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Senior to compete on 'Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?'
5:20 p.m., Nov. 2, 2006--Dina DiEleuterio, a UD senior psychology major from Wilmington, will be UD's star pupil during the Tuesday, Nov. 21, broadcast of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? set to air in the Delaware Valley at 12:30 p.m. on WPVI-TV6. DiEleuterio, who plans to be a high school psychology teacher upon graduating in January, will represent the University of Delaware during College Week on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? Hoping for a windfall, she said she plans to use some of the money to pay off student loans. “My main goal is to answer the questions correctly, so I'm trying to concentrate on that,” DiEleuterio said. “But, depending on how much I win, I'd really like to finish college debt-free.” A veteran watcher of the show from as far back as its prime-time days, DiEleuterio said that she got the inspiration to apply for an audition from friends who were frequently amazed at her aptitude as she played along in her residence hall and living rooms. Not needing much more coaxing, DiEleuterio filed an online form last spring and was soon afterwards invited to New York City to audition. After many postcards informing her that she'd made it to the next level, she finally learned of her victory in late September. “The process they have of narrowing down the candidate pool is really complicated,” DiEleuterio said. “The number of people who try out compared to the number who actually get on [the show] is incredible.” And, DiEleuterio said, due an awful lot to chance. “On the day I went up to audition, I got a flat tire on the New Jersey Turnpike,” she said. “I'd planned just enough time to get up there for the audition, and when I called AAA, I was told it would be at least an hour's wait, which would mean I'd lose my chance.” Fortunately for DiEleuterio, a New Jersey Department of Transportation truck pulled up a few minutes later and fixed her tire in less than 10 minutes. She missed the train, but another one came along just in time. A frantic 15-block sprint from Times Square to the ABC headquarters finished up the bungled journey, landing DiEleuterio in the green room just as the second-to-last candidate was being called. Now her real luck, she said, will depend on what she knows and what her five phone-a-friend “lifelines” know. “It's really funny,” DiEleuterio said, “but I was very careful about who I picked. Whenever I told someone that I was going to be on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? they either asked me, 'Can I be your phone-a-friend?' or 'Will you say my name on TV?' or 'Will you buy me something when you win?' I chose five people who know a lot about different things, and I was really careful about who I picked. But I guess how well I do really depends on what questions I get asked.” Article by Becca Hutchinson |
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