章節 58: Common Sense
At the end of February, CBS TV finally launched their conservatively anticipated new program, "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire."
In order to air this show, CBS temporarily suspended its original show, "60 Minutes," to make way for Who Wants to Be a Millionaire and conduct a pilot.
"This is a show in which anyone can participate in the true sense, and anyone can take away 1 million! There is no limit, no difference. As long as you firmly believe that you have enough wisdom and luck, come and try it!"
The advertisement for this TV program is very good-sounding, which also makes many people look forward to this program.
Sitting in front of the TV, Leslie was also staring at the TV show. Generally speaking, he doesn't have any rest time, but this weekend, he still chose to take a rest. He knew very well that if the response to this new program was good, he would have to work overtime immediately, and at this moment, it was rare for him to rest.
"Actually, we can do other things instead of waiting in front of the TV and watching new program broadcast. You are too tired from work and still worry about the company even though you are already home."
Julie Chen, his girlfriend, persuaded him. Leslie smiled but still couldn't get up from the sofa.
He wanted to see what this show, which Levi had placed high hopes on, looked like. Julie couldn't persuade him, so she sat beside him and turned their eyes to the TV together.
On TV, the show has already started.
"Hey viewers, welcome to Who Wants To Be A Millionaire! Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? That's a really stupid question; who doesn't want to be a millionaire? Oh yeah, those rich millionaires don't want to..."
Regis Philbin was already hosting the show for a question-and-answer session on the TV. As a veteran host, he knows how to mobilize the atmosphere and also knows what it means to be adaptable. He hasn't participated in TV shows much this year, but with Levi's high-priced invitation, he has no way to say no.
There is a reason for doing this: after listening to Philbin's introduction of the rules and seeing the first challenger, an ordinary American college student, stand on the challenger's seat, Leslie also understood Levi's intention: The participants in the TV show are ordinary people, they are not actors, and they don't know how to face the camera. Only an experienced host can avoid embarrassment in case of any issues.
"My name is Harry Brown. I am a student at UCLA. I am very happy to be selected..."
Inside the TV, the contestant introduced himself. These contestants are all recruited volunteers and have obviously prepared to introduce themselves, but he was a little nervous because he was on TV for the first time. Fortunately, although he was a little over-excited, he did not lose his composure. It's even more obvious that he is an ordinary person.
For many people, what matters is whether ordinary people can get 1 million—after all, isn't getting rich overnight the essence of the American dream?
After the contestants introduced themselves, Philbin started asking questions.
"When is France's Bastille Day?"
"Which peninsula is famous for producing oil?"
"Which of the following heroes is not from Marvel?"
A few simple questions seem to have no difficulty. Leslie had read the script, and all the show's questions were similar, not particularly esoteric. It's just that when he saw those questions and answers sent to him together, he didn't find any problems, but now, he was vaguely aware of something.
Compared with him, Julie was more involved. After the question and answer began, she began to follow the TV to answer questions one by one.
"Where was the world's first subway built?"
After the first few questions did not encounter difficulties, the fifth question began to have problems. Brown obviously didn't know the answer to this question. After hesitating for a while, he decided to call his friend for help. Fortunately, his friend knew the answer, allowing him to pass the test too.
"You answered this question correctly... Now you have answered five questions correctly and accumulated a bonus of 50,000. If you give up now, you can get half of the bonus, 25,000 dollars. If you don't give up and answer the next question wrong, you will lose everything. Are you sure you want to continue to participate in the next question?"
This seemingly simple question made Brown hesitate. Twenty-five thousand dollars is a lot for a student. If you give up, it seems that you have earned it. However, if you persist, you may get more money. Yes, the rules in the first ten questions say that the difficulty is random. Maybe the next question is easier?
His expression was not as excited as before but instead showed a dilemma.
"I'm going to continue to answer." After an ideological struggle, he made a decision. His decision made Julie, in front of the TV, immediately shake her head, "You're so stupid; don't you know how to accept it?"
Julie's attitude was indeed correct, and another question from Philbin had already been asked. Out comes, "What's the length of a marathon?"
This time, Brown didn't know the answer, and he had no choice but to ask for help again, but this time, asking for help from the audience, or removing the wrong answer, was not enough for him to know the correct answer.
His face was full of annoyance.
And Leslie, who was watching, also understood something.
Levi didn't want to give people money at all. He was taking advantage of people's misunderstandings. Leslie suddenly thought of something: When everyone sees these questions, they will quickly find that these questions are common sense questions; the difference lies in whether they usually accumulate enough. What do common sense topics represent? It means that you don't need to use your brain, you don't need to prepare, and with a little bit of common sense, anyone can get all the answers right!
But here's the problem: common sense means different things to different people. Some people's common sense, in the eyes of others, is simply profound knowledge. The fifteen questions are not related to each other, which requires a lot of knowledge coverage, and it is difficult for someone to have such knowledge coverage.
The immense joy of this program is that the people in front of the TV may know the answers, and they may also make different choices from those on TV. People always like to ignore their own deficiencies, thinking that they can be seen at a glance, focusing on the stupidity of others, and passing by wealth. Therefore, in the eyes of the vast majority of people, they can get the 1 million.
Everyone has the opportunity to get rich overnight, and people are naturally willing to watch it and even fantasize about whether they can do it. And the stunned and regretful expressions of those who made the wrong choice and lost tens of thousands of dollars in an instant will also make people keen to watch.
'Maybe the result of my bet is not a sure win. A few days ago, I was still thinking about how to take care of Levi's feelings after winning the bet. Now it seems that it is Levi's business to take care of the losers' feelings.
I just hope that he really has the idea of taking care of his own mood.'
***
Inside a household, a couple is staring at the TV screen, looking at the questions one after another.
"These questions are too simple. If I go, I can answer them all correctly! This person is too stupid, he answered them all wrong, and all the money he got was lost!" In front of the TV, a tired husband was showing off to his wife, "I know all these questions, and I can answer them all. If only I were selected, I'd already got 1 million! But you didn't let me."
"I also said that this TV program can accept public registration. If you really have the ability, you can sign up."
"I will go as soon as I go; what's the matter? Even if I sign up, I won't be allowed to be on the show. These shows are all Just for show..."
"Maybe not, 1 million... For 1 million, you don't even have the guts to try?"
What the wife said made the husband silent for a while, and then he nodded vigorously, "I will just try it. Who is afraid of whom?"
***
Similarly, in another family, two old couples were watching the TV and were also fascinated by these questions.
"Let's compare. Let's see who knows more. I don't believe I don't know as much as you."
The old man looked at the screen, and his wife rushed to answer the questions; he silently memorized the numbers in his heart and found that at the moment, he answered by himself four times and his wife five times. 'I can catch up and surpass her in no time.'
"Which country invented Arabic numerals?"
"Which day is Earth Day?"
"Who is the father of physicists?"
"The largest diamond-producing country?"
The two old people kept guessing and encountered some problems. When both of them didn't know how to answer the question, they also looked at each other with a smile and spread their hands helplessly.
They're old, and they watch TV shows just for fun. Compared with other game projects, this kind of game is much more enjoyable. The old man wants a stable game that can be played on the sofa. What else can satisfy the elderly more than simple common sense quizzes? There is no need to use your brain; you only need to remember, which is very rare.
***
In another house, several people were also staring at the TV screen.
"Which country is the city of music?"
"Vienna...Austria!"
The twelve-year-old girl happily shouted out the answer. And the nine-year-old brother sitting next to her immediately shouted, "I know too, don't shout!"
"How could you know? You don't like music at all..."
"I just know..."
"Don't Fight. Hurry up. The next question will come out soon." The mother stopped the quarrel between the two of them and turned their attention to the TV again.
"What is the lowest country in the world?"
The two children couldn't speak at once. The younger brother bit his lip and looked at his elder sister, who was also secretly looking at her younger brother, but they were speechless. Looking at the two of them, the mother also laughed: There is no harm in letting the children watch such programs. Even if they learn more common sense, it will be good for them in the future. Maybe they also have the chance to become millionaires in the future?
***
Countless families are watching the questions appearing on the TV screen at this time. Compared with other entertainment programs, this program looks so plain, but people have too many reasons to want to watch it.
It is an excellent program to see the magic in the ordinary.
*****
Thanks and kudos for my patreons Cherif Doghri, Abdishakur Hasan and Adam LV.
You can read advanced chapters on my Patreon account: https://www.patreon.com/Sayonara816.
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