John Carpenter (game show contestant)
| John Carpenter | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1968 (age 49–50) |
| Education | Rutgers University |
| Occupation | IRS agent |
| Known for | First top prize winner on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire |
| Home town | Northampton, Massachusetts |
John Carpenter (born c. 1968) is an American game show contestant and IRS agent. He is best known for becoming the first top prize winner on the United States version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. He held the record for the largest single win in United States game show history, until it was broken by Rahim Oberholtzer who won $1.12 million on another U.S. quiz show, Twenty One. Carpenter was also the first top prize winner among all international versions of the Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? series.
On the November 19, 1999 episode of Millionaire, Carpenter proceeded to advance to the million-dollar question without using any lifelines. He then used his Phone-A-Friend to call his father not for help, but rather to tell him he was going to win the game. Carpenter answered the question correctly and became the show's first millionaire. His win gave him national recognition and led to multiple talk show appearances, as well as reappearances on Millionaire himself.
Carpenter is from Northampton, Massachusetts. His father, Tom, worked as a computer program analyst for the Department of Veterans Affairs, while his mother, Gail, served as an administrative assistant for the Massachusetts Audubon Society. In 1986, he enrolled at Rutgers University and graduated in 1990 with a degree in economics. In January 1991, he joined the Internal Revenue Service after completing government exams and tests. In November 1996, Carpenter met his future wife, Deborah, who was studying for a master's degree at Southern Connecticut State University and worked as a manager of a Fleet Bank branch in New Haven. They married in August 1998. At the time of his appearance on Millionaire, he was 31 years old. When he revealed his profession as an IRS officer on Millionaire, Carpenter was playfully booed by the audience.
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