In the hot seat

DENVILLE  Let’s play “Who wants to be a Millionaire?” Which one of these answers best describes Robert Scarpone.

A: A former Jeopardy champion.

B: A history teacher at Morris Catholic High School in Denville.

C: A recent contestant on “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?”

D: All of the above.

As amazing as it may seem, the answer is “D.”

Scarpone, a parishioner of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Flanders, has been one of the only people to appear on two of television’s most popular game shows.

Last month, Scarpone was in the “hot seat” on “Who Wants to be a Millionaire?” during the show’s “Teacher Appreciation Week.” At the beginning of the show, Chris Harrison, host of “Millionaire,” said, “Welcome to Teacher Appreciation Week, where each day, we’re giving some of the best teachers in the country a million dollar pop quiz.”

The dream of being a “millionaire” began for the Morris Catholic teacher when the show first debuted in 1999 hosted by T.V. legend Regis Philbin. A few years before, Scarpone was on another popular quiz show “Jeopardy.” He won $42,000 during a five-game run. He returned during its “Jeopardy Tournament of Champions” later that season. In total, he has been on “Jeopardy” nine times.

“I love game shows and trivia games,” said Scarpone. “Here are these shows that pay you to answer questions and I would do it for free. I never gave up being on millionaire. I have gone on several auditions to make it on the show.”

After 18 years, Scarpone finally made it on “Millionaire” and with the additional honor of being featured on its Teacher Appreciation Week. He filmed the show nine months earlier in Las Vegas keeping the outcome a secret until the show aired. Scarpone was somewhat humbled to be on the show for the teachers’ week.

“I made Teacher Appreciation Week from going from a career in law to teaching. That was my big thing. There were some other teachers who have done some truly wonderful things — one teacher was a foster parent for a student, another was a teacher who taught at the Sandy Hook School in Newtown, Conn., and then there was a teacher who donated a kidney. I felt like I was surrounded by Mother Theresa, Joan of Arc and John Paul II.”

Scarpone doesn’t see his career change, which he made in early 2000s, as a great feat or sacrifice because he loves teaching. Scarpone has been at Morris Catholic for a decade and currently teaches U.S. History, European History and the History of Film. His students, he said, were thrilled to see him on the show.

On the show, Scarpone was able to invite his friend, Brian Hodges, to be his “lifeline.” Scarpone calls his friend a trivia expert and Hodges makes an appearance for the final question, which was “According to the American Pet Products Association, if you go by the total number of pets in the U.S., which of these is the second most popular behind only fish.” Scarpone believed the answer was dogs. Hodges believed it was cats. Not sure of the correct answer, he walked away with the guarantee of $30,000 rather than risking it all to go for $1 million. The correct answer was cats.

Scarpone said the secret to game show success on shows like “Jeopardy” or “Millionaire” is being interested in “a million different things” not just one subject. Because he enjoys knowing about so many subjects, it is what makes him enjoy teaching history so much. “In history, there’s a lot to teach about from geology, sculpture, astronomy and even popular music,” Scarpone said.

Similar to his students, Scarpone’s family was also very excited for him to be on “Millionaire.” Married for 26 years, Scarpone and his wife, Theresa, were active in their parish as Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, religious education teachers and choir members. Scarpone also enjoys performing in local community theaters. Scarpone felt especially happy that his daughter, who was graduated from Morris Catholic in 2013, was able to see him on the show. His daughter had just been born when he was on “Jeopardy.” “She’s proud of her dad,” he said, “but I must say she’s a blessing to me. My wife and I are very lucky to have her.”

Now that he reached his goal of being on “Millionaire,” Scarpone said with a laugh, “I will have to think of another goal, I guess.”

One thing for certain in Scarpone’s future is for him to continue teaching at Morris Catholic. He believes teaching is his mission and it is what he loves to do. “History is more than memorizing people, places and dates. It’s understanding how the world works and how to make the world a better place. That’s what I want my students to know and do,” he said.