David Chang, founder of Momofuku and host of “Ugly Delicious”, is the first celebrity to win a million 1 million prize on ABC’s “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” after Sunday night’s nail-beating episode.
After being inactive since May 2019, the game show came alive this year as host Jimmy Kimmel. Since its inception in 1999, only 13 people have won the top prize on the American version of the show – just six on the British version. And no celebrity contestant has won a full million until Chang.
Like the celebrities who participated after the show’s revival this year, Chang’s millions of dollars went to donations of their choice. For those working in the hospitality industry, he chose the Southern Smoke Foundation, a Houston-based emergency relief organization.
After 15 rounds of annoying trivia, the million-dollar question was stressful, as Chang used his last lifeline to call a friend to help answer his question. “Nevertheless, he and his wife never took the light switch for fear of shock, which was white. Who is the first president to have electricity in the House?
Chang called ESPN analyst and journalist Meena Kims, who, herself unsure, replied, “Maybe. [Benjamin] Harrison. “
Fans and friends tweeted about Kims with excitement and admiration after the episode aired.
An unsuspecting Chang thought for a few minutes of sweating before choosing to go with Kim’s answer and risking instead of participating in a donation of a few swe 500,000.
“My Asian gambling genes are very strong in me, because this is an overuse of common sense,” Chang said in a conversation with Kim on his podcast on Monday morning, “The Dave Chang Show.”
As soon as his victory was announced, the digital confetti exploded on the screen and the startled Chang jumped from his chair to the elbow-bump Kimmal.
There were no studio audiences to cheer him on, so Chang described the sweet feeling of victory in the empty room in his room, Kim and friend, Emmy-nominated director Alan Yang, whom Chang also used as a lifeline.
“I still don’t understand what happened,” Chang said. “It was the most out-of-body experience. I don’t know what happened.”
He also spoke about the impact of money on an organization called Southern Smoke, which makes donations to small business owners or food service workers when they are facing debt or other crises.
“I wanted to bring a little awareness to the restaurant industry,” he said. “Southern Smoke couldn’t drive their annual charity drive because of Covid … I was on the moon that we could do it, because it was a ridiculous year. I was like a man, I want the world. Just look at that. “
