A Tribute to Twenty One - Interview with Ben Tritle

Interview with Contestant Ben Tritle

How does it feel being considered "the Susan Lucci of Game Shows" for having to wait so long to get on?

When I realized there was a wait going on, it was frustrating. But that was buffered by the people that I met during the time there. And let's face it, Susan Lucci won her Emmy...so the comparison is appreciated.

How has the $85,000 you won on the show changed your life?

The car that I mentioned on the show is paid for, and I'm in the black for the first time in a long time. It came along at a very good time in my life. I can pursue doing what I want, instead of settling on something to pay the bills.

What made you interested in being a contestant on Twenty-One?

Long term answer...I wanted a shot at the money that seemed to be out there. Short term answer is that I had tried out for Greed and bombed on the mock version of the game. I passed the written test at the very first audition they held, but everybody was too nice when we played the game because there was no payoff formatted for the terminator at the time.

What steps are involved from calling the 1-800 number to actually being on the show?

Saw the ad in L.A. Times, called the number up (which for me was an 818 number since it was local). I left my contact info for them in a message and waited for a call back. When they called me back, we chatted for awhile before they gave me a short test over the phone. Having passed that, they invited me into NBC for the written test and the possible mock game for the tape. Then, about a week later, I was asked to come back to meet the producers. The whole initial process to actually get to the point of being called in as a contestant took about a month.

What happened behind the scenes from when you arrived at the studio until taping began?

Which day? Just kidding. The typical day involved the briefing from the contestant coordinators. Having brought a change of clothes, the wardrobe people checked to make sure not only that what you were wearing was OK for the cameras, but also that it would reflect properly off the glass in the booth...anything to dark disturbs the ability to hinder the contestant's view outside the booth.

What were your impressions of Maury, Melissa, Mercedes, and the behind-the-scenes people?

Maury was great...And what little contact I had with Mercedes was pleasant. All the tech people deserve immense credit for putting on such an incredible show, and doing it with as great an attitude as they did. From what I gather, after my extended time there, many people on the show were possibly more relieved than I that I got to play.

What was going through your mind when you were chosen to go up on stage to play the game?

In a word: FINALLY. The show that I finally got to play on started out like pretty much every other show that I didn't get to play on, except for the fact that right after the first random pick, not one, but two people from the show asked me how many shows I had appeared on up to that point. I turned to the guy who would have been my second chance had I played it right, and said, "well either I'm going up now or they're getting ready to play Taps." Even right up to my pick, I was asked what I thought would happen, and I said that I had no opinion anymore, that it was too much effort to make that opinion. So when I heard "Your next opponent is:" I was ready to applaud either of the two women. FINALLY.

Is it true that you cannot hear or see anything while the other contestant was answering their question?

As for seeing things, when you're forward, you saw dark shapes, nothing of detail...when you're not playing, you were to move to the back of the booth, and with the way light played off the light colored clothing to hit the glass in front of you, you really couldn't see anything outside of the booth. As for the sound, there's a reason why Maury wore two microphones...one for each booth...when he wasn't talking with you, the sound guys would close that line and play some real wavy type New Age music...I'm kind of wishing I knew who it was they played, it was quite settling.

What was going through your mind while the other contestant was answering their question?

I was in amazement for pretty much the whole first game. So the one time I couldn't hear his question I was just staring at the "11" on the screen in front of me thinking "do NOT screw this up". As for the second game, I was a little more relaxed, and never had to mull over my mistake in silence except for when Maury closed out the booths, so I didn't have time to feel down about it.

How do you think you would do on other game shows such as Who Wants to be a Millionaire?

Hard to say...I can watch it at home and do well at the first two tiers, but who's to say what the feeling is to be in the hot seat. I'd hope I could keep my wits with me to settle in. The same went for "21", I could elbow my friend when I knew the questions, so that built up confidence, until I went on stage, then the surrealism sunk in.

Have you ever considered being on another game show?

Like I said before, I auditioned for Greed...I also tried out for Jeopardy three times, but only passed the test once, when I was in the Air Force, for the Military Tournament...that never panned out though.

Do you consider yourself "A Game Show Fan"?

To my parents dismay, yes...I've even assisted with a couple of pilots since Twenty One...and it's the competition factor for me...I get almost as excited as that tape day back in March.

What are your feelings toward NBC's decision to cancel Twenty-One? Do you feel as though the execs should have given the show a second chance?

Aha...in order to be given a second chance, one must have a first chance, and as I've said before, the initial plan for Twenty One was never followed through...then they played musical airdates with the show. And despite the show's success the powers that be decided that alienation of fans was more important than quality programming, which was surprising since they had hired a new Vice President of Special Programming citing Twenty One as an example. How else can you explain that they would go out of their way to hold the last episode of Twenty One to the end of May after sweeps? They had to have known that the way they scheduled it for Mondays when they did would take them into sweeps, if they couldn't see it, then they weren't concerned with looking. And if they did see it coming, then they didn't want to find out what would happen when a show they hoped would die quietly would be made available during a high traffic viewership period. That's sadly the way the business works, and I hope to gain more of that experience over time, especially with the contract talks coming up for SAG and AFTRA with the networks.

Meantime, I have done research on one short lived show (Chance of a Lifetime) and now doing research on a syndicated show coming out in October called "Street Smarts"...it should be a fun show, and it's daily...we've started taping already, with a schedule for 25 shows this week. The show starts airing October 2nd. Check your local listings...

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Page Last Updated: April 24, 2002