You're in the hot seat and Regis is glaring at you expectantly. You don't have any lifelines left, and the answer to a random trivia question - worth several thousand dollars - completely eludes you. What do you do?
After qualifying to compete on Who Wants to be a Millionaire?, ABC's hit game show, some Tufts students may well find themselves in this very predicament. Traveling auditions for the show's College Edition, which will be taped Nov. 8-11, stopped in Boston on Sunday at the Cambridge Marriott in Kendall Square. Hundreds of college students from Tufts, Harvard, Boston College, Boston University, MIT, Northeastern, and other local schools decided to test their knowledge for a chance to appear on television - and win a little cash while they're at it.
"A million dollars is a lot of money," said freshman Josh Bauml, who qualified for a chance to appear on the show.
"It's a once in a lifetime opportunity," said senior Anna Wong, who qualified on Sunday. Wong also qualified once before by calling the toll-free number, but did not make the show.
Though some students aren't actually avid fans of the show, the excitement of trying out allured potential contestants. "I'm actually not that fond of [the show], but I know a lot of useless stuff, so I did my thing and passed the test," Bauml said.
"I think [the show has] an annoying format, but it's a good idea," said junior Jon Smith, who also qualified. "It obviously gets the ratings."
For those who like to play along with their TV sets, three auditions for Millionaire were held in the morning, afternoon, and evening on Sunday. The first 125 students in line were admitted to take the test at each audition time.
Wong arrived at the auditions at a quarter to 9 a.m. - 15 minutes before the first audition time - and found herself dead last in line. She decided to wait it out for the 2 p.m. try-out.
"People were there at 6 and 7 in the morning," she said. When the doors opened, "people literally ran over each other to get in line. It was just incredible."
Students who made the cut had to answer 30 "fastest finger" questions in 15 minutes, by arranging four items in a specific, usually chronological, order. The questions focused on subjects such as literature and sports, and included a healthy dose of pop culture references. For instance, one question asked students to arrange four Beastie Boys albums from their earliest to latest release dates. Different questions were used for each session so cheating wouldn't be a problem.
If their score on the test, which was not revealed to students, exceeded a certain score, also not revealed, then auditioners held a taped interview with Millionaire staff. Interviewers, according to Wong, were looking for "poise, a sense of humor, and camera presence."
She added that casting directors are probably looking to represent the norm. For instance, she noticed an elderly full-time college student at the auditions who qualified, but probably won't make the show because he "doesn't fit the stereotype of the typical college student."
Interview questions sought to get a general idea of the potential contestant, but not without a certain level of corniness. "They asked a lot of stupid questions, like if there was a movie about you, what would it be called and who would star in it," Smith said.
The questions, however, will narrow down a huge field of qualifiers from five cities - Atlanta, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, and Chicago, in addition to Boston - to just 30 contestants for the three-day tournament.
Tufts qualifiers Wong and Smith are admittedly realistic about their chances of getting on the show.
"If I ever get a million dollars, I would want to earn it. The first time I qualified, I was really excited. This time, it was only for fun. I don't expect a phone call," Wong said, adding that the mob mentality of the auditioners seemed, to her, "to test the limits of greed in American society."
"I don't expect to get on [the show] at all. I went just to say I did it. It's a good story to tell," Smith said, adding jokingly that "if [the producers] called, I'd be too scared to get in the hot seat."
Bauml, on the other hand, is a little more hopeful about his chances of appearing on the show. The chosen contestants will be notified with a phone call on Oct. 20, between 4 and 8 p.m.- and where will this Tufts student be?
"I'll definitely be sitting by my phone," Bauml said with a laugh.
