Jeopardy! Season 34 (2017-2018)

[saber5055]

34 minutes ago, Pallida said:

For some reason, I got tomorrow’s Jeopardy instead of today’s. The winner is....kidding, I’m holding off on watching.

You need to go to some bar where they play trivia and put a huuuge bet on the winner. Opportunity is knocking!

[Toothbrush]

I was excited to watch part 1 of the finals after not watching the quarter/semi-finals but erased it once I saw that basketball miming crap. Just smile, then play the game (Jeopardy, not basketball!) already. 

5 hours ago, saber5055 said:

Dan Zak is a reporter for The Washington Post. He tweeted this a bit ago:

 

Really? Shit, I'm old. But not you, since you were 17 and working at a sandwich only *10* years ago ;-) Before your time! 

Edited April 20, 2018 by Toothbrush

[GenerationX]

The miming doesn't bother me, as long as all three are in on it.  Entertain me, TV people!

Starting in the middle of the category, though, drives me bonkers.

Dhruv seemed like a sharp kid in his Quarterfinal match, so I've rooted for him through the Semifinals and now into the Finals.  I, too, said the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, which, of course, is at the Arlington National Cemetery.  Partial credit?

[DrSpaceman]

I said Arlington Cemetery as a guess right at the end.  Most of the others could be eliminated by the date, though I didn't think of Gettysburg. 

[how55]

I preview the FJ question in the morning & came up w/all 3 answers that the players had but couldn't decide on one - Gettysburg Cemetery, Arlington Cemetery & Tomb of the Unknowns. Date pointed to the Civil War & thought all 3 were good guesses.

[GalvDuck]

11 hours ago, Pallida said:

For some reason, I got tomorrow’s Jeopardy instead of today’s. The winner is....kidding, I’m holding off on watching. I had to quadruple check that I didn’t lose a day somehow. 

Lucky!  I'm afraid I may miss today's episode, even though I have my DVR set to record.  Our local news here may cover Barbara Bush's funeral instead, which is fine.  But I don't know if they're rebroadcast all the pre-empted shows later at night.  Some stations do, some don't.

I got FJ although I wonder if I would have gotten credit for just saying "Arlington Cemetery."

[saber5055]

I guess it didn't dawn on me that a cemetery could be a national historic site. I found this on history.com: "... the federal government designated Arlington as a national military cemetery in 1864." Does that make it a National Historic Site? I guess Jeopardy clue writers think so.

I think of battlegrounds as national historic sites. You know, like Gettysburg.

Of course, 1864 was Before My Time. Barely, but still.

ETA: I looked up the Rock Island Arsenal cemetery (near me) that was established in 1863 to bury Civil War Union soldiers. It's named as being on the National Register of Historic Places (which was created in 1966). So I guess of course Arlington is on that register too.

Interesting side note: More than 2,000 Confederate prisoners of war died at Rock Island due to the terrible conditions. Their (forced prison) labor created the massive limestone buildings there. (They have their own cemetery on Arsenal Island.)

Edited April 20, 2018 by saber5055

[Tunia]

"Sacred shrine" led me to Arlington, and "folded flag" confirmed it for me...but I had just been to a military funeral on Wednesday in my local state and "sacred shrine" was empathized throughout.  It was, btw, the most solemn, respectful service I have ever attended, and the grounds were magnificently maintained, providing a loving and appreciative final send-off to our dear friend.

[saber5055]

I'm so sorry, Tunia. RIP to your friend. What a sad event; there are no words.

[Clanstarling]

1 hour ago, saber5055 said:

I guess it didn't dawn on me that a cemetery could be a national historic site. I found this on history.com: "... the federal government designated Arlington as a national military cemetery in 1864." Does that make it a National Historic Site? I guess Jeopardy clue writers think so.

I think of battlegrounds as national historic sites. You know, like Gettysburg.

Of course, 1864 was Before My Time. Barely, but still.

ETA: I looked up the Rock Island Arsenal cemetery (near me) that was established in 1863 to bury Civil War Union soldiers. It's named as being on the National Register of Historic Places (which was created in 1966). So I guess of course Arlington is on that register too.

Interesting side note: More than 2,000 Confederate prisoners of war died at Rock Island due to the terrible conditions. Their (forced prison) labor created the massive limestone buildings there. (They have their own cemetery on Arsenal Island.)

Also an interesting note - it was established on the grounds of Robert E. Lee's pre-war estate. There is a touch of spite in the choice to begin burying Union soldiers there, which I kind of like.

[bad things are bad]

Quote

I don't know how you would know this, unless you just don't know any persons of Indian heritage. Maybe it's just me, but I can't tell anyone's religion, or non-religion, just by looking at them

I can't claim to know people's religion by looking at them. But I've worked with several Indians and from the course of normal conversation, I knew they were Hindu.

[Tunia]

1 hour ago, saber5055 said:

I'm so sorry, Tunia. RIP to your friend. What a sad event; there are no words.

Thank you, Saber5055.  It was a very sad day, but such a beautiful tribute for one so dear.

[saber5055]

1 hour ago, Clanstarling said:

Also an interesting note - it was established on the grounds of Robert E. Lee's pre-war estate. There is a touch of spite in the choice to begin burying Union soldiers there, which I kind of like.

I knew that Lee's estate was seized by the government after the war. But this is how it was done, according to history.com: "After Mary Lee, confined to a wheelchair, sent a representative instead of appearing personally to pay a $92.07 tax bill, the government seized the property in 1864." So that the mansion could never be used again, bodies were buried as close to the home as possible, and piles of "unidentified" Union soldiers were buried in the rose garden. Lee never returned to his former home after leaving it at the start of the war. (I personally think that's sad.)

Even more interesting is this: "A Supreme Court ruling in 1882 could have resulted in the exhumation of 17,000 graves: More than a decade after Lee’s death, the Supreme Court ruled that the U.S. government had seized his estate without due process and ordered it returned to his family in the same condition as when it was illegally confiscated. If followed, the ruling could have required the exhumation of all of Arlington’s dead, but instead Lee’s son officially sold the property to Congress for $150,000 in 1883."

And now you know!

[Mindthinkr]

3 hours ago, Tunia said:

"Sacred shrine" led me to Arlington, and "folded flag" confirmed it for me...but I had just been to a military funeral on Wednesday in my local state and "sacred shrine" was empathized throughout.  It was, btw, the most solemn, respectful service I have ever attended, and the grounds were magnificently maintained, providing a loving and appreciative final send-off to our dear friend.

My condolences Tunia. 

When I witness these formal funerals my eyes become waterfalls. Bagpipes and Taps gets me every time. 

[Browncoat]

40 minutes ago, Mindthinkr said:

Taps gets me every time. 

Me, too.

[saber5055]

Pardon my fan girling that I think Dhruv is way cute and someone I'd want to date, even if he didn't just win $100,000 (and if only I were 19 again.) He was so cute saying yes, he IS 19. We would make a great couple. I like men who are smart plus good looking.

I found it funny that the No Nothing Party is also known as the American Party. Yeah, no kidding.

WTH with Trebek over pronouncing "Jamaican" in the middle of a long clue full of words he pronounced in a "regular" way. Geesh.

SHOCKER! Sit down everyone! Dhruv knew the 1930s music was Big Band music. And that was Before His Time! If Trebek were dead, he would have rolled over in his grave.

Why didn't Trebek say categories are chosen before the contestants are selected when the Health & Medicine category came up, since Hannah is pre-med. I mean, it was okay for him to say it based on racial stereotyping. Why not for this?

Snowy Mountains has been a clue/answer on this show before. Woe to these players who have not watched past seasons. I remember because I am a fan of the movie, The Man From Snowy River.

I got gorilla and projectionist (I remember when each high-school class had a designated projectionist, usually the class "nerd."). I also knew Peary, although Amundsen was a good guess. Too funny that Trebek didn't say, "No, the other one" after Dhruv guessed incorrectly.

Congrats to Dhruv and to William and Hannah. Well done everyone. And thank you Trebek for not saying Dhruv was a "run away." Yeah, we knew he was, but it was polite not to flash that in everyone's face. And LOL at Dhruv betting $19 for FJ. Nice.

[Browncoat]

I didn't understand the mime today, and when Alex came out and did an A for Alex, I was even more confused, since no one else did their initial.  But maybe I'm supposed to be confused and it was some sort of inside joke? 

I also thought that the boards were generally cleared during tournament play, but a clue was left during the J round. 

FJ was an instaget.

[teebax]

1 minute ago, Browncoat said:

I didn't understand the mime today, and when Alex came out and did an A for Alex, I was even more confused, since no one else did their initial.  But maybe I'm supposed to be confused and it was some sort of inside joke? 

I also thought that the boards were generally cleared during tournament play, but a clue was left during the J round. 

FJ was an instaget.

YMCA

[Browncoat]

3 minutes ago, teebax said:

YMCA

Ohhhh!   Got it.  Dhruv's Y looked like a shrug, and Hannah's M didn't look like an M to me -- it looked more like an O.  I did get William's C, so then I thought maybe Dhruv's Y was a T, which made TOC, but then Alex made the random A.  And TOC didn't make sense, either, since it isn't the TOC, so I was trying to figure out how it could relate to the College tournament.  Boo hiss on me!  Also, seems like YMCA would be before their time.....

Edited April 21, 2018 by Browncoat

[teebax]

5 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

Ohhhh!   Got it.  Dhruv's Y looked like a shrug, and Hannah's M didn't look like an M to me -- it looked more like an O.  I did get William's C, so then I thought maybe Dhruv's Y was a T, which made TOC, but then Alex made the random A.  And TOC didn't make sense, either, since it isn't the TOC, so I was trying to figure out how it could relate to the College tournament.  Boo hiss on me!  Also, seems like YMCA would be before their time.....

It wasn't very well done.

[Spunkygal]

AT when reading the categories: "21st Century Operas. Uh oh!" WTH? Why did that category require an "uh oh?"

And a clue in another category was a picture of a lighthouse? Really?

Yes, Dhruv is an absolute cutie! And brains to match! But I'm glad this tournament is over.

[Browncoat]

Maybe if one had been dressed as a Native American, and one as a cop, and one as a construction worker....

Edited April 21, 2018 by Browncoat

[saber5055]

10 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

Maybe if one had been dressed as a Native American, and one as a cop, and one as a construction worker....

Yeah, no kidding. That would have helped (and been more entertaining). I was all WTH with that miming business until Trebek came out and said he was "A" for Alex. Then I got it. But I hope Hannah was watching so she could see what a moron her "M" made her look like. I was embarrassed for her. Plus it seemed to go on for ages. How humiliating. At least she got enough $ payout so she can change her name and identity now that the show has aired. I hope all her friends greet her with that "mime" from now on. I know I would. Because I'm snarky and mean.

[CarpeDiem54]

Thank God that's over.  I would have never guessed that mime was supposed to be YMCA in a million years.  I still don't see it.  I thought the three of them were spelling CAT.  Hopefully, we'll not have to put up with nonsense like this in the near future.

I got Peary and projectionist.

FJ was pretty easy.

[saber5055]

11 minutes ago, CarpeDiem54 said:

Hopefully, we'll not have to put up with nonsense like this in the near future.

It's always nice to hope for (and remember) what used to be. We might as well start chatting about "The old days when Jeopardy contestants use to be poised and dignified." Meanwhile, someone will make a fortune selling the new app: "How to look like a dork during Jeopardy intros."

I've already forgotten FJ.

12 minutes ago, CarpeDiem54 said:

I thought the three of them were spelling CAT.

K-A-T. Kat.

Edited April 21, 2018 by saber5055

[Spunkygal]

8 minutes ago, saber5055 said:

It's always nice to hope for (and remember) what used to be. We might as well start chatting about "The old days when Jeopardy contestants use to be poised and dignified." Meanwhile, someone will make a fortune selling the new app: "How to look like a dork during Jeopardy intros."

I've already forgotten FJ.

K-A-T. Kat.

Or K I T......

[EllenB]

Oh, I think production encourages them to have their silly moment because they think nobody wants to see college students being too serious all the time, don'tcha know.  Too bad it just made them look uncomfortable and awkward.

[GreekGeek]

1 hour ago, Spunkygal said:

AT when reading the categories: "21st Century Operas. Uh oh!" WTH? Why did that category require an "uh oh?"

 

For the same reason it's introduced in regular games as "The Dreaded Opera Category" instead of just "Opera." It assumes most people don't want to listen to opera, especially young people. Maybe we could add "Uh oh" to our drinking game.

Another "I feel old" moment: nobody knew projectionist.

Easy FJ. Congrats to Dhruv, though I'm sad Hannah never recovered from those early misses.

[Jesse]

I have to confess I thought it was cute when all three of them did the stupid miming. At least it makes me think they are all buddies back stage, not that one of them is a showboat.

[Etta Place]

I was so annoyed that Alex said the contestants get to talk about whatever they want to, then asked Dhruv what he wanted to talk about, followed by asking Hannah what was fun about being a finalist, and then asking the third guy “so what do you want to talk about?” He apparently didn’t care what Hannah might have wanted to say. 

[peeayebee]

3 hours ago, saber5055 said:

I got gorilla and projectionist (I remember when each high-school class had a designated projectionist, usually the class "nerd."). I also knew Peary, although Amundsen was a good guess. Too funny that Trebek didn't say, "No, the other one" after Dhruv guessed incorrectly.

Well, Alex did say, "You picked the wrong one," when William(?) said orangutan instead of the "other one," gorilla.

I got projectionist and Seventh Day Care. I omitted the 'Centers,' but I'm pretty sure mine would have been accepted.

I always get Byrd and Peary mixed up. At first I said Peary, then I thought, "Wait. I always say Peary and am wrong, so this time I'll say Byrd." 

Big Shawn has pretty eyes.

I wasn't sure how easy FJ was. I got it, but I thought it wasn't obvious.

Edited April 21, 2018 by peeayebee

[saber5055]

1 hour ago, GreekGeek said:

Maybe we could add "Uh oh" to our drinking game.

I'll drink to that.

2 minutes ago, peeayebee said:

Big Shawn has pretty eyes.

I know. I almost couldn't answer that clue, I was too busy staring at the picture.

[Clanstarling]

3 hours ago, saber5055 said:

Snowy Mountains has been a clue/answer on this show before. Woe to these players who have not watched past seasons. I remember because I am a fan of the movie, The Man From Snowy River.

Me too, which is why I was kicking myself in the butt when I didn't get it.

8 minutes ago, Etta Place said:

I was so annoyed that Alex said the contestants get to talk about whatever they want to, then asked Dhruv what he wanted to talk about, followed by asking Hannah what was fun about being a finalist, and then asking the third guy “so what do you want to talk about?” He apparently didn’t care what Hannah might have wanted to say. 

To be fair, he pretty much ordered the guy to say something nice about the Jeopardy crew. Dhruv may have been the only one who got to talk about what they wanted to talk about (unless everything the three said was agreed on prior to the show).

Our feed was so bad during double jeopardy we could barely make out the clues, much less the answers. Anyone else have this problem? The digital feed was wonky as heck. It was corrected by final jeopardy, though.

Edited April 21, 2018 by Clanstarling

[DrScottie]

52 minutes ago, EllenB said:

Oh, I think production encourages them to have their silly moment because they think nobody wants to see college students being too serious all the time, don'tcha know.  Too bad it just made them look uncomfortable and awkward.

That's not unique to the College Championship, the Tournament of Champions itself had its share of characters (Austin, Buzzy, etc.). Jeopardy! had a ratings high when Austin was on. As much as some may lament the drop in the standard of decorum, evidently more people tune in when contestants seem more human and less like robots reciting facts. I don't really mind it that much. I'm more aggravated with bad wagering and stupid guesses than anything else.   

2 minutes ago, peeayebee said:

I got projectionist and Seventh Day Care. I omitted the 'Centers,' but I'm pretty sure mine would have been accepted.

 That's what I said too. 

1 hour ago, saber5055 said:

I've already forgotten FJ.

Literary character wanting to emulate a medieval knight: Don Quixote. Instaget. 

[saber5055]

41 minutes ago, DrScottie said:

Literary character wanting to emulate a medieval knight: Don Quixote. Instaget. 

Thank you. I've also forgotten my instaget answer, which was incorrect BTW. And I even saw Man of La Mancha with Richard Kiley back in the day. That was Before Your Time, everyone.

41 minutes ago, DrScottie said:

As much as some may lament the drop in the standard of decorum, evidently more people tune in when contestants seem more human and less like robots reciting facts.

It's kind of like The Real Housewives series. No one wants to see them sitting around drinking coffee and sharing recipes. Ratings go up when one flips a table on the other while a third pulls the wig hat off of the fourth before knocking her to the ground. You know, real high-brow stuff.

ETA: I've never seen any Real Housewives episode. I'm just speculating.

Edited April 21, 2018 by saber5055

[SHD]

On 4/19/2018 at 7:37 PM, saber5055 said:

I laughed out loud at the "If you have time to lean, you have time to clean." 

I laughed at the look William gave Alex after he revealed the answer. He looked like he was thinking, "Whatever, old man. We don't know your ancient sayings."

[burner]

Dhruv has really irked me this whole tournament. He just always seemed so cocky and arrogant. And his searching for DD's also drove me crazy.

I remember Lilly being in Tournament of Champions last year but I don't really remember how the rules work for that. Is Dhruv likely to be part of that?

[DrScottie]

14 minutes ago, burner said:

I remember Lilly being in Tournament of Champions last year but I don't really remember how the rules work for that. Is Dhruv likely to be part of that?

Winners of the Teacher and College Tournaments are eligible for the Tournament of Champions so, yes, he is likely to be a part of it. 

[Mystery Author]

Quote

And I even saw Man of La Mancha with Richard Kiley back in the day. That was Before Your Time, everyone.

Not before my time :)  I saw it with Kiley, too.

I am shocked, I tell you, shocked Dhruv won.

My girl Rebecca might have beaten him, except she donated her heart...I meant brain (momentarily).

[dcalley]

6 hours ago, Browncoat said:

I also thought that the boards were generally cleared during tournament play, but a clue was left during the J round.

All clues being revealed is only guaranteed when wildcards are up for grabs, i.e., the first week of a two-week tournament.

[Toothbrush]

I confess that I was charmed by the YMCA opening, especially when Alex completed it. At my aunt's 40th birthday party in 2000, the DJ played YMCA & we taught my grandpa how to do it. He was about Alex's age at the time, so it brought back some sweet memories for me. 

I'm sorry for the loss of your friend @Tunia Sounds like the service was lovely & moving. Taps gets me every time too. 

 William & Hannah were great, but no match for Dhruv. He is really good looking too. Loud, but good looking. And I am officially a cougar since he could be my born-in-wedlock, non-teen-mother child if he is 19. 

"Terrific" can share space on the bingo card/drinking game with "good for you" as they seem to be interchangeable for Alex. 

*zoom into a picture of a lighthouse* What's this? Seriously???

TS I got were Peary, Australia (I got it from the movie also), projectionist. I had no idea for FJ. Dr. Toothbrush said he knew but couldn't remember the name. Story of my life, honey.

8 hours ago, teebax said:

It wasn't very well done.

Well it was before their time ya know. 

7 hours ago, GreekGeek said:

For the same reason it's introduced in regular games as "The Dreaded Opera Category" instead of just "Opera."

You really didn't to know a thing about opera to answer these correctly, so uh oh was not necessary. I was impressed that Hannah knew "The Wall"

[Prevailing Wind]

I have no idea WTH I was doing while J! was on. I completely missed watching it, which is OK, because I planned on skipping the entire Championship, anyway. Sounds like I lucked out and didn't miss a thing.

[teebax]

2 hours ago, Prevailing Wind said:

I have no idea WTH I was doing while J! was on. I completely missed watching it, which is OK, because I planned on skipping the entire Championship, anyway. Sounds like I lucked out and didn't miss a thing.

I was going to skip it, but I need my fix. Next time I will watch old jeopardy episodes instead. 

[deemac]

2 hours ago, Prevailing Wind said:

I have no idea WTH I was doing while J! was on. I completely missed watching it, which is OK, because I planned on skipping the entire Championship, anyway. Sounds like I lucked out and didn't miss a thing.

I watched the 1st show, a few minutes of the 2nd then bailed.  I didn't even want to read about it in the forums and just came here today to see if it was over yet lol.

[Jesse]

10 hours ago, Etta Place said:

I was so annoyed that Alex said the contestants get to talk about whatever they want to, then asked Dhruv what he wanted to talk about, followed by asking Hannah what was fun about being a finalist, and then asking the third guy “so what do you want to talk about?” He apparently didn’t care what Hannah might have wanted to say. 

 

10 hours ago, Clanstarling said:

To be fair, he pretty much ordered the guy to say something nice about the Jeopardy crew. Dhruv may have been the only one who got to talk about what they wanted to talk about (unless everything the three said was agreed on prior to the show).

Yeah, that made me crazy. I'm skeptical that Hannah really didn't have anyone she wanted to thank! (Which would be the implication if the "talk about whatever you want" had been discussed with them all in advance.)

[Clanstarling]

5 hours ago, Toothbrush said:

@TuniaI confess that I was charmed by the YMCA opening, especially when Alex completed it. At my aunt's 40th birthday party in 2000, the DJ played YMCA & we taught my grandpa how to do it. He was about Alex's age at the time, so it brought back some sweet memories for me.

I had no clue what they were doing until I got to the boards. Maybe because it was right to left instead of left to right (which wouldn't have worked, I know). So I failed to be charmed, but I wasn't irritated either. Just puzzled. And when Alex said "A" for Alex, we backed up and watched again and tried to connect the letters to the names - but it was of course, an epic fail. We decided maybe it was their last names, but let it be - it wasn't that important to us.

I got Don Quixote after waffling a bit wondering about the dates. We had a set of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza decorative wood wall spoon and forks, a typical military souvenir for those of us stationed there. So I knew about Don Quixote well before reading the book or seeing the move (actually, not sure I saw the movie). But I did see the play at my junior college and still have the original Broadway show soundtrack.

[saber5055]

I'm with you guys about the interview portion where Trebek made a big deal about today is the day each player gets to talk about whatever he/she wishes. So Dhruv gets to, then the other two have to talk about what Trebek directs them to talk about. So what was up with that. He could have skipped the "this show is so great letting players say what they want" and just asked Dhruv if he would like to thank anyone.

But then, it's Trebek. So color me not surprised.

I'm guessing all three had their answers prepared ahead of time and Trebek just prompted them. As for thanking the crew, I was hoping William would say he forgot his shirt and crew got him a Tufts sweatshirt, or his buzzer broke and crew got him a replacement, or thanking crew for making his standing box higher because he's only 4 ft. 3.

[Mindthinkr]

12 hours ago, saber5055 said:

And I even saw Man of La Mancha with Richard Kiley back in the day. That was Before Your Time, everyone.

13 hours ago, DrScottie said:

I saw it on stage with Howard Keel, so gosh saying that made me feel old! 

[Pallida]

William got to thank his teachers and especially his cross country coach. After he was done, Alex made him thank the staff. So yeah, dudes got to say what they wanted, but Hannah got “are you having fun???” BS.

[peeayebee]

8 hours ago, Toothbrush said:

*zoom into a picture of a lighthouse* What's this? Seriously???

OMG, I KNOW! For a second I thought I was watching the Jeopardy Kindergarten Championship.

"I'll take Boo-Boo's for 200, Alex."