Cooper was one of 10 contestants who made it through a rigorous qualification procedure based on a mixture of luck and trivia knowledge.

The show's publicist, Pat K. Preblick, said since the show's debut in November, when there was a preponderance of white male contestants, the show has attempted to increase diversity.

"[We want] contestants who are more representative of what's out there in the U.S.," Preblick said.

"Besides making questions that appeal to women and people of color, we altered the qualifications process in November to include a random drawing," she added.

In the first round, potential contestants who call a toll-free number and answer the three questions correctly are entered into a computerized random drawing. Those chosen to advance to round two, again conducted over the telephone, face a series of five questions.

Cooper, who answered all five questions correctly, said the questions in both rounds ranged in difficulty level from "easy to quite hard." Recalling the difficulty level of some questions, Cooper said one question asked him to order the birth dates of four female athletes.

Each high scorer in round two then becomes one of 10 finalists who appear on the show.