Winning a million dollars is most peoples' idea of a dream, but for University of Memphis employee, Danny Linton, it almost became a reality.
Linton, a Web administrator and developer for Business and Finance Technology at The U of M and part-time instructor for the communication department, competed on the popular syndicated game show, "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" The episodes in which Linton appeared will air at 4:30 p.m. today and Friday on WPTY (Channel 24).
He was chosen as a contestant for the show after attending an audition last summer at Wolfchase Galleria, along with about 600 other hopefuls.
"I had to spend four hours in line," he said.
Linton was flown to New York City in December for the show's taping, where he spent three days mostly just waiting for his turn to compete, and he almost didn't get to compete.
Calling it a 'special situation,' he explained that since it was the last show of the season, whoever they did not have time to fit in the schedule would not be on the show.
Linton said there was camaraderie among contestants, including a fellow Memphian, as they waited backstage for a chance to win a million dollars.
"Everyone was very supportive of each other," he said.
Despite losing out on the one million, Linton did win some money, although due to the game show's rules, he couldn't say how much.
The five 'phone-a-friend's he chose to help him out were a Bartlett High School valedictorian, a Commercial Appeal sports reporter, a public relations manager for Baptist Hospital, a medical doctor and his best friend.
In preparation for the show, he studied the almanac some, but concluded there was little he could do to prepare for the questions.
With a bachelor's degree in film studies and a master's in communication, Linton teaches "Intro to Film," "Oral Communication" and "Television and Culture" at The U of M and said he had really been hoping for some entertainment related questions. However, he didn't get any.
The question that ended his quest for the grand prize was: "Who designed the Guggenheim Museum?" Linton, who doesn't know much about archetecture, didn't have a clue.
"I called the high school valedictorian, but she didn't know it," said Linton.
He would later find out that all of his other phone-a-friend's had known the answer was Frank Lloyd Wright.
"I had considered using my architect cousin as a phone-a-friend," he said "It felt like a knife through the heart when I thought of that later."
Linton said his most embarrassing moment was having to sing "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," so that he could think of the answer to the $500 question: "Who is the first reindeer mentioned in the song, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer?"
Some other questions included, "If two people are locking horns, what are they doing?" "What sport uses the term 'breakpoint'?" and "What cereal is 'kid tested, mother approved'?"
Linton said he enjoyed having Meredith Vieira as a host.
"She was really concerned about how you were doing," he said.
He described the whole experience as 'very surreal,' mentioning that the show edits out a lot and that what you see on television isn't necessarily the order in which things happened.
Surprisingly, getting the chance to appear on "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" is not Linton's first time as a winner.
He entered an Internet contest where you had to guess who would be nominated for Academy Awards, and he won a trip to the 1997 Oscars. He even got to attend Elton John's private party afterwards.
A self-professed game show junkie and avid player of spades and board games, Linton and some of his friends got to be in the studio audience of "Price is Right" during a recent vacation in Los Angeles.
"I'm a pop culture maniac, and that has led me to do a lot in media," he said.
