Tuesday, August 06, 2019

What it's like to be on JEOPARDY! Round 2

This is the second part of guest blogger, Jeff Lasky's account of being a contestant on JEOPARDY!  The first part was yesterday.  Jeff did a great job (both on the show and in the piece).  I appreciate how candid and descriptive he is.  And I will get him that dollar.  I just don't want to spend extra sending it through the mail.  So I'm waiting for someone to drive down to San Diego so it won't cost me anything more than one dollar.  Within the five years I'm sure I'll find someone.  

In the meantime, a huge thank you to Jeff Lasky.

At least I wouldn’t have to deal with nerves mounting throughout the day. That’s because I ended up in the first game, the Monday episode. Had I not been previously been an alternate and seen how the day would go, I probably would have preferred watching one or two shows first. But because I had already sat in the audience for a full day, I was fine with being picked for the first game. I was loose and relaxed. I also had some confidence because I did well during the rehearsal, including getting some feel for the timing on the buzzer. Plus, as a TV news reporter, I’m used to being on a set with lights and cameras. I figured if I got lucky with the categories, I might even have a small advantage because of that. We were each taken back to makeup again for a final touch-up, then brought up to the stage. I had just enough time to see where my family and friends were sitting before the countdown began.

I never heard iconic Jeopardy! announcer Johnny Gilbert say my name until my episode aired (we shot at the end of March, it finally ran in mid-July). That’s because Johnny is 95 years old and doesn’t come in to the studio until after the lunch break. He does the last two shows live, but records his part for the first three. So the Clue Crew’s Sarah Whitcomb Foss is the one I hear saying those words “This is Jeopardy!”. I took a few beats to just enjoy it, soak it all in. I did that from the moment the theme song started playing until the moment Alex Trebek walked out on stage to greet us. But from that point on, it goes by in a flash. Alex reads off the categories. You don’t have enough time to really process them, although I noted there was a TV category- could be good for me. Also Rhyme Time- a gimmick category that I always enjoyed.

The three-time defending champion, Sam, got the first question, but I got on the episode’s first roll when I answered a question in the horses category. I shifted to TV and reeled off three more in a row. Sadly, this was my high-water mark. To the left of the game board and above the studio cameras, our scores are listed. Ten questions in (a third of the way through the opening round) I had the lead, but never held it again after that. I screwed up the only Rhyme Time question I tried and was in third place with $800 total by the time we went to the first break. The leader had $3,600.

During each commercial, Maggie comes to the stage. She explained what I did wrong on the Rhyme Time question, which I knew I’d messed up immediately. Aside from that, she makes sure anyone who wants water gets some and gives little reminders about what was to come. I can’t speak for any other game, but I never chatted with the two other contestants during the game itself. Once the break is over, Alex comes over for the interview segment. I figured I had a pretty good story- trying to make Mel Brooks laugh at a book signing. Being a TV veteran, I even cheated with a look straight at the camera at one point to talk directly to my comedy hero (I knew he was a devoted Jeopardy! watcher).

The Jeopardy round continued and I did okay, picking up a few more questions, including the $1,000 one in the TV round, which turned out to be my best category (I got four of the five and was beat out on the buzzer on the other one). I pushed myself back into second by the end of the round with $2,800. But Sam had gotten the Daily Double and bet big, opening up a large lead. I’d have to get really lucky with the Double Jeopardy categories and Daily Doubles to have a chance.

I didn’t. I only liked one category when Alex read them off- something about the Supreme Court. I’d end up getting three of those questions and only one other the entire rest of the round. In fact, even though I’d remembered a lot about the experience when I finally watched the episode four months later, I was stunned at how quiet I was during that Double Jeopardy round. I wish I could say I couldn’t get the buzzer timing right, but the sad truth was that I just didn’t know enough. I took a dumb gamble on the very last question and got it wrong, so Final Jeopardy was meaningless. Sam had locked up the win and the other contestant, Christina, had locked up second. The category was Women Authors- not great, but not bad for me. I had $5,200 and decided to bet $5,199. I figured if I got it right, I’d end up in double-digits and it would look good. If I got it wrong, I’d end up with $1, which was funnier than $0 (that’s already turned out to be true- it let me make that joke in the first paragraph about Ken being cheap). Alas, I had no idea when the clue came on the board. The best I could do was guess a female author from the right period, but I knew it was wrong. Thus, I ended up with the buck-, although third place actually gets $1,000, while second gets $2,000 and the winner gets whatever their score was.

People had told me for years that I should go on Jeopardy! My stock answer was always that I didn’t think I was well-rounded enough. I turned out to be exactly right. I think my performance was pretty good- I wasn’t nervous and felt fine on the buzzer. If I got a good category draw, I would have had a shot. But I didn’t, and so I lost. I was very disappointed when I came off the stage. That will probably be the only chance in my life to make that kind of money in one day, unless Ken casts me to play myself next time he writes a Jeopardy! episode of a sitcom (he probably won’t after that joke about him being cheap, now I’m kicking myself for writing it). But even more than the money, I would have loved to have belonged to that exclusive club of Jeopardy! champion. It just didn’t turn out that way.

Still, the experience was amazing. My friends and family had a great time living it vicariously through me. I love talking about the show and answering all the behind-the-scenes questions. It’s a story I’ll tell the rest of my life. Plus, as time passes and memories of what happened fade away, I figure maybe I can start telling people I won. Who’s going to take the time to look it up?

Thanks again to Jeff Lasky. 

UPDATE:  Jeff was kind enough to answer some of your reader questions and that will appear tomorrow.  

22 comments :

Nate L. said...

Great story, Thanks Jeff and Ken.

Roy DeRousse said...

I really enjoyed reading your story, Jeff. Thanks for taking the time to do it so well!

Rays profile said...

Your last paragraph reminded me of what we were told at the test to be on the show: "remember, we don't tell anybody how you did, of you don't make it, you can tell everyone you only missed by one."

thomas tucker said...

Yes, thanks for the stories, Jeff and Ken- very entertaining.

Jeff Boice said...

Thanks for telling your story, Jeff. You got a bad break with the categories and daily doubles, but you were in the game for a good amount of the time, and you definitely avoided the dreaded Wolf Blitzer fate.

Cliff said...

Interesting, thanks for sharing.

Gene Renaker said...

While watching any ‘Jeopardy!’ episode, I’ll shout out correct answers all night long. (It annoys my wife.) Yet, last year at the DMV, I was asked for my “complete, full and legal name,” and I blanked out. I know for a fact, if I were to ever be a contestant, that is exactly what would happen to me. Thank you, Jeff, for a dose of reality.

Peter said...

Friday Q:

The Frasier episode "Something About Dr Mary" was on UK TV recently. I hadn't seen it n years. It's a terrific episode of course, but I noticed something that I had missed before. The character of the guy with the speech impediment who cracks Frasier up is called Chuck Ranberg. I immediately recognized it as a name I'd seen many times in the Frasier credits. I double checked IMDB and sure enough he was a writer and producer on the show. So was naming the character after him an inside joke? How did it come about?

Tom Galloway said...

As a side note, on a podcast (http://www.slot-machine-resource.com/podcasts/holzhauer.mp3) James Holzhauer mentioned that his wife is from Seattle, and they've considered moving there and stated so publically. Which led to the Mariners contacting him, apparently about possibly working for them. (he's also mentioned his dream at least used to be working as a stats type for a Major League team). Nothing more about what his reply to them was.

MikeN said...

First and second place were locked up while you had $5200? This means she had at least 10,400 and Sam had more than double her amount, at least $21,000. Is this right?

I saw an episode of Sports Jeopardy where the long running defending champ was in 3rrd place, and less than half of first place, and managed to win. Something like 7-12-18, and he calculated that first place had to bet at least 6.

Brian said...

Thanks for telling your story Jeff, and Ken, thanks for sharing. Now, time to start studying....

Andy Rose said...

A few other interesting things I noticed at tapings that may be of interest to Jeopardy! and TV production nerds like me:

Alex does make mistakes! If he stumbles over a word or mispronounces something, they just plow through, and he records a pickup during the next commercial break which is edited in to the final show. If there's any question about whether a contestant's response was acceptable, they will wait until the next logical break in action (often, a Daily Double) and then stop tape to discuss it off-camera. The final decision is made by soon-to-be-retired EP Harry Friedman, but Alex often weighs in. The deliberations are edited out. On the rare occasions they know immediately that a mistake was made in game play, they will redo it right away. Sometimes, they will play back the last few seconds prior to the mistake over the PA so that when Alex does the pickup, it sounds more natural.

The photo that Alex takes with each contestant -- which you see in the previous entry -- is done during the first commercial break. I also noticed in the episodes I watched that Alex had a clear earpiece like you see reporters wear. I didn't see any indication that anyone was communicating with him directly through the earpiece, so I assume it is only there to allow him to hear the contestants more clearly. (An earlier version of his podium had a speaker built into it.)

The audience applause you hear at the very end of the show is canned. To keep the production moving, the warmup person (usually either Johnny or Sarah) will start talking to the audience almost the moment Alex says "bye-bye" on camera. They are talking to the audience as Alex is still being taped speaking to the contestants. The "promotional consideration" announcements are all dubbed in later, as well. The only thing Johnny announces live when he is there at the taping is the introduction.

Unknown said...

Jeff I am in awe of anyone who gets on Jeopardy. Even if I knew the answers, my nerves would probably win out. Congrats. Sounded like a blast.

thirteen said...

This was just sooooo good. Thanks!

ventucky said...

I really enjoyed that. I also lived vicariously through your experience, and didn't even see the episode.

Kevin FitzMaurice said...

Mel Brooks appeared briefly as the 2000-year-old man on the 2000th show of the Art Fleming version of "Jeopardy!" on NBC in 1972.

Unknown said...

I've always wondered about the selection of categories for the show and the knowledge the producers have of what categories a contestant knows best based upon the tests they take before they are selected as a contestant. Please comment on any knowledge that you have about that.

April Acton said...

Thank you, Ken, for posting Jeff's story. I always love your blog but these two posts were especially enjoyable. I'm another person who is often told I should be on Jeopardy. (I'm a whiz at Trivial Pursuit.) But I know I don't have well-rounded knowledge and would be a BUST! It was a lot of fun living vicariously through Jeff's account.

Breadbaker said...

I looked it up, and Johnny Gilbert is indeed now 95 (as of July 13). I'm glad they let him sleep in. When I was on Jeopardy, he did all five intros (in a leather jacket).

They cut a portion of my interview when I was on. The story was I used to hear Yo-Yo Ma rehearsing cello in college, and Alex asked me if I played the cello. I said that my mom did and then recounted the story (which got a nice laugh from the audience) about how my grandfather had taken her to the green stamp redemption store to buy a cello and she had said she wanted a bicycle instead, so she got neither a bicycle nor a cello. On the aired version of the show, I say, "my mother played the cello" and they cut to the next contestant.

Brian said...

FRIDAY ANSWER: That was one of the first jokes or funny lines that Ken Levine made up.

Brian said...

Thanks for posting this. I've been a big fan of Jeopardy! ever since I was a boy. For whatever reason, I appreciated shows when people didn't act silly. So, this and Concentration were right up my alley.

Roger Owen Green said...

Scores at the end of the Double Jeopardy! Round:
Sam $33,200
Christina $13,600
Jeff $5,200
Sam bet $5000 and got it right, Christiana got it right but bet nothing.
Check out J-Archive - http://www.j-archive.com/showplayer.php?player_id=12809