# Jeopardy Auditions **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 15, 2010, 8:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719 "2010-11-15T08:36:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![fumster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e9c0ed/32.png) [@fumster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fumster)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 8:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/1 "2010-11-15T08:36:23Z")
I just had my Jeopardy audition in SF. After they graded the 50 question test they came back and had us go up in groups of 3 to play a mock game. Those of you have gone before, were the groups in order of the scores on the test? I was in one of the later groups. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/2 "2010-11-15T13:05:56Z")
As far as I know, the groups are pulled up based on the order they have you on their Master Sign-In List. A few years back I was the last one called up for the mock game, and I know it was because I was rescheduled to a different date for the audition (couldn’t make the first one, they were very accommodating) and my name was basically written in red crayon at the bottom of the list. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/3 "2010-11-15T13:08:38Z")
I was about in the middle of the pack in the mock games, and I did quite well on the written test. – Sigmagirl, who has 12 days left on her eligibility ☹ :: waves at **jayjay** :: ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/4 "2010-11-15T14:00:53Z")
I have no idea how they order the contestants for the mock games. I never even found out my score on the test. (Did you mean the on-line test to get to the audition, or the written test you take when you get there? I don’t know my score for either, except that I must have passed the on-line.) There was one woman from my audition group that I saw on the show, and as I recall, she was somewhere in the middle of the mock games. A day late, perhaps, but some advice for the mock game. When they ask what you’d do with the money……don’t say “hookers and blow”. I wonder if I should put that in the “things you learned the hard way” thread. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/5 "2010-11-15T14:05:12Z")
> [@Sigmagirl](#): > > I was about in the middle of the pack in the mock games, and I did quite well on the written test. > > – Sigmagirl, who has 12 days left on her eligibility ☹ > > :: waves at **jayjay** :: _waves back_ Do we know when the next online test is? I’ll try to remember to answer the mock game clues in the form of a question this time… ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/6 "2010-11-15T14:13:20Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > I have no idea how they order the contestants for the mock games. I never even found out my score on the test. (Did you mean the on-line test to get to the audition, or the written test you take when you get there? I don’t know my score for either, except that I must have passed the on-line.) There was one woman from my audition group that I saw on the show, and as I recall, she was somewhere in the middle of the mock games. No, they don’t give you any scores on either. For the online test, you can go to the Sony chat boards and see the questions afterward and see how many you answered right, and for the written test, you just have to know, I guess. For example, one of the questions on my written test was (paraphrased, of course) “This man was Abraham Lincoln’s secretary of state” and I couldn’t come up with Seward in time. So I know I missed that one. From what I understand, the mock game isn’t much about getting the questions right; it’s smiling and standing up straight and not saying “FUCK!” when you miss an answer. ETA: **jayjay** , I haven’t heard. Last year it was late January, wasn’t it? ETAA: When I said “I was about in the middle of the pack in the mock games,” I meant in the order in which they lined us up. I kicked ass in the mock games. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/7 "2010-11-15T14:34:52Z")
I aced the crap out of the written test and did well (I think - I mean I got a lot right and I buzzed in well and spoke clearly and didn’t pick my nose) in the mock game and didn’t get called, by the way - as of a few months ago I’m eligible to try again. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/8 "2010-11-15T14:38:25Z")
The mock game is the important part of the audition – they want to see if you wil look good behind the podium, and give them a little variety for the audience. I’m all set if they start to run low on middle-aged overweight white guys with receding hairlines. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/9 "2010-11-15T17:02:56Z")
> [@DrFidelius](#): > > The mock game is the important part of the audition – they want to see if you wil look good behind the podium, and give them a little variety for the audience. > > I’m all set if they start to run low on middle-aged overweight white guys with receding hairlines. I did the audition at the studio, a long time before there was an on-line audition. They did not give scores, but I know I did pretty well. Playing along with me on the mock game was a guy with a bad stutter, who had aced the quiz several times but who never got on. I was more with it in the audition than I was in the show as far as the chatting went. I also don’t know who they schedule people who pass. I was on the second week’s worth of shows that season, but they seemed to include a certain number of locals in each set, who are the last to get on, since they don’t have to pay for their transportation. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/10 "2010-11-15T17:08:46Z")
> [@DrFidelius](#): > > The mock game is the important part of the audition – they want to see if you wil look good behind the podium, and give them a little variety for the audience. > > I’m all set if they start to run low on middle-aged overweight white guys with receding hairlines. Yeah, I imagine they’re all full up with librarians. A lot of people had way more interesting life stories than I did - I bet they got on. (I couldn’t watch the show after I auditioned because I didn’t want to see people I’d auditioned with!) ---
**Author:** ![Erdosain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/erdosain/32/7284_2.png) [@Erdosain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erdosain)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2010, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/11 "2010-11-16T02:59:09Z")
> [@sh1bu1](#): > > Those of you have gone before, were the groups in order of the scores on the test? I was in one of the later groups. During my audition in the spring, Maggie specifically told us that the order of the groups wasn’t based on how you did on the test. I bet they get that question a lot. At my audition there was a socially awkward guy who had auditioned five times. This is my second time in the pool, but I can’t help wondering if I’m that guy too. It might be less cruel to take someone aside and say, “You know, you’re just not going to get on the show. You can keep trying out for fun, but it’s not going to happen.” ---
**Author:** ![thirdwarning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecccb3/32.png) [@thirdwarning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdwarning)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2010, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/12 "2010-11-16T04:09:48Z")
> [@Sigmagirl](#): > > I was about in the middle of the pack in the mock games, and I did quite well on the written test. > > – Sigmagirl, who has 12 days left on her eligibility ☹ > > :: waves at **jayjay** :: I’ve given up expecting the call, but I’m in about the same spot you are. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2010, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/13 "2010-11-16T04:41:33Z")
To anyone who wants to audition, though, I have to say - the audition is tons of fun. View it as tons of fun and you will be a happy person. View it as “The Jeopardy Audition” and you will no doubt have a complex. Just enjoy it, and everybody has a positive experience. ---
**Author:** ![Invisible\_Chimp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/f05b48/32.png) [@Invisible\_Chimp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Invisible_Chimp)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2010, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/14 "2010-11-16T05:12:14Z")
> [@sh1bu1](#): > > I just had my Jeopardy audition in SF. After they graded the 50 question test they came back and had us go up in groups of 3 to play a mock game. > > Those of you have gone before, were the groups in order of the scores on the test? I was in one of the later groups. I had my audition in SF on Nov. 4th. > [@Erdosain](#): > > During my audition in the spring, Maggie specifically told us that the order of the groups wasn’t based on how you did on the test. I bet they get that question a lot. > > At my audition there was a socially awkward guy who had auditioned five times. This is my second time in the pool, but I can’t help wondering if I’m that guy too. It might be less cruel to take someone aside and say, “You know, you’re just not going to get on the show. You can keep trying out for fun, but it’s not going to happen.” They get so many people, they probably don’t remember you until you’re there. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2010, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/15 "2010-11-16T05:32:54Z")
> [@Invisible\_Chimp](#): > > They get so many people, they probably don’t remember you until you’re there. I’m rather hoping they don’t. If I get another chance, I promise to be not quite so interesting. I’ll try to come up with five new interesting factoids about myself. The odd thing was, as we were going in to the room for the audition, the woman in charge was saying hello to people she recognized from previous auditions. She thought I was one. ---
**Author:** ![fumster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e9c0ed/32.png) [@fumster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fumster)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2010, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/16 "2010-11-16T07:26:14Z")
> [@Invisible\_Chimp](#): > > I had my audition in SF on Nov. 4th. > … > They get so many people, they probably don’t remember you until you’re there. I was there the 5th. There was someone auditioning for the second time. They asked him to say something about himself and he replied “Pretty much the same as last time, I’m still looking for work”. Then he turned to the rest of us and said “anyone need a mechanical engineer?” ---
**Author:** ![fumster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e9c0ed/32.png) [@fumster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fumster)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2010, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/17 "2010-11-16T07:27:31Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > To anyone who wants to audition, though, I have to say - the audition is tons of fun. View it as tons of fun and you will be a happy person. View it as “The Jeopardy Audition” and you will no doubt have a complex. Just enjoy it, and everybody has a positive experience. And you get a pen that says “Jeopardy!” ---
**Author:** ![Erdosain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/erdosain/32/7284_2.png) [@Erdosain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erdosain)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2010, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/18 "2010-11-16T12:28:32Z")
> [@Invisible\_Chimp](#): > > They get so many people, they probably don’t remember you until you’re there. True, but they certainly seemed to know this guy. He was memorable, had an unusual name, and had tried out four previous times. My point was that I get the feeling that some people will just never be called–whether because they are too odd, awkward on stage, or unattractive. It might be nice to give these people a heads-up instead of seeing them year after year after year. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2010, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/19 "2010-11-16T12:40:39Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > I’m rather hoping they don’t. If I get another chance, I promise to be not quite so interesting. I’ll try to come up with five new interesting factoids about myself. > > The odd thing was, as we were going in to the room for the audition, the woman in charge was saying hello to people she recognized from previous auditions. She thought I was one. Maggie is awesome that way. Although I took my third audition two years ago (eligible again this spring) and she didn’t remember me. She may next time – I think I made more of an impression. She said she liked my tie. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2010, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719/20 "2010-11-16T12:54:27Z")
> [@DrFidelius](#): > > I’m all set if they start to run low on middle-aged overweight white guys with receding hairlines. Not another Ken Jennings! 🙂 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jeopardy-auditions/560719.md?page=2)