥ B: 7% ⬥ C: 25% ⬥ D: 48%
The correct answer was A: Peter Jennings.
Gary Gambino 's $2,000,000 question.
$2,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Who is the only winner of the Nobel Peace Prize to decline the prize?'Phone a Friend' lifeline used
⬥ A: Albert Schweitzer
⬥ B: Le Duc Tho
⬥ C: Andrei Sakharov
⬥ D: Aung San Suu Kyi
The correct answer was B: Le Duc Tho.
David Stewart 's $2,140,000 question.
$2,140,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
People who have a marked physical reaction to beautiful art are said to suffer from what syndrome? 'Ask the Audience' and 'Phone-a-Friend' lifelines used
⬥ A: Proust Syndrome
⬥ B: Jerusalem Syndrome
⬥ C: Stendhal's Syndrome
⬥ D: Beckett's Syndrome
Ask the Audience Results: A: 26% ⬥ B: 15% ⬥ C: 32% ⬥ D: 27%
Correct Answer: C: Stendhal's Syndrome.
Kevin Olmstead 's $2,180,000 question.
$2,180,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Who is credited with inventing the first mass-produced helicopter?
⬥ A: Igor Sikorsky
⬥ B: Elmer Sperry
⬥ C: Ferdinand von Zeppelin
⬥ D: Gottlieb Daimler
Bernie Cullen 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
What letter must appear at the beginning of the registration number of all non-military aircraft in the U.S.?'Ask the Audience' and '50:50' lifelines used
⬥ A: N
⬥ B: A
⬥ C: U
⬥ D: L
Ask the Audience Results: A: 69% ⬥ B: 12% ⬥ C: 13% ⬥ D: 6%
Steve Perry 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
In the TV series "The Brady Bunch," what is Carol Brady's maiden name?'Ask the Audience', '50:50', and 'Phone-a-Friend' lifelines used
⬥ A: Martin
⬥ B: Tyler
⬥ C: Nelson
⬥ D: Franklin
Ask the Audience Results: A: 33% ⬥ B: 14% ⬥ C: 34% ⬥ D: 19%
Correct Answer: B: Tyler.
Moe Cain : May 1st, 2001[ ] Moe Cain 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
How many days make up a non-leap year in the Islamic calendar?'Phone a Friend' and 'Ask the Audience' lifelines used
⬥ A: 365
⬥ B: 400
⬥ C: 354
⬥ D: 376
Ask the Audience Results: A: 33% ⬥ B: 17% ⬥ C: 35% ⬥ D: 15%
The correct answer is C: 354.
Rob and Mary Beth McNally 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
What club did astronaut Alan Shepard use to make his famous golf shot on the moon?'50:50' and 'Phone-a-Friend' lifelines used
⬥ A: Nine iron
⬥ B: Sand wedge
⬥ C: Six iron
⬥ D: Seven iron
The correct answer was C: Six iron.
Tom Hoobler 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Who is the only Nobel laureate to win an Academy Award?
⬥ A: John Steinbeck
⬥ B: Jean-Paul Sartre
⬥ C: George Bernard Shaw
⬥ D: Toni Morrison
The correct answer was C: George Bernard Shaw.
Mary Burke 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Famous pediatrician and author Dr. Benjamin Spock won an Olympic gold medal in what sport?
⬥ A: Swimming
⬥ B: Rowing
⬥ C: Fencing
⬥ D: Sailing
The correct answer is B: Rowing.
Ed Toutant : September 7th, 2001[ ] Ed Toutant 's $1,860,000 question.
$1,860,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
During WWII, U.S. soldiers used the first commercial aerosol cans to hold what?'50:50' lifeline used
⬥ A: Cleaning fluid
⬥ B: Antiseptic
⬥ C: Insecticide
⬥ D: Shaving cream
Kevin Smith : February 18th, 2003[ ] Kevin Smith 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
The U.S. icon "Uncle Sam" was based on Samuel Wilson, who worked during the War of 1812 as a what?
⬥ A: Meat inspector
⬥ B: Mail deliverer
⬥ C: Historian
⬥ D: Weapons mechanic
Nancy Christy 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Who did artist Grant Wood use as the model for the farmer in his classic painting "American Gothic"?
⬥ A: Traveling salesman
⬥ B: Local sheriff
⬥ C: His dentist
⬥ D: His butcher
Armand Kachigian 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
The song "God Bless America" was originally written for what 1918 musical?
⬥ A: Oh, Lady! Lady!
⬥ B: Yip, Yip, Yaphank
⬥ C: Blossom Time
⬥ D: Watch Your Step
Correct Answer: B: Yip, Yip, Yaphank.
Jeff Gross : November 18th, 2004[ ] Jeff Gross ' $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Now used to refer to a cat, the word "tabby" is derived from the name of a district of what world capital?
⬥ A: Baghdad
⬥ B: New Delhi
⬥ C: Cairo
⬥ D: Moscow
Correct Answer: A: Baghdad.
Ogi Ogas : November 8th, 2006[ ] Ogi Ogas ' $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Which of these ships was not one of the three taken over by colonists during the Boston Tea Party?
⬥ A: Eleanor
⬥ B: Dartmouth
⬥ C: Beaver
⬥ D: William
Correct Answer: D: William.
Lyn Payne : November 1st, 2007[ ] Lyn Payne 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Khrushchev's famous 1960 "shoe-banging" outburst at the U.N. was in response to a delegate from what nation?'Ask the Audience' lifeline used
⬥ A: Australia
⬥ B: The Netherlands
⬥ C: The Philippines
⬥ D: Turkey
Ask the Audience Results: A: 8% ⬥ B: 29% ⬥ C: 15% ⬥ D: 48%
Correct Answer: C: The Philippines.
Ken Basin : August 23rd, 2009[ ] Ken Basin 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - 4:39 Time Limit Category: Bottoms Up!
For ordering his favorite beverages on demand, LBJ had four buttons installed in the Oval Office labeled "coffee," "tea," "Coke" and what?'Ask the Audience' lifeline used
⬥ A: Fresca
⬥ B: V8
⬥ C: Yoo-hoo
⬥ D: A&W
Ask the Audience Results: A: 15% ⬥ B: 12% ⬥ C: 40% ⬥ D: 33%
Alex Ortiz : November 9th, 2009[ ] Alex Ortiz 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - 2:55 Time Limit
Which First Lady was a ninth-generation descendant of Pocahontas?
⬥ A: Helen Taft
⬥ B: Edith Wilson
⬥ C: Bess Truman
⬥ D: Mamie Eisenhower
Correct Answer: B: Edith Wilson.
Tony Westmoreland 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - 3:07 Time Limit
What great thinker's death is attributed to a chill he caught while stuffing a chicken with snow for an experiment on refrigeration?
⬥ A: Pythagoras
⬥ B: Archimedes
⬥ C: Isaac Newton
⬥ D: Francis Bacon
Correct Answer: D: Francis Bacon.
Sam Murray : November 11th, 2009[ ] Sam Murray 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - 3:23 Time Limit Category: Genetics
According to the Population Reference Bureau, what is the approximate number of people who have ever lived on earth?
⬥ A: 50 billion
⬥ B: 100 billion
⬥ C: 1 trillion
⬥ D: 5 trillion
Robin Schwartz 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - 3:35 Time Limit
Who delivered the less famous two-hour speech that preceded Abraham Lincoln's two-minute Gettysburg Address?
⬥ A: Wendell Phillips
⬥ B: Daniel Webster
⬥ C: Robert G. Ingersoll
⬥ D: Edward Everett
Correct Answer: D: Edward Everett.
Ralph Cambeis ' $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - 4:02 Time Limit Category: Composers
Though today it's treated like a treasure, what famous painting was once cut into to enlarge a doorway?
⬥ A: Detroit Industry
⬥ B: The Last Supper
⬥ C: Guernica
⬥ D: The Birth of Venus
Correct Answer: B: The Last Supper.
Tim Janus : November 16th, 2009[ ] Tim Janus ' $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) 3:16 Time Limit
Who once wrote, "'Bartlett's Familiar Quotations' is an admirable work," a quotation now listed in "Bartlett's Familiar Quotations"?
⬥ A: Truman Capote
⬥ B: John Lennon
⬥ C: Winston Churchill
⬥ D: Mark Twain
Correct Answer: C: Winston Churchill.
Matt Schultz 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - 3:32 Time Limit
The most-watched TV episode of all time, the final episode of "M*A*S*H" aired at 8:30 PM, on February 28, 1983 following what sitcom?
⬥ A: Private Benjamin
⬥ B: Square Pegs
⬥ C: Alice
⬥ D: Newhart
Correct Answer: C: Alice.
Jeff Birt : November 18th, 2009[ ] Jeff Birt 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - 4:07 Time Limit
"Nephelococcygia" is the practice of doing what?
⬥ A: Finding shapes in clouds
⬥ B: Sleeping with your eyes open
⬥ C: Breaking glass with your voice
⬥ D: Swimming in freezing water
Correct Answer: A: Finding shapes in clouds.
Keilani Goggins ' $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - 4:07 Time Limit
In a failed assassination attempt, what U.S. president was shot at twice at point-blank range, but survived because both guns misfired?
⬥ A: John Adams
⬥ B: Andrew Jackson
⬥ C: James Polk
⬥ D: Martin Van Buren
Correct Answer: B: Andrew Jackson.
Jehan Shamsid-Deen 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - 4:36 Time Limit
A rare example of a word that rhymes with "orange," the Blorenge is a what?
⬥ A: River in Ireland
⬥ B: Forest in Scotland
⬥ C: Mountain in Wales
⬥ D: Desert in Australia
Correct Answer: C: Mountain in Wales.
Josina Reaves ' $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (14 of 14) - Not Timed
In addition to his career as an astrologer and "prophet," Nostradamus published a 1555 treatise that included a section on what?
⬥ A: Training parrots to talk
⬥ B: Cheating at card games
⬥ C: Digging graves
⬥ D: Making jams and jellies
Charles Esten 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (14 of 14) - Not Timed
Compiled by Benjamin Franklin in 1737, "The Drinker's Dictionary" included all but which of these synonyms for "drunkenness"?
⬥ A: Nimptopsical
⬥ B: Buzzey
⬥ C: Pifflicated
⬥ D: Staggerish
Correct Answer: C: Pifflicated.
Lauren Lapkus ' $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
On the periodic table, there are four different elements named after what?
⬥ A: Antoine Lavoisier's pet cat
⬥ B: A moon of Neptune
⬥ C: Marie Curie's maiden name
⬥ D: A Swedish mining village
The correct answer was D: A Swedish mining village.
Anderson Cooper 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
When scientists tested it with an electroencephalogram, which of these food items produced readings similar to a human brain?'Phone-a-Friend' lifeline used
⬥ A: Wint-O-Green Life Saver
⬥ B: SPAM
⬥ C: Lime Jell-O
⬥ D: Jet-Puffed Marshmallow
The correct answer was C: Lime Jell-O.
Julie Bowen 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Which of the following is not the title of a country song released by Netflix phenomenon Joe Exotic, aka the "Tiger King"?
⬥ A: I Saw a Tiger
⬥ B: Big-Hearted Cat
⬥ C: Here Kitty Kitty
⬥ D: King of the Beast
The correct answer was B: Big-Hearted Cat.
David Chang : November 29th, 2020[ ] David Chang 's $1,000,000 question.
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Althrough he and his wife never touched a light switch for fear of being shocked, who was the first president to have electricity in the White House?'Phone-A-Friend' lifeline used
⬥ A: Ulysses S. Grant
⬥ B: Benjamin Harrison
⬥ C: Chester A. Arthur
⬥ D: Andrew Johnson
Ike and Alan Barinholtz 's $1,000,000 question
$1,000,000 (15 of 15) - Not Timed
Not including blanks or bonus spaces, the highest-valued three-letter Scrabble word is "zax," which is a what?’Ask the Audience’ and 'Ask the Host' lifelines used
⬥ A: Rare species of African antelope
⬥ B: Ceramic container for holy water
⬥ C: Letter in the Arabic alphabet
⬥ D: Tool for cutting roofing slates
Ask the Audience Results: A: 51% ⬥ B: 10% ⬥ C: 28% ⬥ D: 11%
Synopsis [ ]
Year
Won
Took the money, right assumption
Took the money, wrong assumption
Took the money, no assumption
Lost
Total
1999
1
0
0
1
0
2
2000
5
3
6
4
0
18
2001
3
1
3
3
0
10
2002
0
0
0
0
0
0
2003
2
0
1
0
0
3
2004
0
0
1
0
0
1
2005
0
0
0
0
0
0
2006
0
1
0
0
0
1
2007
0
0
1
0
0
1
2008
0
0
0
0
0
0
2009
1
8 (Jehan Shamsid-Deen , the last contestant in the Tournament of Ten would've won $1,000,000.)
1
0
1
11
2010
0
0
0
0
0
0
2011
0
0
0
0
0
0
2012
0
0
0
0
0
0
2013
0
0
1
0
1
2
2014
0
0
0
0
0
0
2015
0
0
0
0
0
0
2016
0
0
0
0
0
0
2017
0
0
0
0
0
0
2018
0
0
0
0
0
0
2019
0
0
0
0
0
0
2020
1
3
0
0
0
4
2024
1
0
0
0
0
1
Total
14
16
14
8
2
54
Trivia [ ] Jim Matthews , Steve Perry , Moe Cain , as well as Lyn Payne took away $500,000 each, using the Ask the Audience lifelines, which they saved for question 15.Ken Basin lost $475,000, using the Ask the Audience , which he believed, he retained to question 15.John Carpenter became the first person in the world to win the top prize.
He along with, David Goodman , and Steve Perry were the only ones to saves all 3 lifelines for the $1,000,000 question, Carpenter and Goodman won $1,000,000, Perry walked away with $500,000 (and after using all his lifelines, he still would’ve just lost $468,000 he had gone with his incline).
Also, Carpenter became the only person in the world to win the top prize without using any lifelines (excluding Phone a Friend because he told his father that he didn’t need his help and that he’s going to win a million dollars, which he did). Kim Hunt who won $1,000,000 also won the show’s second tiebreaker , beating Beth Rohr.Phil Gibbons won $500,000 with all lifelines used by question 8.
Kati Knudsen would’ve also done the same thing as Gibbons because she had the right answer, but instead she became the first woman to lose $218,000.Joe Trela won $1,000,000 with all lifelines used by question 10.Nancy Christy became the first woman in the U.S. to win the top prize, and did so with all lifelines used by question 9.
Coincidently, the next contestant Armand Kachigian also reached to the top prize question, but this time he decides to walked away with $500,000. This was the only time the U.S. version of the show saw two consecutive contestants reach their $1,000,000 question under the classic format. Josina Reaves became the first contestant to see the $1,000,000 question since after 4 years, then two months later, Charles Esten saw the $1,000,000 question, but there’s no one else after him yet, who saw the $1,000,000 question, and hasn’t been for over 4 years, and a few contestants including Bill Matheny and Sojas Wagle , would’ve won $500,000, and Justin Peters had gambled for $500,000, but he gave an incorrect answer and lost $225,000. As the show is cancelled, Charles Esten became the last ever contestant to see the $1,000,000 question.Jehan Shamsid-Deen became the only contestant to run out of time on both the $500,000 and $1,000,000 questions. 
