Dan Stabb is about to make a national television debut he could tell almost no one about. The Wilmington improviser and Fearless Improv director will appear on NBC's Password on June 23 at 10 p.m., sharing the stage with Jimmy Fallon and Mike “The Miz” Mizanin.
For Stabb, 46, that means a shot at $25,000 in front of a national audience on a show that was revived by NBC in 2022 and is now in its third season. He said the chance is still hard to absorb.
“It’s still kind of mind-blowing,” Stabb said.
The appearance arrives now because the episode has a set air date, and because Password is back in the network rotation with celebrity pairings built around quick thinking and wordplay. That structure fits Stabb in more than one way: he works as director of admissions and professional development for Zip Code Wilmington, but he is also a voiceover artist, an improvisation coach and a former manager with the East Coast Wrestling Association. NBC paired him with Fallon and The Miz for a reason.
The path to the studio was not a casual one. A casting director called Stabb out of the blue last summer after finding him through Fearless Improv's Facebook page, then he went through a string of Zoom interviews and auditions before being selected. Soon after, he was on his way to New Jersey for filming.
What he could share was limited. Stabb told his wife, Sara, about the appearance, but no one else. He had to manage work leave and keep the whole thing quiet, a strange assignment for someone who makes a living performing and teaching people how to think on their feet. “It’s a thing, and I can’t really talk about the thing. But if the thing happens, then I’ll let you know what the thing is,” he said.
That secrecy gives the episode a built-in hook, but it also leaves one question hanging: whether Stabb actually walks away with the prize. NBC will air his attempt on June 23, and he plans to watch his debut at home with Sara. He has even asked his extended family not to tune in yet, so they can turn it into a watch party in a few weeks. Until then, the answer to the biggest question is still locked inside the episode itself.
