There is nothing, and I mean nothing, in the final episode of Jeopardy! hosted by Alex Trebek to indicate that it would be his last. I watched and rewatched it, pausing on various moments to see if maybe—just maybe—there was a glimmer of the pain or discomfort he was reportedly enduring from his lengthy bout with pancreatic cancer. (Trebek would die just 10 days after filming his final batch of episodes.) But as usual, the longtime quiz show icon was imperturbable—plowing through the clues at a stately but steady pace, offering some light color commentary on the performances, and smiling politely during the brief interviews with contestants as they discussed the usual array of idiosyncratic interests (in this case, topics included calligraphy and “Tsundoku”—the Japanese term for accumulating lots of books without reading them). And when he congratulated newly minted champion Jim, defeating the previous two days’ winner Yoshie, he signed off with a simple, “We’ll see you again next week.”
That he wouldn’t be back to see us again the following week—that this was his final appearance, even if he didn’t know it—is both tragic and utterly in keeping with the host’s commitment to professionalism above all else. The show is fond of airing brief looks at Trebek in more playful circumstances: During one of the new season’s opening title sequences, for example, we got a glimpse of the host some years back, dressed in theatrical Roman soldier garb, complete with a sword hoisted above his head. And the playfully affectionate compilation tribute clip Jeopardy! aired immediately following this final installment was almost nothing but moments of light-hearted silliness, from a brief Groucho Marx impression to the time he emerged pantsless as an outtake during the Jeopardy! Ultimate Tournament Of Champions.
What’s so noteworthy about such moments, however, is that they are very much the exceptions that prove the rule. As any longtime viewer of the show can attest, freewheeling joviality was never Trebek’s strong suit, nor even his default setting; at most, it was a rare sighting, like catching Tom Morello without a hat, or Mitch McConnell without babies’ blood dribbling from the sides of his mouth. Trebek was straightforward if nothing else—terse, even, during much of his tenure. Of course, eventually the internet did what the internet does, and helped spread clips depicting what many saw and enjoyed about the game show host when, say, faced with an especially bad response to a clue or an uninspired panel of contestants: Namely, that he could be a witheringly frank insult comic. More often than not, if a spark of personality emerged from behind his crisp, no-nonsense demeanor during game play, it was to subtly (or not-so-subtly) dunk on what he saw as a missed opportunity, or something not worth his time, or both. (As writer and podcaster Olivia Craighead lovingly noted on Twitter, he was, “proof that you can be a kind person who also bullies nerds, 100% legend.”)
There’s plenty of testimony and evidence of what a good guy Trebek was off-camera, and anyone who’s heard him in interviews—especially longform ones, like Nerdist’s deep dive—quickly picks up on the easygoing Canadian charm that seemed to flow from the TV personality. He gave of his time and his money freely, including copious efforts with nonprofits and causes like endangered species conservation, the USO, World Vision, and more, as we noted when reading through his recent memoir. Of course, lots of charity work is no guarantee someone isn’t a jerk, but in Trebek’s case it really seems to reinforce what people said about him as a man: That he was a genuinely good guy who just happened to be the Guinness World Record holder for longest-running game show host.
But good people often have wicked senses of humor. As Bob Harris put it in his account of his time on Jeopardy!, Prisoner Of Trebekistan, Trebek in person was committed to professionalism and courtesy, “just like on TV”—but in that minor addendum lies the heart of his appeal. Trebek came across less like one of the modern era’s relentlessly upbeat TV personas and more like a sardonic wit observing his own place in the scrum of popular culture, appreciative that he was linked to a project that celebrated intellect even as he acknowledged its minor place in the grander scheme of things.
Onscreen, it conveys an attitude about as far from a Jimmy Fallon-like puppy-dog enthusiasm as possible, instead offering up a calming, even conservative mindset that assures viewers maximum effort is being expended to keep things on predictable, familiar ground. The host never proffered so much as a disingenuous “Oh wow,” when engaged in the time-honored interview portion that occurs mid-Jeopardy! round, always sticking to more of a guarded, “Let’s see where this goes.” Turning fleeting chats with contestants into requisite airtime chunks is a skill in and of itself, and Trebek refused to hype anything he wasn’t interested in, often simply ending his seconds-long chat with a guest with a simple “Alright” before moving on. (Assessing the role of these interviews, The New Yorker opined, “When they don’t go off the rails, what they stage is the nail-biting feat of transforming a situation of extreme social pressure into forgettable television filler.”) He was a master of minimalist engagement, knowing that a slight amount of color helped invest viewers in the day’s episode, while all too aware that more than a trace would only be a distraction. Only long-running champs like Ken Jennings, Austin Rogers, or James Holzhauer, it seems, earned the right to break convention and present a more quirky and animated self, in Trebek’s eyes.
One thing he didn’t get to do during his final stint as host was end the program with the words on which he had intended to go out. In an interview with ABC for the primetime special What Is Jeopardy? in 2019, Trebek made clear that he wanted his last appearance to include a short but significant concluding statement, one he had already rehearsed, that he hoped would pass the torch to the next iteration of the program while still allowing a personal note from him:
I’ve kind of, in my mind, rehearsed it already, and what I would do on that day is tell the director, “Time the show down to leave me 30 seconds at the end. That’s all I want.” And I will say my goodbyes and I will tell people: “Don’t ask me who’s going to replace me because I have no say whatsoever. But I’m sure that if you give them the same love and attention and respect that you have shown me… then they will be a success and the show will continue being a success.”
We’ll never get to hear the full extent of those remarks. (Trebek continued by saying his final words on Jeopardy! would be, “And until we meet again, God bless you and goodbye.”) But in some ways, Friday’s program might be the perfect encapsulation of his presence: Calm, businesslike, friendly but not overly so, yet always hoping for big successes, big paydays, and a compelling installment of the show he spent 37 years hosting. To a degree, his guarded onscreen demeanor allowed us to project qualities onto him in a way that made him whatever we wanted him to be. Like the little jabs at bad contestants? He can be the snarky asshole you want to get a drink with. Prefer the welcoming and encouraging words he has at the beginning of every round? He’s the genial guy always rooting for us. And if you just admired his efficient, eloquent way around the sometimes tricky rhetorical maneuvers asked of a game show host, then he could simply be the patrician intellectual, guiding us through the byzantine labyrinth of oft-obscure trivia that remains the raison d’etre of the show.
But if you wanted some hint of what Trebek may have wanted to say, or how he hoped to leave viewers after nearly four decades on the job, that message came in an unexpectedly earnest form five days earlier, on Monday’s program. That was the beginning of his final workday, since a week’s worth of Jeopardy! is filmed in one afternoon, Monday-through-Friday installments, back to back. At the start of last week, Trebek kicked off what would be his last day of shooting with a deeply felt encomium to the value of people looking out for one another in times of trouble—specifically, the coronavirus pandemic: “Open up your hands, open up your hearts to those who are still suffering because of COVID-19, people who are suffering through no fault of their own. We’re trying to build a gentler, kinder society, and if we all pitch in just a little bit, we’re gonna get there.” It was lovely, and moving, and if it wasn’t his usual opening patter, it was very much in keeping with his character.
Ken Jennings assumed duties as interim host this week, with other guest hosts on the horizon while the show continues its search for a permanent replacement. Based on initial reports, Jennings makes for a fine Jeopardy! host, regardless of ill-considered online defenses of Bean Dads. Whoever winds up taking over the job, it won’t be the same Jeopardy! It’ll be a new iteration, with a new tone, new pacing, and hopefully geared toward the strengths of whoever Trebek’s replacement might be. But it’s hard to imagine another host getting away with calling his contestants “losers” and being adored all the more for it without tipping over into mean-spirited, Simon Cowell-esque rudeness. That nimble skill belonged to Alex Trebek alone. The game show landscape is dimmed with his passing—or in the form of a question, “What is a poignant loss for the world of television?”
53 Comments
Thanks, McLevy. I can’t bring myself to watch Jeopardy since he passed. It was a constant in my life from as far as I can remember. You did good here.
Kinda creepy watching his last episode looking for “glimmers” of the cancer eating up his guts on the inside. Just saying…Other than that, yah, Trebek did his job well. He entertained America with education without making the home audience feel too dumb – a true high-wire act.
It is, but it was hard not to watch his last episodes and kinda think “does he look OK? he sounded a little hoarse that day, but then he rebounds”. My husband said he felt very tense watching the last episode Friday because even though he obviously knew better, he half-expected Alex to just keel over on stage. Is it a little morbid? yes. but it’s human.
Yeah I was waiting for some sort of farewell speech, even though I knew it wasn’t coming.
Honestly though, it’s hard not to do that when you know someone is/was sick. When I look back at photos of my own mother from the last year of her life, I can’t help but find signs of how sick she was.
Same. My brother died a few years ago of cancer as well but he really didn’t seem that bad off until the final few weeks, and now every time I see a picture of video of us from the year before, I can’t help but try to find signs of how bad he might’ve been at any given time.
Never any fun is it? It’s not how we want to remember the final days of people we loved, but it seems impossible not to.
To me, the “losers” comment was just on the wrong side of dickish.And that is literally the only bad thing I’ve got to say about Trebek. He was a treasure, and consummate pro, and by all accounts an excellent human being. He is missed.
I did feel that very occasionally he could be a smidge on the mean side to contestants who were extra-nerdy — like, I get that he was 80, but don’t you know who your audience is? (dunking on people who don’t know a damn thing about sports is funny though)But all in all, he did indeed seem to be an excellent human being and is very much missed.
I disagree. Going on Jeopardy with Trebek was like going to a Don Rickles show and sitting in the front row; being picked is part of the fun when it’s done by a guy who we all know is genuinely kind-hearted.
I was never a rabid watcher of the show, but the thing that always stood out to me about Trebek was that he was such an effortless commander of the room. He knew when to keep things running smoothly, he knew how to deal with difficult contestants by just cranking up the disapproval meter by only half a notch, and he was incredible at spotting those little moments where he could lighten the mood with a perfectly delivered quip.
I don’t think he was a mean guy at heart, just a little overly snarky sometimes. But it was rare. And you’re right, he knew how to keep things running and his quips were generally well timed.
if you admit in public that you like nerdcore i don’t know what you expect
I agree. My wife and I still joke about Trebek taking a couple years too long to stop saying, “No. It’s the other one.” when contestants missed clues about female authors or scientists. Credit to him, he did eventually stop. I think there was a very clear trend over the last ten years of the show of him being more precise with his language about women and ethnicity and not relying as much on jokes where the punchline is people being different. Respect to an old guy in an outdated medium (syndicated daytime TV) evolving. The Nerdcore burn fails for me because it was a lazy joke. Calling a group of people losers is decidedly less cruel than making light of the death of someone’s pet, but the “mini goat eating Quikrete” joke feels less mean because it’s less expected and the contestant was astute enough to play along and respond with the wonderful, “Alex, you’re being insensitive!” tag which was what really made everyone in the studio laugh. That whole little bit of panel was effective improv comedy. Beating on the contestants who didn’t know super basic things about football was also funny because he was defending the sanctity of the show. How the fuck do you get on Jeopardy and not know that Tom Landry coached the Cowboys?
Yeah, I generally agree with you. And as a side note – I wouldn’t be a great Jeopardy contestant because my recall just isn’t fast enough, but yeah, like, at least do a basic brush up on sports? I don’t give a crap about football (or most sports) but I try to know basic facts about things so I can have conversations with people, and if I were going on a famously wide-ranging game show you better believe I’d be studying coaches and Super Bowl winners and that sort of thing.
Yeah like I don’t give a shit about the Danube, but I’d make a point of learning all of the major cities that it flows through.
Although to be good at Jeopardy, you have to know things about sports, the Kardashians, and other things nerds don’t care about. It can’t be Star Trek and superhero trivia 100% of the time. In a sense, learning trivia about things you don’t care about is the ultimate form of nerdery.
If you don’t think the super-nerds of the world appreciate a bit of expert snark well delivered, well…
The only thing he did that ever bothered me was something my mom pointed out to me and I can’t unsee: like almost every time the game was a runaway and one person was gonna win (unless they Cliff Clavin’d it and bet everything), Trebek would always restate the totals before Final Jeopardy and end with “… and [name], who could not be caught, with [current total]”. Like damn, Alex don’t rub it in, they already know they’ve lost, you don’t have to remind them that there’s no hope that they’ll win.Otherwise, yeah, dude was a class act.
That’s, “AN ALBUM COVER.”
I’m pretty old. I remember watching “High Rollers” on daytime TV during Summer vacation, before I got told to go play outside. Bob Barker and him were what got me hooked on gameshows to begin with.
The main thing I miss about the dismantled “Ellen’s Energy Adventure” ride at EPCOT (it was dated, pro-oil, and featured Ellen DeGeneres, so there were reasons to get rid of it), was that it featured Alex Trebek the way I remember him — with dark hair and a mustache. I could never get used to the more elderly Trebek of the 21st century, although I suppose it was better than some celebrities who try to deny their aging.
I’ve never been to Epcot, so upon reading it I thought that maybe I’d missed the part of your comment where I woke up and the internet had suddenly become a “30 Rock” episode, but holy shit, “Ellen’s Energy Adventure” was apparently a real thing:Although, having discovered that video just now and been somewhat conscious this past week, I’m not sure I didn’t wake up on January 1 and all of life was suddenly a “30 Rock” episode.
Man, what’s with that bootleg Jeopardy set they use it looks so cheap
I love surprise Alex Trebek cameos! I remember 3-4 years ago my wife and I visited my grandparents who live in the central coast region of California and went to see Hearst Castle in San Simeon and were very tickled to find out that Trebek did the voice over narration for the bus ride up the mountain to the main property.
https://amzn.to/3s87ymD mat ad.
Yeah, I was able to keep it together throughout Trebek’s final episode right up to that “We’ll see you next week,” comment. Knowing that he wouldn’t is what brought the waterworks.
Alex: “You know, it’s a funny thing. You spend years hosting a show, and you get into the habit of thinking there’s just one correct question for every answer. But life doesn’t always work out that way. The world is much more complex. And you discover that there are many different ways of looking at the universe.”
Cliff: “Yeah, so, uh, what are you gonna do?”
Alex: “I think I’m gonna quit my job as host of Jeopardy. Maybe spend a little time in Tibet.”
Cliff: “Oh, no. Alex, look. Alex, sit down here. I mean, you gotta – you don’t know what you’re sayin’.”
Alex: “Well, now, wait a minute. How can I go on hosting the program if I’m filled with all these doubts?”
Cliff: “All right, Alex. Think about what Jeopardy means to America. It’s more than just a game show. I mean, it – it’s as much a part of the national fabric as the postal uniform that I wear with pride every single day.”
Alex: “So you think I should stay as the host of Jeopardy?”
Cliff: “Absolutely.”
Alex: “And you won’t bear me any ill will if I do?”
Cliff: “Oh, bite your tongue.”
Alex: “All right. It’s settled. I’m gonna stay on as the host of Jeopardy.”
I grew up watching Cheers, and this episode always stood out for me simply because of Jeopardy and Trebek. It’s dated in many ways, but shows how aspirations of greatness are sometimes just a fool’s run at exactly that. I also grew up watching Jeopardy!, and not having Trebek is like not having Carson on the Tonight Show.
The content of Cheers holds up remarkably well for an 80s sitcom, though. I rewatched most of the seasons a few years back when it was on Netflix, expecting it to be very problematic and having aged horribly, and I was pleasantly surprised at how enjoyable and heartfelt it was.
And Carson’s Tonight Show does NOT hold up thirty years later – it’s pretty much unwatchable now.
… but But! Don Rickles!
In high school I was on a Jeopardy-esque game show broadcast on local TV. During my 30 second “about me” interview between rounds I, in the dipshit wisdom of a 16-year old, decided to put on a pair of sunglasses and go off on some weird, absurdist tangent about using my winnings to pay “my crazy ex-wife’s alimony.”I’ve seen bad wedding toasts or unfunny standup sets that get no applause. What I did was far less funny than either of those, and I will never forget the feeling of active hatred that radiated at me from literally everyone watching the taping.
Ever since that experience I have actively enjoyed seeing Trebek, the Zorro of comedic takedowns, flay any clown who came on his show and tried to make it about themselves.RIP Alex.
There really is no feeling on Earth quite like drawing everyone’s attention to your joke or bit and having it just die a miserable death.
does video exist
My wife is a much bigger Jeopardy fan, so she was really anticipating the final episode. Before it aired, I kept telling her I couldn’t believe it was airing at 3:30 pm on a Friday (in our market). It just didn’t seem right that it should be buried during daytime tv; and again, on a Friday. There had to be more fanfare.In retrospect, I suppose that was a perfect exit for Alex.
That final farewell? Why couldn’t he have just taped it for use later? And if he lived longer, he could have just retaped it when appropriate.But I guess we have the gist of what he intended to say. Ah well.And so it goes.
That final farewell? Why couldn’t he have just taped it for use later? And if he lived longer, he could have just retaped it when appropriate.But I guess we have the gist of what he intended to say. Ah well.And so it goes.
I’m sure i’m not the only one who wants to see Will Ferrell actually host Jeopardy as a guest host.
Trebek said he likes Ferrell’s impression of him, but his favorite has always been Eugene Levy.
Sounds like we need to see both host then!
Ken Jennings did better than okay last night.
Am I off base thinking of Fred Rogers and Alex Trebeck as somehow being like morning and evening versions of the same character? Maybe it’s because I grew up watching both in the late 80s and early 90s, but I’ve always kind of seen them as role models for what grown up men should be like—not that I’m much like either of them, as I think about it. Maybe it’s just that they were both safe and reliable, and that’s why it’s especially hard to have them both gone at this point in American history. As I type this, I’ll say Mr. Rogers is like Grandpa, Alex is like Dad, and Adam and Jamie from Mythbusters are like uncles. Those, I think, are the shows that feel like home to me more than any others, so I feel like it’s natural to give them familial characterizations.
If you leave out the overt religiosity of Fred Rogers, I could see a argument for viewing Trebek as being a version of him if he ever enjoyed whiskey and loose women.
Does anyone know where I can watch the last five Alex Trebek episodes of Jeopardy! that ran last week?My fucking cable company entered into a dispute with ABC/FOX in December and we lost those two channels on January 1. I’ve checked the streaming services (most of them, anyway) and they don’t have the most recent episodes. Anyone have any ideas? I’d appreciate hearing them!
They’re all pretty easily available via torrents.
I have copies of the while week. If you ask me really nicely, I can share the video files for you to download on Dropbox or Google Drive.
That would be wonderful, nostalgic4thecta. Could you please share them on Dropbox or Google Drive? ([email protected]) Either platform is okay. Thank you!
Sorry for the delay! There’s a very needy foster dog in my home this week. I’m going to email the links tonight.
Well, thank you for taking a foster dog into your home! One of my dogs has cancer and is terminal, so we’re playing the wait game at my house. So far she’s eating well and snarking at her “sibling” (she’s the boss), and she sleeps a lot. She also still follows me around the house, so I walk slowly so she can keep up. I don’t complain, however. When she’s gone, I’m going to miss her always being at my side. *sniff*Thanks so much for sending me the links; I’ll keep an eye out for them. I really appreciate your help. Cheers!
Oh man terminal health issues with pets can be so upsetting and difficult! That sucks.
watch for an email from [email protected]
Try abc.com?
On my shows, I got the feeling Alex really liked me. I don’t know if that’s common among people who have won on the show, but I really felt it. The first thing anyone asks me when they find out I was on is “What is Alex like?” And my answer is always “Almost exactly what you see on the screen. During the audience Q&A, if he was asked something that interested him—about his charity work or traveling—he was funny, engaged, and entertaining. When he was asked something for the millionth time—‘Do you really know all the answers?,’ he was actually a little bit of a dick.,”As for the contestant interviews, we’re asked to come up with five fun facts, any of which he was free to ask us about. On my first show, when he started to talk to me, I had no idea where he was going until about five seconds in, which seemed like an eternity. The idea of telling him “I have no idea what you’re asking me about” was daunting, but (fortunately) he gave me enough information to allow me to answer.
Don’t forget his all-time best cameo:
“Aren’t we forgetting something, Marge?”
I feel like they need to tape Ken Jennings’ eyelids open and force him to watch the last few episodes hosted by Trebek on repeat for a good week or so before he starts his hosting gig.