The Jeopardy call for former contestants

[Buffacuse]

Anyone know what is up with this? Are they just collecting stories or is there any chance that some of us will be asked back to compete again?

I'll make the point again--I was on in 1984--the first year back. They told us at the time we could reapply to be ont he show again after three years--they have since changed the rules to make it a one and done deal. I would LOVE another chance at the show--especially after they changed the buzz in rule (when I was on--it was a total blind shot--now, you can't buzz in until the whole clue is revealed).

[Buffacuse]

Just reread the contestant rules--still one and done. I'd love to send the in a reply but the in the federal government this would probably be considered unauthorized contact with the media--a great way these days to lose your job.

[Ritterskoop]

Anyone know what is up with this? Are they just collecting stories or is there any chance that some of us will be asked back to compete again?

It seems pretty straightforward that they are collecting stories.

Stories are good.

Chatterbait good, even.

[DadofTwins]

So the JPTB are wondering whatever happened to all those people Ken Jennings smashed like so much Halloween pumpkin? Here's one story:

Happy Jeop-iversary to me.

November 1, 2004 -- known to most of nerd nation as the glorious day when the Sudoku puzzle made its major U. S. daily newspaper debut in the New York World -- was memorable in the life of your humble correspondent for another reason.

That was the night my Jeopardy show aired.

Note the singular.

I occupied the middle podium, armed with quick-draw reflexes, an obligingly cute cat story (Note to future contestants: Do NOT incur the wrath of the Jeopardy spirits by telling a pet story from the middle podium. Every player who has tried it since my show has also gone down in flames.), and all the preparation I could muster. Between getting The Call in June and tape day on August 17, I had watched over 100 episodes, read the transcripts of 200 more, memorized the list of frequently referenced works of art and literature from the NAQT website, and generally crammed my brain with whatever else I could find to stuff in there.

To my left (left, right?, uh, left. Yeah, left.) stood Lisa Ellis, a lovely young school teacher and recent Williams graduate who then worked at the Hathaway-Brown School in Shaker Heights, Ohio.

To my right . . . well, let's just say he'd been there a while.

As for the game, I actually don't remember much. The gory details are available on J! Archive. They tell me I got 10 right, 1 wrong: the miss coming on a Classical Music clue that opened the door for Ken to claim a Daily Double (Arturo Toscannini, best known as a lyric in Billy Joel's "We Didn't Start the Fire").

I also almost missed a Bible question, but fearing a rupture in the space-time continuum, the judges eventually ruled in my favor.

The other memorable clue from that game was near the end, when Ken had about 3 times my score and got a clue on "Bridge to Terebithia." The night Ken lost to Nancy Zerg there was a batch of clips from Ken's games (presumably provided by Sony) that aired on Nightline, David Letterman, A&E Biography, and the TV Guide Channel. Ken is seen firing off answer after answer, while his slack-jawed opponents stand helplessly behind their measly 3- and 4-digit scores. About three clues from the end, you hear "What is Terebithia?"

The slack jaw with the beard would be me.

Word to the wise -- don't use the word "Terebithia" in my presence. I might vomit on your shoes, and then I'd be in no condition to explain myself. If you're studying for the Summer Hiatus Challenge on the J! Boards, don't look for it any time soon.

If you remember that Final Jeopardy, you are probably not surprised to learn that "left" and "right" are still an issue for me three years later. I'm the goofball who drew the arrow the wrong way. For the record, I still wear my watch extra-tight on my left wrist when I referee soccer games so I'll remember.

Since my day in the Jeopardy sun, I still watch the show. I help other people chase their dream of trivia glory, writing the Summer Hiatus Challenge for the message boards and creating practice tests around the time of the on-line auditions. But confession time: I haven't read Brainiac. I picked it up long enough to find out I'm not in it, then put it down and walked away.

Because that's exactly the kind of bitter, egotistical, curmudgeonly old windbag that I am.

P. S.: To Lisa -- If the editors ever have the sense to list you in the Social Register, I'll buy that, even if it costs more than I won on the show.

[hermillion]

DadofTwins:

You need to write more! Although the outcome was not at all what you had in mind during the run-up to your J! episode, your account was a delight to read!

[peacock2121]

What hermillion said.

Very enjoyable, especially for a bitter, egotistical, curmudgeonly old windbag.