I Lost on Jeopardy

[Salome G 24]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvUZijEuNDQ

 

WELP. But at least I had fun.

[Guest Chuckyy]

You were on Jeopardy! ? Wow! That's amazing. What was the process of being chosen like? What was Alex Trebek like? He seems like a super cool dude. Did you make it to Final Jeopardy? So many questions. :geek:

[Salome G 24]

I was! After taking the online test, I apparently did well enough that I was picked for an audition. I had mine around May 2017 in Nashville. We took another test and then we were called up in groups of 3 to play the game. It's like a mini version of the show--you get a signalling device and you get to ring in and answer questions, then they do an interview segment. (When you fill out your paperwork for the audition, you're asked to put down a few anecdotes.) Mine was about the many (many) times I've been attacked by animals--"...enough not to take it personally." Then it's over.

 

You're then in the contestant pool for 18 months. My 18 months came to an end last November, so I figured, well, I'll just have to audition again. (Some people audition multiple times before making it on the show.) In fact, I had just registered to take the online test again when I got the call in late February. After that, I had two weeks before I flew to Los Angeles--two weeks that I spent watching so many old episodes, practicing playing, and trying to cram facts into my head. In that two weeks, Alex's diagnosis was announced to the world.

 

They film 5 shows a day and the process of being picked for each one is random. So we got to the green room and they were like, "This is James, he's the returning champion--do you want to tell them how many games you've won?" Obviously, it was a staggering number but it was pretty abstract for most of us, I think, until we saw it on TV--his episodes hadn't begun airing yet. Then we went through legal stuff, makeup, and rehearsals before we started filming. I was finally picked for the fourth game of the day, Thursday's game. It went pretty well, I think. I was hindered by never finding any Double Jeopardys, so I wasn't able to build my money like my opponents.

 

When we got to the category reveal for Final Jeopardy, I spent a few minutes doing calculations before I was like, "This is your category, you're gonna know this, bet everything." And I did and I did. One of my opponents did the same, though, and he had more money than me, so he won.

 

As for Alex, you don't really spend much time with him--after the quiz show scandals of the 50s, TV game shows are very regulated, so he doesn't interact with us much to avoid any accusations of bias. Basically, the interaction you see on TV is it. But here he is yelling at me during the interview segment. :)

 

[Zack T 171]

That's an awesome experience all the same. Bummer you didn't win, but you got what I assume to be an expense paid trip to LA and that's pretty rad.

[Salome G 24]

Oh, you have to pay for it--at least, the first time you go (the show will pay for subsequent flights)--but it was a great experience all the same. I met a lot of really cool and smart people.

[DandyMandy 25]

Oh my goodness! That's so awesome. You're obviously wicked smart. I'm lucky to get any of the answers correct when playing along at home. I grew up watching Jeopardy with my grandparents and I still love that game show. You mentioned James, does that mean you played against James Holzhauer?

[Salome G 24]

No, he was the returning champion when I got there and then the first game I saw him was play was Monday's episode, where he lost.

[Boomer 8]

That's so cool! I'm always in awe of the contestants' knowledge. The show will never be out of date, IMO, and it's been the source of some great YouTube clips.

[ShadowEdge 48]

Congratulations! That's really awesome! My neighbor has tried out twice. He made it to the first round, where they basically sit and chat, then have a practice session. He's never been called to be on the show though. He said it's tricky to time the button just right. Do you know when your show will air?

No, he was the returning champion when I got there and then the first game I saw him was play was Monday's episode, where he lost.

I was so glad that it was a woman who beat him. Our current political environment has me celebrating anytime a woman wins anything at all.

[Salome G 24]

Oh, I was on Thursday. The episode's been uploaded to youtube at least once, but Sony's pretty quick about yanking it. You can see a clip here, though.

[Dust and Rust 9]

Thank you for the insight into how it all goes down. All you ever see is the finished product, so seeing the inner workings of how it gets to that point has always interested me.