# 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:** 64
**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:** [July 22, 2020, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1261 "2020-07-22T23:19:08Z")
Today’s (Wednesday’s) game - it’s obvious it was one of the early Alex episodes: Alex: “How will you spend your $60,000?” Chuck: “Travel”. Alex: “Where will you travel?” Chuck: “North Yemen”. Alex: “For archeological digging?” Chuck: “No - I’ll go to Syria for that”. ---
**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, 2020, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1262 "2020-07-23T00:23:07Z")
Logical question, actually. Why else would anyone go to North Yemen? 😕 I was surprised about the Easternmost point of the US. The Aleutians extend into the Eastern Hemisphere, making them the Easternmost, strictly speaking. I’d’ve challenged the ruling that’s it’s off the coast of Maine. . ---
**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, 2020, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1263 "2020-07-23T00:25:23Z")
I remember him saying that in 1984. It was kind of surprising even then. ---
**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, 2020, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1264 "2020-07-23T01:16:29Z")
I’ve been enjoying the vintage fashion. All the contestants so far have looked awful, with their clothes appearing too large. However, Alex looks relatively snazzy. ---
**Author:** ![Arcite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/67e7ee/32.png) [@Arcite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arcite)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2020, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1265 "2020-07-23T02:58:31Z")
> [@Kamino\_Neko](#): > > I suspect there’s a couple factors - 1: More clues, all three contestants are getting a go - probably because there are fewer ‘leading’ clues. 2: More audience reaction. 3: More chatter. Which all adds up to feeling like more is happening, but less actually happening. Now that I think about it, it does seem like Alex is inserting a lot more filler talk between clues in these old shows. When a contestant gets a question right, instead of just saying “correct” or “yes, pick again,” Alex might say “yes, you are absolutely right, that is the correct question, which means you will have four hundred dollars added to your score, bringing you up to a total of twenty-four hundred dollars, and once again giving you the prerogative to choose our next category and dollar amount, so go ahead and make a selection!” That’s an exaggeration, but you get the idea. It seems to already have gotten somewhat better by tonight’s 2nd-season show. Also, I never realized how much more they used to draw attention to certain gimmicks of the show. For example, Alex makes frequent references to the fact that the responses are in the form of a question, saying things like “yes, that is the correct question” or “let’s see what question you came up with.” And he frequently references the meaning of the word “jeopardy;” saying at the end of the first round “congratulations, you are now out of Jeopardy. But get ready, because after this commercial break, you’ll be placed into Double Jeopardy!” ---
**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 23, 2020, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1266 "2020-07-23T12:19:48Z")
[In a tweet, Alex has clarified a statement in his book about his health.](https://mobile.twitter.com/Jeopardy/status/1286010162990342144?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1286010162990342144%7Ctwgr%5E&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fd-14415162314199385674.ampproject.net%2F2007102309001%2Fframe.html) [An NBC report with a few more details:](https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/pop-culture-news/alex-trebek-clarifies-comment-about-stopping-cancer-treatment-n1234627) > [Jeopardy!"](https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/pop-culture-news/alex-trebeck-shares-update-cancer-treatment-says-he-s-looking-n1234026)host [Alex Trebek](https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/pop-culture-news/i-wished-i-had-known-sooner-alex-trebek-raises-awareness-n1074136) clarified a statement from his recent memoir in which he wrote that he would consider forgoing his cancer treatment if it stopped working. > > “I feel the need to clarify my quote that if my course of cancer treatment does not continue to work, I would consider stopping treatment,” Trebek said in a statement posted to official "Jeopardy!"social media accounts Wednesday. “That quote from the book was written BEFORE my current regimen, and I was going through some bad times.” > > Trebek, who revealed he’d been diagnosed with [stage 4 pancreatic cancer](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/longtime-jeopardy-host-alex-trebek-reveals-he-has-stage-4-n980266) in 2019, added that his “current numbers” are “very good” thanks to a immunotherapy program he’s been following, but that if his current treatment “stopped being successful,” he would return to his previous chemotherapy treatment, “NOT stop all treatment.” > > Trebek was referring to CA 19-9 numbers. The amount of this protein in a patient’s blood is an indicator of how their pancreatic cancer is progressing, according to the [Pancreatic Cancer Action Network.](https://www.pancan.org/facing-pancreatic-cancer/diagnosis/ca19-9/) > > “I apologize for any confusion, and want everyone to know that I am optimistic about my current plan and thank them for their concerns,” Trebek said. > > In his memoir “The Answer Is…,” which was released on Tuesday, the longtime “Jeopardy!” host wrote that he planned to “stick with this current protocol” and that if it didn’t work he’d "probably stop treatment. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2020, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1267 "2020-07-23T22:05:12Z")
> [@Arcite](#): > > And he frequently references the meaning of the word “jeopardy;” saying at the end of the first round “congratulations, you are now out of Jeopardy. But get ready, because after this commercial break, you’ll be placed into Double Jeopardy!” In game number 2 (the everyone gets $0 at the end episode) Alex calls final jeopardy “double jeopardy”. My wife said “if we’d have watched this when it was new, I would have been calling for Art Fleming to come back!” He really is sloppy, considering this wasn’t his first game show. I also thought it was funny that the first game had a clue about Sean Connery. We both yelled at the TV “Suck it, Trebek!” 🙂 ---
**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 24, 2020, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1268 "2020-07-24T01:17:09Z")
I thought today’s episode from Season 5 had some difficult questions - difficult because they seemed to be current events from 1990 the then-recent past. “What two TV shows ended their run on the same date May 14, 1989?” Moonlighting and Family Ties was one such example. The clues from seasons one and two seemed less topical. I wonder how current episodes will hold up in 20 years (2050? wow!) It was sad seeing that there was a limit of $75,000 per contestant, so if anyone won more than that during their run they had to give the extra to charity; at least the winner got to choose which charity. When did that rule get repealed? it sounded like it was a network decision. I’m liking that Alex Trebek is hosting these and pointing out some interesting trivia about the episodes. I like the ones they’ve picked, because they have been meaningful, historic or ground-breaking in some way. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2020, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1269 "2020-07-24T01:43:52Z")
Unrelated to the show itself, but…does Frank Spangenberg make anyone else think of Herman Munster? He’s got the same general build and carriage, and very similar facial structure and voice… Give him a flat-head cap and shave that glorious moustache and he’d have been a great replacement for Fred Gwynn. \>\_\> ---
**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:** [July 24, 2020, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1270 "2020-07-24T03:24:42Z")
> [@Kamino\_Neko](#): > > Unrelated to the show itself, but…does Frank Spangenberg make anyone else think of Herman Munster? Yes. Me. ---
**Author:** ![Arcite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/67e7ee/32.png) [@Arcite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arcite)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2020, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1271 "2020-07-24T03:27:31Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > > [@Arcite](#): > > > > And he frequently references the meaning of the word “jeopardy;” saying at the end of the first round “congratulations, you are now out of Jeopardy. But get ready, because after this commercial break, you’ll be placed into Double Jeopardy!” > > In game number 2 (the everyone gets $0 at the end episode) Alex calls final jeopardy “double jeopardy”. My wife said “if we’d have watched this when it was new, I would have been calling for Art Fleming to come back!” He really is sloppy, considering this wasn’t his first game show. > > I also thought it was funny that the first game had a clue about Sean Connery. We both yelled at the TV “Suck it, Trebek!” 🙂 Another thing I noticed about the 1st season shows is that they didn’t always phrase the clue as a logically precise answer to the question they were going for. For example, in modern times, if they’re going for “What is Appomatox,” the clue will be something like “it’s where Lee surrendered to Grant” or “Robert E. Lee surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant here.” But in those early shows, they might have just phrased it as “Lee surrenders to Grant.” ---
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2020, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1272 "2020-07-24T13:44:18Z")
I miss the dramatic music they used to play when the contestants were walking in and being introduced. The music they play now is very boring and unmemorable. ---
**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 28, 2020, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1273 "2020-07-28T01:13:58Z")
I find it remarkable that tonight’s archive episode had the late Regis Philbin as one of the celebrity contestants. I wonder how far in advance it was scheduled. As an aside, I was watching an episode of _ **Match Game '78** _ on the Retro Game Show Channel today. In it, Gene Rayburn apologized for kissing a contestant (a rather mature woman), saying “I just got back from a trip to Mainland China, and they have viruses over there you wouldn’t believe!” How’s that for a coincidence? 😲 ---
**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 28, 2020, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1274 "2020-07-28T01:21:49Z")
> [@Kamino\_Neko](#): > > Unrelated to the show itself, but…does Frank Spangenberg make anyone else think of Herman Munster? He’s got the same general build and carriage, and very similar facial structure and voice… Give him a flat-head cap and shave that glorious moustache and he’d have been a great replacement for Fred Gwynn. \>\_\> I knew Frank, back when I lived in NYC. Helluva nice guy and super-smart. ---
**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:** [July 28, 2020, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1275 "2020-07-28T01:33:31Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > I find it remarkable that tonight’s archive episode had the late Regis Philbin as one of the celebrity contestants. I wonder how far in advance it was scheduled. > > As an aside, I was watching an episode of _ **Match Game '78** _ on the Retro Game Show Channel today. In it, Gene Rayburn apologized for kissing a contestant (a rather mature woman), saying “I just got back from a trip to Mainland China, and they have viruses over there you wouldn’t believe!” How’s that for a coincidence? 😲 When I heard that this week was going to be celebrity episodes, I scanned through to see who was going to be on. Tonight’s episode with Regis Philbin was scheduled before his death. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2020, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1276 "2020-07-28T03:25:02Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > As an aside, I was watching an episode of _ **Match Game '78** _ on the Retro Game Show Channel today. In it, Gene Rayburn apologized for kissing a contestant (a rather mature woman), saying “I just got back from a trip to Mainland China, and they have viruses over there you wouldn’t believe!” I was watching that same episode (on Game’s retro block) and had the same reaction. ---
**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:** [July 28, 2020, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1277 "2020-07-28T12:42:44Z")
The Regis Philbin episode was from Oct. 26, 1992. > **[‘Jeopardy!’ to re-air Regis Philbin episode tonight. Here are 6 clues that...](https://www.deseret.com/entertainment/2020/7/27/21340522/jeopardy-regis-philbin-alex-trebek-celebrity-jeopardy-episodes)** > > Producers made the decision before Philbin’s death. But now, Philbin’s episode takes on new meaning. ---
**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 28, 2020, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1278 "2020-07-28T14:24:11Z")
The article doesn’t mention that all of the three missed Final Jeopardy as well: _For his licentious behavior, monk Grigori Yefimovich Novykh earned this nickname meaning “debauched one.”_ **Rasputin** Which I thought was ridiculously easy. How many other licentious monks can you think of? ---
**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 28, 2020, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1279 "2020-07-28T14:31:52Z")
> [@Kamino\_Neko](#): > > > [@terentii](#): > > > > As an aside, I was watching an episode of _ **Match Game '78** _ on the Retro Game Show Channel today. In it, Gene Rayburn apologized for kissing a contestant (a rather mature woman), saying “I just got back from a trip to Mainland China, and they have viruses over there you wouldn’t believe!” > > I was watching that same episode (on Game’s retro block) and had the same reaction. If I may ask, do you know who the beautiful blonde was on the left hand side of the bottom tier? I missed the beginning of the show, and I don’t think they mentioned her name again. I know she must have been a celebrity of some kind in 1978, but I don’t recall ever seeing her before. She was so young, I suspect her star rose and fell very fast. I checked the IMDb list of people who were on the show in the '78 season, but it’s hard to identify her from the photos there. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2020, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/1280 "2020-07-28T14:53:23Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > The article doesn’t mention that all of the three missed Final Jeopardy as well: > > _For his licentious behavior, monk Grigori Yefimovich Novykh earned this nickname meaning “debauched one.”_ > > **Rasputin** > > Which I thought was ridiculously easy. How many other licentious monks can you think of? Not easy to me; I didn’t even have a guess. Is the life of Rasputin common knowledge? If so, I’ve missed out. I don’t recall ever learning about him in school, and while I’ve heard the name, I know virtually nothing about him. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696.md?page=63) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696.md?page=65)