Transcript 09/15/08 Chris Samperi

[BBTranscriptTeam]

Chris Samperi
Flushing, NY
Aspiring Filmmaker/Waiter

Chris is so broke, he can’t afford a computer to write his films on, so he has to write everything by hand.
Last week he had five dollars to his name.
Things are a little better this week. He has thirty dollars.

Question Topics:
Assassinations
Adaptations
The Spelling Bee
TV First
Nuclear Power
World Geography
History
In the News
Recent Movies
On the Menu
Famous Quotes
Fashion Trends
Music
Landmarks
Definition Please

$100 By definition, heavenly bodies are located where?
A. In a forest
B. In outer space
C. In a desert
D. On Planet Clooney

Spoiler

B. In outer space (7)

$200 For the 1889 world’s fair in Paris, a French engineer famously designed a giant metal what?
A. Tower
B. Highway
C. Church
D. Dam

Spoiler

A. Tower (8 )

$300 “Bow wow wow yippie yo yippie yay” is a lyric from a classic funk song with what fitting title?
A. Atomic Pig
B. Atomic Dog
C. Atomic Cow
D. Atomic Cat

Spoiler

B. Atomic Dog (9)

$500 In fashion, “vanity sizing” is the practice of labeling larger clothes with smaller sizes in order to make customers feel what?
A. Wealthier
B. Taller
C. Slimmer
D. Older

Spoiler

C. Slimmer (9)

$1K According to Eleanor Roosevelt, “A woman is like a” what, because “you never know how strong she is until she’s in hot water”?
A. Fountain pen
B. Lamp shade
C. Curtain rod
D. Tea bag

Spoiler

D. Tea bag (8 )

commercial break

Chris watches the show on a 13-channel, ten inch TV a roommate gave him.
He jerry-rigged the TV to get basic cable because he can’t afford cable.

Meredith introduces today’s ATE, Ogi Ogas.

$2K By definition, which of these traditional preparations for steak involves covering the steak with coarsely ground pepper?
A. Steak tartare
B. Steak frites
C. Steak béarnaise
D. Steak au poivre

Spoiler

D. Steak au poivre (19)

$4K The line “You may find Narnia a more savage place than you remember” is featured in a 2008 film subtitled what?
A. Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
B. Prince Caspian
C. The Golden Army
D. The Clone Wars

Spoiler

B. Prince Caspian (21)

$8K Released in 2007, the infamous document known as the Mitchell Report stemmed from an investigation of whom?
A. Wall Street executives
B. U.S. Senators
C. Pro baseball players
D. Airline pilots

Chris stops the clock at twenty seconds to ATA.

ATA
12% A. Wall Street executives
15% B. U.S. Senators
69% C. Pro baseball players
4% D. Airline pilots

Spoiler

C. Pro baseball players (15)

commercial break

Chris can’t believe that he is here. He signed up to take the test just for fun.
He wants to do something for his mother with the money he wins.

$16K A truce enacted at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of the year brought an end to combat in what war?
A. World War I
B. Korean War
C. World War II
D. Vietnam War

Chris says he can eliminate two. He has an idea, but decides to ATE. The clock stops at twelve seconds.

Ogi: Holy Moses, that’s a tough one. What do you think the answer is?

Chris: I’ve ruled out the World Wars because I feel like they didn’t end in truces. Vietnam, I felt was one-sided against America. I was thinking Korean, but war is not my forte.

Ogi: How badly do you want the answer?

Meredith: Ogi!

Chris: $16K worth of badly, Ogi.

Ogi: I know the answer to this.

Chris: Oh man, that would be awesome. That would be awesome.

Meredith: What is it Ogi?

Ogi: It’s World War I

Chris 100% sure?

Ogi: Well, let’s say 99.99% sure.

Spoiler

A. World War I (8 )

$25K If its name were “updated” to reflect current geography, the Siamese cat would be called what?
A. Nepalese cat
B. Iranian cat
C. Thai cat
D. Sri Lankan cat

Chris stops the clock at fourteen seconds to PAF.

His PAF team consists of:
Jeff, a friend and waiter from Brooklyn, NY
Sandy, Chris’ aunt, a systems analyst from Medford, MA
John, Chris’ high-school teacher from Salem, NH

Chris chooses his boy Jeff.
Chris: He’s what we call in Boston “a wicked smart guy.”

Jeff says he is leaning toward C. 50% right.

Chris stops the clock at twelve seconds to DD.

Chris’ first choice is correct.

Spoiler

C. Thai cat (12)

commercial break

Chris’ never dreamed that he would make it this far on the show.

$50K After the U.S., what country is home to the world’s largest number of operational nuclear power reactors?
A. Russia
B. France
C. Japan
D. Germany

Chris thinks it may be Russia, because of its landmass.
When Chris visited Europe, he noticed there was a lot of nuclear power that he wasn’t aware of, so may be it’s Germany.
Chris Makes A. Russia his final answer.
Chris leaves with $25K.

Spoiler

B. France (20)

horn

Answers:
$100 B. In outer space (7)
$200 A. Tower (8 )
$300 B. Atomic Dog (9)
$500 C. Slimmer (9)
$1K D. Tea bag (8 )
$2K D. Steak au poivre (19)
$4K B. Prince Caspian (21)
$8K C. Pro baseball players (15)
$16K A. World War I (8 )
$25K C. Thai cat (12)
$50K B. France (20)

[Kazoo65]

Boy, he got some softball questions! I would have only needed help (either ATA or Double Dip) with the food question. I know steak tartare is raw, so I eliminated that one right away. I'm not sure what steak frites is.

I think Ogi is gonna be a good expert this week-after all, he did win $500K and faced KJ on "Grand Slam" last year.

[slam]

A very easy stack until the last clue. I had seen a 60 Minutes story about France's love with nuclear power, so that would have been my first choice. Because Russia is so big, though, it's conceivable that it still has more. In practice, I would have used my first lifeline there and gone with the Double Dip.

It looked like Ogi was having a lot of fun toying with the contestant on such a relatively easy question. As long as he knew he was going to give the right answer eventually, that seems fine to me. If Ogi was any doubt (which he obviously wasn't), though, his behavior would have been cruel.

[TheConfessor]

It looked like Ogi was having a lot of fun toying with the contestant on such a relatively easy question. As long as he knew he was going to give the right answer eventually, that seems fine to me. If Ogi was any doubt (which he obviously wasn't), though, his behavior would have been cruel.

I don't mind people having doubt. In fact, I appreciate those who are honest about their doubt. The world has far too many people who are absolutely sure of themselves, but wrong.

[slam]

It looked like Ogi was having a lot of fun toying with the contestant on such a relatively easy question. As long as he knew he was going to give the right answer eventually, that seems fine to me. If Ogi was any doubt (which he obviously wasn't), though, his behavior would have been cruel.

I don't mind people having doubt. In fact, I appreciate those who are honest about their doubt. The world has far too many people who are absolutely sure of themselves, but wrong.

Doubt is fine. In fact, if a PAF or Ask the Expert has doubt, they should try to express their level of doubt as accurately as they can.

My comment is just that I wouldn't like the combination of Ogi having doubt and his behavior. Since he obviously had no doubt on that clue, I thought his behavior was fine.

[NellyLunatic1980]

Chris Samperi
Flushing, NY
Aspiring Filmmaker/Waiter

WE/WE®

And aren't all waiters in NYC aspiring actors, directors, and filmwriters?

Question Topics:
Assassinations
Adaptations
The Spelling Bee
TV First
Nuclear Power
World Geography
History
In the News
Recent Movies
On the Menu
Famous Quotes
Fashion Trends
Music
Landmarks
Definition Please

First impressions on the categories: I'm not big on recent movies, so I'll probably be using ATA there. History and nuclear power could be WWOQs® for me. Adaptations sounds vague, especially when it's at the $500,000 level.

$4K: I know that "The Clone Wars" is "Star Wars" and I think that "The Golden Army" is "Hellboy". Leaning toward "Prince Caspian", but as expected, I need to ask the audience.

Chris can’t believe that he is here. He signed up to take the test just for fun.

<grumble>®

$16K: Surprisingly, a history question that I knew.

$50K: Surprisingly, I knew this one as well. Over the last few weeks on CNN and MSNBC, I've seen a commercial from a company called AREVA. It's an animated commercial set to the tune of "Funkytown". Thinking that there might be a potential BAM question here, I looked up AREVA and saw that they own a bunch of nuclear power plants around the world, especially in its home country of... France.

[earendel]

Chris Samperi
Flushing, NY
Aspiring Filmmaker/Waiter

Definitely a WE/WE®.

Chris can’t believe that he is here. He signed up to take the test just for fun. He wants to do something for his mother with the money he wins.

And an "accidental contestant" to boot!

$16K A truce enacted at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of the year brought an end to combat in what war?

A. World War I
B. Korean War
C. World War II
D. Vietnam War

Chris says he can eliminate two. He has an idea, but decides to ATE. The clock stops at twelve seconds.

Ogi: Holy Moses, that’s a tough one. What do you think the answer is?

Chris: I’ve ruled out the World Wars because I feel like they didn’t end in truces. Vietnam, I felt was one-sided against America. I was thinking Korean, but war is not my forte.

Ogi: How badly do you want the answer?

Meredith: Ogi!

Chris: $16K worth of badly, Ogi.

Ogi: I know the answer to this.

Chris: Oh man, that would be awesome. That would be awesome.

Meredith: What is it Ogi?

Ogi: It’s World War I

Chris 100% sure?

Ogi: Well, let’s say 99.99% sure.

Spoiler

A. World War I (8 )

Ogi, I don't think they asked you to be an expert so you could mess with the contestants' heads. But it was a funny bit.

OK, this is the first truly nihil obstat® stack of the season for me - I'd have all lifelines still in play going for the $100K.

[MarleysGh0st]

I'd have used the ATA on the $8K Mitchell Report question. My hunch was that it was baseball, because I'd have probably remembered it if it was one of the others, but still...

It looked like Ogi was having a lot of fun toying with the contestant on such a relatively easy question. As long as he knew he was going to give the right answer eventually, that seems fine to me. If Ogi was any doubt (which he obviously wasn't), though, his behavior would have been cruel.

It was a funny bit, but there's an innate unfairness about this situation. Contestants are on the clock, which eliminates their opportunity to expound on a question. PAFs are on a clock, so ditto. (Plus, PAFs are warned in the briefing not to initiate any bantering with Meredith.) But the chosen celebrity expert has no clock and has the liberty to play to the audience? That's not right.

And just because Ogi is one of our celebrities doesn't make it so.

[peacock2121]

I would not go as far as to call Ogi's behavior cruel, I would call it self-serving and non-supportive of the contestants emotional state. There was really no reason for him to ask the contestant what he thought if he was 99.9% sure himself. He was just setting the contestant up for either having Ogi confirm his thought (which is not why he called - he called to get Ogi's answer) or to make the contestant admit he didn't know or was wrong in what he knew.

Some contestants ar emotional basket cases in the seat. PaFs and Experts are best off giving certainty (even if it's I don't know or I am 50% sure, or whatever) and not rocking the boat.

I wanted to smack him.

Then I wanted to thank him for saving the kid's ass.

[LastMinuteRequest]

But the chosen celebrity expert has no clock and has the liberty to play to the audience? That's not right.

A few notes about the logistics of being an Expert. First, you feel a responsibility to keep things moving and not have dead air, so I usually tried to say something out loud while I was reading the question (almost always, it was "What do you think the answer is?" just to cover the fact that I'm actually trying to parse the thing. Then, I need time to think about the answer. I'm rusty and slow and I need time just to think about it. But as the expert, I can't be quiet or I'll get booted. So for most questions I'm trying to protect the time by talking to the contestant, but really I'm reviewing the answer in my mind -- or figuring it out. On a couple questions, I knew I could figure it out if I had the time, so I just kind of bantered as cover while I reviewed things in my head. I'd definitely have a hard time this new season with the clock. My Millionaire strategy was to play everything very slow and deliberately, so I was pretty nervous being an Expert and having to get questions correct AND keep the show moving.

But even on those rare instances when I immediately knew the answer (not often), I still would want to take the time to verify it, since there's no time penalty. I certainly felt an obligation to the contestants to do everything in my power to come up with a correct response.

[MarleysGh0st]

But the chosen celebrity expert has no clock and has the liberty to play to the audience? That's not right.

A few notes about the logistics of being an Expert. First, you feel a responsibility to keep things moving and not have dead air, so I usually tried to say something out loud while I was reading the question (almost always, it was "What do you think the answer is?" just to cover the fact that I'm actually trying to parse the thing. Then, I need time to think about the answer. I'm rusty and slow and I need time just to think about it. But as the expert, I can't be quiet or I'll get booted. So for most questions I'm trying to protect the time by talking to the contestant, but really I'm reviewing the answer in my mind -- or figuring it out. On a couple questions, I knew I could figure it out if I had the time, so I just kind of bantered as cover while I reviewed things in my head. I'd definitely have a hard time this new season with the clock. My Millionaire strategy was to play everything very slow and deliberately, so I was pretty nervous being an Expert and having to get questions correct AND keep the show moving.

But even on those rare instances when I immediately knew the answer (not often), I still would want to take the time to verify it, since there's no time penalty. I certainly felt an obligation to the contestants to do everything in my power to come up with a correct response.

Thanks, Ogi. I accept your explanation and respect you for doing what you have to do to get more deliberation time, even at the cost of making some people want to slap you.

My complaints are about the new rules TPTB have made and the impact they have on the game. I don't know if Experts are compensated for the time they're giving to the show, but TPTB seem to have made the Expert not just something who's there to help the contestants but a de facto employee of the show. So you're not tasked simply with giving the right answer, you have to provide "entertainment".

You say you might be booted from the show? Are Experts going to have recurring roles in the show or do they simply do one day of taping for one week of episodes? Surely they didn't have stand-by Experts ready to take your place that very day if you didn't perform to TPTB's standards???

And I appreciate that you don't have a time limit, so you wanted to take all the time you could to do so. But, as I said, it seem inherently unfair to take that time away from contestants but to give it to the Experts. You and the other past champions (and, it appears, Bill Nye) are serious enough about the game to use that time for the contestant's good. What about when we get celebrity Experts who may not have the same agenda?

You're a good, responsible Expert. But I still think ATE is the wrong lifeline for the show.

[cindy.wellman]

$50K: Surprisingly, I knew this one as well. Over the last few weeks on CNN and MSNBC, I've seen a commercial from a company called AREVA. It's an animated commercial set to the tune of "Funkytown". Thinking that there might be a potential BAM question here, I looked up AREVA and saw that they own a bunch of nuclear power plants around the world, especially in its home country of... France.

Did you also read that they'll be my neighbor soon? They will.