Monday, March 22, 2021

JEOPARDY guest hosts so far

The fourth JEOPARDY guest host debuts tonight.  I think there's like fifteen more.  Everyone but Ozzy Osbourne, and there's still a chance for him.  

This is a matter of casting.  It's not just who can read the clues without stumbling; there are a lot of elements to it.  This host will be replacing a beloved icon in Alex Trebek.  The JEOPARDY franchise is huge and a wrong choice could "jeopardize" that.    The new permanent host probably won't be announced until the early summer.  Still time for Ozzy to apply. 

 So here are my thought so far (not that they matter one iota):

Katie Couric -- A solid pro with great warmth.  Part of the job is making the contestants feel comfortable.  Katie was great at that.  There's also a comfort level for the viewer.  They can sense if a host is struggling and JEOPARDY is a particularly difficult show to do.  Lots of moving parts, reading clues, controlling the pace, reacting to unusual occurrences.  The viewer is in good hands with Katie.   However, I never felt like she really wanted the job full-time.  It was a bucket list thing.  And she did raise money for cancer research.  I doubt if Katie will be the new permanent host.

Mike Richards -- He's the Executive Producer of JEOPARDY.  When I heard he was going to host for two weeks I thought this was a vanity call.  But I was very pleasantly surprised.  He's obviously hosted game shows before.  He was incredibly polished, really kept the pace moving, and came off extremely likeable.  My only concern was that he might've been too polished.  He was the central casting "game show host" option.  But very impressive.

Ken Jennings -- Considered he had no prior hosting experience I thought he did an incredible job.  He was warm, good with the contestants, has a sly sense of humor, and can pronounce all those foreign words.  The only drawback is that he does not have a commanding voice and that's important because you hear his voice a lot.  However, I'd be willing to overlook that for his strengths. And the one big strength he has over all the other candidates is his association with the show.  As the GOAT and 74 time champ Ken Jennings is part of the JEOPARDY family.  Every other guest host is an outsider.  To me that's an almost insurmountable obstacle the others have to face.  

So it's early yet.  Ozzy would have to learn what JEOPARDY is.  But for my money, still the one to beat is Ken Jennings.  What do you all think?  

89 comments :

slgc said...

I really liked Mike Richards, but I would be fine with Ken Jennings.

Vrej said...

Complete agreement. Despite his soft voice, Ken pleasantly surprised me, especially with that sneaky sense of humour.
My knock against Katie is that she has was too many interjections and talks too slowly. If you go back and watch her episodes, she left clues unread on the board more often than not, sometimes two clues. That tells me she has a pacing issue.

Ben Scripps said...

Hard pass on Katie--she didn't really seem to grasp the method of reading the clues, emphasizing certain words to guide the players in to what they were looking for. She just read everything like news copy.

Mike Richards was okay, but definitely not my cup of tea.

Ken really sold it for me--thus far he'd be my pick.

"Dr." Oz starts tonight. Among former contestants, there's a lot of dislike of this choice.

Personally, I'm looking forward to Mayim Bialik's turn--I think she'd be a good fit.

Stuart said...

tl;dr Most of the guest hosts are here for fun, and not to tryout for the permanent position.

You misunderstand the guest hosting process. These are not tryouts for the permanent host spot. Jeopardy just wanted some people to guest host until next season. They already announced that the new host (whoever that may be) will start the 2021-2022 season. Most of these guest hosts are people who love the show, and this is their chance to have some fun, raise some money, and honor Alex Trebek. But they have no desire to fill his shows permanently. The new host may come from these guest host ranks, but not necessarily.

Loosh Philbin said...

I liked Mike & Ken. Jeopardy would be in good hands if either person becomes the host. My one wish, though, is to have Norm Macdonald get an audition. I think that would be epic.

Loosh Philbin said...

I like Ken and Mike. Jeopardy would be in good hands with either as the host. My one wish, though, is that Norm MacDonald gets a chance to host some shows. I think that would be good TV.

Don G said...

All three guest hosts have looked very comfortable. My only complaint about Ken Jennings is how he seems slightly snide when he corrects a contestant. Both Katie and Mike seem more empathetic when a wrong answer is given.

tavm said...

Unless there was a female substitute host during the Art Fleming era, Katie Couric has at least made that record of being the first at that...

Dana King said...

The Beloved Spouse and I felt Richards tried too hard to show enthusiasm and came across as smarmy. Katie sometimes seems condescending in the manner she congratulates players for correct answers, as if they're fifth graders. Jennings doesn't have a great voice, but he does everything else well, and has a connection with the players no one will be able to match. Just make him the host, get him some voice lessons, and call it done.

KLAC Guy said...

I think Ken Jennings would win the job in a landslide if not for his voice. As much as I like his association with the game and his sense of humor, his voice really started to hurt my ears after a few days.

I thought that Mike Richards was a little fake. It was obvious that he had no interest in the answers when he did the contestant interviews after the first break.

For me, Katie Couric was perfect. Her upbeat demeanor and show pacing were right on target. It was obvious that she made the contestants feel comfortable, and she was the only one who actually bantered with them during the interview segments. I wish she was actually interested in the job, but I’ve read in several places that she isn’t. Too bad.

Anthony Adams said...

I like Ken best. I think Katie made people feel comfortable but I didn't feel like she had a command of the game. I think too many times the answers weren't something she could really get her head around. I was surprised by how much I liked Mike, but in the end, he was bland. I don't think anybody else is really in it, except maybe Ozzy.

DBA said...

Ken Jennings does have prior hosting experience. He hosts something on Game Show Network, I believe.

myrna said...

Ken Jennings.

Covarr said...

Of the guest hosts so far, I think Ken Jennings is easily the best. Couric didn't quite seem to get it (and doesn't seem interested in the job permanently), and Richards felt just a bit too game show hosty, but Jennings really felt natural.

That said, I'm still holding out hope for LeVar Burton. His work on Reading Rainbow already shows both the right kind of presence and a passion for knowledge, and he has a bit of a reputation for being kind and personable. I know, he isn't one of the announced guest hosts, and in fact there hasn't been even so much as a rumor, just some fans on the internet who really want it, but I do think he'd do better than almost anyone.

Dave said...

John Ratzenberger, but only if he appears in character as Cliff Clavin.

Peter J. said...

(I'm not a former Jeopardy! contestant, but an alumnus of a Canadian game show once hosted by Alex Trebek.)

I think Mike Richards has been the best host so far, but Ken the best quizmaster. They're very distinct roles, and obviously Alex was great at both.

My big issue with Ken is that he was too focused on the money aspect, egging the contestants on to make large wagers and noting their scores at every possible opportunity. Katie had some money focus too, but at least there was a reason for it (fundraising for pancreatic cancer, kudos to her and Jeopardy!). Also felt his interviews weren't up to par, although that's something he could grow into with experience.

Given Mike's role as executive producer I was surprised that he *wasn't* focused on the money. I really felt that he was interested in the game more than the cash---if it was a competitive game he'd have been as happy for the Final Jeopardy winner to get $5 as $25000, as long as the players were all in it. His quizzing wasn't fantastic (particularly pronunciation) but, as with Ken, experience would help with that, but as there's no chance he'd take the host job that's a moot point.

Really really didn't like Katie's hosting style---got a real "novice kindergarten teacher" vibe (unnecessarily and overly complimenting the contestants, etc.) and as noted by others she didn't seem to reflect the (always excellent!) Jeopardy writers' style in her readings. Curiously, her interview segments were only on par with Mike Richards', and her quizzing was the poorest of the three so far.

I've said it elsewhere, but I think Sara Haines would be a great candidate. She's a good quizzer and a host who's personable but can be appropriately snarky when called for. She just seems to get it. Heck, she made the U.S. version of The Chase watchable despite all of its other issues---not that she'd ever need to fill time on Jeopardy!, but she even did that well.

With the next host being "Dr." Oz I'll be skipping the broadcasts for two weeks. There are others who'd be more of a kick in the face to Alex's memory, but having a pseudoscience promoter host a show that prides itself on facts is just beyond. (If Richards okayed him without pressure from Sony/CBS then he needs to go.)

Kevin FitzMaurice said...

Katie Couric did a respectable job, but she's always seemed too enamored with the showbiz side of television, which is my beef with a lot of current and former news people.

Yet, for better or worse, that's been a fact of television since its inception. John Charles Daly and Hugh Downs are two names from the early days who credibly kept a hand in both news and entertainment.

Richards was fine, too, but I'd go with Jennings, who has good command of the material and never overshadowed the game or the players.

John said...

Ken's fake humility is evident to anyone with half a brain. Fuck him.

Bob Paris said...

I have gotten out of the habit of watching JEOPARDY although the DVR still records and keeps the last 15 episodes. I watched Ken Jenning's first episode and within minutes forgot that he was "new" and found him to be qualified, pleasant & natural. Proving that anyone can be replaced. Alex Trebek impressed me since he would occasionally explain to a contestant why their response was incorrect and his bit of information could not have been on a card - he was a bright guy.

Greg Ehrbar said...

For historical purposes, I point out that one of Alex Trebek's last appearances was in animated form in a "Jeopardy" themed episode of "Scooby-Doo Guess Who," which is a throwback series to the guest-star format of the CBS "Scooby-Doo Movies" in 1972 ("Why, it's the famous Jerry Reed!")

The episode ran back in the fall on Cartoon Network dedicated to Trebek and was streamed free for a limited time. It's on the Boomerang app on amazon.

https://www.tvinsider.com/956801/alex-trebek-scooby-doo-guess-who-boomerang/

Of course, we all know extremely well that this was far from the first time Alex Trebek appeared as himself with characters from a TV show playing contestants on "Jeopardy," but Scooby-Doo shows seem destined to go on forever. What might seem like a lesser gig to some is immortality to others.

Michael said...

Part of the thinking with the guest hosts should be familiar to Ken--Levine, not Jennings--and it might make for an interesting post: When Dave Niehaus died, the Mariners went with guest announcers for two seasons. I think Dave was as iconic to Seattle as Alex Trebek was on Jeopardy.

Douglas Trapasso said...

My choice to get at least a tryout is someone I haven't seen on anyone's radar - any love out there for Danica McKellar?

Monty B said...

Katie Couric - hard pass. Jeopardy doesn't need a cheerleader Grandma as a host.
Ken Jennings - better than I expected, but the smarm factor is still there as others have noted. Plus, I'm just sick of the guy. They've been shoving him down our throats for years. If they were going to use a previous big winner, Brad Rutter would have been a much better choice.
Mike Richards - by far the best to this point. Such an excellent surprise. Had great command of the material, was personable, and clearly loves the game. His pacing was also the best of the 3. I'd be fine with him as the host.

Bob Timmermann said...

These are definitely exhibitions, not competitions. Richards said he only hosted because COVID issues kept them from being able to find someone to fit in for those taping dates.

I don't think anyone besides Ken Jennings of this group would be considered for the job full time. There could also be negotiations behind the scenese for a completely different fulltime host.

Mike McCann said...

Ken Jennings would be my "leader in the clubhouse." Warm, personable, already strongly identified with the show, he's proof that you don't need Art Fleming's or Alex's voice to stand behind the podium.

That being said, I am looking forward to seeing Bill Whittaker's audition. My first thought for the job was finding a newscaster-type (such as Scott Peley).

MikeN said...

Has anyone asked George Wendt?

Andrew said...

I agree with the consensus. Ken really knocked it out of the park for me.

Mike was serviceable but bland.

My least favorite was Katie. I'm surprised no one has mentioned it, but she sounded like she was emotionally invested in particular players doing well. I remember when one woman answered a Daily Double correctly, Katie literally shouted "Yes!!!" Sometimes it felt like she favored one contestant over another. While Alex would occasionally express slight enthusiasm or disappointment, depending on a contestant's performance, he was always detached and never seemed partial.

One thing is for certain: watching these three guest hosts really showed me what an exceptional host Alex was all along. He made a difficult and complicated job seem easy.

I came up with a perfect guest host, but to my surprise, Dave above beat me too it.

Perhaps George Wendt could follow up in character as Norm. That would be a hoot.

Craig Gustafson said...

I love "Jeopardy," but not to distraction. My wife Margie is the rabid "Jeopardy" fanatic in the family. And she is solidly in Ken Jennings' corner.

Liggie said...

I'm going off the board and suggesting recently retired NHL broadcaster Mike Emrick as a guest host. Extremely intelligent (PhD. in communications), a fantastic vocabulary, can handle fast-paced action, and regarded as one of the best play-by-play announcers in any North American sport ever. If he can handle the hectic Stanley Cup playoffs, he certainly can handle "Jeopardy!"

McTom said...

Can we find the guy from the "University Challenge" episode of "The Young Ones"?

SummitCityScribe said...

I haven't seen a list of the upcoming Jeopardy hosts, but I really hope LeVar Burton is on it. He's not only a smart, empathetic guy with a great voice but he'll bring the one thing Jeopardy has lacked since 1964: melanin.

Jeff Maxwell said...

Met Katie Couric on the Today Show. Beyond charming. She smelled really good, too. But Ken Jennings fit the show. No doubt Katie would develop well, but she seemed a little overwhelmed.

My picks:
Steve Harvey. Rachael Maddow. Sanjay Gupta. Anthony Fauci. Ellen DeGeneres. Tamron Hall. Jim Acosta. Christiane Amanpour. Bill Weir. Lisa Ling.

Betty White.

Unknown said...

What happened to the list that was created when it was announced that Trebek was sick? It was the talk for a few weeks with the cry for a woman to replace him. I even think Mr. Trebek put his $.02 in

Roger Owen Green said...

As an avid J watcher going back to the AF days, and a one-day J winner (1998), I was surprised how much Ken's voice really grated on me in this role. It was timbre more than anything.

Katie didn't watch the show enough beforehand to pick up nuances. When someone got a Daily Double, she never noted the scores. ("You're ahead of X by $1200)

Even though Mike looks like a dark-haired Ken doll, I thought he was the best so far.

My, I dislike Dr. Oz, but I'll watch anyway.

Unknown said...

Definitely agree with Doc Emrick as he was a great hockey announcer. I think that two weeks with him would be comforting.

Unknown said...

Ken is my first choice, Mike next, Katie no. Ken and Mike are familiar with up front and behind the scenes. I like them both. Katie definitely NO.

Unknown said...

Jennings so far. Couric was too giddy.

Annie said...

I liked Jennings as the host a lot more than I had expected and was surprised to find I liked Mike, too, as I thought the same thing you did about vanity, Ken.

But I truly grew to hate Katie's style. As another commenter has said, it was like she was teaching kindergarten or talking to her dog..."Who's a GOOD BOY? WHO IS??? YOU ARE! THAT'S RIGHT!!! YES YOU ARE! AREN'T YOU??? AREN'T YOUUUUUUU?? Look how cute you are..." All that fake enthusiasm...brrrrrr *shudder* . Ugh. We cringed harder and harder as the days went on. Don't ever want to see her host again.

Hoping Dr. Oz is good but not exactly a fan of his, to say the least, ha! Fingers crossed! :)

Richard Guion said...

Ken Jennings is my top choice so far. I am interested to see how Anderson Cooper will do as a guest host. Sara Haines deserves a try, I really hope The Chase gets renewed for a second season. Along with Celebrity Wheel of Fortune!

Rick Whelan said...

Having Ken Jennings as host would be like Mickey Mantle officiating a T-ball tournament. Mike Richards? Competent but a bit bland. Katie was nice but somehow took the cut-throat quality out of the game. My choice: Neil deGrasse Tyson?

Brian said...

I vote for Ken. He did a really good job. Great connection to the contestants. Katie seems a little to smooth for me.

Unknown said...

I think that they have all done a fine job thus far. Currently my 1st choice is Ken.

Mike Bloodworth said...

No on Katie Couric. She may want some of the contestants to be "deprogrammed" before they come on the show.

Ken Jennings once said bad stuff. The Cancel Culture my not approve of that choice.

JEFF MAXWELL had a good idea. Lisa Ling would be a great choice. She's very smart. She was one of the original cohosts of "The View" and she would add some much needed diversity to the mix.

I've mentioned this before, but I would love to see WATSON host.

Here's an outside the box choice, Larry the Cable Guy.

M.B.

Caleb Martin said...

Mike Richards idolizes Dick Clark, right down to being an easygoing gun-for-hire when hosting shows for other people while also being a ruthless shark as a producer.

Mike forbade Ken's team from doing any publicity around Ken's guest-hosting stint, then wrangled himself a torrent of fawning, clearly-coordinated coverage in outlets from Fox News to Out.

Screw Mike Richards. But also get me his publicist.

Curt Alliaume said...

Mike Richards hosted a short-lived version of Pyramid on Game Show Network in 2012:

https://youtu.be/gYEhA39bSHI

Jennings hadn't hosted before, but he was a regular on such shows as The Chase, Master Mind, and Best Ever Trivia Show as an "expert" of sorts. And he worked on the production staff of Jeopardy! before Alex's death in a production position. (Richards is EP of Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune and was EP of The Price Is Right before that.

Here's an interview with Katie Couric that was released today--it appears she's not interested in the job:

https://www.poynter.org/newsletters/2021/a-qa-with-journalism-legend-katie-couric/

Among my game show friends (some are in the biz, some are not), the consensus seems to be it's Jennings' job to lose.

Unknown said...

I wont watch while OZ hosts.
He gives me the creeps.

Green Luthor said...

I've thought that Ken Jennings would make for a adequate replacement for Alex (as much as anyone could ever replace Alex), so he'd still probably be my choice, but another guest host could still come along to change that opinion. We'll see.

I can't decide if Will Ferrell would be a great or horrendous choice for a stint. (Obviously, not the permanent host, but... could be good for a laugh. Maybe for a Celebrity Jeopardy tournament.)

Of course, someone should consider that "Ken Levine" guy. The guy from BioShock, or the other one, who cares. (Shameless brown-nosing? Maybe.)

(Ooh! Ken Levine hosting Celebrity Jeopardy, with guests Roseanne Barr, Mel Gibson, and Stephen Miller! Ratings GOLD!!!)

Unknown said...

I'm also not watching OZ.

Cap'n Bob said...

Monty B. said what I'm thinking, except I don't know who Brad Ruttner is. I have disliked Katie for decades and would simply stop watching the show if she were picked. Jennings surprised me but there's something about him I find annoying. I thought Michael was fine. Please, no one from CNN, The View, or any of those sources. How about a relative unknown with the voice, intelligence, and presence to do the job? Start with a clean slate, so to speak.

The Coop said...

I liked Mike the best of the three so far.

Unknown said...

Mike Richards is good, have a great personality, but he's the producer of 2 shows, might be too much for him. I still want to see how the rest of guest co host will do before I chose

Unknown said...

Mike Richards is absolutely great, has a nice personality, but he's the producer of 2 shows, might be too much for him to be the permanent host..I still want to see how the other guests co host will do before I chose.

Kevin said...

None of them were great. But Katie has been the worst, and the number of reasons have already been posted by others. Something else I noticed with the Katie hosted episodes, there seemed to be a lot of post-production voice-over recordings. Which makes me wonder what she was doing/saying wrong to make that happen so often.

Jayne said...

Levar Burton would be great!

Don Kemp said...

Instead of picking people who already have full time pursuits and aren't guest hosting for a lark, plus on the wrong side of the age spectrum. let's go for someone who has done some of this before:

Brooke Burns.

River said...

Katie Couric was AWFUL!

Troy McClure said...

I'd like Kristen Welker as host just for the joy of all the racist rednecks getting upset.

Chuck Cavender said...

Whitaker is by far the most intriguing choice. Richards is still EP of both Wheel and Jeopardy!. Far more security there. I still have my 3 choices; Tony Reali, Aisha Tyler, or a very safe choice, Tom Bergeron. Like Trebek, a Canadian with extensive hosting experience.

Tiburon Hiker said...

Ken is the perfect answer to the Jeopardy question of who should host. He has Jeopardy DNA in his blood and viewers easily relate to him. Anyone other than Ken would be disappointment.

Andrew said...

I don't know if this is true everywhere, but where I live, Jeopardy has been postponed until approximately 3:07 am. I'm not making that up. "3:07 am" was written on the announcement scrawl. Because of March Madness.

Who give a a s--t about basketball when Jeopardy is on?

Anthony Adams said...

Well, I just finished Doctor Oz's first show. Not a thing of grace or beauty. I found it particularly distasteful when he said to one of the contestants who missed the Final Jeopardy, "that's about what I would have said." Especially as the answer was obvious, it has to have been galling to hear the host had no clue what was going on. But to be honest I've never cared for his speaking voice anyway.

sanford said...

Maybe I am not discerning enough. Today was Dr Oz's first day I thought everyone was fine so far. As some one else said the new host may not come from this group. You can certainly erase Aaron Rodgers. Even if he is superb he isn't giving up football. The guests hosts will take the show in to mid July when the show goes into a summer break. The show generally starts a new season a week after labor day. It does not appear that there will be any championship weeks for the rest of this season. Doc Emerick would be a great host. But he is in his 70's and would probably like to enjoy his retirement. I think Alex mentioned the LA Kings announcer as a good replacement.

Carol said...

Ken Jennings is the obvious choice as permanent host. I feel outsiders do not generate the warmth and have the insight that Ken Jennings brings to the show. I don't feel it necessary to bring on all of these guests hosts. Ken Jennings is the one.

Carol said...

Ken Jennings is the obvious choice to replace Alex. The outsiders do not generate the warmth that Ken Jennings naturally has nor do they have his insight into the nuances of the show. His experience as a contestant on the show as well as his intellect are qualities no other can duplicate. Please bring Ken back as the permanent host of Jeopardy.

Anonymous said...

I rarely agree with you 100% (usually 80-90), but you are spot-on about the hosts. I want my old TV pal Ken Jennings to have the job, but you're right about the timbre of his voice. I was prepared not to like Katie but she was very good; her excessive chirpiness was held in check. Mike Richards--a pleasant surprise and I ask again "What does an Exec Producer do on a rigidly-formatted game show?" But Ken is my hometown favorite.

-30-

Mike Barer said...

Ken Jennings had the dubious distinction of hosting after the last ever Trebek show. Really, it was an honor, but Jennings is the one that probably got compared to Alex the most.
As we both agreed off line, good, but his higher pitched voice was tough to get used to, in my opinion.
The other contestants did not come right after Trebek, so they did not have to bear amount of comparison that Jennings faced.
I thought Mike Richards did great. Katie, I liked her after getting used to her. She has a great stage presence, but she makes it the "Katie Couric show."
Bring Jennings back for another run, he may be the man for the job, but Alex definitely can't be replaced.

Kevin FitzMaurice said...

You might be right about Richards's workload, but Chuck Barris, Jack Barry, Ralph Edwards, and Monty Hall all served as hosts while producing multiple shows.

Andy Cowan said...

A choice I'd sent to Mike... Jon Meacham. Whether he'd do it or not is another matter. Wit, gravitas, knowledge, a sense of humor, comfortable in front of the camera. For what it's worth.

YEKIMI said...

Well.....They haven't asked ME to guest host yet. [If they do, you know the show's become a dumpster fire....or they're really freaking desperate.]

Breadbaker said...

Dr. Oz was a complete disaster. He didn't give the right questions in Jeopardy format, which pretty much blows the whole point. And it was hard to hear him; the "forty winks" question it took us a moment to realize he had given it. His interviewing was awful, too. And he really didn't seem to understand the strategy of the game, that all players had a shot in Final Jeopardy, for instance.

My sense was Jennings improved as he went on. Mike Richards really isn't a host and obviously Katie Couric is not under consideration. As Ken has, I think, suggested on his podcast and as Alex made clear in his autobiography, game show hosting is all by itself a talent. The move to stars instead of real hosts is troubling.

Tom said...

Even though we White Sox fans dread the inevitable day that the rest of the country discovers he has the potential to be the greatest baseball announcer since Vin Scully and we lose him to the big time, Jason Benetti would make a great Jeopardy host.

Al in PDX said...

For some reason, I was just thinking of the late Harry Caray guest hosting. Don't know how the contestants would like it, but boy, would it be fun.

Tom Galloway said...

My take is that unless Mike Richards grabs it by fiat, Ken's almost certain to be hosting it in September. Why? Because 1) They've pretty much got guest hosts lined up through the end of the season and with the possible exception of Mayim Bialik if her current show is cancelled, none of them are likely to drop their current gig for this. 2) Related, no one else who by default would be a strong candidate has gotten a chance. No Brad Rutter. No LeVar Burton. No Jimmy (who does a lot of the audience warmups) or Sarah from the Clue Crew. No "pick you own favorite *realistic* candidate" (personally, I would've liked to see John Hodgman take a crack at it).

Ken's the only real candidate to get a shot, and they gave him six tape days (J! does five shows per tape day, usually two tape days a week) to get used to things and have the audience get used to him. I think he did well; but the one oops I saw is something he's going to have to watch out for.

Namely, Ken is a nerdy geek. Alex was not. Most of the home audience is not...but a fair number of contestants are. When Ken interviewed that champion about leading a team in the MIT Mystery Hunt, well, I know what that is. And Ken knows what that is. Heck, both of us know people who play in it every year. But maybe 1% of the audience knows what it is and its various quirks. And Ken didn't either explain it himself or ask the player to do so. He's going to need to watch out for inadvertently assuming in the interviews that the home audience knows stuff he knows. (and what it is is an insanely hard and gotten harder in recent years hunt for an Indian head penny somewhere on the MIT campus. To find it, you have to solve a lot of extremely hard puzzles. It usually takes at least 48 around the clock hours for the winner to finish. And as to why it's gotten harder, well, the Internet. Teams used to be people who gathered on the MIT campus, mostly students and alums. These days, teams are working literally all over the world and regularly include winners of the World Puzzling Championships.)

So I think the rest of the season is a combination of stunt casting and giving the new permanent host a buffer between them and Alex. I do wish SNL would take advantage of what can appear to be Bizarro Celebrity Jeopardy! where the contestants are competent, but they keep bringing in celebrity hosts. I see a skit where the cast gets to go all out on dumb celebrity impersonations, as they change the host at least every clue, maybe even in the middle of a couple.

As a side note, please not Sara Haines. While The Chase would appear to be renewed (they're doing another round of tryouts right now), no trivia person I know likes her in the role. Her pacing is terrible; the number of questions in the speed round is always less than on the GSN version, and I'd swear a few times she slowed down in the last 15 seconds or so of the final chases instead of speeding up. And James' crack about "Did you write that?" to her really struck home; she comes across to me as completely scripted. Brooke Burns did a *much* better job.

Barry Traylor said...

I'd be happy with any of them so far. Not looking forward to "Dr."Oz though seems like a snake oil doctor to me.

Ellen said...

Team Ken Jennings here. I thought he was tremendous, and his quick wit adds a dimension to the show.

I'm appalled they're giving that charlatan Dr. Oz a shot. He's nothing but a greedy, opportunistic, snake oil salesman. I can't imagine what they were thinking.

Curt Alliaume said...

>>>Kevin FitzMaurice said...

>>>You might be right about Richards's workload, but Chuck Barris, Jack Barry, Ralph Edwards, and Monty Hall all served as hosts while producing multiple shows.<<<

To an extent. It's absolutely correct that Chuck Barris handled both the production duties and hosted The Gong Show (he once said one of the reasons he gave for hosting is there were a lot of nervous amateurs performing in front of a hostile audience, three cameras, and celebrities wielding mallets; having met every contestant throughout the auditioning process, they thought of him as a friendly face among the chaos), but his other shows had their own producers. Several of the others were primarily the programs' packagers (for example, Dan Enright and Stefan Hatos did most of the producing work on Jack Barry's and Monty Hall's shows). Ralph Edwards is another exception; he produced and hosted the 1950s run of This Is Your Life.

Bob Barker had an EP credit in his later years on The Price Is Right (no comment), and Alex Trebek also produced the first couple of years of Jeopardy! because the pay was pretty low (once the show became more established and he started hosting Classic Concentration too, he gave that up).

If Richards becomes the host, it's likely others on the production staff would have to take on additional duties.

Roy DeRousse said...

I agree with your assessment, Ken. I enjoyed all 3 guest hosts for different reasons. One thing I haven't seen mentioned yet: Ken Jennings says that he has no interest in being the permanent host. That can change, of course...

Irene Saylor said...

Ken Jennings for the win Alex.

Fed by the muse said...

Ken Jennings got better and better. Can't believe no one here has mentioned an obvious "contenda" for this (and if they did I apologize): Bob Costas, a superb interviewer and polished broadcasting pro. I remember when he talked with the Charles Brothers on "Later" where they mentioned their fondness for Nat Hiken and especially "Car 54" (boy, do I wish I could find that bit on YT!)

Elf said...

Jennings has the connection to the show and is the clear front-runner.

Richards is solid, but too bland.

None of the others are serious contenders. I'd prefer to see someone get the gig for whom hosting Jeopardy is their primary gig, not something they do when not reporting the news, acting, managing a company or selling snake oil.

Remember also that they're unlikely to go with anyone over 50. Trebek hosted for 37 years and I hope they aim for that sense of continuity again, the current guest-host gimmick notwithstanding. But once they pick someone, they want that person to be there a long time, so Couric was never a serious contender.

Fielding Melish said...

Here's my ratings so far of the first 4 guest hosts:
1. Mike Richards - professional, polished, charming, and didn't get in the way of the game
2. Katie Couric - the right amount of enthusiasm and was behind each contestant
.
.
.
.
8. Ken Jennings - he has no personality (well he does...a bad one). He tries to be witty (even as a contestant) but, sadly, he isn't
9. Dr. Oz - he makes Ken Jennings look good

Jahn Ghalt said...

Who the hell is "Mike Richards"? (looked him up - a producer, isn't he busy enough for a "second job"?)

The vivacious and engaging Katie Couric is not helped in this house by her "TV News" resume (so little actual news on TV - excepting PBS and BBC). Also not helped by decades of daytime fluff.

None of this makes me want to skip the final Trebek shows to watch the "tryouts".

I saw Jennings on YouTube - almost by accident - pretty good. Pronouncing those foreign words - how did Katie do with those?

WB Jax said...

"Canadian Gold" was found once...why not look to our neighbor to the north again?

Anthony Adams said...

Not that anyone cares but dr. Oz is worse on Thursday than he was on Monday. it's like he dreaded reviews before he even had a show aired.

Anonymous said...

Ken Jennings' voice and smugness were turnoffs. A hard pass for me. Hoping for a pleasant surprise in performance of upcoming hosts. Will be skipping Oz.

-Orleanas

Stu R said...

Alex Trebek suggested another Alex awhile back. The TV voice of the LA Kings Alex Faust. As a long time Kings fan, Bob Miller was the best voice of the NHL. He retired a few years ago and Alex Faust was hired. Poor guy...like replacing John Wooden. As much as I love Bob, Alex has done a great job. Would love to see him get a tryout.

John Corcoran, Jr. said...


Of those who've tried out, I'd say Jennings is the leader in the clubhouse. He's smart, witty and likeable, and his performance as a contestant gives him a Gravitas the others don't have. The exec producer its good, but a little too slick and a little invisible, plus if he gets the gig, they'l have to fit his position. I like Katy as a TV entity, but not here. The host should be all but invisible, she has too much of that "look at me" quality and I don't feel her heart is in it. Dr. Oz? Well somebody's got to finish last. Aaron Rodgers--tho not seen as this is written--has to be a long shot, with no experience and, I'm guessing, a couple more seasons under center in Green Bay left.

JS said...

I like all but Jennings. For some reason, he gets on my nerves. I thought Oz was going to be awful but he's doing okay.

I think the hardest game show to host is The Price is Right. Carey has to know about 15 games with a screaming studio audience. I think he's given up on his appearance at the moment.

Philly Cinephile said...

Not watching the show while Dr. Oz is on -- not for any political reasons, but simply because I find his "shock jock" voice highly irritating. (I am easily annoyed by voices and have been known to root against contestants because of their voices.)

This might be a less-obvious choice, but I think Kelsey Grammer would be a great host. I'm sure that would set off a huge political debate (based on the reactions on other forums to certain guest hosts), but he has a great speaking voice, excellent television presence and technique, and I think he would be able to convey the kind of quiet authority that the host of JEOPARDY! need to convey.