There Was Nothing Like Regis Philbin & “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire”

Legendary television host Regis Philbin passed away at the age of 88 on Sunday from natural causes. Regis was much more than just the host of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” as he was also the Guinness World Record holder for “most hours on television.” However, many under the age of 35 or so solely remember him for his time as “Millionaire” host

I was nine years old when “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” first aired in the U.S. and remember how my family would gather around to watch some random guy or gal answer questions which ranged from extremely easy to extremely difficult as the game progressed. Regis was the star of course, and not knowing that he had been a legend for quite some time before “Millionaire, he became a household name in our house because of this. It was a ratings monster in the late ’90s and early ’00s, and is likely the only reason I have any true recollection of Regis Philbin at all (I wasn’t watching Regis & Kelly).

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But it’s kind of crazy that there isn’t too much I remember watching when I was 9 or 10 years old outside of sports, Nickelodeon, Disney Channel, or pro wrestling. In fact, “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” is basically it. I even had the “Millionaire Sports Edition” computer game that I used to play all the time. Eventually, I won the million because I memorized all the questions.

There’s one moment I’ll forever remember about Regis & “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” That’s the very first guy to win the million, John Carpenter, who just dropped the mic by using his first lifeline to call his dad on the million dollar question just so he could tell him he was about to win $1 million.

This was such a savage moment from Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. RIP Regis.pic.twitter.com/He8x62GTfS

— Awesemo (@Awesemo_Com) July 25, 2020

2020 sucks. RIP Regis.

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