Posted on 06/06/2021 7:13:09 AM PDT by gattaca
Viewers and fans of the popular "Jeopardy!" quiz show were dismayed when none of the contestants were able to answer the clue based on very elementary knowledge of U.S. History.
The show aired Tuesday and was being hosted by "Big Bang Theory" actress and neuroscientist Mayim Bialik.
During a round of Double Jeopardy, contestant Robin Lozano chose the "Quotations" category for $800. Bialik gave him the clue from a very famous speech.
"'Government of the people, by the people, for the people' is from the end of this brief but powerful speech," she said.
The seconds ticked away before the buzzer sounded without any of the contestants offering even a guess at the solution to the clue.
The famous line came from the Gettysburg Address by Abraham Lincoln in November 1863.
Many viewers were shocked and surprised that none of the contestants knew this very simple factoid in U.S. History.
"Not know the Gettysburg Address?? Worst showing ever. None of these 3 deserved to win tonight. If they'd been asked to add 3 + 2, they'd have looked around like confused squirrels," said one critic.
"I'm gonna pretend like I just didn't see ALL THREE contestants miss 'the Gettysburg Address' just now," replied another.
"How did #Jeopardy manage to find three contestants who don't recognize the closing line of the Gettysburg Address? This isn't Elementary Jeopardy, folks," mocked another critic.
"Wow, no one knew The Gettysburg Address. That made me sad," responded another.
Some made reference to Alex Trebek, the former host of the show who passed away from pancreatic cancer in November.
"That sound you hear is Alex Trebek spinning in his grave," tweeted one
Here's a video of Mayim Bialik as host of Jeopardy!:
They deliberately have not taught American history and civics in school for years. They focus not on the freedoms our constitution says we receive from Gd. They don’t teach kids how the government is subservient to the people. Kids completely think freedoms are granted by our government leaders. So that speech wouldn’t be in the curriculum that short semester when they teach us history. It would take time away from teaching only how evil we were RE slavery and native Americans.
That is both tragic and hilarious.
Saw that... have gotten into a routine at our house of trying to beat the contestants and was surprised to see that question go unanswered. Not sure that I’d get as hung up about it as some people... there are so many questions that come up for which I know the answer but it just didn’t bubble up fast enough.... the typical brain fart. If it was asked on a different day, the answer would be right there. I have no doubt that happens for Jeopardy contestants too and in this case, I suspect they knew but it was a case of all three of them having simultaneous brain farts.
As a side note, of all the guest hosts that they’ve had, Mayim Bialik is definitely my favourite.... but I do hope that they get her some help in selecting dresses. Sheeesh some of them are downright awful....
If anything ?
I was taught 55 years ago it was to preserve the Union, this simply to free slaves is the province of neocons and talk radio who trumpet that to deflect charge the GOPe is racist
Lincoln himself said
“ If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that”
Heck, most of the country doesn’t even realize the absolute irony of the For the People Act/HR1 name.
THAT is a crying shame.
Indeed. I saw that episode. I was stunned by the ignorance of the three contestants. The next question was also met with vapid, blank stares, and had to do with Linus’s speech from “A Charlie Brown Christmas”. Nobody had a clue that Linus was quoting from the Gospel of Luke.
None of them even ventured a guess, even though they had a i in 4 chance of getting it right.
EEK!
Jay Leno did this all the time. It was funny but sad.
LOL. 😃
Yes, I believe it was.
I think Katie Couric was the worst guest host, or maybe second worst to Anderson Cooper who was just b.o.r.i.n.g.
The one I liked best actually was Bill Whitaker, he’s from 60 minutes, so no wonder I didn’t know him. But he was really a good host, by far the closest to Trebek if that’s what wanted. Wouldn’t mind seeing him get the job permanently based on those we’ve seen so far.
For some reason that article really struck me as funny. I still laugh when I think about it.
I used to get totals for things like the Magna Carta or the Treaty of Ghent but don’t get them as frequently now. With inflation there are fewer and fewer totals around $12 or $18.
“...no one talks about Trivial Pursuit anymore?”
I’m down for game anytime! It was so cool when they made a game that I could win!
It’s all about pop culture and obscure writings these days.
Join a trivia challenge at some social event and see how many references from history (American and world) and literature come up.
It is as you described: pop culture and garbage.
There was a time when all Americans were immersed in classic history and literature. Even the common man was expected to have been exposed to it. Check out the classic cartoons from the 1930s through the 1950s (originally for theatrical release before the newsreel and the main feature) and see this.
I saw that and was dumbfounded.
BTW, I thought Bialik would be a terrible host(ess) but she’s doing fine. My faves are still Aaron Rogers and the Jeopardy producer, whazzisname.
Couric was the absolute worst of all the guest hosts.
I refused to watch it last week. Mayim Bialik is all about wackadoodle attachment parenting. Did notice she still hasn’t learned to brush her hair as I quickly left the room with some choice words.
She’s freaky. They’re vegans. Don’t believe in medicine. No learning from the internet so only books. No diapers but she believes in wearing the kids in a sling so guess she likes being peed on. Same idea with breastfeeding so guess if the kids was a sip at 35, she’s game.
The first and only time she let her 3 year old son watch tv was a video on childbirth so he could help with his brother’s home birth. She doesn’t believe in schedules even with mealtime so she’s a 24/7 short order cook for the kids. The kids sleep in the parents’ bed. Well, they did until dad called it quits with her.
I knew a sales manager who was over the age of 40 who did not know the significance of December 7th. This was back in the 90s. I tried to hide my shock at his lack of basic history. It was hard.
Actually a PHD and she's an Orthodox Jew........
I was reading my kids textbooks by the 1990’s. They were bad then. I do recall they were all by the same publishers. I thought a quick review of the publishers “experts” would tell me all I needed to know. Truth be told, I didn’t even need to do that. Every textbook was effected. Even math books had to have sidebar stories about oppressive America.
Many of my lesson plans focused on pointing out what the textbooks had wrong.
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