Jeopardy! Megathread

[GeorgiaModerate]

Ken did a good job and will probably get it, and I'm fine with that.  I thought Mike Richards, Buzzy Cohen, Mayim Bialik, and Anderson Cooper all did at least as well as Ken, and I'd be happy with any of them too (although I'm sure Cooper wouldn't leave his current gig).

[GeorgiaModerate]

Agree with the poll and the above posters that Jennings is likely to get the permanent nod.  He did well, and his intimate ties with Jeopardy always made him the probable choice. 

My personal favorite is Mayim Bialik.  She stood out as the intellect that she is--and she came across as enthusiastic and gracious throughout her tenure.

Agreed.  She seemed to be having fun as well as doing a good job.

[GeorgiaModerate]

Richards wouldn't be my first choice, but he was certainly among the group I thought would be acceptable as a permanent host.

Oddly enough, a friend of mine predicted this as the outcome after only a few guest hosts had aired.

[GeorgiaModerate]

I'm inclined to believe the right thing to do was either hire Pat Sajak, or put the show to bed without Alex.

I think ending the show is the very last thing Alex would have wanted.  He always said (and I believe meant it) that the show was about the players, not him.

[GeorgiaModerate]

Apart from the fact that Burton wasn't that impressive as a guest host, his age could be a consideration if they want someone to be the permanent host for a very long time.  Burton is 64 years old, while Jennings and Bialik are in their mid-40s. 

[GeorgiaModerate]

There is an extensive thread on Jeopardy! and the host search in Off-Topic at https://talkelections.org/FORUM/index.php?topic=457075.0.

[GeorgiaModerate]

Did they film any episodes with him as the "permanent" host? And if so, are those going to air?

Here's a cold take for everyone - Bialik's past comments about vaccines are more disqualifying than at least what's been publicly revealed about Richards.

They filmed at least one week's worth of shows with him as the permanent host, and they've announced that those will air; if they didn't, it would impact the show's continuity in the middle of one of the all-time great runs by Matt, the current champion.  I'm wondering if they might redub Johnny Gilbert's introduction to call him the "guest host" instead of "host".

[GeorgiaModerate]

Mayim Bialik to be first guest host of new weekday Jeopardy! episodes.

I'd put money on her becoming the permanent host at this point.

[GeorgiaModerate]

If it wasn't already a given, per TVLine:

According to sources, Bialik's Call Me Kat duties preclude her from succeeding Richards as full-time host.

OK, I withdraw the prediction (happily, because although I think she'd do a good job as host, I'd rather see Ken get it).

[GeorgiaModerate]

Contestants who taped during Mike's week weren't sent their customary photo-with-the-host:

https://twitter.com/SamitSarkar/status/1435315233082552323

This implies that Matt's run continues through the week, or there would be more than 11 contestants (one returning champion plus two newcomers each day).

[GeorgiaModerate]

Contestants who taped during Mike's week weren't sent their customary photo-with-the-host:

https://twitter.com/SamitSarkar/status/1435315233082552323

This implies that Matt's run continues through the week, or there would be more than 11 contestants (one returning champion plus two newcomers each day).

Nope, there are always 11 contestants in any given week: 2 new contestants each day regardless of who won the day before, & the returning champion, who isn't counted again for that week because they already counted for the week in their 1st appearance. The only exceptions are when nobody is eligible or able to return in the next episode, or in the since-eliminated-by-rule-changes co-champs of yesteryear. In any event, Matt could lose on Mon. or go on to win 75 games of his own, & there'd still be 11 weekly contestants.

Duh, you're right of course.  I was thinking that it meant there would be one returning champion for the entire week.

[GeorgiaModerate]

Yes, Johnny Gilbert is 93 years old. At one of my Jeopardy! auditions the crew went on at length about what an awesome person he is.

[GeorgiaModerate]

Rumor has it that former Tournament of Champions winner Buzzy Cohen might be in contention for the permanent hosting gig: https://www.newsweek.com/buzzy-cohen-emerges-unlikely-jeopardy-host-frontrunner-1627790

I think he’d be good, but I don’t see how it’s not Mayim Bialik at this point, or maybe an outside chance for Jennings.

Anyway, today’s the day!

Bialik literally can't take the job unless she leaves Call me Kat, or it gets cancelled.

My guess is that it will be a woman, and Bialik will be phased out (with Call me Kat being the official excuse in favor of having a single host.

I still think the best choices in that vein are Meredith Vieria (Former host of Who Wants to be a Millionaire, and Today, currently hosting 25 Words or Less), Elizabeth Banks (Actress, currently hosting Press Your Luck, so we know she's willing to make room in her schedule for hosting game shows) and Vanna White (the co-hostess of Wheel of Fortune, her job is literally unnecessary on Wheel, given the electronic board. Either she should be offered the hosting position on Jeopardy, or she should be offered Johnny Gilbert's job (the chances of Johnny making it through any given season at 93 are less than 50-50, quite frankly.))

A name that's been dropped on and off for years is Brooke Burns, and I think she'd do well.  She's good at delivering rapid-fire questions and has a nice upbeat personality without being overly gushy.

[GeorgiaModerate]

Completely unrelated to the saga underlying the existence of this thread, but I just got notified that I passed Jeopardy!'s online test the last time that I took it & that I've been invited to their Zoom audition stage. So psyched!!

Congratulations and good luck with your audition!  I did in-person auditions four times in various cities, but unfortunately never got the Call.  The auditions were always fun in themselves; hopefully they'll be able to return to them at some point.

[GeorgiaModerate]

I can't believe that Matt missed the Monday Final Jeopardy, which seemed ridiculously easy -- and that the second-place contestant also missed it on one of the rare days when Matt didn't have a lock going in!  I guess to have such a long run you need to be lucky as well as good; Ken Jennings had a couple of similar lucky escapes during his streak.

[GeorgiaModerate]

Matt won his 32nd game today, tying James' winning streak. Tomorrow, he'll be vying for 2nd all-time in games won.

IMO Matt is a better player than James, although he's won less money.

[GeorgiaModerate]

I thought Matt had looked kind of fatigued for the last few days, especially so in that game, and against two good opponents it finally cost him.  For those not familiar with the taping process, they tape two days a week (usually Tuesday and Wednesday), five games a day with some time between to set up for each new game.  From the first game to the last it's a long day, and to do this two days in a row and then come back the next week (or more) and do it again has to be physically exhausting.  It puts in perspective just how amazing Ken's run was.

[GeorgiaModerate]

With Ken Jennings assuming the hosting duties tonight, a couple of observations:

1. Ken talks much faster than Mayim Bialik (too fast, really).  Hopefully he'll slow down a bit after his first episode.

2. Johnny Gilbert introduced Ken as "hosting Jeopardy", while Mayim was "the host of Jeopardy".  An indicator that she'll be the permanent host?

Also, tonight's contestant Elena looked remarkably like a young Linda Ronstadt (one of my celebrity crushes back in the day).

[GeorgiaModerate]

Second-highest losing final score ever was set yesterday! Really great game all around.

Thanks for that!  I was wondering about it at the time.  What was the highest losing score?

[GeorgiaModerate]

Excellent game tonight.  Andrew is a formidable player.  Ken is looking a lot more comfortable in the host role as well.

[GeorgiaModerate]

https://twitter.com/RadioFreeTom/status/1466933401496207363

Nichols was an undefeated 5-time champion under the old rule (so there might be an element of sour grapes in his post) but I think there's some truth in it.  Perhaps they should reinstate something like a 10-win limit.

[GeorgiaModerate]

Amazingly, she missed both Daily Doubles in the Double Jeopardy Round but still had a runaway, and then missed Final Jeopardy too.  She definitely seemed a little off in this game, but is a strong enough player to get through it anyway.  Last taping of the day, so I wonder if it was fatigue creeping in.

[GeorgiaModerate]

This is an interesting article:

What’s Behind All the Winning Streaks on ‘Jeopardy!’ This Season?

[GeorgiaModerate]

It's still very unlikely, though by no means impossible, that Amy will overtake Ken.  She needs 35 more wins.  If we somewhat arbitrarily assume she has a 90% chance of winning each individual game, then the probability of winning 35 in a row are only about 2%.  At a 95% chance per game, it would go up to 16%.

[GeorgiaModerate]

I just now saw Wednesday's episode (I DVR them so my son and I can watch them together, usually a few days at a time) and I'm floored that Amy missed that Final.  It was an instaget for me and seemed like an easy one for someone with her breadth of knowledge.