Quiz whiz Toutant shared passion for trivia, theater

The first time Edward Toutant appeared on “Who Wants to be a Millionaire,” he lost on what the TV quiz show later conceded was a poorly crafted question. But upon his return to the show a few months later, he took home more than a million dollars.

Toutant, an Austin resident for 42 years, died of brain cancer this month at the age of 66, but family and friends remember the life of the local trivia champion and active member of Austin’s arts scene.

“To me, he was like the king of the gaming world,” said Joe O’Connell, a film director and friend of Toutant's.

Toutant became famous for his $1.86 million prize, but it wouldn’t have happened if not for Toutant’s passion for trivia and persistence.

Toutant, who also earned $10,000 on "Jeopardy" in 1989, had tried out to be a contestant on “Who Wants to be a Millionaire” since its 1999 debut, O’Connell said.

During his first appearance on the game show in January 2001, Toutant left with only $1,000 after his answer to a $16,000 question was deemed incorrect.

But Toutant looked further into the question about which vegetable had been genetically modified by scientists to glow when it needed water. After finding out his answer “tomatoes” was correct, despite doubts that they could be classified as vegetables, he emailed the game show.

“He was very sure of his answers,” said Judy Julian, a friend who accompanied Toutant to the show in New York. “He convinced ABC that his answer was correct, and they let him back on set for a second try.”

When Toutant returned to the show in September 2001, the prize had grown to about $1.8 million because of a lack of winners. This time, Toutant answered every question correctly and became the second-biggest winner on the show for its second season.

“It was so surreal,” Julian said, remembering the victory. “I didn’t expect him to win, so when he did it was a shock.”

Toutant’s passion for trivia and quiz games was partly about the challenge and partly about the money, he told the American-Statesman before his win was televised.

“I know a little bit about a lot of things, so if there’s a way to get recognition for that, fine. And I’m not one to shy away from the limelight,” Toutant said in 2001.

To celebrate his victory, Toutant threw “a big funky party with his friends” and bought a house in Travis Heights, Julian said. He also threw parties for his family in his hometown of Louisville, Ky., and trivia friends across the country, said his brother, Roy Toutant.

“He never lived a lavish life. I don’t think the money was a big to deal him,” Roy Toutant said. “But having the competition, the notoriety, the accomplishment and the friendships, I think that all meant a lot to him.”

Born in Annapolis, Md., to a family of eight children, Edward Toutant might have been inspired by one of his older sisters’ TV appearance on the "College Bowl" student quiz show, but Edward was always an avid learner, Roy said.

“My parents were very much into education, so they bought a few sets of encyclopedias. Ed used to read them, and I think that’s where he got a lot of his initial knowledge while he was in grade school,” Roy said, laughing at the memory.

After graduating from college, Edward Toutant moved to Austin and worked as an engineer at IBM until he retired two years after his big win.

But Toutant continued playing trivia relentlessly and even helped IBM program a supercomputer named Watson to play trivia, Roy said. Watson later became famous in 2011 for defeating human contestants on "Jeopardy."

Julian regularly accompanied Toutant to trivia game nights at Austin pubs such as Mother Egan’s and the B.D. Riley’s in the Mueller neighborhood, where he is said to have bought the first drink.

Edward Toutant also played in Colorado University’s trivia bowl for 34 years and regularly traveled to quiz tournaments, Roy said.

“He would travel literally around the world to play trivia or what they call 'quizzing,'” Roy Toutant said.

In Austin, Edward Toutant was also a part of arts organizations, such as a screenwriter’s group through which Julian met him.

He was a member of the Gaslight-Baker Theatre production of "Grease," and he worked with the ZACH and Hyde Park theater groups in the 1980s, said Ken Webster, Hyde Park Theatre's artistic director.

“He was very funny, witty and laid back,” Webster said. “He was a natural performer, and I think it was a great avenue for him to show his humor.”

O’Connell, who met Toutant while working on a documentary about "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" art director Bob Burns, said Toutant frequently supported local creatives like Burns.

If he could have, Edward Toutant would never have left Austin, Roy said.

“He really liked Austin,” Roy Toutant said. “He would go to the bars, listen to live music. He would walk around the city all the time.”

But struggles with a brain tumor led Edward Toutant to return to Louisville a couple of months ago.

“We played trivia at B.D. Riley's the night before he moved away,” Julian said.

He moved in with family before transferring to a Louisville nursing home, where he died Nov. 6.

"Brain cancer is really what got him, which is a big irony for someone so smart as him,” O'Connell said.

Because Toutant had kept his fight with cancer a secret from most people, many of his friends were shocked to hear about his death, Julian said. But since his death was announced, anecdotes from Toutant’s friends have poured in on his obituary page and on Facebook.

“It’s kind of amazing to see how many people appreciate him,” Julian said. “I hope he sees just how appreciated he is.”

Toutant’s family held a funeral for him on Nov. 12 in Louisville, but his friends in Austin will host a celebration of Toutant’s life at B.D. Riley’s Irish Pub in Mueller on Jan. 19 from 2 to 5 p.m., Julian said.