Alex Trebek was on Fox New Sunday, being interviewed by Harvey Levin, and suggested he might retire in 2020. He suggested Alex Faust, the play-by-play announcer for the Los Angeles Kings or Laura Coates, a CNN legal analyst, as replacements. This New York Times article on he story has comments from Andy Saunders, who runs a Jeopardy! fan site. He says the usual names are Ken Jennings, Dan Patrick (sports radio host) and Buzzy Cohen (also a past Jeopardy champion, but whom I had to look up to remind me what he looks like). He also suggests Anderson Cooper.
I blame Cliff Clavin.
Yay! It’s about time. He has been great for the show but lately he has let his personal feelings creep into the outcomes. Time to retire Alex.
I blame the system.
You have someone in the public eye doing the same thing for that long, and even the most well-grounded people begin to believe their own press. Like MLB umpires who think the fans are there to see them, Trebek seems to have started to think people are watching to see him.
From a show running perspective, they may well be. Some people just like consistency. The same pleasant voice every day at the same time.
And this is from someone that doesn’t harbor ill will towards Trebek. I think he’s fine, for the most part. But he’s not the reason I watch. The game is. If they got Drew Carey, Steve Harvey, hell, even if the dug up Richard Dawson, I’d be fine.
I don’t think Dan Patrick would be good for the prime time. He’s a bit too smug even in Sports Jeopardy! Maybe Danica Patrick…
But not Buzzy! Geeze, what are they smoking? Next they’ll want Austin Rogers. Gah!
The article from The New York Times that I linked to upthread talks a bit about his skills, "Replacing Mr. Trebek would be no easy feat. While he occasionally demonstrates a quick wit, he is more likely to dryly move the game along than crack a joke that would eat up valuable time, making him more statesman than comedian.
‘He has so much experience and he is such a good host that anyone, even Anderson Cooper, would find it incredibly difficult to fill Alex’s shoes,” Mr. [Andy] Saunders [operator of The Jeopardy! Fan site] said.’"
So you might think the host is irrelevant, but he isn’t.
Part of the feel of the show is Trebek’s personality. As much as I think his dry wit provides the right feel for a game show that’s all about being the smartest person in the room, I agree that he can sometimes be condescending.
I fear that whoever the new host winds up being, will be walking into a no-win scenario. If he or she has a similar dry wit, they’ll always be accused of aping Trebek. If he’s replaced by someone with a broader or funnier on-air presence, he or she will be accused of changing the show’s feel too much.
Forget Anderson Cooper, we need Sheldon.
But then we’d never get any geology or pop music or sports questions!
Maybe they could get Ben Stein to do one season. The man has a dry style all his own.
They need a host who will stop referring to the female contestants as “young lady” - I can’t imagine a more condescending phrase in that situation, perhaps apart from “little lady.” Mostly, they need a host who doesn’t feel the need to be the star of the show.
Give the answers, keep it moving, don’t try to be funny, don’t make embarrassingly obvious comments about players who aren’t doing well.
Yeah, not a Trebek fan here.
Kenan Thompson!
Too slow, they’d have to make it an hour show to get in the same number of questions.
eta: sorry, same number of answers
Worse is when he refers to a “young lady” as “very bright” with a tone that suggests he’s just as surprised as we are.
Too much of a sad sack persona.
I wonder what Bob Costas is up to?
Art Flemming! This Trebek guy is just a flash-in-the-pan.
Totally not serious:
Alec Baldwin as Donald Trump.
It’s “Fleming,” and he died in 1995.
How about Eugene Levy as his “Alex Trebel” SCTV character?
Looking to kill John Sterling. Yankees fans deserve the twerp.
Wait, he might retire in 2020? Is he considering a run for President? 