# Alex Trebek considers retirement **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 31, 2018, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864 "2018-07-31T13:07:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2018, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/41 "2018-08-02T18:01:31Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > What’s he supposed to call them? “Skanky ho’s”? :dubious: 😕 That’s an interesting leap from one extreme to another. If you’re being serious, you missed the point - “Very bright young lady” is an extremely patronizing pat on the head. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2018, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/42 "2018-08-02T18:24:14Z")
What really grates on me is how he’ll always comment that some kind of pop culture is “before your time” when reading the category names or speaking to the contestants. Yes Alex, because no one under 40 (who is a **Jeopardy!** contestant!) has ever heard music from the 1960s or seen a movie made before they were born. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2018, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/43 "2018-08-02T22:58:32Z")
The Onion’s [American Voices](https://www.theonion.com/alex-trebek-may-leave-jeopardy-in-2020-1828055207) has some particularly funny replies to the Trebek retirement statement. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Orwell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/dfb087/32.png) [@Orwell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orwell)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2018, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/44 "2018-08-02T23:46:33Z")
> [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > That’s an interesting leap from one extreme to another. If you’re being serious, you missed the point - “Very bright young lady” is an extremely patronizing pat on the head. Extremely? I don’t see why. Seems like a compliment to me. Which of those four words do you object to? Is “very bright young man” also patronizing? ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/45 "2018-08-03T04:18:06Z")
> [@Orwell](#): > > Extremely? I don’t see why. Seems like a compliment to me. Which of those four words do you object to? Is “very bright young man” also patronizing? Yes. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/46 "2018-08-03T04:20:24Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > The Onion’s [American Voices](https://www.theonion.com/alex-trebek-may-leave-jeopardy-in-2020-1828055207) has some particularly funny replies to the Trebek retirement statement. > mmm “Whoever replaces him is going to have some pretty smug shoes to fill.” ---
**Author:** ![bmasters1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b5e925/32.png) [@bmasters1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bmasters1)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 8:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/47 "2018-08-03T08:19:25Z")
> [@FairyChatMom](#): > > Mostly, they need a host who doesn’t feel the need to be the star of the show. That’s what _Tic Tac Dough_ had in Wink Martindale from 1978-85, and that is why Wink’s run on _TTD_ is one of the best game shows I’ve ever seen-- Wink didn’t upstage the contestants or make it all about him; he just kept the show moving. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 9:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/48 "2018-08-03T09:56:09Z")
> [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > That’s an interesting leap from one extreme to another. If you’re being serious, you missed the point - “Very bright young lady” is an extremely patronizing pat on the head. “Very bright young lady” sounds entirely complimentary to me, and I’m pretty sure that is Trebek’s intent. I can’t wait until this widespread hobby of taking offense tapers off in society. mmm ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/49 "2018-08-03T13:00:53Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > “Very bright young lady” sounds entirely complimentary to me, and I’m pretty sure that is Trebek’s intent. > > I can’t wait until this widespread hobby of taking offense tapers off in society. > mmm This long predates #metoo. Go to any past Jeopardy thread and you’ll see the “Alex is a smug bastard” contingent. ---
**Author:** ![planetcory](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/planetcory/32/1032_2.png) [@planetcory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/planetcory)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/50 "2018-08-03T13:17:20Z")
Since when did patronizing comments NOT sound like a compliment. It’s kind of a necessary part of patronization. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/51 "2018-08-03T13:28:59Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > “Very bright young lady” sounds entirely complimentary to me, and I’m pretty sure that is Trebek’s intent. > > I can’t wait until this widespread hobby of taking offense tapers off in society. > mmm And I can’t wait until people stop repeating this maxim and learn to listen to other people’s concerns without dismissing them. “Very bright young lady” is what you say about a little kid. And, FYI, I barely watch Jeopardy, and never noticed anything about Trebek when I do, since I don’t pay much attention to him. I’m too busy playing along. I just care if I got it right or not. But I find it hard to understand how anyone doesn’t know what “bright young lady/gentlemen” means. ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/52 "2018-08-03T13:49:40Z")
> [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](#): > > “Whoever replaces him is going to have some pretty smug shoes to fill.” Came here to post the very same thing. Too funny. ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/53 "2018-08-03T13:56:38Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > “Very bright young lady” sounds entirely complimentary to me, and I’m pretty sure that is Trebek’s intent. > > I can’t wait until this widespread hobby of taking offense tapers off in society. > mmm We are seeing her, we know she’s a lady. She’s on Jeopardy of course she’s bright. Why doesn’t say that equally about men? It’s sexist. What he means is ‘for a lady she’s pretty bright’. Just because being offended is a national pastime doesn’t mean we can excuse every slight. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/54 "2018-08-03T14:08:46Z")
I’m pretty sure that when it’s the college tournament or the teen tournament, Alex makes some comment about the bright young people competing. Is that offensive? Because to me, it sounds like he wants to call attention to them in a positive way. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/55 "2018-08-03T14:09:49Z")
I’d suggest the best possible candidate is probably someone you’ve never, or barely, heard of, just as Trebek himself was a C-level celebrity when he got “Jeopardy!” What made him ready for it is he’d hosted a bunch of other game shows. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/56 "2018-08-03T16:26:54Z")
> [@Lucas\_Jackson](#): > > We are seeing her, we know she’s a lady. She’s on Jeopardy of course she’s bright. Why doesn’t say that equally about men? > > It’s sexist. What he means is ‘for a lady she’s pretty bright’. > > Just because being offended is a national pastime doesn’t mean we can excuse every slight. He calls all sorts of contestants bright. He calls younger guys “bright young” men. And is it offensive if he calls a man ‘sir’? By your logic it is (we are seeing him, we know he’s a man). mmm Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/57 "2018-08-03T16:41:28Z")
When you find a 75 year old man calling a 20 something woman “a bright young lady” insulting, you are definitely working hard to be offended. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/58 "2018-08-03T17:20:09Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > When you find a 75 year old man calling a 20 something woman “a bright young lady” insulting, you are definitely working hard to be offended. In my case you are definitely wrong about that. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/59 "2018-08-03T18:37:31Z")
I doubt it. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864/60 "2018-08-03T21:12:03Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > When you find a 75 year old man calling a 20 something woman “a bright young lady” insulting, you are definitely working hard to be offended. I think being offended comes quite easy to some. mmm [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alex-trebek-considers-retirement/818864.md?page=4)