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Television Entertainment Games

Who Will Be the First Guest Host of Jeopardy, Alex? (variety.com) 70

Posted by BeauHD from the what-is-Ken-Jennings dept.
thomst writes: Variety is reporting that uber-champion Ken Jennings will be the first of a series of guest hosts to substitute for the late, great Alex Trebek on trivia-maven game show Jeopardy! Executive Producer Mike Richards revealed that, when production resumes on November 30, Jennings will be the first of a series of guest hosts of the program, as the show begins its search for a permanent replacement for the much-beloved Trebek.

Odds are good that the "beauty pageant"-style guest host format will, in effect, be a series of auditions for the permanent position. Jennings, who is legendary for the number of games he won as a regular contestant, as well as for triumphing over fellow Tournament of Champions contestants, IBM's Deep Blue expert system, and two other "winning-est" players to be crowned Greatest of All Time, has hosted trivia game shows in the past, and has made no secret of his desire to take the Trebek's job full-time.

As the saying goes, "Stay tuned for more on this story!"
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Who Will Be the First Guest Host of Jeopardy, Alex? More

Who Will Be the First Guest Host of Jeopardy, Alex?

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  • Pick an old champion! (Score:5, Funny)

    by PolygamousRanchKid ( 1290638 ) on Tuesday November 24, 2020 @08:24AM (#60760956)

    IBM Watson should host it!

    • I am hoping that Ken Jennings gets the job full-time. He deserves it.

      • Jennings certainly deserves a shot at it. But we don't yet know whether he will connect with the viewing public as a host, rather than a contestant; he has no experience as a host. Having him on the show will give the producers to see whether it works out, and whether Jennings himself feels comfortable in the role.

  • Deep Blue (Score:5, Informative)

    by bws111 ( 1216812 ) on Tuesday November 24, 2020 @08:27AM (#60760962)

    Deep Blue was a chess playing computer. As far as I know Ken Jennings never played, much less 'triumphed over', Deep Blue. He did play against Watson, and lost.

    • Re: (Score:1)

      by fleabay ( 876971 )
      Cool story bro. No idea why you needed to share that though.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by JJJK ( 1029630 )

      Host: "This 80s TV show featured a talking car, and a lead actor who would become famous for trying to eat a cheeseburger."

      Deep Blue: "Knight... to C6?"

      Host: "In the form of a question, please."

  • My vote's for LeVar Burton.

    • Close (Score:2)

      by JBMcB ( 73720 )

      A few friends and I were discussing this last night. Someone made the argument that to replace Trebek, you need someone with just a hint of arrogance. Burton is *way* too down to earth.

      Will Farrell, however, can *act* that way...

      • Not a bad pick, but spell his name right at least, you cad. The host should clearly be the creator of the SNL Celebrity Jeopardy sketches, none other than the incomparable Norm Macdonald.

        • Short (Score:2)

          by JBMcB ( 73720 )

          That's a fantastic idea. It would be an incredible four episodes before they would boot him off for being wildly inappropriate.

          In the same vein, I'd nominate Bill Burr :)

    • I was conditioned to not trust Levar Burton, by Levar Burton.

      "The answer is.... But don't take my word for it."

  • Lame headline (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Tony Isaac ( 1301187 ) on Tuesday November 24, 2020 @08:43AM (#60761026) Homepage

    "Everyone" knows that the premise of Jeopardy is that the answers are given, and contestants respond by asking the correct question for which the answer is correct. The headline "Who Will Be the First Guest Host of Jeopardy, Alex?" is just a question, and it doesn't even make sense to ask this as a question. There's no answer, for which a question must be guessed, or for which a question is provided.

    Is it important? Not at all. But I'm sure I'm not the only one who cringes a little when reading a headline like this!

    • Should be more like "I'll take 'Jeopardy host is dead' for $1000, Alex"

    • The headline "Who Will Be the First Guest Host of Jeopardy, Alex?" is just a question

      Should have been more like "This former Jeopardy winner will be the first person to host Jeopardy after Alex Trebek".

  • Good contestant does not mean good host (Score:5, Interesting)

    by walterbyrd ( 182728 ) on Tuesday November 24, 2020 @08:47AM (#60761046)

    I takes a certain personality to be a good host. That is the most important characteristic, not your ability to answer trivia questions. Of the possible replacements I have heard of, so far, LeVar Burton may be the best pick.

    • Re:Good contestant does not mean good host (Score:4, Funny)

      by Known Nutter ( 988758 ) on Tuesday November 24, 2020 @09:12AM (#60761122)
      Did they ever fix his eyes, or his he still wearing that air filter looking visor?
      • Some time after the events of the main TNG series, he did have cybernetic implants installed. Also, it was presumably modeled after a 'banana clip' hair retainer. In the pilot, it looks an awful lot like it was constructed from one.
    • Oh man, that would be a good pick.

    • Are you familiar with any of Ken Jennings's hosting work? He's absolutely brilliant on The Omnibus podcast.
      But the host of Jeopardy! doesn't get much opportunity to talk. I hope Ken does very well.

      • I, also am a fan of Omnibus. Ken is very witty and charismatic. I am hoping he gets the full time position.

    • My first thought is that it would be better to just shut the show down - it won't be the same without Alex Trebek. I know he wasn't the first or only host [youtube.com], but he's the one who made Jeopardy big.

      I'd be OK with LeVar Burton. I can't think of anyone else.

    • I takes a certain personality to be a good host. That is the most important characteristic, not your ability to answer trivia questions. Of the possible replacements I have heard of, so far, LeVar Burton may be the best pick.

      I'm assuming that if he is chosen, the first question most contestants be asking is "Who is LeVar Burton?"

      Had to go look and see what he's done since his La Forge days. Actually he's done a lot, but sadly few will remember him for any other role.

    • Levar Burton would be a great guest host, but he is too old to take on as the permanent host.

    • That's true. Choosing someone for this role is more art than science. There have been lots of failed transitions in this scenario and many that have worked. I've been a fan of This Old House since a youngster, and when they were to replace Bob Villa, I thought it would be a disaster. Worse when they announced the host would be 'just' the owner of a house they did a show. But turns out Kevin O'Conner is a good choice and it works.

  • Comment removed based on user account deletion

    • Goldblum actually seems like he would be a good choice. Has the right temperament for it, and has an air of "knowledgeable" to him, which is important for the host of Jeopardy. Requires a certain gravitas.

  • What, no one is suggesting Will Ferrell? (Score:3)

    by jfdavis668 ( 1414919 ) on Tuesday November 24, 2020 @09:55AM (#60761272)
    Well, we can't get Sean Connery anymore, but Burt Reynolds is still around.

  • Perfect Opportunity (Score:3, Funny)

    by Joe2020 ( 6760092 ) on Tuesday November 24, 2020 @11:25AM (#60761610)

    They should ask for Donald Trump to host it. He needs a new job.

    • Re:Perfect Opportunity (Score:4, Funny)

      by algaeman ( 600564 ) on Tuesday November 24, 2020 @12:39PM (#60761862)
      I think the producers want someone that will read the questions off the cards, instead of rambling endlessly about how he's been wronged and how much better of a host he is than Trebek.

      • I think we should give him the job so we always know what he is up to. Don't worry about the ramblings. Half the country didn't bother about his rhetoric and false facts even after 4 years. It's just part of the whole show!

  • Just hoping for some new categories ... (Score:4, Funny)

    by fahrbot-bot ( 874524 ) on Tuesday November 24, 2020 @12:03PM (#60761726)

    I like these from "Whose Line is it Anyway?"

    Drew Carey: “Rejected Jeopardy Categories”

    Chip Esten: “I’ll take ‘Things Nobody Knows’ for a thousand.”
    Colin Mochrie: “I’ll take ‘Animal Genitalia: Audio Clues’"

  • Permanent host: Donald J. Trump.

    • No, he belongs on pro wrestling, or an exciting new show we're working on that combines extreme sports contests and entrepreneurship. It's called: Shark Dunk Tank.

  • Alex would say: "Good for you" and move on.

  • Virtual AI Alex Trebek... (Score:4, Funny)

    by joshuark ( 6549270 ) on Tuesday November 24, 2020 @02:00PM (#60762164)

    I can see the show using something like an AI (perhaps IBM's Watson?) as the guest host...lives forever, no coffee breaks, programmed to make small talk and whimsical remarks here and there...and an image of Alex Trebek. Perhaps "Alexa Trebek" that the guests see through virtual reality headset, or is superimposed on a screen. And the new host never ages, never dies, although might catch a virus. :)

  • I for one would love to see him be the permanent host. My wife and I saw him do a peach in person a while back, and he was equally impressive.

  • No. [wikipedia.org]

  • Alex was dying with his cancer, but at least he could had planned that out with his Jeopardy staff?

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