# The Jeopardy thread \[was James Holzhauer\]\[contains spoilers\] **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** reality-or-game-show\ **Created:** [April 17, 2019, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696 "2019-04-17T21:53:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 119
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2021, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2363 "2021-07-23T12:57:01Z")
Holy crap, THAT’S obscure! I remember the Central African Empire (NBC’s _ **Weekend** _ did a feature on the coronation), but I could never name Bokassa in a million years. ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2021, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2364 "2021-07-23T13:36:26Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > The current champion phrases every question as “What is …” regardless of whether the question is a Who, What, or Whatever (ie, “What is Faulkner?”) – and it bugs the crap out of me. Yes. And his timing is just a little off. It feels odd to me at home, it must feel really odd to the other players. Robin Roberts is pretty good. But like I said in the other thread, I’m ready for them to just pick someone already. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2021, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2365 "2021-07-23T14:53:55Z")
> [@amarinth](#): > > Robin Roberts is pretty good. And I find her to be kind of annoying, tho I’m not sure why. Too animated, maybe? She wears me out just watching her. Stupid reason, I know, but there it is… ---
**Author:** ![OttoDaFe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ottodafe/32/356_2.png) [@OttoDaFe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OttoDaFe)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2021, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2366 "2021-07-23T15:08:37Z")
> [@amarinth](#): > > > [@jsc1953](#): > > > > The current champion phrases every question as “What is …” regardless of whether the question is a Who, What, or Whatever (ie, “What is Faulkner?”) – and it bugs the crap out of me. > > Yes. And his timing is just a little off. It feels odd to me at home, it must feel really odd to the other players. > > Robin Roberts is pretty good. But like I said in the other thread, I’m ready for them to just pick someone already. Regarding his timing being off, it appeared to me that he might have a slight speech impediment (perhaps a latent stutter). Pure speculation, but it might explain the hesitation. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2021, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2367 "2021-07-23T15:12:17Z")
> [@OttoDaFe](#): > > Regarding his timing being off, it appeared to me that he might have a slight speech impediment (perhaps a latent stutter). Pure speculation, but it might explain the hesitation. I thought the same thing watching him yesterday. He appears to take a second or two to form his response before saying anything. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2021, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2368 "2021-07-23T15:28:42Z")
I don’t care for her either. She’s not clicking with the contestants like she seems to think she is. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2021, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2369 "2021-07-23T15:29:43Z")
> [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > She’s not clicking with the contestants like she seems to think she is. Yeah, I think she’s _adequate_, but I wouldn’t put her in the top half of the guest host lineup. ---
**Author:** ![JohnGalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johngalt/32/184_2.png) [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2021, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2370 "2021-07-23T16:02:55Z")
I think Robin has been doing the best interviews, and I like her other interactions. FWIW The current champion keeps reminding me of a famous singer. I just figured it out: Lyle Lovett. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2021, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2371 "2021-07-23T16:09:39Z")
Roberts always sounds like she’s astonished when a contestant gives a correct response; “YES! You got it RIGHT! WELL DONE!” I don’t particularly care for her either. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2021, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2372 "2021-07-23T16:24:24Z")
So far my own top three, in no particular order other than chronological, are Mayim Bialik, Sanjay Gupta and George Stephanopoulos. ---
**Author:** ![Arcite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/67e7ee/32.png) [@Arcite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arcite)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2021, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2373 "2021-07-24T01:50:50Z")
> [@amarinth](#): > > > [@jsc1953](#): > > > > The current champion phrases every question as “What is …” regardless of whether the question is a Who, What, or Whatever (ie, “What is Faulkner?”) – and it bugs the crap out of me. > > Yes. And his timing is just a little off. It feels odd to me at home, it must feel really odd to the other players. Yeah, it’s really annoying. In fact, he says not “what is” but “what’s,” pauses between that and the actual response, leaves out articles, and never seems to vary his intonation no matter how sure he is, always with the rising tone of a question at the very end. “What’s… Faulkner?” “What’s… albatross?” “What’s… Pirates?” ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2021, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2374 "2021-07-25T02:25:58Z")
> [@Mark\_Finn](#): > > Nice doubling up on FJ Wednesday - from $20,200 to $40,400. I knew the Ethiopian emperor’s name, but can’t spell it. They famously don’t penalize misspelled correct responses (as a general rule). I wondered if they would have accepted “Highly Sir Lassie.” ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2021, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2375 "2021-07-25T02:28:06Z")
> [@mordecaiB](#): > > I can top that. My wife and I always take a wild guess when they show the Final Jeopardy category before they cut away to the commercial. I immediately guessed Haile Selassie as he popped right into my head. I love it when that happens! Me too. It’s a rare occurrence. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2021, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2376 "2021-07-25T02:33:21Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Roberts always sounds like she’s astonished when a contestant gives a correct response; > > “YES! You got it RIGHT! WELL DONE!” > > I don’t particularly care for her either. I noticed that too, especially when the guy got Iron as element 26, chemical symbol “Fe.” She sounded like she was surprised that a black man knew chemistry. ---
**Author:** ![dummygladhands71](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c0e974/32.png) [@dummygladhands71](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dummygladhands71)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2021, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2377 "2021-07-25T05:55:36Z")
If they chose her permanently, not that I think they will, they may need to raise the moderator’s desk ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2021, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2378 "2021-07-25T10:49:16Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > She sounded like she was surprised that a black man knew chemistry. LOL, that’s exactly what I was thinking at the time. ---
**Author:** ![MrAtoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2021, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2379 "2021-07-25T15:00:17Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > I wondered if they would have accepted “Highly Sir Lassie.” I would hope not, since that spelling would change the pronunciation. There’s no “R” sound in “Selassie.” ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2021, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2380 "2021-07-27T00:16:36Z")
Tonight’s 3rd place finsher, Patrick, ended DJ with -$7,400, setting a new record for worst score on Jeopardy, beating the previous record of -$6,800 set in 2015. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2021, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2381 "2021-07-27T02:08:13Z")
> [@commasense](#): > > Tonight’s 3rd place finsher, Patrick, ended DJ with -$7,400, setting a new record for worst score on Jeopardy, beating the previous record of -$6,800 set in 2015 You know, I was wondering about that. Thanks for posting. I was quite sure I’d never seen any final score that low. He was not very good. A ton of obvious guesses, most of them bad. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2021, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2382 "2021-07-27T02:19:49Z")
I think I remember that episode. The one with the poor woman who was flustered from the very start?\* The lowest score I can remember before that was Wolf Blitzer’s, during a celebrity match. \*Holy crap, that was six years ago?!? 😲 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696.md?page=118) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696.md?page=120)