Jeopardy! Season 37 (2020-2021)

[853fisher]

I was tickled that I ran "Best Actress Roles" without having seen any of the films in question.  Shameful, I know!  I am interested in all of them but they just haven't come up yet.  It's only been about two years since I was really bitten by the movie bug.  I said "go for broke" instead of "go all in."  I wonder.  Perhaps not specific enough.

He set my teeth on edge once or twice, but I didn't mind Lance on balance.  I know many people who are similarly over-the-top and, while I might not enjoy sharing a narrowly enclosed space with them, I often admire their passion and exuberance and find them very authentic, which excuses a multitude of behaviors I find obnoxious when they seem put-on.  I understand why he pushed people's buttons, though.

 

One thing I wish Ken would avoid doing, for lack of a better description, is acting a little flip or dismissive about some triple stumpers.  He's done this just a few times as he's started to get comfortable, but it's annoyed me. He did it last night on the "what does the eye atop the pyramid on a dollar bill mean" clue, when nobody rang in and he said, "that's apparently the Eye of Providence," with a yawning shrug implied, I thought.  Now, my psyche is not so fragile that I felt personally belittled when Ken didn't seem to think much of a piece of trivia I knew from my childhood hobby collecting coins and bills.  I do, however, think it's the host's responsibility to exude command of the board, not to suggest that perhaps he didn't know it either, and certainly not to trivialize (chosen advisedly) whatever material shows up.  Is this just me?

Edited February 13, 2021 by 853fisher
forgot about the poker clue

[blueray]

I actually am generally surprised and happy when it's like that. As someone who likes Ken (yes I know about the tweets) but I honestly am focusing on right now. Ken seems (and probably does) know all the answers without looking. So when he says something like that, I think he generally didn't know the answer and is backing up the three contestants that didn't know either. And I take it as they are all learning the answer together. I rather see him "agree" with them that it was hard then be like but that is so easy...

[ams1001]

I finally figured out who Lance reminded me of...

(John Lutz, aka the "Leave him alone" guy on Late Night with Seth Meyers.)

[shapeshifter]

The New York Times has a very nice write-up for our Brayden: nytimes.com/2021/02/13/arts/television/brayden-smith-dead.html

 

[theatremouse]

On 2/5/2021 at 3:04 AM, lmulsman said:

Is it that Ken is trying to act like Alex or that the writers are giving him the same lines and the producers are wanting him to act sort of like Alex to make the transition less jarring for viewers?

I think it's probably neither. I can't imagine a few weeks worth of scripts weren't already written when Alex passed. So at least at the beginning, he was probably reading stuff originally written for Alex, not for any transition-related reasons but because if the scripts were done, I think it very unlikely they'd rewrite.

[853fisher]

I said I "got" the new champ, but this pronouncement on Reddit is a bit much even for me.  It's lighthearted and no doubt meant well, but we were already paying attention to you, hon, you just won Jeopardy!  Relax.  Yeesh.

[stonehaven]

In other champ news, Brayden's family is starting a memorial fund in his name. Jeopardy James is matching donations..

https://charitysmith.org/memorial funds/brayden-smith-memorial-fund/

[rejnel]

Very, very sad about Brayden. I found him immediately lovable, and he had such a bright future ahead of him. Best thoughts to his family and friends. 

[proserpina65]

On 2/10/2021 at 7:44 PM, ams1001 said:

I said Zeppelin for FJ. Guess I needed to be more specific.

I said Messerschmidt.  I went off in the totally wrong direction on that one.

On 2/10/2021 at 8:01 PM, Katy M said:

I got the ts of supplement, Ralph Waldo Emerson, quiet, Mary  Higgins Clark, mustangs and Belle.

I was shouting Mary Higgins Clark at the tv, but the contestant did not hear me.

[proserpina65]

On 2/11/2021 at 7:29 PM, rubaco said:

Seriously, those people don't know the Gordon Lightfoot song?! They need to hang out on this board.

Yep, we all probably had it stuck in our heads the whole weekend.

On 2/11/2021 at 7:59 PM, Browncoat said:

Oh good grief.  Walt Disney never entered my mind, but he seems so obvious in retrospect.  It has been a bad week for me in terms of FJ!

But I did get the TS of pale, edifice, bullet, Google, Lister, Superior, Concordia, and Andrea Doria.  

That woman reading the clues was slower than Oprah.

I said Walt Disney, although it was more of a guess than something I knew.  I got most of the rest except I couldn't remember the Costa Concordia.

On 2/11/2021 at 8:17 PM, GreekGeek said:

n addition to Lake Superior, I knew The Stranger, bullet, Andrea Doria, and Lister. I was sure there would be some hint about Listerine mouthwash in his clue.

I knew those, and Pele, which was a surprise as a TS,

On 2/12/2021 at 11:31 AM, MoreCoffeePlease said:

Is anyone NOT going to watch when Dr. Oz hosts? Or will you hate-watch? I don't have a problem with any of the other guest hosts that have been announced, but just thinking about him makes me squirm. Blech.

As much as I love Jeopardy, Dr. Oz might be a miss for me.

 

Edited February 15, 2021 by proserpina65
Because heads is plural, not possessive

[proserpina65]

On 2/12/2021 at 7:59 PM, Browncoat said:

I also said Aristotle for FJ.  Completely forgot about Diogenes, and honestly, could have sat here all night and not remembered him.

Me, too.  Ancients Greece I'm good at, but philosophers is not a good category for me.

On 2/12/2021 at 8:00 PM, Katy M said:

I got t he ts of rock paper scissors and Huns

I was, however, tempted to say "rock, paper, scissors, lizard, Spock".

[ams1001]

I was busy making mac & cheese (which is in the oven) so I couldn't keep score. I was rooting for the girl, but I believe I heard Phil is from New Jersey, so I'll take it. 😉 

I got FJ but it was sort of a guess. Also I cheated and googled before they revealed their responses.

 

[Quickbeam]

Buh bye Lance. Now you can go back to Madison WI, our state home for the 40 year old PhD students who have never had a job. 
 

Good on you Phil! 

[SoMuchTV]

For absolutely no good reason I pre-guessed August Wilson for FJ.   So, good for me?

[Katy M]

No idea on FJ.

I got the ts of Phoenix and Davis Cup.

I got the entire categories of verb and food right and the partial category of hospital wrong.

 

[Browncoat]

August Wilson was the first name that came to mind.  I wouldn't call it an instaget, as I did have to think for a few seconds, then spend a few more seconds trying to think of another possibility.  In the end, I stuck with Wilson.  Good for me!

I also got the TS of rally, Lean On Me, and Phoenix.  And I'm sorry, Jeopardy!, but bang and beat are not the same.  

[ams1001]

6 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

And I'm sorry, Jeopardy!, but bang and beat are not the same.

Yeah, what the heck was that?

[Prevailing Wind]

I didn't understand the acceptance of "bang" for "beat" - The Padres banged the Braves 9 - 2.  I don't think so.

I pre-guessed Ibsen or Albee; as soon as the clue was revealed, though, I told the cats, "August Wilson."

Buh-bye, Lance. Don't let the door hit you on the way out.

[Katy M]

Just now, Prevailing Wind said:

I didn't understand the acceptance of "bang" for "beat" - The Padres banged the Braves 9 - 2.  I don't think so.

I said bang.  I don't remember exactly what the clue was, but it was something about hitting a drum and hitting somebody.  I didn't think there was anything in there about winning a game.

[ams1001]

1 minute ago, Katy M said:

I said bang.  I don't remember exactly what the clue was, but it was something about hitting a drum and hitting somebody.  I didn't think there was anything in there about winning a game.

It was "To defeat, or to hit repeatedly like a drum"

[shapeshifter]

10 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

It was "To defeat, or to hit repeatedly like a drum"

From  https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bang

Quote

3: to play a sport (such as basketball) in a very aggressive and forceful manner

bang for rebounds

 

Edited February 16, 2021 by shapeshifter

[Katy M]

the American Heritage Dictionary lists defeat as one of the definitions for bang.  So, I think based on that they would have to accept it.

[853fisher]

Lucky FJ for me.  After I saw "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom" a few months ago, I read it was the only play in the Pittsburgh Cycle not set there.  I knew it immediately, but I doubt I would've had it with any kind of certainty before December.  I had to look Sondheim up and make sure that he was not in fact a late writer, and phew, he isn't.  I wish we had gotten to see the other "Specific Hospital" clues since I don't know where I pulled Sloan Kettering from and I was excited to see if I could do the others.

I can't say I would've been jazzed about days and days of Lance, but I felt sorry for him when I saw the wheels come off.  Phil's bold wager paid off, which I do like to see.  We'll see what happens later in the week.

[ams1001]

7 minutes ago, 853fisher said:

I don't know where I pulled Sloan Kettering

My local affiliate stations for the big networks are out of NYC (I also get Philly but not in HD) so I see commercials for MSK on a regular basis. I think that was the only one I got. (I just looked at the archive; I probably would have gotten Cleveland Clinic but apparently I missed hearing that clue. Must have been distracted trying not to make a mess of cheese sauce (I failed, FTR).

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

3: to play a sport (such as basketball) in a very aggressive and forceful manner

bang for rebounds

I saw that one, but that doesn't necessarily mean "defeat"...

1 hour ago, Katy M said:

the American Heritage Dictionary lists defeat as one of the definitions for bang.  So, I think based on that they would have to accept it.

Really? OK, fair enough, then. Still sounds weird.

[Bastet]

Lance's behavior/personality didn't register anything on my radar good or bad either night, so whatever about him bugs some folks didn't bug me.

I was rooting for Karen tonight, because she looks a lot like one of my close friends (and, as always, because she was the lone woman).  But I enjoyed Phil's surprise when he won.

The rally TS surprised me a bit, since it's not a term exclusive to tennis (especially once Lance guessed volley; I thought that similarity would spark something in one of the other two).  Gaunt was a little surprising, too, with "au" spotted.  But that was about it.

Did y'all hear me yelling "Lean on Me" at Phil during his DD?  And then for a moment I thought Karen was going to blow the Nassau DD.

I missed several Michael wrote clues, a couple of boats, and a couple of tennis clues in the first round.  I didn't get a chance to jot down my DJ misses, but had about half a dozen there, too.  I could not pull Wilson's name out of my brain for FJ, though.  Pittsburgh immediately triggered "Pittsburgh Cycle", but I completely blanked on his name.

[Cotypubby]

1 hour ago, 853fisher said:

 I had to look Sondheim up and make sure that he was not in fact a late writer, and phew, he isn't.  

He’ll be 91 next month! (I was this close to going to his 90th birthday celebration last year, but then covid cancelled that.😫)

Instaget FJ for me. I like the surprise of the new champ when he won!

[GreekGeek]

I thought Lance was going to be one of those “Billy Buzzsaws” who turn every game into a huge runaway. So it was quite the surprise when he blew the runaway lead and then was the only one who missed FJ. 

I never knew “Lean on Me” was ever considered for our national anthem. I like the song and its message, but I think a national anthem should, you know, mention the nation.

 I got the Saturday Evening Post and “When I See an Elephant Fly.” 

[ams1001]

21 minutes ago, Bastet said:

Lance's behavior/personality didn't register anything on my radar good or bad either night, so whatever about him bugs some folks didn't bug me.

The rally TS surprised me a bit, since it's not a term exclusive to tennis (especially once Lance guessed volley; I thought that similarity would spark something in one of the other two).  Gaunt was a little surprising, too, with "au" spotted.  But that was about it.

Did y'all hear me yelling "Lean on Me" at Phil during his DD?  And then for a moment I thought Karen was going to blow the Nassau DD.

Granted, I was watching from  the other room, but he seemed a little calmer tonight.

I said volley first but then realized it was too many letters. I'm not a sports person, though, so I didn't get it. Also didn't catch what the "au" category was going for (see: watching from the other room) so I didn't do very well on that one.

I was singing "Lean on Me"...

[Scott]

3 hours ago, Katy M said:

the American Heritage Dictionary lists defeat as one of the definitions for bang.  So, I think based on that they would have to accept it.

Wow, I wouldn't have expected that.  It's not listed in their online version.

The 'alternate' answer (at least in my head) that surprised me was mauve, in the "au" category.  They asked for a shade of purple that was derived from French, and I was never more confident than I was about "aubergine".  (AHD online directs you to 'eggplant' when looking up aubergine, and it does list the color there, so I think I'd have been good.)

[OneWouldHope]

9 hours ago, Cotypubby said:

He’ll be 91 next month! (I was this close to going to his 90th birthday celebration last year, but then covid cancelled that.😫)

Instaget FJ for me. I like the surprise of the new champ when he won!

Not only is Sondheim not dead - 👏🏻 for his upcoming birthday 😄 - he’s not a playwright. 
 

[shoregirl]

9 hours ago, Bastet said:

 

I missed several Michael wrote clues, a couple of boats, and a couple of tennis clues in the first round.  I didn't get a chance to jot down my DJ misses, but had about half a dozen there, too.  I could not pull Wilson's name out of my brain for FJ, though.  Pittsburgh immediately triggered "Pittsburgh Cycle", but I completely blanked on his name.

I blanked on August Wilson's name as well. I was listing of plays he wrote but his name just did not come to me. Are we sure "who is the dude who wrote Fences?" would not be accepted 😂

[Clanstarling]

 

10 hours ago, Bastet said:

Lance's behavior/personality didn't register anything on my radar good or bad either night, so whatever about him bugs some folks didn't bug me.

I didn't even recognize him on Monday, which means I didn't notice anything last week. I wasn't bothered by him in any way.

8 hours ago, Scott said:

The 'alternate' answer (at least in my head) that surprised me was mauve, in the "au" category.  They asked for a shade of purple that was derived from French, and I was never more confident than I was about "aubergine".  (AHD online directs you to 'eggplant' when looking up aubergine, and it does list the color there, so I think I'd have been good.)

We went with aubergine as well. I think it would have been accepted.

 

[Mindthinkr]

I had a fairly good game last night, but blanked on FJ. I had heard his name mentioned last week so I’m pretty mad at myself for missing it. I think in one of the first clues the answer was dish, but I said mete. I’m hoping that it would have been accepted. 
I love the show Bosch, so I was tickled to see the Michael Connelly clue asking for the name of his LA detective. 
 

[MoreCoffeePlease]

12 hours ago, Bastet said:

But I enjoyed Phil's surprise when he won.

He was so cute! I love reactions like that. I thought for sure that Lance would win several matches. Just goes to show. (I do want Phil to stand up straight, however.)

My husband was so mad at the female contestant when she didn't bet a lot for her Daily Double.

[Paloma]

On 2/12/2021 at 8:00 PM, Katy M said:

Me at FJ:  You have to be kidding.  i have no idea.  I don't know.  Diogenes?  I am the queen of guessers, LOL.

This was exactly me, and when it turned out to be right I gleefully said to my husband "I am so impressed with myself!" He laughed at me because I really had no basis for my guess.

[Paloma]

15 hours ago, Browncoat said:

August Wilson was the first name that came to mind.  I wouldn't call it an instaget, as I did have to think for a few seconds, then spend a few more seconds trying to think of another possibility.  In the end, I stuck with Wilson.  Good for me!

Same here, and I haven't seen even one of his plays so I don't know why it came to me. When I tried to think of other playwrights with a lot of plays, I couldn't think of any that would be connected to Pittsburgh (not that I knew that AW was connected to Pittsburgh). Just a random neuron firing, I guess.

[Trey]

46 minutes ago, MoreCoffeePlease said:

My husband was so mad at the female contestant when she didn't bet a lot for her Daily Double.

I was mad at her for guessing (wrongly) the title of a song which she obviously didn't know - titles have to be specific.

Not a great game for me.  Hope the rest of the week is better.

Lance was okay but new champ seems likeable too.

[Bastet]

5 hours ago, Mindthinkr said:

I think in one of the first clues the answer was dish, but I said mete. I’m hoping that it would have been accepted. 

I don't think so, because they didn't accept dole; dole and mete only fit the "to portion out food" part of the clue, but not the "to gossip" part.

[Mean Machine]

Phil having Anna Kournikova accomplishing the career tennis grand slam was kind of funny to me, considering she never won a tournament(singles) in her entire career.  Believe me, I get the confusion though.  Sharapova is also a famously blonde beautiful Russian tennis player/sex symbol. 

[853fisher]

That was a great FJ clue!  I wish "surveyor" had gotten me thinking about natural features quicker, but even then I'm not sure I would've gotten from British India to Nepal in time.  Interestingly, I believe Sir George Everest pronounced his name more like EEV-rist than what we say today.  There are many layers indeed to that name.

Phil seems to specialize in late-game turnarounds.  I'd like to refer a few corporations and teams to him!  I thought Joe's "Entrance Room" sounded cute.  I wonder whether all his guests arrive in time to do that or time their appearance for later.  Sometimes I'd love a puzzle.  Other times I'm not sure I'd have much patience with a padlock between me and aperitifs. 😉

[Prevailing Wind]

Interesting game - I managed not to fall asleep. Had NO earthly idea for FJ.

[Katy M]

I knew it was wrong, but said taj Majal.  I associate Everest with Nepal and China, so even though actively searched my brain for an appropriate mountain I came up empty.

I got the ts about good night

I got the entire categories of Genesis and natural construction right.

[ams1001]

No FJ here...I did decently in DJ, not so much in J...

Got all the Alphabet Rockers & Rappers (and pre-guessed Run DMC as soon as they revealed the category) and Natural Construction.

And all but one in Baby, Genesis, and Cake. Now I want cake.

(That rainbow cake did look good...)

[Grundoon59]

I have admiration for anyone who is able to make it on the show and Joe was clearly a good sport who was having a grand time. But hokey smokes, I was ready to reach through the tv set to make him stand still.  I swear I was getting seasick.  If he had won, I would have been a Jeopardy listener for the duration of his run.  

Other than that it was a good match.  Like Katy M, I didn't get to Everest since I associate it more with other countries.  My brain tried racing around India for geographic features without success.

[Bastet]

It took until night two, but I finally figured out who Phil reminds me of -- the fertility doctor in the "Small Potatoes" episode of The X-Files (actor Robert Rozen).

I didn't get to pay proper attention during the first round, but the Sparks TS surprised me in that no one realized Pam had just omitted the plural S.  In DJ, I can't believe none of them could get the Dylan Thomas quote right!

Among the clues I was able to pay attention to in the first round, I missed about half a dozen, so it might have been a pretty bad round if I'd have missed that many more among the other clues.  But I rocked in DJ, only missing Le Morte d'Arthur and Daguerre, and got FJ quickly, so I'll go ahead and call it a great game for me.

[853fisher]

This note shared on Twitter shows that Alex came up with the idea for the "Alphabet Rockers" category.   I'm glad they shared this detail.

[ams1001]

23 minutes ago, 853fisher said:

This note shared on Twitter shows that Alex came up with the idea for the "Alphabet Rockers" category.   I'm glad they shared this detail.

LOL at the person who responded that Ken should have rapped "It's Tricky" 😆

[Cotypubby]

I normally don’t notice the “swayers” when people mention them here, but holy crap I was starting to feel nauseous watching the middle guy on those two Daily Doubles with the camera moving back and forth to keep him in the frame.

[ams1001]

Saw an article this morning that called last night's game "A Very Jersey Jeopardy" because all of the players were originally from NJ. 😄

[Clanstarling]

14 hours ago, 853fisher said:

That was a great FJ clue!  I wish "surveyor" had gotten me thinking about natural features quicker, but even then I'm not sure I would've gotten from British India to Nepal in time.  Interestingly, I believe Sir George Everest pronounced his name more like EEV-rist than what we say today.  There are many layers indeed to that name.

The only thing I could think of in India was the Taj Mahal - and I knew that was wrong. Since Everest isn't in current day India, it never occurred to me.
 

12 hours ago, ams1001 said:

(That rainbow cake did look good...

Mine was a bit of a failure - it's tricky getting the colors right. Then again, I'm more famous (infamous) in the family for my "Nailed It" results when baking. My daughter keeps a photo on her phone of the sad, "oh no Mr. Bill" caterpillar cake I made her once.  (It wasn't supposed to look like Mr. Bill)

9 hours ago, Cotypubby said:

I normally don’t notice the “swayers” when people mention them here, but holy crap I was starting to feel nauseous watching the middle guy on those two Daily Doubles with the camera moving back and forth to keep him in the frame.

Me too. His was hard to ignore.