Jeopardy!

It was sad to hear that Game Show TV veteran and number one (1) quizmaster Alex Trebek passed away today after announcing earlier this year that he was diagnosed with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer. True to form Alex jokingly said "Truth told, I have to! Because under the terms of my contract, I have to host Jeopardy! For three more years! So help me. Keep the faith and we'll win. We'll get it done."

Jeopardy is one of those unique TV quiz shows that the contestants did not have to dress up in silly costumes to compete, but rather accept the fact that they may be dressed down by a question that most of the TV audience knew was a part of history and/or celebrity nostalgia. Jeopardy seemed to reach higher than normal TV audiences when a game show contestant was on a seemingly unbeatable day to day win streak such as with the recent Jeopardy special series titled "Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time" starring the top three past Jeopardy winners, Ken Jennings, Brad Rutter and James Holzhauer.

This series was watched by tens of millions of viewers decade after decade, and how many TV shows can state this record of longevity? I hope the producers entrust the continuation of Jeopardy! As a homage to the late great quizmaster Alex Trebek by replacing him with a worthy new host such as Ken Jennings maybe?

Trivia: Alex hosted an earlier quiz show in the 1960's targeted at high school aged students titled "Reach For the Top" which challenged two (2) high schools competing with a team of four (4) students per team and answering skilled questions under rapid fire, somewhat similar to the format of Jeopardy!

I give Jeopardy a 9 out of 10 but I rated it a 10 IMDB rating purely for the classy and loveable host Alex Trebek whose angels wings await him at heavens gates.

Jeopardy is arguably the best game show around today. Tougher and more competitive than Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, it is at once entertaining and educational. Alex Trebek is a classic game show host, whose mere presence adds to the show.

Whereas Millionaire has one set of questions that the player must go through one by one, Jeopardy adds an element of choice to the game, as players have to pick the category and prize level of their question. This element requires strategy on the part of the competitors, particularly when confronted with Daily Doubles where one can bet all one's winnings.

The questions (or answers as the case may be) are also crafted well. Whereas other quiz shows rely heavily on trivia for the most part, Jeopardy requires an expansive knowledge of obscure topics, with heavy doses of literary obscurities and arcane history. It is one of the few shows on today that should be required viewing for school children.

The show has slipped somewhat in recent years. The addition of the "Clue Crew" was a definite misstep, while the extensive use of video clues seems to be something of a distraction. Luckily, the producers seem to have gotten the message, and have cut down on the Crew considerably. (Although one could argue that having Trebek do video clues in costume only detracts from his dignity, which is part of the show's appeal.) Still, Jeopardy remains one of the truly great game shows.

As a kid I watched Jeopardy in its first incarnation with Art Fleming, and it was always first on my list of game shows. It was disappointing to see it disappear, but exciting when it came back in 1984.

The 'new' Jeopardy was just as good as the first version, and Alex Tribek has always delivered a touch of class as the host. Somehow he manages to give the impression that he knows all this stuff, though of course that is patently impossible. Or maybe by this time he's seen all the material enough times that he DOES know it! LOL When it comes to the high concept game show, Jeopardy is pure. The only luck involved is how well a set of categories happens to match the individual knowledge of the contestants, and with 12 categories per game, that mostly averages out.

Measure your own success against the question at the BOTTOM of the board. If you can get 7 of those 12 questions and two thirds of the Final Jeopardies correct consistently, you should test to become a contestant.

This will be remembered as one of the best game shows of all time, bar none. They have the perfect host in Alex Trebek. I love the gimmick of revealing the answer and having the contestants guess the question to go along with it. I wish they hadn't discontinued giving prizes to the runners-up though. Those were cool. I love seeing how many of the questions I can guess correctly when I watch it. Perhaps the most recent thing it will be remembered for was Ken Jennings's amazing run of 74 straight wins. That was incredible. Here's to Ken! I also love the final jeopardy theme song. I also tuned in almost every day to the Ultimate Tournament of Champions, which was a great idea. I actually remembered a few of the contestants on that. Hats off to a truly great game show! *** out of ****

What is Jeopardy!?

Yes, this particular version of this long-running quiz show with a twist has been on for over 40 years, with many champions crowned, Daily Doubles and big bets galore!

Oh, and superchampion Ken Jennings.

The late, great Alex Trebek was the host of this version from the beginning up until his death from stage IV pancreatic cancer in November 2020. He manages to get the game moving while also cracking some jokes in-between as well.

He will solely be missed.

After Trebek's death, the show went through guest hosts like the infamous former executive producer Mike Richards, Anderson Cooper, Katie Couric, Dr. Mehmet Oz, Aaron Rodgers, Bill Whitaker, Buzzy Cohen, Savannah Guthrie, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, George Stephanopoulos, Robin Roberts, LeVar Burton, David Faber and Joe Buck. In August 2021, Richards was originally announced as the host, but stepped down after taping a week of shows, and was later fired from his executive producer position. He was replaced by Jennings and Mayim Bialik, who originally shared the hosting duties until Bialik was relieved of her hosting duties due to the writers and actors strikes, making Jennings the sole host of most of the Jeopardy! Projects.

In conclusion, congratulations to Jeopardy and here's to at least another 40 years!