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Credit: ABCWhen longtime Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek, 80, passed away after a long battle with cancer on November 8, 2020, fans of the game show were devastated. The biggest question for viewers and contestants, of course, was who would fill Trebek’s shoes as the new host.
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Following months of guest hosts including Reading Rainbow host LeVar Burton, Big Bang Theory star Mayim Bialik, and former champions like Ken Jennings and Buzzy Cohen, Bialik landed the job following controversy involving former Jeopardy! producer Mike Richardson.
Bialik has faced her own minor controversies, including fans’ frustration at her use of the term “Single Jeopardy” to describe the first round of the show — “Double Jeopardy” has long been the name of the second round — and requests from producers to “tone it down” when dealing with contestants.
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Bialik’s tenure on the long-running game show has already given rise to some popular champions, including Amy Schneider, who won 40 games, and recent champion, Mattea Roach, who broke the win streak record for a Canadian contestant.
The current host’s future on Jeopardy is unknown at this time, however, as Ken Jennings’s recent exit from The Chase has many viewers convinced that he will be taking over full-time hosting duties next season.
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The long-running game show has undergone a number of changes lately, including a brand new tournament that “may have broken the “Jeopardy-Verse” and adding the categories above the Final Jeopardy question for the first time since the show debuted in 1984.
During last night’s episode, Jeopardy producers made an uncharacteristic error when the Final Jeopardy question about “19th Century Literature” contained a spelling error.
As you can see above, the June 22, 2022 Final Jeopardy question was:
This author first thought of a parrot before choosing another bird “equallly capable of speech”
“Equally,” however, is spelled “equallly” — with three “l’s” — in a rare mistake for the meticulous Jeopardy team.
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The solution to the question was Edgar Allan Poe and the clue, of course, was referring to his iconic poem, “The Raven.”
Returning Jeopardy champion Megan Wachspress, an attorney from Berkley, California, had a somewhat controversial six-game winning streak that had some viewers saying the game show is “rigged.” She was finally beaten during last night’s final round.
The new champ is Jeff Weinstock, a marketing lecturer from Miami, Florida. Weinstock will defend his $11,202 beginning June 23, 2022.
Did you catch the spelling mistake on Jeopardy last night?