Who Wants to Be a Millionaire

More than a decade after its U.S. television debut, it happens that "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" is definitely no longer as great a game show as it once was. I do tolerate Meredith Vieira as the hostess, but her hosting style is somewhat boring, and does little to preserve the enthusiasm, humor, and excitement given the show by Regis Philbin in the prime-time version. In addition, I dislike the dumb things she says to contestants on higher- level questions, when making them nervous into thinking that they got their questions wrong. However, I like that she is very comfortable with the contestants, and is better at pronunciations than Regis. I hate how the show's format has changed so many times over the years... I think "Millionaire" is better in its classic format than in any other. Nowadays, it seems that the "Millionaire" game has been ruined... It's not what it used to be... And the fact that it's only a half-hour show makes it even worse... However, despite all of its flaws, I still think that the syndicated "Millionaire" is entertaining and very fun to watch and play along with. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who was a die-hard fan of the prime-time shows or who is a respectable trivia buff.

I didn't care for Regis Philbun as host. He seemed to make the contestants feel so uncomfortable. However, Meredith Viera is a wonderfully funny woman, and she is very comfortable with the contestants, and her smile is as warm as the noon time sun. So I hope that the show lasts for a long time, and Meredith stays on my television at 8:30/9:30 C until she decides that it is time to move on.

Saw the first ever USA show of this at beginning of September 2014. One of the questions was: which painter painted The Scream which sold for over 119 million USD in 2012. Then it gave 4 answers but the right answer was not there. The contestant just took the money without answering. The Show said it was painted by Picasso. And they were right up to a point but it was not Picasso's painting called The Scream that sold for $119 million in 2012. It was The Scream painted by Edvard Munch. And that artist's name was not in the 4 options given to the contestant. That's very sloppy research.

Any cursory look on the web will show exactly that it was Edvard Munch who painted The Scream which sold for the astronomical amount to financier Leon Black.

Seems to me that more and more contestants are leaving with $5,000. There needs to be another guaranteed level between $5,000 and $50,000.

In order to keep the budget to a minimum, they decided to nix the Fastest Finger round and keep the top prize going. Meredith is the greatest host than Regis is, and had newer top right graphics for those entering the $16,000 level and used a "classical" ending if someone won a million bucks. This show is always a keeper at 4:30 on channel 24 before the 5 o'clock news come on.