The rules of Jeopardy clearly state that you are not eligible to be on the show if you have appeared on the show already (unless it's a special show and the producers choose you). So why was Jeff Kirby allowed to be on the show this past Monday when he was already on the show in 1999?
This season, Jeopardy is doing a Million Dollar Celebrity Tournament. One episode a month will have three celebrities battling to see who gets to play for one million dollars for their charity later in the season. A lot of fans don't like the celebrity editions. It breaks up the flow of the regular champion coming back, the questions are easier than the regular game, etc. But last night's episode was fun.
The three celebrities who played the first game of this season's tournament were Wolf Blitzer, Dana Delany, and Andy Richer...and Richter won! Actually, it's not even fair to say he "won," he crushed Blizter and Delany. The game was over way before they even got to the Final Jeopardy round. Blitzer didn't even make it to that round (I cringed when he added an "S" to Julia Child's last name because I knew the money would be taken away), but they let him play anyway.
The new seasons of both Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy started this week, and while most of the games are exactly the same, both shows debuted a couple of new things that might have hardcore game show fans talking.
First, WOF. They're in Las Vegas this week, and the game hasn't changed except for one thing: they've gotten rid of the "Free Spin" card! This doesn't have the same impact as Darrin being replaced on Bewitched or William Petersen leaving CSI, but when you take something away from hardcore game show fans, they can get pretty rowdy. I don't know if that will happen here since "Free Spin" has been replaced by a "Free Play" space on the wheel. If you land on this spot, you get to do anything you want: choose a consonant, ask for a vowel, etc, and if you're wrong it's OK, you don't lose your turn.
You should be reading Classic Television Showbiz, a really fun blog that often showcases video of old and/or obscure TV shows. This week he has a video of the short-lived game show Pitfall, which Alex Trebek hosted.
Not only did the company that produced the show run out of money, they ran out of money while the show was still on the air. So they couldn't pay some of the later contestants and Trebek didn't get paid either! He still has the check framed in his office. Video below (quality isn't great, but it's interesting).
I'm not really sure if there's anything else to say about this clip from GSN's upcoming2009 Game Show Awards (this Saturday at 8). It's 70s pop culture icon Charo presenting at the ceremony as well as taking on Jeopardy champ Ken Jennings in a trivia contest that is obviously tilted in her favor.
Oh my God. Maybe the Unabomber was right, about how technology could weaken humanity and destroy us all. Not about sending bombs in the mail. That was and always will be a big no-no.
The system is being developed in the same vein as "Deep Blue," the computer that defeated chess champion Gary Kasparov. The Jeopardy! system nicknamed "Watson" is part of IBM's ongoing attempt to overtake humanity by whooping humanity's ass at their own games. An IBM spokesman estimated humanity's spirit will finally be broken when they perfect a computer system that can beat the world's greatest Chutes and Ladders player.
If you go by all of the various stories in the media, it would seem that TV viewers just aren't into award shows anymore. The ratings are often down year to year, and if people are tuning in it seems to be more for the fashions, the red carpet, and maybe to see a particular category/performance by someone on the show.
So it's interesting that there are so many new genre award shows popping up. TV Land has had their own awards (The TV Land Awards) for a number of years now (the latest airs next week with Neil Patrick Harris hosting), and Bravo has The A-List Awards, whatever they are (it aired earlier this week). Now GSN is getting into the game (no pun intended) with The Game Show Awards, a show dedicated to giving awards to game shows, game show hosts, even game show sponsors!
There are some forces in the universe that should never be messed with: the sun, black holes and Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek. Take it from someone who knows.
The man has the unholy ability to make ANYONE look stupid on national television. He can make an Ivy League PhD appear as though he went to city college. He can turn a Midwestern elementary school teacher into someone no parent would entrust their child with for eight hours a day. His trademark "Oh, sorry" alone can make a world renowned neurosurgeon look like a jabbering mental patient who doesn't know the name of the bone that houses the human brain.
So it's no wonder that politicians are scared to be seen in the same camera shot with the man.
The hours of preparation have been grueling. The amount of studying has been tedious and boring. The sacrifice required to reach this moment has been great and punishing. I didn't shower for two days and the smell almost set off the fire alarm in some of the smaller rooms.
Now the only weapons I have at my disposal are my nimble fingers, my rapid comprehension and my ability to remember everything I've read in the span of four days. We're about to go head-to-head with the razor-toothed man eater that is the Jeopardy! contestant test.
I'm a sucker for time travel shows. I loved it when Star Trek did it (all of the Star Trek shows did it, several times) and Back to the Future is one of my favorite films. So I'm really enjoying Lost this season, with it's time-tripping and skipping. But I have some problems with it, and so does Jeopardy champion Ken Jennings.
Jennings mentions on his blog that he thinks the writers have actually answered too many questions, which isn't a complaint that you hear from Lost fans too often. He thinks if they had left more plot questions, some of the things that happened in previous seasons "could now be explained as the actions of Future Juliet or Future Sawyer or somebody."
Jennings thinks it's smart that the show has the rule that you can't change what happened, because if something happens a certain way it will always happen that way. But I think the show is breaking that rule here and there.
Studying was never my strong-suit. I always got by in college on my looks; that would explain why I was a C-student. Come to think of it, planning isn't either. Neither is getting enough REM sleep, keeping a clean house or (as you can see by my picture) sticking to a regular skin care regime.
So when it came to preparing for my Jeopardy! test, the same substandard habits applied. I could have started cracking the books at least a month ago when I first heard the website was holding online contestant tests at the Jeopardy! website. It just seemed like a huge mountain of knowledge to tame in one sitting. Plus, I had about 15 Tales from the Darkside episodes that my TiVo had taped and were about to go to waste.
So when it came time to crack the books and cram in as much information as my brain could hold, I not only had to make up for lost time.
Every apprentice who aims to journey on a quest fraught with peril and self-realization must seek someone with experience in facing it. He must consult with a man who not only has walked that road many times before, but has beaten it into submission until he emerged triumphant.
Hercules had to consult the Delphi Oracle if he wanted to avenge his family's death.
Rocky had to learn to trust Mickey if he wanted to defeat Apollo Creed.
Luke Skywalker had to find Yoda if he wanted to become a Jedi.
So if I wanted to achieve victory over the daunting behemoth of knowledge that is the Jeopardy! contestant test, I, too, would have to find an equally experienced and successful "Yoda" from the game show shire.
In short, Ken Jennings wasn't available but the Mace Windu of the Jeopardy! Council was.
If you've ever wanted to be a contestant on the legendary Jeopardy!, then get in line. It starts behind me. I already called dibs and stamped it.
Jeopardy! will conduct national online contestant tests this week on their official website. The tests will take place by timezone: Tuesday at 8 p.m. Eastern for people on the East Coast, Wednesday at 8 p.m. Central and 7 p.m. Mountain for residents in those time zones and Thursday at 8 p.m. for Pacific Coast, Alaska and Hawaii viewers.
As part of this annual game show tradition, I, your humble (not-so-much) TVSquad blogger Danny Gallagher, will also be one of the many, many people trying out for the most hallowed game show in the history of American broadcasting. And as always, you get to come along for the ride. Please keep all hands and arms inside the vehicle until my ego comes to a complete stop.
It's always frustrating when a game show or variety show updates something on the show. Sure, there are many parts of a TV show that have to be updated, especially if that show has lasted 10, 20, or 40 years: the set, the logo, maybe even the theme music. But sometimes those changes go too far.
Case in point: the new "Final Jeopardy" music on Jeopardy! I'm not talking about the update they made to the music a while back, I'm talking about the new rockin' theme music that debuted a few weeks ago (or, at least, I only heard it for the first time a few weeks ago). It's the same melody, but they've changed it to an irritating faster rock version, and by rock I mean that lame, generic rock music you sometimes hear in the background of sitcoms and dramas. It's THIS close to Muzak, and it's really, really terrible.
Sometimes it's hard to denote sarcasm in a post headline, but please note: sarcasm!
The People's Choice Award nominees have been announced, and the list is the very definition of unexciting. The nominees for Best Drama are Grey's Anatomy, CSI, and House. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz. No Mad Men, Dexter, or Lost? The nominees for Favorite Comedy are Two and a Half Men, Samantha Who?, and Ugly Betty. No 30 Rock? No Office? Sally Field and Mariska Hargitay are up for Favorite Female TV Star (really?). In the Favorite Game Show category, Jeopardy! is up against Deal Or No Deal and Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader and I know it's not going to win.
The new seasons of both Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy started this week, and while most of the games are exactly the same, both shows debuted a couple of new things that might have hardcore game show fans talking.
Oh my God. Maybe the Unabomber was right, about how technology could weaken humanity and destroy us all. Not about sending bombs in the mail. That was and always will be a big no-no. 
If you go by all of the various stories in the media, it would seem that TV viewers just aren't into award shows anymore. The ratings are often down year to year, and if people are tuning in it seems to be more for the fashions, the red carpet, and maybe to see a particular category/performance by someone on the show.
There are some forces in the universe that should never be messed with: the sun, black holes and Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek. Take it from someone who knows. 
I'm a sucker for time travel shows. I loved it when Star Trek did it (all of the Star Trek shows did it, several times) and Back to the Future is one of my favorite films. So I'm really enjoying Lost this season, with it's time-tripping and skipping. But I have some problems with it, and so does Jeopardy champion Ken Jennings.
Every apprentice who aims to journey on a quest fraught with peril and self-realization must seek someone with experience in facing it. He must consult with a man who not only has walked that road many times before, but has beaten it into submission until he emerged triumphant. 
It's always frustrating when a game show or variety show updates something on the show. Sure, there are many parts of a TV show that have to be updated, especially if that show has lasted 10, 20, or 40 years: the set, the logo, maybe even the theme music. But sometimes those changes go too far.
Sometimes it's hard to denote sarcasm in a post headline, but please note: sarcasm!
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