This page includes names, pictures,
and total prize money of all US quiz show winners (all and female) who
have held the #1 position on the all-time winnings records since the turn
of the century. For more information about top winners and a list of all-time
winners, see the excellent well-documented Winners
page at Steve Beverly's tvgameshows.net. This is not a
full list of all time winners. This list only includes players who at some
point have held the all-time (#1) winnings record for quiz & game
shows. Also note that some players on this page have increased their winnings
since losing
the #1 winner title, such as John Carpenter who added $125,000 on Who
Wants to be a Millionaire, and Dan Blonsky & Michael Shutterly who
each added $500 on Who
Wants to be a Millionaire. If a player were to recapture the #1 title,
he or she would appear
a second
time
on the
list.
Winners of non-traditional
contest shows & reality shows such as Survivor are
not included. Talent shows without cash prizes such as American
Idol are
not included either.
#1 Quiz Show Winners since 2000
#1 Female Quiz Show Winners since 2000
|
Date Set |
Date Surpassed |
Name |
Show |
Total at Time of Record |
|
| 05/25/05 |  |
Brad Rutter | Jeopardy! | $3,270,102 | |
|
11/04/04 |
05/25/05 |
|
Ken Jennings* |
Jeopardy! |
$3,022,700 |
|
04/10/01 |
11/04/04 |
|
Kevin Olmstead |
Who Wants to be a Millionaire, |
$2,205,900 |
|
02/16/00 |
04/10/01 |
|
David Legler |
Twenty One |
$1,765,000 |
|
02/11/00 |
02/16/00 |
|
Curtis Warren |
Greed, |
$1,546,988 |
|
02/02/00 |
02/11/00 |
|
Rahim Oberholtzer |
Twenty One |
$1,120,000 |
|
01/18/00 |
02/02/00 |
|
Dan Blonsky |
Who Wants to be a Millionaire |
$1,000,000 (tie) |
|
11/19/99 |
02/02/00 |
|
John Carpenter |
Who Wants to be a Millionaire |
$1,000,000 (tie) |
| 08/28/99 | 11/19/99 |  |
Michael Shutterly | Who Wants to be a Millionaire, Jeopardy! |
$549,400 |
* Ken Jennings achieved such a massive total
compared to previous Jeopardy! champions because the five-day restriction
was removed after the nineteenth season.
Ken Jennings began his long run
on June 2, 2004. Being held over to the twenty-first season, Jennings brought
his
total to $2,197,000 on November 3, 2004, which placed him above
Kevin
Olmstead's Who
Wants to be a Millionaire winnings, but not his total winnings. He
surpassed Olmstead as #1 all-time winner the following day by bringing
his total
to $2,247,000. On November 30, 2004, Ken Jennings's run finally ended after
being defeated by challenger Nancy Zerg. Jennings finished in second place
that day, adding
a final $2,000 to his winnings from the previous seventy-four days. He
returned for the Ultimate Tournament of Champions in May 2005, where he
took second place and $500,000 in the final round.
Notable Mentions
| Brad Rutter | Jeopardy! | $3,270,102 |
| Ken Jennings | Jeopardy! 1 vs. 100 Grand Slam |
$3,123,414.30 |
| Kevin Olmstead | Who Wants to be
a Millionaire Jeopardy! |
$2,205,901 |
| Ed Toutant | Who Wants to be
a Millionaire Jeopardy! |
$1,871,000 |
| Ashlee Register | Duel | $1,795,000 |
| David Legler | Twenty One | $1,765,000 |
| Curtis Warren | Greed Win Ben Stein's Money Jeopardy! Sale of the Century |
$1,536,988 (cash & prizes) |
| John Carpenter | Who Wants to be a Millionaire | $1,125,000 |
| Rahim Oberholtzer | Twenty One | $1,120,000 |
| Tim Hsieh | It's Your Chance
of a Lifetime Who Wants to be a Millionaire |
$1,106,309.16 |
| Bernie Cullen | Who Wants to be
a Millionaire Jeopardy! |
$1,069,102 |
| Dan Blonsky | Who Wants to be a Millionaire | $1,000,500 |
| Joe Trela | Who Wants to be a Millionaire | $1,000,500 |
A full list of network TV
game show winners can be found at TVgameshows.net.
#1 Female Quiz Show Winners
| Date Set |
Date |
Name |
Show |
Total at Time of Record |
|
| 12/23/07 | Ashlee Register | Duel | $1,795,000 | ||
| 05/08/03* |
|
Nancy Christy |
Who Wants to be a Millionaire |
$1,000,000* |
|
| 05/12/00 |
05/08/03* |
|
Lauren Griswold |
Super Greed |
$810,000 |
| 01/24/00 |
05/12/00 |
|
Melissa Hall |
Twenty One |
$600,000 |
| 01/08/00 |
01/24/00 |
|
Catherine Rahm |
Winning Lines, |
$503,400 |
* Tina Wesson
of CBS Survivor:
The Australian Outback was the first female to win $1,000,000.
She is not included in the above list because of the special nature of reality
shows such as Survivor. For reference, Tina Wesson won her $1,000,000
on May 3, 2001. She was matched by Vecepia Towery on Survivor: Marquesas on
May 19, 2002. Tina Wesson and Vecepia Towery shared the female winnings record
until May 8, 2003 when Nancy Christy
won $1,000,000 on Who Wants to be a Millionaire.
After Nancy Christy's
win, several other females won $1,000,000 on reality shows: Jenna
Morasca on Survivor:
The Amazon on
May 11, 2003; Sandra Diaz-Twine on Survivor: Pearl Islands on December
14, 2003; Amber Brkich on Survivor: All-Stars (who in 2001 had
been on Survivor:
The Australian Outback) on May 9, 2004; Femia Durosinmi onThe
Benefactor on October 25,
2004; Danni Boatwright on Survivor: Guatemala on December 11,
2005; and Bianca Ryan on America's Got Talent on August 17, 2006.
** On September 8, 2003, Erin Brodie broke
the reality show winnings record by earning $2,000,000
on NBC's reality show For
Love or Money 2. Again, because the list above is only for traditional
quiz show and game show winners, Brodie is not included.
Last Updated December 25, 2007