“Jeopardy!” remains one of the most popular game shows of all time.
The show was originally hosted by Art Fleming from 1964 to 1979, then Alex Trebek took over when it was rebooted in 1984 and hosted until his death in 2020. Ken Jennings and Mayim Bialik were named as the next permanent hosts in July 2022, but this month Bialik announced that she’d no longer be hosting syndicated episodes of the show, leaving Jennings as the sole host.
Fox News Digital takes a look back at some of the crazier moments on “Jeopardy!” this year, from contestants’ outrageous wagers to their bizarre behavior.
‘JEOPARDY!’ FANS OUTRAGED BY MISLEADING CLUE THAT COST CONTESTANT THE GAME
Ken Jennings is the current host of “Jeopardy!”. (Eric McCandless/ABC via Getty Images)
“Gonna go jump off a cliff now”
In February, the show began airing the High School Reunion Tournament – a tournament featuring contestants who had previously competed in Teen Tournaments.
Audrey Satchivi, one of those contestants who was a student at Indiana University at the time of the taping, made waves when she discussed a hobby she enjoyed during the show’s interview portion.
“Yeah, so I’m kind of an old soul,” she said. “I’ve been collecting some things that are kind of obsolete now… I’ve been collecting records, CDs and DVDs. I just got a new DVD, and I’m really excited about it, but I miss my childhood a little bit, I guess.”
Ken Jennings and Mayim Bialik both received criticism from fans for their hosting styles. (Christopher Willard/ABC via Getty Images | Tyler Golden/ABC via Getty Images)
Several fans reacted strongly to the idea that collecting DVDs would be considered an activity for an “old soul,” with one taking to X, formerly Twitter, to write, “I just shriveled up into dust when Audrey said her collection of ‘obsolete things’ included ‘records, CDs, and DVDs.’”
Another wrote, “The girl on Jeopardy just said ‘I like to collect old things’ and then talked about her DVD collection. Gonna go jump off a cliff now.”
“We totally blew it”
In March, an editing error in one episode revealed the final scores at the very beginning of the show, effectively spoiling the entire game. Fans were frustrated enough that executive producer Michael Davies spoke out about the mistake.
Mayim Bialik stepped away from her hosting duties when the writers strike began in May. (Tyler Golden/ABC)
“Right off the bat, apologies to our entire audience,” Davies said on the “Inside Jeopardy” podcast. “We totally blew it at the top of the show. We made a horrible error where we revealed the final scores at the end in the opening cutaway shot during Mayim’s monologue.”
‘JEOPARDY!’ HOST KEN JENNINGS UNDER FIRE FOR JOKE ABOUT ELDERLY PEOPLE: ‘TASTELESS’
He explained that what had happened was that they had to retape Bialik’s opening monologue – something that in itself isn’t uncommon. Normally when this happens, the scores on the podiums will be adjusted back to match whatever moment needs reshooting.
Davies said, “This was then not caught in post [production]; it was not caught in the final QC [quality control]. There are so many elements that should check this.”
Mayim Bialik announced that she’d no longer be hosting syndicated episodes of the show on Dec. 15. (Casey Durkin/ABC via Getty Images)
He apologized again for the error and promised that a new set of protocols had been put into place to stop anything like this from happening again.
“Such a buffoon”
A woman named Karen Morris competed in another March episode, and one mistake she made worked viewers into a frenzy.
As the contestants neared the end of the game, she had a huge lead over her fellow competitors – she had earned $21,800, while her competitors had earned $7,100 and $6,400. She landed on a Daily Double, and had she made a modest bet, she could have cinched the game.
“Jeopardy!” contestant Karen seemed to take her loss in stride. (Sony Pictures Television Jeopardy Productions)
Instead, she bet $10,000, failed to give an answer, then missed the Final Jeopardy clue, leaving her in third place when the game was over.
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“Good GOD!” one person wrote on X. “Don’t believe I’ve ever seen a contestant go so high and fall so fast as Karen did today.”
“Karen may be smart but she has zero common sense,” another fan claimed.
One viewer even said, “Karen is such a buffoon. Rare to see someone lose like that.”
“Rubbed me the wrong way”
Bialik hosted an episode in April that got a lot of fans talking about the issue of proper pronunciation when it comes to “Jeopardy!” answers.
Some “Jeopardy!” fans have been excited about the news that Mayim Bialik won’t be hosting any longer, while others are upset at the news. (Jeopardy/Sony Pictures Television)
A clue in the category “The Quotable Alex” read, “An author and former prisoner: ‘Socialism of any type and shade leads to a total destruction of the human spirit.’” The correct answer was Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, and all three contestants seemed to answer with that, but Bialik didn’t accept them because their pronunciations were off.
She acknowledged the issue, telling them that the name was “a tricky one to pronounce,” but some fans still took issue with the idea that each of the contestants knew the right response but were ruled incorrect.
“If you’re not going to accept anyone’s attempt to pronounce Solzhenitsyn, don’t write a clue about him,” one person suggested on X.
While Mayim Bialik is known for acting roles in “Blossom” and “The Big Bang Theory,” she also holds a Ph.D. in neuroscience. (Tyler Golden/ABC via Getty Images)
A Reddit user wrote, “Something rubbed me the wrong way about that Solzhenitsyn clue; the show usually gives some strong leeway for if you can pronounce a response in a reasonable way given a spelling, and all 3 definitely knew who the clue was referring to. I don’t think it mattered in the long run of the game, but it sets an awkward precedent for the future.”
“Extremely disappointed with ‘Jeopardy!’”
A contestant named Ben Chan found himself on a winning streak in May, coming out on top for nine straight games. His luck came to an end during his 10th game when Jennings ruled his Final Jeopardy answer incorrect, something many fans thought was wrong.
Nine-day champion Ben Chan’s streak came to an end over a spelling error. (Jeopardy/Sony Pictures Television)
The Final Jeopardy category was “Shakespeare’s Characters.” The clue read, “Both of the names of these 2 lovers in a Shakespeare play come from the Latin words for ‘blessed.'”
The correct answer was Beatrice and Benedick, the main characters from “Much Ado About Nothing.” Chan was familiar with the play, but he wrote “Beatrice and Benedict,” switching out the last letter of the latter character’s name. Jennings wouldn’t accept the answer, and he lost the game.
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“Since when does being off by one letter count in final jep?” a viewer asked on X. “There’s no other character he could have meant.”
Another wrote, “I am in disbelief & extremely disappointed with Jeopardy. Ben Chan is cut out of the game for one letter wrong spelling? Ben was the only one who had the answer. The winner did not even know any of the answer.”
“Jeopardy!” judges are typically strict on spelling and pronunciation errors. (Sony Pictures Television Jeopardy Productions)
A third comment read, “I can’t believe @Jeopardy made a contestant lose for writing ‘Beatrice and Benedict’ instead of ‘Benedick.’ I’m not even that petty, and I’m a Shakespeare professor.”
“You heathens!”
A June episode of the show provided a triple stumper with a clue that read, “Matthew 6:9 says, ‘Our Father, which art in heaven, [THIS] be thy name.’”
The Bible verse is part of the Lord’s Prayer, an extremely well-known prayer from the New Testament. Many people who watched the show thought the question was incredibly easy, and some of those people were upset that all three contestants failed to buzz in with the correct answer, “hallowed.”
A “triple stumper” is a popular term among “Jeopardy!” fans that refers to a clue that all three contestants fail to answer. (Getty Images)
“@Jeopardy has 3 geniuses on the show today. The question was-In the Bible it says-Our Father, who art in heaven (blank) be thy name. The answer is Hallowed (of course)… none of the 3 knew the answer. Sad world we’re in,” a viewer wrote on social media.
“That’s ‘hallowed,’ you heathens!” another joked.
One person even called the turn of events “pathetic.”
“WTH!”
Alex Gordon, a medical student, had $15,000 when he landed on a Daily Double in the category “Stitch Incoming.” The clues had all been about topics related to medicine and health care, and before he placed a wager, Jennings asked him, “How confident are you in a medical category, Alex?”
Ken Jennings and Mayim Bialik were named the hosts of “Jeopardy!” after a series of guests judges tried out the job. (FOX via Getty Images)
Obviously feeling confident with questions related to his field of study, he bet $12,000, then received his clue, which read, “Joba Chamberlain used the scar from below the elbow surgery named for his fellow pitcher as part of a smiley face tattoo.”
The correct answer was Tommy John, but Gordon wasn’t able to come up with that. Instead, he named Joe DiMaggio and lost the bulk of his winnings.
“WTH! You tricked this doctor into believing the question was a medical question,” one user wrote on X. “it wasn’t! It was about a tattoo and baseball players.”
Another complained that “#Jeopardy pulled a d— move by slipping in a baseball question when everything else in the category was medical related… I think if @KenJennings kept his mouth shut, #AlexGordon would only have bet $5000.”
Ken Jennings became a “Jeopardy!” champion in 2004. (Jeopardy Productions via Getty Images)
Some argued that Tommy John surgery is done and discussed enough that Gordon could have known it, but a viewer still complained, “Ken seemed to challenge Alex to bet big when it wasn’t necessary….”
“Brutal”
One Final Jeopardy clue over the summer was considered by many fans to be especially easy – it read “This compound word meant an astronomical object of exceptional brightness in 1910; it was soon applied to actors and athletes.”
‘JEOPARDY!’ FANS OUTRAGED AFTER SHOW MAKES HUGE ANNOUNCEMENT, FOLLOWING SEASON OF FRUSTRATION
Two contestants had the correct answer, which was “Superstar,” but one wore a notably solemn expression as his answer was revealed to be “What is star?”
“Jeopardy!” champion Taylor kept a blank expression as he lost his game. (Jeopardy!/YouTube)
He was the reigning champion and had gone into the final category in the lead, but his incorrect response, which was noticeably not a compound word, pushed him back to third place.
Several viewers noted how easy they believed the question to be, with one person saying, “Losing on one of the easiest final jeopardies ever is brutal.”
“Taylor must’ve misunderstood the category,” someone theorized about the contestant. “That’s why it’s important to fully understand the category before providing a response.”
“A bonehead wager”
During the new season, which began airing in September, a man named John made an interesting choice at the end of his game that left viewers, and seemingly Jennings, puzzled.
“Jeopardy!” contestant John was accused of making a “bonehead” wager. (Jeopardy!/YouTube)
John went into the Final Jeopardy clue in third place with $14,200, which was $9,000 less than the contestant in first place. He was the only contestant to successfully answer the question, but when Jennings went to see how much he’d be adding to his winnings, he said, “Oh, you won’t. You bet nothing. Interesting.”
Because he’d decided not to wager anything at all, he didn’t win the game, despite having the only right answer. For many, it was a baffling choice.
“A bonehead wager by John!” one person exclaimed in the comment section of the “Jeopardy!” YouTube page. “He got the correct response… but wagered nothing. This victory was snatched from him.”
Ken Jennings has been hosting the “Jeopardy!” tournaments that have taken up the current season so far. (Peggy Sirota/ABC)
Another noted, “It must hurt to lose, but it must really hurt to lose because you were timid.”
“John’s about to get lit up for making such a poor wager,” one fan wrote, and another person joked, “I’ll start.”
“Unsportsmanlike and disrespectful”
Aaron Craig, a player who competed in the Champions Wildcard Tournament, got called out after an episode, not for a response he’d made to a question, but because of his behavior after the game was over.
When he was named that episode’s winner, he enthusiastically blew a kiss toward the audience and began clapping for himself, which one person called “poor sportsmanship” on the Reddit page dedicated to the show.
Aaron Craig’s behavior after winning his episode rubbed some viewers the wrong way. (Jeopardy!/Sony Pictures Television)
Another agreed, writing, “That was unsportsmanlike and disrespectful to the other contestants. It was also very cringe. Self praise is no praise. I liked Aaron and was rooting for him but after that, I’m not rooting for him anymore.”
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“I turned the TV off after the self-congratulatory behavior,” one person complained. “I certainly am not rooting for this guy to win and not even sure if I’ll watch the rest of the tournament. I’ve watched Jeopardy for decades and don’t recall seeing such rudeness.”
“We’re ALL screaming”
All three contestants on a “Jeopardy!” episode in November failed to answer a certain clue, which isn’t all that unusual, but several fans believed the question was way too easy to miss.
In the category “90s Music,” the clue read, “This country superstar’s ‘Friends In Low Places’ was named CMA Single of the Year in 1991.”
Ken Jennings appeared surprised that contestants failed to recognize Garth Brooks. (ABC/Jeopardy! | Getty Images)
While many may recognize “Friends in Low Places” as one of country star Garth Brooks’ biggest hits, the clue added additional help by showing a photo of Brooks to go along with the written question.
Still, no one was able to answer or even offer a guess.
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Before giving the correct answer, Jennings seemed surprised, saying, “Whoa! How soon we forget.”
“Really?!!” one person responded on X. “I don’t particularly like country music, but #GarthBrooks was everywhere in the 90’s. Very easy triple stumper.”
“Jeopardy!” producers plan on doing more tournaments at least until April. (Christopher Willard/ABC)
“How do these three not know who Garth Brooks is??” one user wrote. “Even if you aren’t a country fan, he’s one of the most well-known music artists from the 90s.”
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A third person acknowledged how many viewers knew the correct answer, saying, “We’re ALL screaming Garth Brooks.”
