I’ve seen enough segments of this show to have my interest in trying out whetted. Unfortunately, the telephone number at the end doesn’t appear in every segment, and when I called KABC-TV in Los Angeles to find it out, I got a recording which told me about an 800 number, which for all I know was to get on the Oprah Winfrey Show. So I’d like to ask the Teeming Millions if one by chance knows the correct phone number, at least to use in the 310 area code.
Furthermore, I have this question: How do you get to New York? Do you have to shell out the $500 or so to fly back there, or does the production company spring for it (which they can certainly do with the prizes they’re handing out)?
Thanks very much.
You should play all the games online, they are at www.abc.com
thanx 
Here’s the scoop. You call 1-800-433-8321 between 6:00 PM and 2:00 AM Eastern Standard Time.
You enter the last four digits of your SSN and your date of birth. You are limited to one call per day.
Once you’ve entered this information, you must answer three questions of increasing difficulty. They all take the form, “Place these things into order.” For example, a typical question is, “Place these types of fish into alphabetical order: 1. Trout, 2. Flounder, 3. Perch, 4. Salmon.” You would key in, using your touch-tone phone, 2-3-4-1.
You must answer within ten seconds.
If you answer all three correctly and in time, you are told that you have qualified for round #2. You must then choose an ‘air date.’ This means you’re entered in a random drawing of all the people who have also answered correctly that day and chosen the same air date.
They select 35 people froom this pool. Each person gets a “qualifying call” to ensure their eligibility. They’re asked such things as, “Do you work for ABC, or any affiliate?” You also must confirm the birth date and SSN that you entered in step #1 above. Failure to qualify in any way means you’re out.
If you qualify, you compete in a second round playoff against the other 34 people who have qualified. If you are amongst the top twelve, you win a trip to New York on your air date. The top ten get to be on te show, and the other two are “in reserve” in case one of the top ten doesn’t make it.
Once you’re in the ten, you’re guaranteed to have a shot on the air, at least for the brief intro… and if your time is the fastest, then and only then do you play the game.
- Rick
Rick, did you notice that only severly able body white people get to sit on the show and play? odd
Well… the show appears to be a meritocracy, at least at first blush… so I don’t know.
Of course, the second round questions (which I have never heard) may be culturally biased. As has been suggested, tossing in soap opera questions might tend to select women; sports questions might favor guys.
In short: dunno!
- Rick
Thanks, Bricker. I only regret that the phone number has not been shown consistently at the end of the program; I guess if and when the program gets a permanent time slot, they will do it consistently.
Their current open time for the toll free number is 1/23 - 2/9. And this is to get contestants for the show airing from now until 5/24.
They had a week before the 23rd when the phone line wasn’t open. Dunno why.
Judges 14:9 - So [Samson] scraped the honey into his hands and went on, eating as he went. When he came to his father and mother, he gave some to them and they ate it; but he did not tell them that he had scraped the honey out of the body of the lion.
i have heard rumours that the show will be visiting canada sometime in the near future… has anyone heard anything about this?
what is essential is invisible to the eye -the fox
As far as contestants, I did notice the white male bias. (Hey, I’m one of those, I could get on.) I don’t know if it’s a selection bias based on the questions, or based on interest of potential contestants. Plus, the qualifying rounds have nothing to do with the actual game. How does sequencing fractions by size relate to knowledge of pop culture, trivia, and arcane facts? I think that elimiates people who may be good at knowing everything from the names of the spice girls to the rocket equation, but are dyslexic.
Irishman, probably because severly able white men write all the phone questions?
The Gazette–The University of Western Ontario’s paper–today’s topic: these stupid shows
Here’s the scoop on whether WWTBAM is coming to Canada:
"David Hamiilton Global’s director of national promotions and publicity said their station would rather wait and see if the game show trend is merely a short term phenomenon or permanant.
“What happens is that these shows hit a peak and start sliding” Hamilton
Point-Last thursday WWTBAM had over 3million viewers, avging about 2.5million per episode–Mike Cosentino, director of programming and communications at CTV
But apparently:
“ABC is interested in expanding horizons, Michael Davies, executive producer at ABC has said that they are working with CTV as well as French Canadian producers on developing special episodes for Canadians”
–which really goes against what Cosentino says…“we’re looking for one day to be involved in this millionaire phenomenon, but for now we’ll stay with our current status”
Kilgore, don’t be too anxious, doesn’t look like their coming here.
contestants must be US residents and questions tend to be geared toward continental US…
I am a fire who licks and spits at the boundless sky forever desiring wonderous consummation
-me