I’m so sorry, I missed it!! Had to work late, and forgot to call home to get it taped. From all reports it sounds like you were great though! 
I’ll look for the recap on j-archive.com.
(Out of curiousity, what was this Final Jeopardy question?)
Ooh, it was in Business Firsts, and it was something like This company’s product was first ordered by a something business person in Detroit in 1908.
I said a Ford Model T, or a Ford! So Ford! to the television.
Then I thought, even with the “Detroit” part, that it was too easy. So I said, no, I bet it’s Sears or something.
'Twas Ford.
Glad I caught “your” show, Labdad!
Um. Oops if that was a spoiler. Jeopardy! comes on at 7:30 pm here. 
You definitely succeeded. You came across as a likeable guy, and I think we were all rooting for you in TV land. The woman seemed out of her depth, and you gave the champ a run for his money (literally)! You also had the best human interest story.
The reversal must have been awesome news for you. I think Final Jeopardy didn’t do you any favors, though. That question was way too easy. I liked your strategy though. It looks like you thought about how your opponent would fare before your wager. Whereas I didn’t think at all on my second day, and basically made a bad bet…
Potential [iJeopardy!* contestants should devote some time to strategize their betting… it can make all the difference. Labdad, you should be proud of your performance.
I didn’t get the arrogant vibe from the champ though that other folks have noted. He looked confident, what’s wrong with that?
Ok…what happened in Final Jeopardy? I Tivo’d the show, but the power went out right at 7:25 p.m.
Nice lucky break with that Daily Double reversal, btw!
Excellent work, Labdad, and it’s just a shame you didn’t wager more on the FJ thing. However, I’d have been as cautious about that category; it could have been way more esoteric.
If it matters, your appearance doesn’t match your handle, if such a thing is possible. I doubt many of us look like our handle suggests we do, but I wouldn’t have picked you out of a lineup based on my mental image of you. Hope that’s okay.
I’ll ditto all the praise for your gentlemanly manner. And the handwriting is/was the best I’ve seen on Jeopardy!
One thing you can say about the winner: he didn’t hem and haw with his answers. If he had only choked on FJ!
Good job. Makes Dopers proud.
I wonder: did the winner’s body language affect you at all, or was it wasted on you because you weren’t actually looking at him? I will admit he tricked me with his hang-dog look just before his Final Jeopardy bid was revealed…my heart leapt thinking your low bet had succeeded! You made a great comeback from the first-round set-back, and I was outraged when they disallowed your answer. I actually cheered when they gave you your points back! You really gave him a run for the money, and I hope he got a little nervous.
As one of the lucky Dopers to have met Labdad in person and broken bread with him, I was more excited about this show than I ever have been for any television event. My family went to see a movie last night, but I went shopping then got home about 7:39. No problems, as I had been careful to program the DVR to record Jeopardy for the remainder of the week.
Except that our lightning storm yesterday afternoon must have cancelled it out. So I noticed as I walked in that it wasn’t recording. I rushed over and found the show, just as they went to the break for the second round. I hurried to put away the frozen groceries but before I could get it all stowed away the show came back on.
[Unboxed Spoilers Ahead]
I was dismayed to see L behind the champion, but confident that he’d close the gap. He wasn’t dominant but bit by bit he cut into the other guys lead (I thought he just seemd extremely confident, the defending champ, but I can see where some would get an arrogant vibe. Definitely relaxed). I was hollering at the TV set, something which is fairly out of character for me. My neighbors probably thought I was going nuts. When he hit the Double Jeopardy question I let out a loud “You go, L…!!” and whooped even louder at the approval of the size of the wager. I hate that namby-pamby stuff. If you know, it go for it. When they showed the question I knew you had them, and shouted my answer “Arms Depot”, which is probably what you thought you said. I was crushed when they ruled the answer incorrect, then later elated when they corrected themselves. There were at least two overrules right in a row, it seemed. Maybe they’ll invite you back because of that?
Final Jeopardy and I thought you’ve got it. Then the question was SO easy and I started to get nervous. It all came down to what the guy with the beard bet. Dang, that’s got to hurt!
You done us proud, Labdad. You were composed and mostly on your game. I thought you’d have got the one music question right with your knowledge of music from the era (Judy Collins question / Isn’t it rich, Send in the Clowns), but it was a small one. I forget which question but there was one where you sort of double clutched and I’m thinking “he knows this, it’s a minor brain fart” but you pulled it through.
Sadly, I missed the intros and first round, can anyone fill me in on that bit?
P.S. I made the Mac n Cheese from that recipe book from Watershed this weekend. Must have been subconciously thinking about you. It was great.
No, I couldn’t see him at all.
Okay. Needless to say, I’ve replayed this game in my head a thousand times since I taped it on April 21. I imagine I’ll be kicking myself for the rest of my life! :smack:
Why didn’t I bet enough on the daily double to put me in the lead? How did I choke on that Tom Cruise question, getting” The Client" mixed up with “The Firm?” (just a brain cramp)
One thing you can’t prepare yourself for is how incredibly stressful playing the game for real is! Those who are able to think clearly, and make those wagering calculations in their head, etc. have my eternal admiration.
One thing you didn’t see on TV was that they stopped the taping of the show while they researched my Double Jeopardy answer. As soon as Deana hit the second Daily Double, they just yelled “STOP TAPE! CONTESTANTS TURN AROUND WITH YOUR BACK TO THE BOARD!” No one told us why.
It seemed like an eternity, but according to my friend in the audience, it was only seven or eight minutes, but it was the longest seven or eight minutes of my life! At one point, the champion said, “I wonder what they’re doing?” and I said, “I don’t know. Maybe they’re looking up “depot” to see if maybe it was the right answer after all.” Then the suits from the compliance department came out and explained to us about the judges’ decision, and that they would be putting $12,000 back on the board for me.
By then, I was a basket case mentally. You really don’t have that much time to come up with your Final Jeopardy bet. Maybe 30 seconds. I was not at all confident with that category, “Business Firsts,” and was thinking, let me bet enough to get ahead of David, and hope it bets more, so that in case we get it both wrong, I’ll be in the lead. Did you notice there were an unusually high number of triple stumpers during the game? Who knew the Final Jeopardy question was going to be of the “Who’s buried in Grant’s tomb?” variety? As soon as the answer was revealed, I knew my low ball strategy had failed. It didn’t surprise me at all that all three of us got it right.
Oh, well - woulda, shoulda, coulda! No guts, no blue chips, etc.!
Still, it was a hell of a ride. I had a great time, the Jeopardy people treated us like royalty, and after the taping session was over and we went back to hotel bar for drinks, David bought rounds for everyone and was a very gracious winner.
Shib - on preview, I see your post. Thanks, man! I knew that Judy Collins, question, dammit! I just couldn’t remember it! I knew “Babylonian Captivity.” But couldn’t come up with the answer on the spot. During the interview, I talked about a baseball my grandfather had given me when I was 12 years old that was autographed, “To Louis, best wishes Lou Gehrig.” (MY grandfather had the same name as me), and then how the next year, which was the first season the Braves were in Atlanta, I took it down to the ballpark and had it autographed (and personalized) by Hank Aaron and Joe Torre. I’ll let the others fill you in on the other two interviews.
Gotta run for now - work calls. Thanks for tuning in, y’all!
Wow, I didn’t even see this thread till this morning but was rooting for you the whole game last night (we’re regular Jeopardy! watchers). That daily double turnaround sure changed it from a runaway on David’s part to a real contest between the two of you.
I know the mavens on the Jeopardy forums dissect betting strategies ad infinitum, but in your shoes I would have chosen one of two betting strategies – either bet a bundle and hope that the champ didn’t bet as much (especially since he’d been a very conservative FJ better in the previous game), or do what you did and bet just enough to beat him if you got it right but he didn’t and he didn’t bet anything. It really was a coin toss, and since during the double jeopardy round both Daily Doubles had come in $2000 questions, which is unusual, you had every reason to expect a tough FJ question. It’s really a crapshoot, isn’t it?
I was reliving my own Jeopardy! experience (1994) as you were talking about what it was like up there. It’s impossible to describe the feeling of pressure, isn’t it, unless you’ve been there. But I thought you did a great job, played an excellent game and were exceptionally composed and classy. Sorry you didn’t dethrone the champ – he may be a tough one to beat, he’s a real killer on the buzzer. Buzzer speed is a factor you really can’t anticipate, is it? And yet it can make or break a good player.
Yep, you were classy and had the right air of gravity. And your handwriting was stellar.
Did you talk to the woman at all; I’m always bugged out by people who make it all the way there and then don’t do well. Did she choke or just get overwhelmed by the competition from you guys?
I don’t watch very often but remembered to watch for a Doper just as the first round was ending. Is it common to have that many turnarounds with regard to giving points back for reinterpreted answers?
Labdad, did you get any lovely parting gifts? Rice-a-Roni?
I mentioned last night to my friends that I didn’t even get a year’s supply of rice-a-roni! :mad:
My lovely parting gifts consisted of a Jeopardy! tote bag, and a framed photo of Alex and me on the set of the show. (They gave me the tote bag and the empty frame when I left - the photo arrived in the mail about 10 days ago.)
Mama Tiger - hooray for someone who can relate to what I was going through there.
And yes, I was having some buzzer problems. Looking at the archive I counted 13 questions that I knew but couldn’t buzz in on.
What was the double Jeopardy question / answer that they reversed themselves on?
Brian
The answer was “Daniel Shays in 1787, like John Brown in 1859, tried to capture one of these storage places”
I said, “What is a ‘depot’?” Alex said they were looking for “arsenal.” Then they reversed themselves.
She was local - from Pasadena - so she didn’t go back to the hotel with us when the show was over. I think she was having even worse buzzer trouble than me, because I could see her punching her buzzer to no avail.
I wonder if they would have accepted the question I was going with – “what is an armory”?
Funny, but I was thinking “ammo dump.”
It’s funny - I was playing along and I said ‘depot’ as well, and was rather shocked when it was ruled incorrect. Then when Alex gave the “correct” answer, the shouting at the TV began.
I really enjoyed your performance, Labdad–I was rooting for you all the way!
I’m glad that they reversed the call on your daily double–made for a great Final Jeopardy! Wish you’d wagered more, but, after all, hindsight’s 20/20! 
You gave an impressive showing, no doubt about it!
(I think that may be the first time I’ve ever seen them reverse TWO calls in one game! I was pretty sure it would happen with the woman’s answer, though. I couldn’t see how they could rule her incorrect just because that wasn’t the exact phrase they had on their cards–her answer was just as “right” as the one they were looking for.)