'Jeopardy' Champ Ken Jennings Blasts Show

AP ^ | 7-25-2006

[Cagey]

NEW YORK (AP) - "Jeopardy!" ace Ken Jennings, who won $2.5 million during his 74-game winning streak, has a few unkind words to say about the show - and dapper host Alex Trebek.

"I know, I know, the old folks love him," Jennings writes in a recent posting, titled "Dear Jeopardy!" on his Web site.

"Nobody knows he died in that fiery truck crash a few years back and was immediately replaced with the Trebektron 4000 (I see your engineers still can't get the mustache right, by the way)."

Jennings also takes aim at the show's "effete, left-coast" categories and "same-old" format.

"You're like the Dorian Gray of syndication," he says. "You seem to think 'change' means replacing a blue polyethylene backdrop with a slightly different shade of blue polyethylene backdrop every presidential election or so."

A call by The Associated Press to "Jeopardy!" spokesman Jeff Ritter was not immediately returned Tuesday.

Jennings, a software engineer from Salt Lake City, snagged 74 wins on "Jeopardy!" in 2004 before he was beaten by challenger Nancy Zerg.

Trebek, 66, has hosted the show since 1984. In a "correction" posted Monday on his Web site, Jennings offers an apology of sorts.

"We regret the insinuation that Mr. Alex Trebek is a robot, and has been since 2004. Mr. Trebek's robotic frame does still contain some organic parts, many harvested from patriotic Canadian schoolchildren, so this technically makes him a 'cyborg,' not a 'robot.'"

---

[Echo Talon]

I remember watching Ken on his Jeopardy run, that was cool!. :)

I agree with Ken, Jeppardy does have a liberal slant, watch the show and usually at least one question each day has something to do with the French.. :\

[csvset]

Bwahhaha. He should have appealed to the judges!

[Cagey]

usually at least one question each day has something to do with the French.. :\

That's mainly because Trebek enjoys hearing himself speak his native language with such flair. My wife can't stand Trebek but I enjoy his personality. He seems to enjoy his work and I like that in a person.

[dc27]

The Arby's menu was a good one.

[Maven]

My wife can't stand Trebek but I enjoy his personality.

That's because you haven't met him. Despite what you may think, he doesn't really have a personality - Ken Jennings was right.

And no, I wasn't on the show, but my father was - a four-day champ and 1986 TOC finalist.

There's also a documentary called "Wise Guys" about the 1986 TOC, which aired on Nova - it gave you a pretty good look at Trebek's off-screen persona.

Maven

[HairOfTheDog]

And Ho is a better answer :~)

[ecurbh]

Here's the response Ken posted this morning, FWIW...

Sense of humor, meet Michael Starr

I woke up to this New York Post piece this morning. If you don’t want to read it, I can sum up for you: I’m ungrateful to be snarkily ripping on Jeopardy! in this blog entry of last week. How dare I? They made me!

I’ve met Michael Starr a couple times, and he always seemed like a nice enough guy. Which leaves me wondering: does he know how asinine this non-story is? Despite working for the Post, I’m sure his reading comprehension is just fine. He knows there’s no way I was genuinely calling for angry bees and ventriloquist’s dummies to be added to the Jeopardy! format. It’s a humor piece, and one which gets its laughs from the outrageous non sequiturs it proposes, not the ripeness of its target for criticism. For the record: I’ve loved Jeopardy! since I was a kid, as anyone who talks to me for about five minutes knows. Making goofy jokes about TV shows isn’t “bashing.” I believe it’s the whole reason Al Gore invented the Internet.

I am grateful to Michael for the extra web traffic, but not for the humor-impaired sock puppet users who showed up on the message board this morning to either defend Jeopardy! or make trouble, I can’t tell which. In any case, they’ve (he’s?) violated several of our posting guidelines, and the threads will be removed shortly. I welcome reasoned disagreement on a blog entry’s strengths and flaws, but this wasn’t it.

[Cagey]

...it gave you a pretty good look at Trebek's off-screen persona.

But that's exactly my point. I enjoy his on-air persona. I don't want to go to dinner with him, I just want to watch the TV show. I don't care what his politics are or what religion he is. I just enjoy the way he handles himself on Jeopardy. I don't have any desire to meet him either. It's entertainment, that's all.

And that is pretty cool having a Dad who did so well on the show. I'd freeze like Jackie Gleason did while portraying the Chef of the Future trying to peddle the infamous "Handy Housewife Helper" on TV.

[nhoward14]

I'll take Anal Bum Cover for $1000, Trebek.

[steveo]

I'll take Chardony for $400 you bastard.

[HairOfTheDog]

(you might want to read post 27)

[VOA]

I'll take JAP @NUS RELATIONS for $400, Trebek.

[nhoward14]

"I believe it’s the whole reason Al Gore invented the Internet."

ROTFLMAO!!!!!!!!!

KenJen for Prez!!!!!!!!!

[Samwise]

Making goofy jokes about TV shows isn’t “bashing.” I believe it’s the whole reason Al Gore invented the Internet.

OK. I wonder what his freeper screen name is.

[MikefromOhio]

LOL

[HungarianGypsy]

Aww! The guy's message board is offline because of the idiots who took this piece too seriously. I thought it was pretty obvious that it was supposed to be a humor piece. But, I guess everything involving the media or television is always supposed to taken as gospel.

[uncitizen]

I'll take "The Rapists" for $200 Alex.

[MikefromOhio]

LOL

[lainie]

It is satire. It's real satire.

[lainie]

HAHA! love it. Now I want to meet Ken Jennings and shake his hand.