His final answer: not me

One of TV’s newest millionaires recently indulged at a Los Feliz-area coffee shop in one of his favorite breakfasts -- a dinner salad, no dressing. He bragged about a new acquisition -- a $99 light brown corduroy sports jacket from Macy’s, the first jacket he’s bought in 25 years. Crumbled in his hip pocket were several bus schedules, his guides for maneuvering around town.

Kevin Smith, 52, a retired truck driver with quirky rituals, self-deprecating wit and a silver beard approaching St. Nick length, can afford several cars and jackets after being crowned Tuesday as the first $1-million winner in the syndicated version of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” (the network version had nine $1-million winners).

But Smith is answering “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” in the negative. Smith doesn’t really want to be one. At least not yet. Spending sprees -- and a new car -- are not on his agenda.

Oh, he may set aside a few dollars to add some socks and jeans to his wardrobe of old work shirts and pants so worn that many passersby mistake him for a homeless man. He may even splurge for an occasional taxi when the weather is bad.

But he plans to continue the near-spartan lifestyle he adopted as part of his lifelong dream of winning a fortune on a quiz show. With a determination bordering on obsession, Smith, who attended several small colleges but never graduated, has spent the last several years in a self-imposed cram session, sequestering himself daily in Westside libraries, absorbing reference books and encyclopedias to fill his head with facts ranging from the works of Shakespeare and Faulkner to little-known details about geography and science.

“I’ve had only two Holy Grails in my life,” said Smith, speaking with his usual automatic-weapon speed. “One is to be lucky enough to find the right girl like my father did. That’s still a work in progress. The other was to make enough money on a game show to be able to provide for my parents, who gave me and my four siblings everything we ever wanted when we were growing up.”

His father died several years ago, so he will give the money to his mother and one of his sisters.

On Tuesday’s show, Smith knew most of the answers to the 15 multiple-choice questions, while making lucky guesses on a few. He instantly knew the answer to the $1-million question: “U.S. icon Uncle Sam was based on Samuel Wilson, who worked during the War of 1812 as an: A) meat inspector; B) mail deliverer; C) historian; D) weapons mechanic.” (The correct answer is A.) But he took his time answering, wanting to make sure he was reading the question correctly.

“I was just so tired,” he said, having spent the days before the taping without sleep, cramming with several reference books. “I was excited, but I felt like I was about to keel over.”

“Millionaire” host Meredith Vieira said she was touched by Smith’s commitment and generosity to his family. “There are a lot of people who really do study hard to try and get on this show, but Kevin is really pretty unique,” Vieira said. “There’s not an ounce of greed to Kevin, plus he has this innocence. And he’s a likable guy. We see the game show professionals who come through here, being polished. Kevin has none of that.”

Since graduating from high school, Smith worked at several factory jobs, including welding. When he took up long-distance truck driving in 1976, he would listen to TV and radio documentaries. He retired six years ago when a truck he was driving broke down near the Grapevine outside of Santa Clarita, and he thought he would be struck by other vehicles.

“I just reevaluated my life and decided I needed to do what I really wanted,” Smith said. Supported by his pension and savings, he pursued his goal full time, going every day to the main Santa Monica library or the Brentwood Branch Library.

When the libraries closed in the evening, he would make his way -- by bus or on foot, of course -- to Borders Books on Santa Monica’s Third Street Promenade, where he would read People, Time and Newsweek to catch up on current events and pop culture.

“I’m always trying to become less ignorant and less stupid,” Smith said.

Smith’s personal information superhighway didn’t stop there. One constant companion is his dog-eared “Information Please” almanac. He always carries a Walkman that allows him to listen to radio or TV shows when he’s riding the bus (his favorite programs are PBS documentaries, “Live With Regis & Kelly,” “The View,” “Charlie Rose” and “Jeopardy”).

His one-bedroom apartment (“It’s about 13 feet by 13 feet”) is filled with thousands of reference books, biographies and autobiographies, as well as hundreds of cassettes of movies. With the help of his VCR, he watches the three national network news shows on his 19-inch television.

With most of his hours taken up by his pursuit, Smith’s circle of friends is small, and he maintains that most people he comes across are blessed with what he calls “original S.I.N. -- they’re stupid, ignorant or neurotic. Too many people act like they’re in a Woody Allen movie.” He hasn’t been out to the movies since 1982 when a loud patron shouted out a joke while he was watching “Gandhi”: “I just don’t need all that chatter. I’d rather just watch it at home.”

But despite his relatively insular lifestyle, Smith has an extroverted personality, and he seems to be almost bursting with information he wants to share. Concise answers are out of the question. An inquiry about his truck-driving days will eventually turn into a lengthy dissertation of a truck’s braking system.

But ask about where he grew up or other details about his past and Smith politely declines to answer, saying he wants to protect the privacy of his mother and family. “Just say I come from somewhere east of the Mississippi,” he quips.

He also is tight-lipped about some of his future goals, including a musical idea that he wants to share only with singer-songwriter Richard Carpenter: “He has an excellent overview of music, and I think he could relate to my idea.”

But game shows will remain his primary focus. His next target is “Jeopardy.”

Said Smith with a smile, “I’ve already made one thing clear to my mother. I told her, ‘If I win there, I’m keeping half of the money.’ ”