Since Don Gillan was a kid, he had a set of six numbers that he chose as his favorites. They weren’t multiples of anything and they weren’t selected for any particular reason. They just so happened to be numbers he liked.
“It just so happens that I would play the lottery,” says Don. ”One night back in ’97, I was on my way home and I stopped in at the store and got my groceries in the cart and was waiting in line. There was quite a line in front of me so I thought, ‘This gives me some time. I’ll run up there and fill in a card and turn it in.’”
And he filled in his six favorite numbers: 7, 12, 16, 21, 33 and 36. The following night, Don was sitting in his family room watching the evening news.
“And I’m in my easy-chair, my wife’s upstairs, and I’m kind of falling asleep,” he says.
And in a state of being half-asleep, he vaguely heard the starting of the Illinois Lottery Drawing.
One by one, the announcer started up the machines and released the Mega Million ping-pong balls, which began bouncing about chaotically within the confines of a glass container. The looks of winning seemed completely impossible.
The first number the machine selected: seven. The second number: twelve. The third number: sixteen. At this point, Don is completely awake in his chair. The fourth number: twenty-one. The fifth number: thirty-three. And the final number: thirty-six.
Don had just hit all six numbers. The same numbers he had selected as his favorites since the age of twelve and the same numbers he had filled out on the lotto card from the previous night.
“And I looked and I thought, ‘Those are the numbers I choose.’ I was just about ready to pass out,” says Don.
There was a reason for his unusually odd reaction. He didn’t yell out of excitement or call for his wife upstairs. He didn’t run around, he didn’t wake the kids, he didn’t even stand up. He just slowly sat back into his chair, grabbed the remote and turned off the television. There was a problem.
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Gee, That’s Just neat!
What a crazy story! I love the interview, narration and music especially. This is great stuff Danny.
Danny, this turned out GREAT!! Maybe I should try to solicit a job as a REAL lotto announcer..hahahaha…I love Don, he sounds like a great guy!
WOW.
Love this story, you are killin’ it! Keep up the great work. So when can I hear this on NPR?