End Of The Line For Jeopardy Whiz Ken Jennings?

[Guest rohale]

Henry VIII, Louis IV, Alexander The Great, Queen Victoria and Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte with great intelligence, all had long and historical reigns in their respective times. Each had to end sometime or another, and so it must be with America's King Of Trivia, Mr Ken Jennings.

 

This Software Engineer hailing from Salt Lake City has literally made his mark throughtout 74 episodes of syndicated game show 'Jeopardy'. He has raked in more than something like $2.4 million and has dazzled the nation with his command of arcance knowledge.

 

Perhaps this week, his luck could change, the rumor mill have it that TV's quiz whiz will meet his match quite possibly as early as this past Tuesday or by the end of the week on television. I suppose it's fair to say that 'Jeopardy' outcomes are the equivalent of state secrets. Each contestant must sign a contract barring them to spew details, in other words, MUMS the word on details until the show which each participant appears on is broadcast. Offcourse the studio audience is expected to join the code of silence or conspiracy of silence, depending upon one's point of view. I'm not speaking scientifically.

 

The word is that people who supposedly have attended recent tapings say Jennings is no longer on the show. The internet has been buzzing with blogs, spoilers and audio clips of Jennings last moments on the program. I suppose the public tide has turned against this soft spoken person. I think in some ways, the audience out there in TV land miss the more competetive days of the show and are weary of Mr Jennings winning streak.

 

If the rumors are true about this gentleman's demise as contenstant on the show. Then he has done remarkably well for himself. I've only seen maybe three shows I suppose, but from what I've seen, he seems to be very unassuming, a really nice bloke who is very gracious and considerate. The world of quizdom definitely needs more people like Mr Ken Jennings who displays great depth and an incredible wealth of knowledge, but appears to be humbled and shy to the amount of attention that he is receiving.

 

Now if only 'Wheel Of Fortune ' would follow suit, then these game shows would be worth watching and attract a larger audience. Mr Jennings has really set the tone for what game shows should be really about which is the prowess of knowledge and utilising it under competitive terms. At the end of the day, when the door closes on his amazing chapter, he can walk away feeling proud of what he has accomplished for the last few months or so. He has done it with dignity and grace.

 

Rohale

[Karl-G]

Yes, last night (Tuesday)was Ken's last night. He missed on two double jeopardy questions and thus his take was down to $14,000 for the final question. He had only one competitor because the other had lost all. On the final question, the competitor, a lady, guessed correctly ("H&R Block") and Ken guessed incorrectly ("Fed Ex") and had bet $5600, so he fell into second place. It was kind of anti-climactic. But I also think Ken did an amazing job and is a likable fellow.

[VaHawk]

"The word is that people who supposedly have attended recent tapings say Jennings is no longer on the show. The internet has been buzzing with blogs, spoilers and audio clips of Jennings last moments on the program. I suppose the public tide has turned against this soft spoken person. I think in some ways, the audience out there in TV land miss the more competetive days of the show and are weary of Mr Jennings winning streak."

 

This was so anti-climatic, as it played out just as posted on many blogs way back in September, right down to the final jeopardy question, and the responses to that question. The only scuzzy thing was that ABC, delayed it to end of the November sweeps to garner ratings, which soared during Jennings' appearance. I have a suspicion that the soaring ratings were due to many peoples' desire to see him finally shot down, though.

 

I personally, found Ken J. to be a pleasant man that I could garner no ill feelings towards, but I have to admit that I was sick and tired of seeing him, over and over and over. I hope his appearance will result in a return to the old rules of 5 times a champion and that's it, as the new policy instituted last season REALLY bit Jeopardy in the butt with KJ's run. So, who will be on next season's tournament of champions? Ken and ???? as there were no other champions.

[OneFinger]

Here in Utah there are rumors that Ken Jennings was ready to relinquish his position. Some speculate that his loss may have been intentional. After all, it was a rather easy question and most people don't consider Fed Ex drivers as a "white collar" job.

 

IMHO, he did an excellent job and comes across well on the talk show circuits. BTW, he's already announced that 10% of his winnings is going to the Mormon Church as his tithing. The Mormon Church refuses to accept tithing from gambling winnings but considers this rightful (earned) income.

 

I applaud his success but am grateful his time is over. I personally prefer more variety and would welcome game limits. Perhaps 5 games is too little but 10 consecutive winnings is an acceptable limit.

[VaHawk]

"Here in Utah there are rumors that Ken Jennings was ready to relinquish his position. Some speculate that his loss may have been intentional. "

 

That was indeed my suspicion, but all that speculation is just indeed speculation. However, I do believe that Alex Trebek was getting tired of being the second wheel, and that got even more evident with each passing win by KJ with Alex's less than subtle comments during the interview portion of the show.

 

As far as the tithing to the Mormon Church, I thought KJ stated that after his first win. I really thought that KJ was a very likeable person and as such, even though I got tired of seeing the same contestant win every day, I never resented his winning every day. Like a lot of Mormons, at least in my experiences, he seemed to be a very nice, loving, giving person and I really liked hearing about his missionary experiences as a young man. I really like meeting and talking to those young Mormon missionaries, and I always invite them into my home and offer them hospitality.

[Guest]

>I really like meeting and talking

>to those young Mormon missionaries, and I always invite them

>into my home and offer them hospitality.

 

Hmmm. And what else? :9

[FrancoDiSantisxxx]

What Else?

 

>>I really like meeting and talking

>>to those young Mormon missionaries, and I always invite them

>>into my home and offer them hospitality.

>

>Hmmm. And what else? :9

 

How horrible BYU is this year, which is why a bunch of heathens from the University of Utah have a much higher ranking in the polls....

[OneFinger]

RE: What Else?

 

>How horrible BYU is this year, which is why a bunch of heathens from the University of Utah have a much higher ranking in the polls....

 

Yesterday the coach for BYU (Gary Crowton) resigned after his third losing season. In addition to his poor record, he had a high number of guys get suspended or kicked out of BYU for "honor code" violations. (These included smoking, drinking, cheating, etc. In fact, 4 of his players are under investigation for the rape of a 16 year old girl.)

 

In his press conference Crowton accepted responsibility for the problems and he stepped down with class.

 

Urban Meyer, U of U coach interviewed today for the position at Notre Dame. I personally think he'll be offered the job.

 

I think it would be very ironic if Crowton was then recruited by the U of U to fill that spot. That would sure make next year's season very fun to watch.