# 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:** 54
**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:** [April 3, 2020, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1061 "2020-04-03T00:02:30Z")
Huh! I thought FJ today was ridiculously easy. ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2020, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1062 "2020-04-03T01:25:20Z")
I said I got it right! 😛 But I have never read any Hemingway novel, just his short stories. ---
**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:** [April 3, 2020, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1063 "2020-04-03T02:34:58Z")
“1926” and “Spain” were dead giveaways. ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2020, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1064 "2020-04-03T03:03:55Z")
They were dead giveaways to me as to the _author_. But since I don’t know anything about his novels other than recognizing their titles as being his, they weren’t an indication to me as to which was which, but I had a (correct) hunch that one was the right title. ---
**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:** [April 3, 2020, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1065 "2020-04-03T03:11:47Z")
It starts out in Paris, then moves to Spain. The other H novel mentioned is set in Italy and Switzerland. The third novel (by FSF) takes place in the US. So yeah, it does pay to know the geography. I’m not really a big fan of either author’s novels, but I did read a number of them when I was teaching English, just because I thought I ought to. ---
**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:** [April 3, 2020, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1066 "2020-04-03T03:17:22Z")
> [@gregorio](#): > > What is . . . the year one of your presidentin’ dudes died after only a few weeks (days?) in office? President one until inauguration, president two after inauguration, president three a few weeks (days?) later. > > My wager? Zero dollars, Alex. Good try! This one might be easier: Which US president was never elected to an Executive Branch post? (Excluding Mr Atchinson noted above, since scholars do not agree on his status.) ---
**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:** [April 3, 2020, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1067 "2020-04-03T03:24:30Z")
Excluding Mr Atchinson, since his status is disputed. ---
**Author:** ![gregorio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/fbc32d/32.png) [@gregorio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gregorio)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2020, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1068 "2020-04-03T17:40:19Z")
What is, I don’t know. Not only do I not know, but I don’t even understand the question. US politics and US presidents are the reason, I believe, why there are few multiple day champions from Canada. I should add, most of what I learned lately of US politics I’ve gleaned from the Pit. Probably not ideal for my Jeopardy! career. ---
**Author:** ![Steven\_Maven](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steven_maven/32/3272_2.png) [@Steven\_Maven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steven_Maven)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2020, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1069 "2020-04-03T18:04:35Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > This one might be easier: Which US president was never elected to an Executive Branch post? Easy-Peasy! Gerald Ford. Ford was a Representative from Michigan when Nixon appointed him Vice President to replace Spiro Agnew, who had resigned in disgrace. Then when Nixon resigned to avoid impeachment, Ford ascended to the Presidency without ever running for an Executive Branch office. ---
**Author:** ![Steven\_Maven](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steven_maven/32/3272_2.png) [@Steven\_Maven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steven_Maven)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2020, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1070 "2020-04-03T20:01:33Z")
> [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > YouTubeTV ? (I realize I may not understand what you mean.) I was not familiar with YouTubeTV. I’ll look for it. I appreciate learning something new. ---
**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:** [April 3, 2020, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1071 "2020-04-03T21:12:11Z")
> [@Steven\_Maven](#): > > I was not familiar with YouTubeTV. I’ll look for it. I appreciate learning something new. Pony up $10 for a one month subscription (there might even be a free trial). Make one of your choices the local network affiliate that carries Jeopardy. Besides the current episode (which you don’t have to watch in real time), you immediately have a sizable backlog of recent episodes. I don’t know (or remember) how far back the “library” extends; certainly a few weeks worth. You don’t have to have recorded them yourself- YouTubeTV doesn’t actually record anything in your personal devices. Instead your membership gives you “on demand” access to YT’s huge vault of programs, movies, etc. It’s a pretty good system. We used it for a few months before discontinuing it in favor of keeping DirecTv (long uninteresting story involving differing preferences within family). Had it been up to me we would’ve kept YTTV and dumped DTV. ---
**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:** [April 3, 2020, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1072 "2020-04-03T23:58:44Z")
> [@Steven\_Maven](#): > > Easy-Peasy! Gerald Ford. > > Ford was a Representative from Michigan when Nixon appointed him Vice President to replace Spiro Agnew, who had resigned in disgrace. Then when Nixon resigned to avoid impeachment, Ford ascended to the Presidency without ever running for an Executive Branch office. Correct. Congressional Representatives are members of the Legislative Branch of government. He was elected by the voters of Michigan, but that’s all. ---
**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:** [April 4, 2020, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1073 "2020-04-04T02:01:42Z")
The latest winner reminds me of Marty’s raccoon hat-wearing brother, when they’re watching Jackie Gleason during dinner. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2020, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1074 "2020-04-04T02:07:28Z")
And by only a small part of Michigan, at that (representatives are elected by districts of less than a million people). But David Rice Atchinson’s status isn’t in dispute at all. He was never President. One might conceivably dispute the reason why he was never President, but however you slice it, he was never President. ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2020, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1075 "2020-04-04T05:19:33Z")
To be fair, Ford was very high in the House GOP leadership, and he amazingly almost beat Carter in '76 (after beating off a strong primary challenge from Reagan), but it’s true: he never actually won a race to represent more than \<1 million people in one part of Michigan. ---
**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:** [April 4, 2020, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1076 "2020-04-04T13:03:47Z")
Personally, I find it amazing that anyone would vote for Carter under any circumstances. But that’s just me. ---
**Author:** ![Steven\_Maven](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steven_maven/32/3272_2.png) [@Steven\_Maven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steven_Maven)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2020, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1077 "2020-04-12T01:48:14Z")
> [@Ponch8](#): > > There was a technical error in one of today’s clues (I’ve run marathons, so I’m attuned to these things): the category was The First Modern Olympics (held in 1896 in Greece, btw). The clue stated, “Seen here, dressed in traditional garb, Spyridon Louis became a national hero after winning this 26-mile race.” The 26.2-mile distance did not become standard for marathons until after the 1908 London Olympics. Wikipedia says that the 1896 version was approx. 25 miles long. On the Jeopardy! episode first aired on 4/26 [2020], there was another case of incorrect information. In the Jeopardy! Round, in the category Chicago, the $200 clue was: “Not chilly gusts off Lake Michigan, but bombastic politicians may be the source of this Chicago nickname.” The correct response is, of course, “The Windy City.” However, that story is not true. That nickname, based on the weather, first appeared in print in 1860. It frequently appeared in newspapers in the 1870s and 1880s. The newspaper article that some people put forth as the origin would have dated around 1890. According to [WordOrigins.com](http://WordOrigins.com): _The legend has it that the nickname was coined by Charles A. Dana, editor of the New York Sun in the early 1890s. At the time, Chicago and New York were competing to host the 1893 Columbian Exposition, in honor of the 400th anniversary of Columbus discovering America. Dana allegedly used the term to describe the overblown claims of Chicago._ [http://www.wordorigins.org/index.php/more/577/](http://www.wordorigins.org/index.php/more/577/) ---
**Author:** ![Steven\_Maven](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steven_maven/32/3272_2.png) [@Steven\_Maven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steven_Maven)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2020, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1078 "2020-04-12T01:59:49Z")
> [@Steven\_Maven](#): > > The correct response is, of course, “The Windy City.” The editor wouldn’t let me make that: The correct response is, of course, “ **What is** ‘The Windy City?’” ---
**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:** [April 12, 2020, 8:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1079 "2020-04-12T08:36:52Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Personally, I find it amazing that anyone would vote for Carter under any circumstances. But that’s just me. It’s not just you. Ford was the only Republican I ever voted for. ---
**Author:** ![Mark\_Finn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/34f0e0/32.png) [@Mark\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mark_Finn)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2020, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1080 "2020-04-12T13:48:39Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > We cannot accept your answer but you are on the right track. > > 1841 when Harrison died after getting sick during his inagural. His presidency was the shortest. > > 1881 when Garfield was shot. And if “American exceptionalism” didn’t infect (pun intended) medical thinking at the time, he wouldn’t have died, relegating this bit of trivia to non-existence. There is some dispute as to whether Tyler (Harrison’s VP) ever received the title of “President” - although he called himself that and performed the duties of one. (scroll down to “History”): > **[Acting President of the United States](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acting_president_of_the_United_States)** > > An acting president of the United States is an individual who legitimately exercises the powers and duties of the president of the United States even though that person does not hold the office in their own right. There is an established presidential line of succession in which officials of the United States federal government may be called upon to take on presidential responsibilities if the incumbent president becomes incapacitated, dies, resigns, is removed from office (by impeachment by th... [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696.md?page=53) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696.md?page=55)