Penn frosh to be on 'Millionaire' game show

College freshman Jonathan Lubin thinks he just may have the world's best pick-up line -- at least for today.

Lubin said he will simply tell prospective dates about his appearance tonight on the college edition of the hit game show Who Wants to be a Millionaire? which airs at 8 p.m. on ABC.

"More than once, my friends have pointed out that this could be used as a ploy to get into parties or meet women," Lubin said. "I have no objection, but I'm hoping people aren't that shallow where this is going to make the difference."

Lubin said his million-dollar journey began just off of Penn's campus down on Market Street, after a friend at Villanova forwarded him an e-mail.

"He thought I'd be interested in going to the tryouts with him because we're both trivia buffs," Lubin said. "We had nothing better to do."

In fact, Lubin did not even expect to make it past the first round -- a 30 question test in which the top 60 scores out of approximately 1,500 applicants advanced to the essay and interview portion.

"We didn't really expect to get called back," Lubin said. "It was pretty cool because we were just freshmen going against seniors and graduate students."

But Lubin did get past the first round.

When his essay responses, including his enthusiastic description of his obsession with the film Braveheart, got him selected for an interview, Lubin said he began formulating a game plan.

The producers' "thing is they don't want any dead airtime... they don't want this person who is going to be very introverted and almost a bore to watch," he said. "So going into that interview, I'm thinking, 'Just be yourself, be outgoing, be someone that wouldn't be afraid to talk to Regis [Philbin, the host of the program] ,' because that's what they'd want to see."

And apparently, the producers liked what they saw.

After receiving a postcard saying he had made it through, Lubin said he found out soon after that he was going to appear on the show.

"My next contact with them was a phone call from one of their producers at ABC saying they would like to have me on the show," Lubin said. "I was so excited... that meant I got to be on the show and at least have my one second of waving."

But excited as he was, Lubin said he wanted more than just that wave, so he began a mild preparation routine.

"I have a copy of [The New York Times] Almanac, so always on long train rides home I would just flip through the Almanac, reading the sequences of the presidents, their biographies, different Nobel prize winners [and] famous books and movies," Lubin said. "I'm a pretty big fan of all TV shows, particularly trivia."

In fact, Lubin had attended Ben Stein's speech at Penn last fall and recalled a helpful piece of trivia -- Stein's e-mail address.

"Ben Stein actually offered to be one of my lifelines when I told him that I was going to be on the show," Lubin said. "But he warned me that once he was a lifeline for a friend, Jimmy Kimmel, and didn't come through in the clutch."

Lubin said he also went to President Judith Rodin's office in search of a lifeline.

"She didn't want to do it, but she offered her husband and gave me a list of other Penn professors who would be great," Lubin said.

Lubin said he finally settled on English Professor Al Filreis, as well as two high school friends -- including the one at Villanova whom Lubin auditioned with -- who had been on academic teams with him.

Lubin was afraid that he would not even make it to the "Hot Seat" and get to use his lifelines. But he said that some practice rounds of "Fastest Finger" questions on the day of the show helped to boost his confidence.

"They do five practice 'Fastest Fingers,'" Lubin said. "I was pretty psyched because I got my rhythm down and won three of the five in my group."

And as it turned out, that short practice was all Lubin needed.

"It was one of the most exciting moments of my life to see all the names light up in green of who got the question, and then to see your name flashing," Lubin said. "It was awesome. It was pure elation. I just got up there and swarmed Regis, fist pumping in the air."

Once in the coveted "Hot Seat," Lubin had his work cut out for him. He used all of his lifelines, but said that the high monetary stakes necessitated such caution.

"Because of the money involved, you second-guess yourself on everything when you're up there... like, am I really positive about this?" Lubin said. "It's just very nerve racking, so you want to be sure before you lock yourself into your guess."

With this mentality, Lubin ended up calling his high school buddy as his "Phone-a-Friend" lifeline about a pop music question.

"I'm going to give him a cut of the money," Lubin said. "I don't know what's fair, but I've got to include him and give him something."

Lubin's friend was not the only one to provide help. Before the show, Lubin said his father helped him devise a basic strategy.

"We decided that if I got to $125,000, it would be foolish to try to hedge my bets on a guess," Lubin said. "If I could get that amount of money and then fall back to $32,000, while still a lot of money, I would be plagued with doubt and regret for the rest of my life."

Yet, despite the money involved, Lubin said the potential for sudden windfall was not his favorite part of the experience.

"They offered to fly me out to New York... they put me up at this posh hotel on the Upper West Side of New York, right near Central Park," he said. "They also give you one guest from anywhere in the country who they fly out for free."

Lubin, who brought his dad, said the choice was an easy one.

"My mom, who is a big Regis fan, would have loved to meet him, but she was too nervous," Lubin said. "My dad is a little more calmer under pressure."

And while he was nervous, Lubin said he was also fairly calm and didn't let the fact he was on television bother him.

"They make you very aware [of being on national television] because the cameras were moving, the music was loud and... heart-racing, but I wasn't phased by it at all because I had done a local television show [for my academic team] two years prior," Lubin said. "I was very excited to be there."

Lubin said that above all, his biggest fear was an early exit.

"I was deathly afraid of making it to the 'Hot Seat' and not knowing the hundred dollar question, the first question," he said. "There could be nothing worse coming out of my experience than walking away with a big zero under my name, as the crowd kind of sighs under their breath."

Now, Lubin said, his biggest concern involves actually watching himself on the show for the first time.

"I'm kind of nervous about how I'm going to look," he said. "Hopefully, I don't look too pale."

Lubin says another big perk was meeting Philbin, whom he described as "the most energetic, always on the go, enthusiastic senior citizen ever."

"Regis is the man," Lubin said. "He's a funny guy. He always tries to cool you down, help you make your logical decision and make sure you know what you're doing."

As for the money he did win, Lubin already has some plans.

"You have to appreciate your parents for footing the bill for college, so I think it would be the right thing to do to help alleviate some of those costs," he said. "Maybe with the leftovers... just be frivolous once in a while -- buy a new TV or a stereo system."

But for now, Lubin said, he just wants to relax and enjoy the moment.

"I'm going to watch [the show] in the dorm with a group of friends... order pizza and hoagies and invite the whole floor down," Lubin said. "It should be fun."

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