Journalism Graduate Student Cassie Belek Wins $50,000 on ‘Who Wants To Be a Millionaire’
Columbia, Mo. (May 18, 2010) — Cassie Belek, a master’s student at the Missouri School of Journalism, walked away with $50,000 in winnings on Monday’s episode of “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire.” She started in the hot seat on the Friday, May 10, episode, where she made it up to the $50,000 question. Belek, from Overland Park, Kan., continued as a holdover contestant on Monday, May 17, where she started by looking at the $100,000 question with one lifeline left (“Ask The Expert”).
Belek used her last lifeline – “Ask The Expert” – on the $100,000 question, which was: Category, Geometry – “Which of the following geometric shapes features an orthocenter? A: Circle; B: Pentagon; C: Square; D: Triangle.” Belek connected with “Expert” John Hodgman (author and “Resident Expert” on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart) via a Skype video call. Unfortunately, Hodgman was not able to help Belek come up with a definitive answer.
Out of lifelines, Belek decided to not take a guess on the $100,000 question and walk away with the guaranteed $50,000 that she had already won. If she had guessed incorrectly on the $100,000 question, she would have fallen back to $25,000 in winnings. The correct answer was “D.”
Updated: May 11, 2020