The Jeopardy Fan

Good morning! Andy here with the recap of Monday's game!

This week's Hometown Howdies:
Jen Aprahamian - Los Angeles, CA (KABC)
Michelle DeGrothy - Neptune Beach, FL (WTLV)
Emily Goodlander - Baltimore, MD (WBFF)
Danny Jacobs - Laurel, MD (WBFF)
Gudrun Juffer - Milwaukee, WI (WDJT)
Matthew Linnabary - Wichita, KS (KSNW)
Sarah McNitt - Ann Arbor, MI (WDIV)
Stacy Meyers - Fredericksburg, VA (WJLA)
Miriam Musco - Freeville, NY(WSYT)
Geoff Norcross - Portland, OR (KATU)

I count 10. Hmmm...

Today's contestants:

J! round categories:
EUROPEAN CAPITALS
AS THE TITLE CHARACTER'S WIFE
CADILLACS
WHAT ARE YOU AFRAID OF?
"B" ABBREVIATIONS
VALLEY FORGE

Michelle continued her buzzer dominance, running EUROPEAN CAPITALS. Miriam picked up 2 negs herself over the first six clues. Scores at the first break, which felt as though it came early, but that's to be expected against a champion like Michelle who rings in quickly:

Michelle $5,000
Miriam $400
Matthew -$200

Matthew has an interesting occupation: a phlebotomist - he works at a plasma center, so he sticks needles in people's arms all day!

If Michelle continues her dominance and wins a lot of money, she would buy an airplane (in spite of being a helicopter pilot!)

Coming out of the break, Michelle continued her strength on the buzzer. Thankfully, I did not have to transcribe a video Daily Double, as it was at the bottom of WHAT ARE YOU AFRAID OF! Scores:

Michelle $8,600
Miriam -$200
Matthew -$200

Michelle bet $600. Her clue: Selenophobia. Michelle wins Best Wrong Answer today with "Fear of Mexican Music Stars" and her score falls to $8,000.

Which brings us to our Tweets Of The Night:

Selenophobia "What is fear of Mexican music stars?" - Michelle, the only one in the plus column #Awesome #Jeopardy #DailyDouble
— Neville Fogarty (@flyingelevator) January 14, 2014

LOLOL -- the champ finally showed a personality! "Selenophobia -- fear of Mexican music stars." HA. #JEOPARDY
— UberGoof™ (@MetsFanInPhilly) January 14, 2014

Scores at the end of the J! round:

Michelle $7,800
Miriam -$800
Matthew -$800

DJ! Round categories:
THE MOOR YOU KNOW
FROM PAGE TO STAGE
CHEMISTRY
RELIGIOUS MATTERS
TV DAVIDS
TO "EACH" HIS "OWN"

Miriam and Matthew slowly pulled themselves out of the whole, whereas Michelle had a couple of negs to keep her score static. Matthew got to play the first Daily Double in the round under FROM PAGE TO STAGE $1200. Scores:

Michelle $7,800
Miriam $1,200
Matthew $400

Matthew left $1,000 on the table, betting only half of the maximum! His clue: Gosh darn it! Douglass Wallop's "The Year The Yankees Lost The Pennant" hit a home run as this musical. His correct response put him at $1,400.

Meanwhile, Michelle just seemed to lose her buzzer mojo, as the two competitors clawed into her lead. RELIGIOUS MATTERS $1600 had the second Daily Double and it was Matthew's to play again! If only he'd had that extra $1,000 to play with! Scores:

Michelle $6,600
Miriam $4,000
Matthew $2,600

$1,000. AGAIN. I don't get it. His clue: In 1536 this French reformer moved to Geneva, which became the center for his form of Protestantism. Another correct response means he's now at $3,600. However, Matthew could have been at $7,200 right now. So much waste.

Meanwhile, after the minute-to-go signal, Michelle liked giving her opponents a shot, by going to the $2000 clues. Not how I'd play that! The end-of-round signal ended Miriam and Matthew's chances, where he'll be kicking himself over lost opportunites!

Scores going into Final:

Michelle $12,200
Matthew $4,400
Miriam $4,000

(Even a pair of $2,000 wagers, instead of $1,000, would have saved our phlebotomist from the lock game.)

FJ! category: ASIAN NATIONS

FJ! clue: Since 1991, it's the only former Communist nation to restore its monarchy, which it still has

Miriam 4000 - 3900 = 100
Matthew 4400 - 3601 = 399
Michelle 12200 - 0 = 12200

So Matthew's betting follies don't come back to haunt him, and Michelle is now a 2-day champ! We'll see if she can get win #3 tomorrow!

One final comment: I sometimes get flak about commenting on wagering, because of "how hard it is to come up with decisions under the lights". But that's why I do it. So that prospective contestants think about it beforehand! If you've thought about it beforehand, the chances of you making the right decision under pressure are much greater!

When I first wrote tonight's post I wondered who'd be the first to notice the new design. Before the post could publish, though, someone noticed. :-) It's Cathy! She taped Jeopardy! the same week I did. What do you think of the design? Comments welcome, as always. I thought about giving something away to celebrate, but since the last response was so overwhelming (not), I thought I wouldn't wind up doing much celebrating. I can be talked into it, though... (The giveaway, that is, which will lead to celebrating.)
You might think the new design has something to do with the fact that Andy and I didn't cover yesterday's episode. It doesn't. The simple truth is that neither he nor I could do it. It happens sometimes, but rarely! My Coryat yesterday was 17600 (20000 without negs). My Coryat from the weekend rerun was 16600 (22400 without negs). It originally aired 10-3-12. The first time I played, my score was 18600 (25600 without negs). At the time, I said "Yeah, ouchie." That goes double today!
On to today's episode. Yesterday, Sarah McNitt defeated Michelle DeGrothy.

Emily Goodlander

Sarah

Danny Jacobs

I admit I was looking at the design when I had to rewind my second time through - Mr. Trebek actually said the less he talks at the beginning the more time we have to see clues! He's learning!
This Jeopardy round was my kind of board, with State the Senator, I'd Like a Soft Drink and Reality TV. I did go 26/30, and two of my clams were surprisingly in the pop category ("Roy Rogers" and "ginger ale.")! This girl did better than I did:

Guess who got 4 out of the 5 jeopardy questions on soda right?
— Seanna Rowen (@SeannaKay) January 16, 2014

I was nervous when the senators weren't current ones, but I swept after all. I knew I liked Danny when he went to that category the first chance he got. I also swept Reality TV.
Emily found the Daily Double in That Literary Title Guy is Up to Something.
Sarah 1000 (3 right)
Emily 600 (One right)
Danny 200 (One right)
Emily wagered 1000 on this clue: "'Further and further back he cowered, as we, lifting our crucifixes, advanced." Neither Emily nor I got it.
I liked State the Senator so much I was annoyed when the first break came right before the last clue there would've been revealed!
Sarah 4800 (5 right)
Emily -200 (One right)
Danny 1400 (3 right and one wrong)
Here's a timely clue in Reality TV: "Dawg, in 2013, after 12 seasons, he left the 'American Idol' judging table." Do you guys remember American Idol starts tonight? Are you going to watch? He's smokin' but Harry Connick, Jr. has been their worst judge choice yet.
I got this triple-stumper in 6-Letter Anagrams: "A 3-D piece of art, perhaps in marble, & the cunning or shrewd word you are when you respond."
At the end of the round:
Sarah 8600 (5 right)
Emily 2000 (4 right and one wrong)
Danny 2800 (5 right and one wrong)
I only last night learned this word in a crossword puzzle, and it was a triple-stumper in I'm Ready for "Mor": "An accumulation of boulders & other debris carried along & deposited by a glacier." Sarah negged on it.
Emily found the next Daily Double too, in Landlocked Country Fun.
Sarah 10600 (4 right and one wrong)
Emily 4000 (2 right)
Danny 3600 (One right)
Emily wagered 3000 on this clue: "This large landlocked Asian country starts with the same 3 letters as a day of the week." Emily got it immediately.
Even though I'm sure nobody remembers my least-favorite neg in my episode, I have to point out this clue in Singers in Toon: "This Black Eyed Pea dropped it low as Pedro in 'Rio.'" This time I took a guess and it was right. And speaking of the category, I noticed this too:

Jeopardy question asked for “rapper/actress/talk show host” and I swear to god someone rang in and said “Who is Ellen Degeneres?”
— Todd Harper (@laevantine) January 16, 2014

Danny found the last Daily Double in Astronomy. There was one clue worth 2000 on the board after this one.
Sarah 16600 (5 right)
Emily 7000 (3 right and 2 wrong)
Danny 10400 (6 right and one wrong)
Danny wagered 1500 on this clue: "This planet's lowest point is Diana Chasma, a 1.8-mile-deep rift valley." Danny got it right! He got the last one right too.
Sarah 16600
Emily 7000
Danny 13900
The Final Jeopardy category was 16th Century People. This is the clue: "This non-Brit said in 1532, 'I advised (Henry VIII) that it would be better for him to take a concubine than ruin his people.'" Mr. Trebek seemed to think it was weird that Emily guessed a pope, but all 3 contestants did. It crossed my mind but changed it to something else, also wrong. Maybe I should resurrect the weekly poll along with the new design - I wonder how many people got this! Emily lost 6912, Danny lost 11000 and Sarah lost 4000. So she'll be back tomorrow.
My Coryat today was 28200 (33400 without negs). Two of my negs were worth 2000!

One year ago: Lucky stripes
Two years ago: From Sage to Screen
Three years ago: Crazy like a Fox

Yesterday Sarah McNitt won her second episode, which means I might be updating the ToC list tonight. Let's find out!

Sarah

Stacy Meyers

Gudrun Juffer

I don't have a "Stacy" or a "Gudrun" in my contestant pictures folder til now.
Did you see Stacy jamming the signaling device? Having seen or experienced many a Jeopardy! rehearsal, I doubt she was doing it then. She seemed to be trying to ring in on most everything, and at the first break everyone had some success.
Sarah 2400 (7 right and one wrong)
Gudrun 2000 (3 right)
Stacy 1600 (4 right)
I had a feeling Twitter was gonna explode over the downright ridiculous - sorry - incorrect responses all three contestants gave to this one in Thrown of Games: "354 wins did not overcome the controversy as this ex-Red Sox pitcher didn't make the Hall of Fame cut in 2013." For once I agree with Mr. Trebek's reaction. And note he didn't say his customary "No harm no foul"! I bet he went on a rant during the commercial break. If I'd been there, I'd know! I mean, these people had to know they don't know baseball if they throw out such wild guesses...so don't ring in. You know what, though? I didn't find any good tweets as of publication.
Okay, I think this is the first time I've had to blog an audio clue. It's the Daily Double of the round, in Beethoven. Stacy found it, the second-to-last clue (but as you'll see it wound up being the last one).
Sarah 4400
Gudrun 2200
Stacy 2800
It would've taken me a long time to both remember how to record sound and then how to embed it here, so I made this a video. I was hoping Stacy would hurry - the longer the video the longer I expected the video to take to arrive in my e-mail. And as of publication, it hasn't yet. :-( But I expect to be up all night, so when it comes I'll stick it in.
Stacy found the next Daily Double too, in Blade Runner.
Sarah 10800 (6 right)
Gudrun 3800 (3 right and one wrong)
Stacy 10600 (6 right)
Stacy wagered 1000 on this clue: "In a Tennyson poem, Bedevere is asked to make a run with this& fling it 'into the middle mere.'" Stacy didn't know it.
Gudrun got the next clue right, and the next was the Daily Double in Metropolis.
Sarah 10800
Gudrun 4200
Stacy 9600
Gudrun wagered it all on this clue: "In 1890 the population of this U.S. city bordering Mexico was 16,000; today, it's 1.3 million." Now I know why this comment was left earlier today. Gudrun was wrong, and after Sarah answered the next clue Mr. Trebek said there was less than a minute left in the round. Come on, Gudrun!
Four clues were left covered when time ran out.
Sarah 13600 (2 right)
Gudrun 1200 (One right!)
Stacy 10400 (One right and one wrong)
The Final Jeopardy category is Shakespeare. This is the clue: "This 5-letter name appears 7 times in Shakespeare titles, more than any other name." Gudrun got it right! She added 1100. Stacy got it wrong. She lost 7600. Sarah got it, so she wins! She adds 4000. 3-day 46000. So I do indeed add her to the ToC list. But she needs a fourth win to actually be in the running for the next ToC:
1. John Pearson (November 2013 Teacher's Champion)
2. Jim Coury (May 2013 College Champion)
3. Ben Ingram $176,534 (8 wins)
4. Drew Horwood $138,100 (8 wins)
5. Jared Hall $181,001 (6 wins)
6. Andrew Moore $137,803 (6 wins)
7. Jerry Slowik $121,800 (5 wins)
8. Joshua Brakhage $103,205 (5 wins)
9. Rebecca Rider $101,600 (5 wins)
10. Rani Peffer $68,701 (5 wins)
11. Mark Japinga $112,600 (4 wins)
12. Mike Lewis $102,800 (4 wins)
13. Carlos Ross $89,774 (3 wins)
14. Adam Holquist $76,299 (3 wins)
15. Sara Garnett $75,403 (3 wins)
16. Salvo Candela $66,195 (3 wins)
17. Neal Pollack $60,798 (3 wins)
18. John Anneken $60,112 (3 wins)
19. Tim Anderson $56,001 (3 wins)
20. Stuart Anderson $51,601 (3 wins)
21. Sarah McNitt $46,000 (3 wins)
21. Bill Tolany $44,200 (3 wins)

I didn't feel like watching tonight's episode before blogging about it. Maybe because I'm already posting later than I'd like. ;-) And I have tennis and American Idol to watch and cookies to bake. (Now you see why I will be up all night, but it's a pleasure!)

One year ago: I'll say what she's saying
Two years ago: A sure Betsy
Three years ago: Crazy like a Fox

Andy here with another recap!

Today's contestants:

Will Sarah win Game #4?

J! round categories:
THE REALLY OLD COLLEGE TRY
IT BORDER TENNESSEE
3-LETTER WORDS
NONFICTION
LIQUIDS
SPORTS SIBLINGS

I was cheering for Geoff, until the following SPORTS SIBLINGS $600 clue (Formula 1's Michael & Ralf). I assume this taped before Michael's recent ski accident, but still...

I realize this is taped, but not-so-great timing by Jeopardy to bring up Michael Schumacher as an answer. #coma #getwellsoon
— Jake, Esq. (@balooko31) January 18, 2014

Watching Jeopardy Quiz show on TV. Question: What is surname of F1 drivers Michael & Ralf? Guy answers "What is Andretti?" Oops no points
— Mario Andretti (@MarioAndretti) January 18, 2014

Scores at the first break:
Sarah $2,400 (4 right 1 wrong)
Geoff $2,400 (7 right 1 wrong)
Jen $800 (2 right)

Apparently Jen's boyfriend writes for DC comics and has created a character about her!

Back to the game, the first Daily Double went Jen's way, under NONFICTION $800!

Scores:
Sarah $4,200
Geoff $2,400
Jen $1,400

Jen bet all $1,400. Her clue: It's the rhyming title of the book about "how a gang of fame-obsessed teens ripped off Hollywood". Her correct response put her at $2,800!

At the end of the J! round, the scores were:
Geoff $5,400 (13 right, 2 wrong)
Sarah $5,200 (8 right, 1 wrong)
Jen $3,600 (5 right)

DJ! round category:
THE MAYO CLINIC SAYS...
BATTLE NATIONS
SPECIAL 2 Ks
MARKS
ANGELS
GUYS, CAPITALISM WORKS!

Geoff got 5 of the first 6 clues in the Double Jeopardy round to go out to a commanding lead! Once he finished Capitalism, he prefered MAYO CLINIC, whereas Sarah preferred 2Ks. MAYO CLINIC $1600 had the first Daily Double, and it was Geoff's!

Scores:
Geoff $12,600
Sarah $6,400
Jen $1,200

Geoff bet $2,500. Clue: "You can get it through kissing, but you can also be exposed through a cough or sneeze". His correct response put him at $15,100.

Geoff still had the best luck on the buzzer but Sarah was able to keep him within striking distance! However, Geoff got the final Daily Double under ANGELS $1600 (with 4 clues left to play). Scores:

Geoff $19,900
Sarah $12,000
Jen $1,600

Geoff bet $3,000. His clue: Luke I says "The angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee named" this, to visit Mary. His correct response put him at $22,900!

The last 4 clues went by quickly, and the scores going into Final sat at:

Geoff $24,500 (17 right, 1 wrong)
Sarah $13,200 (7 right)
Jen $1,600 (1 right, 2 wrong)

FJ! category: AMERICAN THEATER

FJ! clue: This 1949 drama that ends with a requiem asks "Why did you do it? I search & search & I search, and I can't understand it"

Jen 1600 + 1599 = 3199
Sarah 13200 + 9999 = 23199
Geoff 24500 - 2500 = 22000

This was the best betting we've seen from Sarah and it wins her her 4th game!

1. John Pearson (November 2013 Teacher's Champion)
2. Jim Coury (May 2013 College Champion)
3. Ben Ingram $176,534 (8 wins)
4. Drew Horwood $138,100 (8 wins)
5. Jared Hall $181,001 (6 wins)
6. Andrew Moore $137,803 (6 wins)
7. Jerry Slowik $121,800 (5 wins)
8. Joshua Brakhage $103,205 (5 wins)
9. Rebecca Rider $101,600 (5 wins)
10. Rani Peffer $68,701 (5 wins)
11. Mark Japinga $112,600 (4 wins)
12. Mike Lewis $102,800 (4 wins)
13. Sarah McNitt $69,199 (4 wins)
14. Carlos Ross $89,774 (3 wins)
15. Adam Holquist $76,299 (3 wins)
16. Sara Garnett $75,403 (3 wins)
17. Salvo Candela $66,195 (3 wins)
18. Neal Pollack $60,798 (3 wins)
19. John Anneken $60,112 (3 wins)
20. Tim Anderson $56,001 (3 wins)
21. Stuart Anderson $51,601 (3 wins)
22. Bill Tolany $44,200 (3 wins)

See you next week!

Andy here with a new week of recaps! I think I've got all of them this week.

This week's contestants:

Emily Gadek - Palm Springs, CA (KABC)
Jennifer Cross Miller - Pacheco, CA (KGO)
Karen Ruckert - Topeka, KS (KTKA)
Zachary Tomanelli - Brooklyn, NY (WABC)
Chip Bell - Marysville, OH (WBNS)
Blake Perkins - Baton Rouge, LA (WBRZ)
Jon McGuire - Matthews, NC (WCNC)
Sarah McNitt - Ann Arbor, MI (WDIV)
Priscilla Emery - Longwood, FL (WFTV)
Joe Thomas - Martin, TN (WPSD)
Dana Murray - Tampa, FL (WTSP)

No pictures today; today's contestants are Jon McGuire, Blake Perkins and our returning champion Sarah McNitt!

J! round categories:
WORD PUZZLES
1970s NO. 1 HITS
DESCRIBING THE ANIMAL
TEEING OFF
CHIPPING IN
LET'S PLAY SOME GULF

All 3 players had good luck on the buzzer over the first 15 clues! Scores at the first break:

Sarah $3,800 (6 right)
Blake $1,800 (3 right)
Jon $600 (4 right, 1 wrong)

I found myself glossing over the interviews today; nothing I could really take from them that I found too interesting!

CHIPPING IN $800 had the first Daily Double, and it was Sarah's to play! Scores:

Sarah $4,400
Blake $2,200
Jon $1,400

Sarah bet $2,000. Her clue: Punning on a newsreel name, this charity that helped defeat polio made its first appeal in 1938. Had no idea as to the pun, but I did know the charity! Sarah got the correct response to move to $6,400. My father was happy to explain the pun afterwards.

Scores at the end of 30:
Sarah $8,800 (12 right)
Blake $3,400 (6 right, 1 wrong)
Jon $2,400 (7 right, 2 wrong)

DJ! round categories:
SAME NAME AS A STATE CAPITAL
LITERARY BYWAYS
DURING LOU GEHRIG'S CONSECUTIVE GAME STREAK
RECENT MOVIE QUOTES
BRIT FOOD
AT THE "N"

Sarah went and got 6 of the first 8 clues before landing on the first Daily Double, under RECENT MOVIE QUOTES $1200. Scores:

Sarah $15,600
Blake $3,800
Jon $2,400

Sarah bet $2,600. Her clue: "Why are you here then?""Because I bloody well stammer!". A correct response put her at $18,200.

LOU GEHRIG $1200 had the final Daily Double, this one was Jon's, and he needed to make a big move! Scores:

Sarah $18,200
Jon $5,600
Blake $1,800

Alex's comments led to our first Tweet Of The Night:

"you trail sarah by... a lot"#jeopardy #trebekisadouche
— caitlin parrett (@caitlinparrett) January 21, 2014

(Which reminds me of a link my friend KC shared with me the other day: Mean Alex Trebek)

Jon bet $4,000. Clue: A photographic plate taken at the Lowell Observatory on January 23, 1930 helped identify this object. A correct response from Jon put him at $9,600!

The remaining clues saw Sarah and Jon battle to see if Sarah could keep a lock game, and she cemented it on her final clue! If only Jon had bet more on that Daily Double...

And our second Tweet of the Night:

People can shut up about Sarah's FJ wagering strategy. Non-issue when you can't be caught. #jeopardy
— Cecilia Grant (@Cecilia_Grant) January 21, 2014

Scores going into Final:
Sarah $22,200 (11 right, 1 wrong)
Jon $10,000 (6 right)
Blake $5,000 (5 right, 3 wrong)

FJ! category: GOVERNMENT SITES

FJ! clue: Begun as part of a 1930s project to reclaim Maryland mountain land, it's officially "Naval Support Facility Thurmont"

Blake 5000 - 5000 = 0
Jon 10000 - 1620 = 8380
Sarah 22200 - 2001 = 20199

I got that Final instantly; I'm surprised that it was a Triple Stumper!

ToC update:

1. John Pearson (November 2013 Teacher's Champion)
2. Jim Coury (May 2013 College Champion)
3. Ben Ingram $176,534 (8 wins)
4. Drew Horwood $138,100 (8 wins)
5. Jared Hall $181,001 (6 wins)
6. Andrew Moore $137,803 (6 wins)
7. Jerry Slowik $121,800 (5 wins)
8. Joshua Brakhage $103,205 (5 wins)
9. Rebecca Rider $101,600 (5 wins)
10. Sarah McNitt $89,398 (5 wins)
11. Rani Peffer $68,701 (5 wins)
12. Mark Japinga $112,600 (4 wins)
13. Mike Lewis $102,800 (4 wins)
14. Carlos Ross $89,774 (3 wins)
15. Adam Holquist $76,299 (3 wins)
16. Sara Garnett $75,403 (3 wins)
17. Salvo Candela $66,195 (3 wins)
18. Neal Pollack $60,798 (3 wins)
19. John Anneken $60,112 (3 wins)
20. Tim Anderson $56,001 (3 wins)
21. Stuart Anderson $51,601 (3 wins)
22. Bill Tolany $44,200 (3 wins)

Sarah will be back tomorrow! So will I!

Andy here with another recap!

I've had some conversations with Jeanie this week and I think I'm safe to say that she's having the time of her life on this brief trip she's taking! I hope that she continues to have fun!

I'm watching this off my PVR, so no pictures today!

Emily Gadek and Priscilla Emery are the challengers today for Sarah McNitt! Will she become a superchamp?

ENTERTAINMENT BY THE NUMBERS
RETAIL THERAPY
"C" THE WORLD
OBAMA-RAMA
RHYME LINE
& THE FISH WAS THIS BIG!

"C" THE WORLD $1000, the fifth clue played, had the first Daily Double. Priscilla got to play it after the $800 clue, and the scores were:

Priscilla $800
Sarah $600
Emily $600

Priscilla just chose $800. It's going to be one of those games... Her clue: This former district of South Central Scotland gave its name to a terrier & a breed of draught horse. Priscilla said "Cairn" and fell to $0.

At the first break, the scores were:
Emily $2,600
Sarah $2,200
Priscilla $1,600

In Emily's interview, she claims to be 3% Neanderthal. Interesting...

"@KamTheLeo: 3 women contestants on #Jeopardy!!" Correction, 2 women and 1 Neanderthal.
— Jennifer. (@JennyWHOA) January 22, 2014

Coming out of the break, all 3 players had luck on the buzzer! A lot of Emily's gets seemed to be on the high valued clues, as well! Scores after 30:

Sarah $5,000
Emily $5,000
Priscilla $4,200

DJ! round categories:
HIGH MAINTENANCE
HISTORY
POETIC LICENSE
BELLA ITALIA
MUSICAL RAP SHEET
INCOMPLETE "PASS"

Sarah was the only one without a neg early in Double Jeopardy and thus she had a good lead by the time she found the first Daily Double, under BELLA ITALIA $1200. Scores:

Sarah $9,000
Emily $5,000
Priscilla $5,000

She bet $2,000. Her clue: Just a short drive from Milan, this lake in Lombardy is the deepest lake in Italy at 1,350 feet. Sarah added an extra U into her response and it cost her; her score fell to $7,000.

Twitter seemed to be on Jeopardy!'s side here, surprising considering how the court of public opinion has seemed to be recently on this stuff:

Lady on #Jeopardy just mispronounced Italy's Lake Como. It's "Como" like @komonews not Cuomo. #LiveonKOMO
— Elliott Smith (@soundslikepuget) January 22, 2014

Meanwhile, Priscilla decided that it would be better to start POETIC LICENSE from the top, even though there was a Daily Double remaining to play. Thankfully for me in a video category, it went unplayed. Sadly for Priscilla, Sarah got the final $1200 clue to snatch the lead. Maybe Priscilla would have been better off with that betting clue?

Scores going into Final:

Sarah $11,400
Priscilla $11,000
Emily $9,400

FJ! category: INTERNATIONAL SPORTS

FJ! clue: Twice the host country, this nation of 4 1/2 million leads the world in total Winter Olympic medals

Emily 9400 - 9000 = 400
Priscilla 11000 + 7000 = 18000
Sarah 11400 - 302 = 11098

And Sarah's run comes to an end...I'm sure we'll see her in a Tournament of Champions soon, though!

I'll be back tomorrow!

Andy here with his third recap of in a row with no pictures!

Zachary Tomanelli and Karen Ruckert are the challengers today for Priscilla Emery, who won $18,000 yesterday!

LITERATURE CATS WOULD LOVE
TV CARTOONS
ETIQUETTE
CLEAN UP YOUR ACT
POLITICAL DEFINITIONS
ALSO ON THE FOOTBALL TEAM

I got the following Triple Stumper, under FOOTBALL TEAM $1000: British term for a gambler. Scores at the first break were:

Zachary $2,600 (4 right)
Karen $2,600 (5 right, 1 wrong)
Priscilla -$200 (3 right, 1 wrong)

I felt as though Karen's interview about trapeze artistry went on FOREVER. Was I wrong in hearing a rumour that the interview times were going to be cut down?

Back to the game, Zachary steamrolled through TV CARTOONS - though Karen got the $1,000 clue! Priscilla had trouble getting in, only ringing in once after the break before finding the Daily Double (LITERATURE $800). Scores:

Zachary $6,400
Karen $4,800
Priscilla $800

Yesterday Priscilla didn't bet the full $1000. Today, she just bet $200. Sigh. And she can call herself a Jeopardy! champion, while people like my co-blogger can not. Her clue: Kitty doesn't like the knitting so much in the Debbie Macomber book called "A good" this, but loves the threads. Her correct response put her at $1,000.

A commenter the other day asked us what caused us to root for certain contestants over others. To me: Chickening out on Daily Doubles is the easiest way for me to cheer against you. Betting big on them is the easiest way for me to get on your side very quickly.

At the end of the J! round, the scores were:

Zachary $6,400 (11 right)
Karen $5,800 (9 right, 2 wrong)
Priscilla $1,000 (5 right, 1 wrong)

DJ! round categories:
RIVERS
GO WITH THE "FLO"
TIME OF THE CAVEMAN
ACTORS IN BIOPICS
SOUTH AMERICAN HISTORY
ART AT THE GETTY CENTER

Of course, the video ART AT THE GETTY CENTER had the Daily Double, and it was Karen's to play! Scores:

Karen $10,600
Zachary $6,000
Priscilla $1,000

Karen bet $1,000. Her clue: Edouard Manet depicted national pride in the flag-lined "rue mosnier", but an amputee, perhaps a war veteran, shows the costs and sacrifices on this fete de la paix, a national holiday to celebrate France's recovery from this disastrous 1870-71 war. She said Bastille Day and fell to $9,000.

The final Daily Double was under SOUTH AMERICAN HISTORY $2000, just as Alex was giving the minute-to-go signal. Scores were:

Karen $16,800
Zachary $5,600
Priscilla $1,000

I've never seen anyone bet so quickly. She bet $2,000. Her clue: In 1888 this country abolished slavery & freed about 750,000 slaves, many of whom worked on rubber plantations. She gave a correct response and put her at $3,000.

We didn't get through all of TIME OF THE CAVEMAN (2 clues went unseen). Scores going into Final:

Karen $16,400 (12 right, 2 wrong)
Zachary $6,000 (4 right, 3 wrong)
Priscilla $3,000 (4 right, 2 wrong)

FJ! category: LITERARY TITLE CHARACTERS

FJ! clue: Lord Henry tells him, "What an exquisite life you have had!...it has not marred you. You are still the same"

Priscilla 3000 - 2999 = 1
Zachary 6000 - 1000 = 5000
Karen 16400 - 4000 = 12400

So Karen is the new champ; I'll be back tomorrow with another recap!

You may be wondering why I don't have any Tweets of the Night tonight. I didn't find any tweets I felt comfortable using. There seemed to be a lot of Karen fans, but I can't say I wanted to actually use any of them!

Andy here with another recap! I have pictures today!

No Tweets Of The Night today as I've had my phone shut off (deliberately) for the last 14 hours and counting. So no Twitter for me! It feels good. Everybody should do it at some point!

Today's contestants:

J! round categories:
HARRY POTTER & THE CHAPTER TITLES
THE BIG BAND THEORY
"FOO" ON YOU
WATER GATE
BLACK SOCKS
SCANDAL

Jennifer was a Harry Potter fan and she went straight into there after getting the opening clue! She ended up getting 4/5 in the category! (I got all 5.)

At the first break, the scores were:
Jennifer $3,600
Chip $1,400
Karen $0

Karen once took a yoga class from a man who claimed to be a 102 year old swami! At the end of the class, the yoga master put his feet behind his head. This flabbergasted Alex!

Back to the game, a surprising Triple Stumper (SCANDAL $600: On film, Ralph Fiennes portrayed this real-life intellectual who was involved in a 1950s quiz show scandal); you'd think that quiz show contestants would be up on the history of the genre!

SCANDAL $800: In 2013 Rob Ford, mayor of this 4th-largest city in N. America, first said he smoked weed, not crack...then yes, OK, crack, too

I don't care. I'm still not going off in search of Tweets of the Night.

SCANDAL $1000: The Daily Double. Scores:

Chip $6,200
Jennifer $5,200
Karen $800

Chip bet $2,000. His clue: In 1991 he went to prison on drug charges; 3 years later, he was reelected mayor of D.C. Chip's correct response put him at $8,200 and took us to our second break.

DJ! round categories:
READ THE BOOK, SAW IT ON HBO
GEOMETRY
HEAD FOR THE BORDERS
FLAKES
ANIMAL WORDS & PHRASES
WHAT ARE THEY?

Karen came out charging in ANIMAL WORDS & PHRASES, bringing herself back into the game! Jennifer got to play the first Daily Double, midway through the round, though, under GEOMETRY $1600. Scores:

Chip $9,000
Jennifer $8,400
Karen $4,000

Jennifer bet $1,400. Her clue: Johannes Kepler used this geometric figure to describe the orbits of planets, with the sun as a focus. Jennifer gave the wrong word... and her score fell to $7,000.

I feel as though the Daily Double miss was difficult on Jennifer, as she definitely seemed more down after it!

The final Daily Double was under FLAKES, with the minute-to-go signal already given. Karen went straight to $1200 where she found the Daily Double. Scores:

Chip $9,000
Jennifer $8,600
Karen $4,000

Karen bet $2,000. Her clue: One reason this famed fresco began flaking soon after completion in 1498 was that it was painted on dry plaster. Karen said "Sistine Chapel" and fell to $2,000.

The top two FLAKES clues went unseen; scores going into Final:
Chip $9,000
Jennifer $8,600
Karen $3,600

FJ! category: NOTABLE NAMES

FJ! clue: During a jubilee celebration, he became the first foreigner to be made an honorary citizen of Nepal

Karen 3600 - 2900 = 700
Jennifer 8600 - 8000 = 600
Chip 9000 + 8300 = 17300

I have no words for these wagers. Please, if you're reading this and are preparing for the show, take some time to look at wagering strategy. It can only help you.

In any case, Chip emerges alive to fight another day. I'll have the recap tomorrow.

Andy here with his final recap of the week!

Today's contestants:

Chip survived yesterday. Will he survive today? Alex commented that both Chip and Joe were "giants"; the bigger they are, the harder they fall?

J! round categories:
SAFETY IN NUMBERS
CENTURY 19
10-LETTER WORDS
THEY TURNED MY BOOK INTO A MOVIE
DEATH
TAXES

CENTURY 19 $800 had the first Daily Double; it was Dana's to play, even though Joe got off to the best start!

Scores:

Joe $2,400
Dana $1,000
Chip $0

Dana bet $1,000. Her clue: In 1898 this U.S. battleship went to Havana Harbor in part to protect U.S. citizens, but it would never leave

At the first break, the scores were:
Joe $3,400
Dana $2,200
Chip $800

Chip is 6'7"; the second-tallest person in his family, his dad, is 6' tall!

Coming out of the break, THEY TURNED MY BOOK INTO A MOVIE $800 was a Triple Stumper ("World War Z"); hands up, who got it?

At the end of the J! round, the scores were:
Joe $6,800
Chip $3,600
Dana $3,000

DJ! round categories:
ANCIENT ROME
THE "I"S HAVE IT
ANATOMY
SOAP BRANDS DEFINED
U.S. ISLANDS
BEFORE & AFTER AT THE MOVIES

An amusing Triple Stumper in BEFORE & AFTER $1600: The Edsels' 1961 doo-wop hit is a song by Dorothy & the munchkins celebrating a notable demise in "The Wizard Of Oz". Alex said the word I put in parentheses, but that's not part of the title!

ANATOMY $1200 had the first Daily Double; it was Joe's to play with the following scores:
Joe $8,400
Dana $7,400
Chip $5,600

Joe bet $1,600. His clue: The sigmoid section of this part of the digestive tract is named for its "S" shape. Joe's answer of "small intestine" dropped him to $6,800. He got his $1,600 back on the next clue.

SOAP BRANDS DEFINED $1600 was a Triple Stumper, though I'm sure it was the brand everyone was thinking at the start of the category! (A type of dentin)

It appears as if the judges have decided to set a leniency precedent in the respect that Chip was given no fewer than three chances to pronounce "Narragansett Bay" - I hope that people remember this! To add insult to injury, the following clue had the Daily Double! Scores:
Joe $9,600
Chip $8,000
Dana $3,800

Chip bet $2,000. His clue: 3 islands lie within this lake in New York's Adirondacks: Buck Island, Moose Island & Hawk Island. Chip gave no answer. His score fell to $6,000.

Scores going into Final:
Joe $11,600
Chip $6,000
Dana $4,600

FJ! category: GROUNDBREAKING NONFICTION

FJ! clue: Chapters in this 1962 classic include "Earth's Green Mantle", "Needless Havoc", "Rivers of Death"& "And No Birds Sing"

Dana 4600 + 4500 = 9100
Chip 6000 + 6000 = 12000
Joe 11600 - 401 = 11199

No Tweets of the Night, either, as everything that I felt would be worthy, I saw no tweets on!

It's tough to give the "holding everything else constant" on the Narragnasett Bay ruling because the Daily Double truly changes everything. That being said, it was a judge's ruling, and they do appear to be setting a precedent. In that respect, I think I'm okay with it. Someone may need to remind me of this the next time this happens, though!

Jeanie will have Chip's third game on Monday, where he attempts to get on the ToC list! In the meantime, she'll have a trip recap too!

Last time I went to O'Brien's pub, I regretted not blogging about it the same night no matter how tired I was. On the ride to the hotel this time, I was so lost in composing this post in my head that I wouldn't immediately notice I'd stopped on a station or song I'd normally skip after a second or two. I would not wait this time, and I wasn't too tired anyway. It helped that the Wawrinka/Berdych match was only one set in, and my plane didn't leave til like 4 the next day. (I didn't get home til 5 a.m. the next day!)

Which brings me to my team's name: "This Time It's Personal...Grrr." Apparently my team was out for revenge due to a close, contested match last time they were together. We didn't have a name yet when I arrived. Had I known I'd have thought about it. It would've been the only contribution to my team, come to find out. Okay, I did recognize an image from the Reading Rainbow theme song; big whoop! I failed on a handout on which the teams were to identify the city with the pictured religious structure. I pointed at one and wondered if it was Mecca. Teammate Colby Burnett showed me which one was Mecca, and it looked nothing like what I'd pointed to.

The rest of my team consisted of Stefan Goodreau, Stephanie Jass, her husband Doug and pub quiz regular Mark May.

I expected the room to be stuffed because the 1990s and 2000s pieces of the 30th anniversary tournament taped this week, but somehow it appeared less full than the previous two times I'd been there. Don't get me wrong: Stefan counted 8 Tournament of Champions winners in the room. And that's just for starters! The people who taped this week that I saw: Shane Whitlock (we sung Happy Birthday to him!), Fritz Holznagel, Pam Mueller (she hosted and looked great in a great dress), Brad Rutter, Mark Dawson, Roger Craig (very briefly), Celeste DiNucci, Michael Falk, Vinita Kailasanath, Tom Kavanaugh, Russ Schumacher and Maria Wenglinsky. Not that I spoke to everyone or even most everyone! Erin McLean didn't tape this week but she was an alternate, and I got to meet her too. I also finally met both Bill MacDonald and Hans von Walter. Both were at the taping that day but I didn't meet Hans til that evening.

Hans von Walter

I also finally spoke to Brad, which I was eager to do after seeing him play in person this week. Luckily I caught him by himself so I could spill my guts without worrying about spoilers for people listening. I had to chase him and yell his name several times! It was loud in there, and then someone decided to play the guitar in the next room. "Seriously?" said one of my teammates when the music started. It helped a little when someone closed a curtain between the rooms.

Yet with all those champs, and despite the fact I contributed less than either of the last two times, we won. Well, sorta. The room got chaotic and the microphone never did do its job, so I just know there was lots of shouting, chanting, and numbers being thrown around. When it was pretty much over, a guy who turned out to be Brian Fodera yelled in the microphone something like, "I'm hosting next week, when there will be a return to normalcy!" Now I understand his reaction. He was on the other winning team!

New winning team! 1/22/14 - Muskrat Irreconcilable Differences (co-winner) http://t.co/kxl7dvFUcv
— O'Brien's Pub Quiz (@obrienspubquiz) January 27, 2014

I didn't know Erin and Hans were on the winning team til the picture tweeted, either.
It seems to me that the scores changed even without a tiebreaker, but a tiebreaker we got. Remember the "this time it's personal"? Apparently there was a tiebreaker that last time, too. Would you believe this tiebreaker was something not one, not two, but three of knew by heart? The books of the Old Testament in order. Stephanie, Stefan and I knew it, but I wouldn't quiz me on it. This is one of the many times Stefan sang, because he knew a song in which the books were listed in order. He sure didn't need my or Stephanie's help. In the end, though, two teams were declared champions - right *after* a teammate paid my table's bill, unfortunately for him. This was my dream - wearing the fez and having the picture tweeted (though it hasn't yet as I'm typing this)! By the time I got to my team though, Stephanie was wearing the fez.

New winning team! 1/22/14 - This Time, It's Personal. GRRRRR! (co-winner) http://t.co/HQelzRZZbL
— O'Brien's Pub Quiz (@obrienspubquiz) January 27, 2014

After I mentioned it to Bill, he took pictures of me by myself with the fez! Before this one, he said, "You're gonna like this one most of all." Check it out.

Or maybe it was before this one!!

I didn't find out til I was on my way home that he'd done it twice. Since I have 'em (thanks to Bill), here are two more:

Michael Falk was at the next table during the quiz. He said in my ear, "That looks like Stefan Goodreau." I thought he was joking so I laughed, but he waited and then he said, "Is it?" And I said "Yes!" So Michael introduced himself to Stefan. When Michael walked away I said to Stefan, "You know he taped today, right?" Stefan didn't recognize him til I said his name, and then the two laughed and talked some more.

Tom Kavanaugh is very funny. I saw him take a lime and breezily toss it into a far-away trash can like it was nothing. When I confirmed it went in, he acted like of course it did. Earlier, Tom got up to the microphone and said Celeste had arranged for a karaoke contest after the pub quiz. I was pumped and was so gonna be there, but the whole thing wound up falling apart. Stefan passed because he was working early the next day, but he made up for it by belting out songs a lot throughout the evening, as I alluded to earlier. I also liked it when, after the answer "ligament of Bigelow" was revealed, Stefan said "The Ligelow. The Bigament."

Tom Kavanaugh

Colby is funny too. I loved it when he told Stefan to "turn the nerd down" when the latter was belting out the TV theme songs that appeared on a handout. I wondered who else can get away with that, but now I know Colby may not have known who Stefan was. Come to think of it, the contestant who with mock fury said to Stefan "GET THE [BLEEP] OUT OF MY WAY, MAN!" when Stefan was blocking the water probably didn't know him either.

I spoke at length to Mark Dawson. I had met him the day before at Jeopardy!'s post-taping party. Like the last time I'd gone to the pub quiz, a handful of us went to the coffee shop next door for what they call a "post-mortem": talk about the questions of the evening, how many people got each one right, etc. Mark May walked me over, and then Mark Dawson was there, Jerome Vered, Pam, Warren Usui, Brian Fodera and Raj Dhuwalia, who has appeared twice on The Experts Show.

Regrets? Not officially introducing myself to Colby or telling him about the blog. Not getting a picture and talking more with Erin. Not communicating with Roger except for a friendly wave after the taping today. Not communicating with Bob Harris in person except for a warm smile the day he taped. And I didn't see Ryan Chaffee, Marty Butterick, Cat Still or Alan Bailey (at the pub anyway). And you know what else? I could've gone to that day's contestant party where Jeopardy! tapes. I didn't find out til I got to the pub, though. A guy told me he'd asked Maggie if it was all right, and she said yes. But then the guy couldn't find me. And then I find out after I get home, a contestant wanted to invite me too but couldn't find me! :-(

Thank you, Bill MacDonald!

I'd gone to the party the day before, with the guests of one of the contestants. I found out at the pub, that contestant didn't even know that's how I'd gotten in! He was cool with it, though.
Was the whole day a success? Of course. Was I tired yet after writing this post? No! I could've sung all night. Or watched tennis.

I'm back after at least a week, unless you count my story on last Wednesday's pub quiz at O'Brien's. Maybe it's just me but I think it's well worth a look. And thanks Andy, for working so hard.
My Coryat for the last two weekend episodes: Originally 11-21-12, 14800 (18400 without negs). The first time I played, my score was 13600 (16800 without negs). Originally 11-22-12: 29000 (30800 without negs). The first time I watched, I didn't keep track of my score!
This week's contestants:
Tarn Allen
Arthur Chu
Carolyn Collins
Don Gwinn
Maura McKenna
Cesar Perez-Gonzalez
Erik Post
And of course Chip Bell is our two-time champ. Here he is with his opponents:

Bill Hammon

Chip

Julie Singer

Bill and Julie negged on the first clue, and Chip picked it up. But by the time Bill found the Daily Double (before the first break), each contestant had gotten 3 right. Julie had also gotten one more wrong.
Chip 600
Julie 600
Bill 2600
The category was What a Literary Character! Bill wagered 1600 on this clue: "By first names, this title group is Alyosha, Ivan, Dmitri & Smerdyakov." Bill got it right! At the first break:
Chip 600
Julie 2000 (2 right)
Bill 4400 (One right)
I like to see all three contestants so active. At the end of the round:
Chip 3600 (4 right)
Julie 7000 (9 right)
Bill 5400 (5 right and one wrong)
As you can see, Chip's in third place but he didn't have any negs!
Julie found the first Daily Double of Double Jeopardy, in I Got a "Fever".
Chip 5600 (2 right)
Julie 11800 (4 right and one wrong)
Bill 6600 (One right and one wrong)
She wagered 4000 on this clue: "Strawberry & raspberry tongue & a rash can accompany this disease chiefly affecting kids." Strangely, Julie and I both said the same thing, which I thought I made up. So we were wrong.
Julie, a French history teacher, got lucky when she had a handful of France-related clues. She answered one at the right time because the next clue was Daily Double, in Women.
Chip 9200 (3 right)
Julie 11000 (4 right and one wrong)
Bill 6600 (4 right and one wrong)
Julie wagered 3000 on this clue: "The recordings she made with Arthur Schlesinger Jr. in March 1964 were finally made available to the public in 2011." She got it right, and she continued to roll. At the end of the round:
Chip 10400 (One right)
Julie 26000 (7 right)
Bill 4600 (One wrong)
The Final Jeopardy category was British Government. I slam-dunked this one, because my sister and I used to watch Prime Minister's Questions together on CSPAN: "This office is named for a tablecloth imprinted with squares that was once used as an abacus." Bill got it wrong and lost everything. ("Mankini"?)

Some guy just answered "mankini" for his final Jeopardy answer and Trebek couldn't have looked more confused if he tried.
— The Alicianator (@leechee420) January 28, 2014

(Well, they never showed him but he sounded confused.) Chip got it right and added 1000. I thought Julie would get it right, and she did, adding 4000. Can she do it again tomorrow?
I decided not to watch this episode twice. In other words, I didn't track my Coryat.

One year ago: Scratchy at best
Two years ago: These are a few of my favorite things
Three years ago: We have a winner...

Yesterday Julie Singer got our attention when she had a lock on the game going into Final Jeopardy. Strangely, I wrote that sentence before I knew there was a category today called It's a "Lock"! Let's see if Julie can do it again today.

Julie Singer

Cesar Perez-Gonzalez

Arthur Chu

Yesterday I mentioned Julie had a lot of luck with France-related clues. Look at this first one she answered today, in The Palace of Nations: "On July 22, 1954, shortly after Dien Bien Phu and here at Geneva's Palace of Nations, a general from this country signed a truce document with the Viet Minh."
Shocking triple-stumper of the day, in It's a "Lock": "An ox, or the last name of a 'Speed' star." I'd like to know what the contestants were thinking.
At the first break:
Julie 2800 (4 right and one wrong)
Arthur 2400 (7 right and one wrong)
Cesar 400 (2 right and one wrong)
Cesar found the Daily Double after the break, in The Palace of Nations.
Julie 2800
Arthur 2400
Cesar 1400 (One right)
Cesar wagered 600 on this clue, read by Kelly: "With 85 gilded constellations and 840 silvered stars, the celestial sphere was donated in 1939 by the foundation of this president, who deeply believed in international cooperation."

Of course he got it right.
At the end of the round, there were 2 clues left on the board. Also like yesterday, all 3 contestants were active. Mr. Trebek said it was "a fairly even game."
Julie 4200 (2 right)
Arthur 4400 (3 right and one wrong)
Cesar 3200 (5 right and one wrong)
Cesar found the first Daily Double of the round, in National Flags. Which means I have to get out of my chair to take a picture again.
Julie 5400 (2 right)
Arthur 5200 (One right)
Cesar 6400 (3 right)
Cesar wagered just 1000 on this clue: "Enter the dragon on the flag of this country between India and Tibet." Hey, no video! Thanks, Jeopardy!. Cesar got this right.
Arthur found the next Daily Double, in Getting Nautical.
Julie 10200 (3 right)
Arthur 7600 (2 right)
Cesar 7800 (One right)
Arthur wagered it all. Gutsy (but I like it), since he hadn't seen any of the clues in the category yet. This is the clue: "The lowest compartment of a ship's inner hull; there's a special pump named for the yucky water often found there." Arthur knew it immediately!
At the end of the round:
Julie 18600 (7 right)
Arthur 20000 (4 right)
Cesar 9000 (2 right and one wrong)
The Final Jeopardy category was Literary Quotes. This is the clue: "A maxim of Ayn Rand was 'Man's ego is'this'of human progress.'" Cesar got this wrong and he lost it all. Julie was wrong too, and lost 18400! Arthur got it right! He added a whopping 17200. Whoa. I guess it's not yesterday once more after all, at least not in every possible way! But like yesterday, I decided not to track my Coryat.
One year ago: That was risky
Two years ago: These are a few of my favorite things
Three years ago: What is the Trans-Canada Highway?

Your opinion, please: Do you want a "follow by e-mail" option? I've been wanting to include it ever since I got a "subscribe" tab above, but I don't know how to add it there myself and I don't know if you really care. There is an easy way to add a widget but I thought the option would make the most sense under "subscribe." Let me know in a comment.
While I'm at it, I've been thinking about giving away a poster I got at Westminster Abbey. I got it so I could use it to study for Jeopardy! Now that I've been on the show I don't want it anymore, but I'd hate to give it away to Goodwill or some place that may not appreciate it. Anyone interested?

I've never been this fussy about a picture that wasn't of me.

Yesterday's champ, Arthur Chu, goes for his second win today.

Arthur Chu

Carolyn Collins

Erik Post

I just don't think Carolyn fixed her answer before Mr. Trebek ruled against her, on this one in In the Sport's Hall of Fame: "Olga Korbut, Kurt Thomas, Dominique Dawes." But he said she did. I swept the category, by the way.
I said "boating hat" and counted it wrong on this one in Headgear: "Ahoy! There's a mode of transport in the name of this straw hat with a flat crown & a ribbon band."
For the third day in a row (at least), everyone was actively participating. Mr. Trebek said all 3 contestants were "off to an excellent start."
Arthur 3000 (4 right and one wrong)
Erik 3800 (5 right)
Carolyn 3600 (6 right)
I liked Erik's poise during his interview. I think, though, that his occasional manner of selecting clues may have caused 2 to be left on the board at the end of the round: "[Category] forrrrrrr...$600." I was much more annoyed though by what happened when Arthur found the Daily Double.
Arthur 3400 (One right)
Erik 3800
Carolyn 3800 (One right)
The category was In the Sport's Hall of Fame. Arthur wagered just $5 and didn't seem to think about it much, but worse, he didn't think about what the correct response could possibly be. He didn't even throw out a guess, which is a sin on Daily Doubles and the Final. I didn't like to see it a second time. This was the clue: "Eddie Giacomin, Herb Brooks, Conn Smythe." If he'd thought about it, he might've at least recognized Herb Brooks. (That's the only way I got it, anyway.) The crowd laughed but if it were a sporting event, I'd have booed.
At the end of the round:
Arthur 4595 (5 right and one wrong)
Erik 4400 (One right)
Carolyn 4600 (2 right)
Arthur found the first Daily Double of the round in Art Terms.
Arthur 4195 (One right and one wrong)
Erik 4400
Carolyn 4600
This time he wagered it all (that's more like it!) on this clue: "This type of paint is dry pigment mixed with an emulsion; the egg type is not usually affected by weather and humidity." Arthur didn't know but I did. And later I got this triple-stumper at the last second in 5-Syllable Words: "Legally, this term meaning defensible is a type of 'homicide.'"
This clue in Z Food is Ready made me happy: "At TGI Friday's in Austria, these sides are zwiebelringe." My sister and I fondly remember an incident at a McDonald's in Europe (probably Germany) where we were trying to describe onions to the cashier. Finally, a chorus of voices around us - on both sides of the counter! - said "ZWIEBEL!" We didn't know anyone was listening! And all those people spoke English! If that hadn't happened, I doubt I'd have gotten this clue right today.
Arthur found the next Daily Double too, in Official State Things!
Arthur 10000 (6 right)
Erik 8000 (3 right)
Carolyn 9400 (3 right)
Arthur wagered 5000 this time on this easy one: "Located in the constellation Cancer, the Beehive Cluster is this state's official astronomical symbol." Arthur got it too. What a comeback he's making! At the end of the round:
Arthur 18200 (5 right)
Erik 8400 (One right)
Carolyn 13400 (5 right)
The Final Jeopardy category is Capital Cities. This was the clue: "One of the 2 world capitals that end in the letter 'z,' one is in Europe & one is in the Americas." This was a snap for me, and I didn't bother trying to think of the other one. Erik drew a straight line for his response, and he lost everything! Carolyn too wagered everything, but she got it right! Arthur got it right too and added 8600, tying the game. So we'll see him and Carolyn tomorrow.
My Coryat today was 20400 (22600 without negs).
One year ago: That was risky
Two years ago: These are a few of my favorite things
Three years ago: What is the Trans-Canada Highway?

Andy back with a recap of Thursday!

No pictures!

Maura McKenna is the challenger for Carolyn Collins and Arthur Chu, who tied yesterday!

Will Arthur win Game #3?

J! round categories:
THE TOP 40 A TO Z
HEALTH & NUTRITION
MISSING LINKS
NEWSPAPERS
BLACK & WHITE & READ
ALL OVER

Arthur continued his hopping all over the board, but found the first Daily Double under BLACK & WHITE & READ $800! Scores:

Arthur $3,800
Maura $1,400
Carolyn $1,200

His clue: This author's 1936 novel "Black Spring", a bawdy tale of Paris, came between 2 more famous books. Arthur went for Hemingway (as did I) and his score fell to $2,800.

At the first break, the scores:
Maura $3,000
Arthur $2,800
Carolyn $400

Coming back out of the break, I found it very difficult to keep up with this game because Arthur kept hopping around the board! At the end of the J! round, the scores were:

Arthur $6,000
Maura $5,600
Carolyn $2,400

Arthur has certainly got the Twitterverse abuzz:

I had no idea so many people had so many Jeopardy feels until @arthur_affect shook things up this week.
— Monica F (@nlmtys) January 31, 2014

and of course

The worst thing about Arthur is that he searches his name and then enters your mentions without warning. #jeopardy
— Duke E. Brown (@hotterthanjuly) January 31, 2014

Even Mental Floss is writing about him though! 6 Elements of Arthur Chu's Jeopardy! Strategy

Those are our Tweets Of The Day!

Back onto the DJ! round. Categories:
KINGS OF ENGLAND NOT BORN IN ENGLAND
NFL STADIUMS
INVENTORS & INVENTIONS
HEY, "PAL"
MATH PROBLEMS
CAN'T STOP MESSIN' WITH TEXAS

This round mostly belonged to Arthur! He saw the first Daily Double under HEY "PAL" $1600. Scores:

Arthur $12,800
Maura $6,400
Carolyn $2,000

Arthur bet $3,000. His clue: This US church is in communion with the See of Canterbury. Arthur's correct answer, his 7th of the round, brought him to $15,800.

It was about this point where I lost track of Arthur's correct responses, but the final Daily Double came out in KINGS OF ENGLAND $1200. Scores:

Arthur $20,200
Maura $6,800
Carolyn $2,800

Arthur bet $1,000. His clue: Born in Hanover, Germany in 1660, he was 54 when he took over the English throne in 1714. Another correct response put him at $21,200.

MATH PROBLEMS seemed to give our players some difficulty!

By the time we got around to NFL STADIUMS, it was pretty much all over but the crying as Arthur had nearly 3 times what his opponents did. He does seem to have a weak spot in sports, though!

Scores going into Final:
Arthur $20,800
Maura $7,200
Carolyn $2,800

FJ! category: COMEDIC ACTRESSES

FJ! clue: She's won Emmys for 3 different TV shows & in 2013 she broke Lucille Ball's record for most nominations by a comedic actress

Carolyn 2800 - 2800 = 0
Maura 7200 + 1599 = 8799
Arthur 20800 - 2000 = 18800

ToC update:

1. John Pearson (November 2013 Teacher's Champion)
2. Jim Coury (May 2013 College Champion)
3. Ben Ingram $176,534 (8 wins)
4. Drew Horwood $138,100 (8 wins)
5. Jared Hall $181,001 (6 wins)
6. Andrew Moore $137,803 (6 wins)
7. Jerry Slowik $121,800 (5 wins)
8. Joshua Brakhage $103,205 (5 wins)
9. Rebecca Rider $101,600 (5 wins)
10. Sarah McNitt $89,398 (5 wins)
11. Rani Peffer $68,701 (5 wins)
12. Mark Japinga $112,600 (4 wins)
13. Mike Lewis $102,800 (4 wins)
14. Carlos Ross $89,774 (3 wins)
15. Arthur Chu $82,800 (3 wins)
---
16. Adam Holquist $76,299 (3 wins)
17. Sara Garnett $75,403 (3 wins)
18. Salvo Candela $66,195 (3 wins)
19. Neal Pollack $60,798 (3 wins)
20. John Anneken $60,112 (3 wins)
21. Tim Anderson $56,001 (3 wins)
22. Stuart Anderson $51,601 (3 wins)
23. Bill Tolany $44,200 (3 wins)

Andy here with one more recap before we move onto the 80s Decades Tournament and the College Championship!

Today's contestants:

J! round categories:
AFTER THE WHITE HOUSE
DOUBLE S, DOUBLED
A MONTH OF ANNUAL EVENTS
SHAKESPEAREAN SPELLING BEE
I HAVE THE WINE
BY JOHNNY CASH

And the obligatory explanation:

And the people who got it on Twitter:

Dear @Jeopardy writers, you win everything with that game-show-ception "'I Have The Wine' by Johnny Cash" nod. Your humor, WILDLY on point.
— Hell On Heels (@HellOnHeelsGirl) February 1, 2014

omfg are they making fun of that lady from Wheel of Fortune? I HAVE THE WINE BY JOHNNY CASH #Jeopardy
— Melinda Faye (@MelindaFaye) February 1, 2014

It has been awhile since my father has cheered against a contestant louder than he has cheered against Arthur. He absolutely hates jumping around the board. I can see why somebody would do it, but it really does keep viewers at home from getting into a category rhythm, and it makes it tough for me to keep track of things when blogging!

Arthur's opponents were the first in on the buzzer to start! SHAKESPEAREAN SPELLING BEE $400 had the round's Daily Double, and Tarn found it very early on! Scores:

Tarn $1,000
Don $200
Arthur $0

Tarn bet $1,000. Her clue: Lear's virtuous daughter. Her correct spelling put her at $2,000!

By the first break, most of the $1000 clues had been taken. All 3 players had had buzzer luck and we had a pretty good game going! Scores:

Arthur $3,800
Don $3,800
Tarn $2,600

Apparently Arthur takes part in an event called "Shakespeare Open Mic" where all of the actors get drunk and read a Shakespeare play with randomly assigned parts.

Coming out of the break, Don had the best time on the buzzer, though he forgot a couple of times that he needed to spell his answers in Shakespeare!

At the end of 30, the scores were:
Don $7,600
Arthur $5,600
Tarn $4,800

DJ! round categories:
PLANTS & TREES
EPONYMOUS AIRPORTS
IN THE NATIONAL PARK
CANADIAN BODIES OF WATER (awesome!)
A "CY" OF RELIEF
31 DAYS OF OSCAR

Tarn went to CANADIAN BODIES OF WATER. I like that! Meanwhile, Arthur went straight for the bottom of the board! Tarn then joined him in his search for the Daily Double! He eventually found the first one under CANADIAN BODIES OF WATER $2000 after mowing down much of the high valued stuff! Scores:

Arthur $18,800
Tarn $8,400
Don $5,600

Arthur bet clue value. His clue: About 200 miles wide at its narrowest point, the Davis Strait separates this largest Canadian island and Greenland. His correct response put him at $20,800.

Puzzlingly, Arthur went to the $400 clues with a Daily Double still out. Did he forget that there were two of them? Thus, it was Tarn who played the final one, under EPONYMOUS AIRPORTS $1200. Scores:

Arthur $24,400
Tarn $10,800
Don $5,600

Tarn went $5,200. I might have gone higher. Her clue: There's an Alexander The Great Airport in this former Yugoslav Republic. Her correct response put her at $16,000!

Scores going into Final:
Arthur $28,000
Tarn $18,000
Don $7,200

Will Arthur's indifference about the final Daily Double cost him?

FJ! category: INVENTORS

FJ! clue: In an 1854 demonstration he said, "Cut the rope"; he invention kicked in, then he said, "All safe, gentlemen"

Don 7200 + 7200 = 14400
Tarn 18000 - 12000 = 600
Arthur 28000 - 8000 = 20000

So Arthur survives another day! He'll be back in 3 weeks! Jeanie will have a bit of a preview of the Battle of the Decades as well!

ToC update:

1. John Pearson (November 2013 Teacher's Champion)
2. Jim Coury (May 2013 College Champion)
3. Ben Ingram $176,534 (8 wins)
4. Drew Horwood $138,100 (8 wins)
5. Jared Hall $181,001 (6 wins)
6. Andrew Moore $137,803 (6 wins)
7. Jerry Slowik $121,800 (5 wins)
8. Joshua Brakhage $103,205 (5 wins)
9. Rebecca Rider $101,600 (5 wins)
10. Sarah McNitt $89,398 (5 wins)
11. Rani Peffer $68,701 (5 wins)
12. Mark Japinga $112,600 (4 wins)
13. Arthur Chu $102,800 (4 wins)
14. Mike Lewis $102,800 (4 wins)
15. Carlos Ross $89,774 (3 wins)
---
16. Adam Holquist $76,299 (3 wins)
17. Sara Garnett $75,403 (3 wins)
18. Salvo Candela $66,195 (3 wins)
19. Neal Pollack $60,798 (3 wins)
20. John Anneken $60,112 (3 wins)
21. Tim Anderson $56,001 (3 wins)
22. Stuart Anderson $51,601 (3 wins)
23. Bill Tolany $44,200 (3 wins)

Looking for the scoop on Jeopardy!'s Battle of the Decades? Look no further. But do read on. (And ask me anything!)
What a dream - attending the tournament in person?? I know exactly how lucky I am. I was on a cloud, leisurely riding to the Omaha airport when I got a call saying my flight was delayed half an hour. I only had 45 minutes to make my connection anyway, and I was already due to arrive on the late side, 9:36 p.m., into Los Angeles. This was especially maddening because I had taken my sweet time and dawdled around with my parents in Lincoln all day. Had I known I'd have tried to fly standby. By the time the plane actually left Omaha (well over half an hour late), our new ETA in Minneapolis was the same time my plane to Los Angeles was scheduled to leave. I scrambled off my plane but the monitor indicated my connecting plane had departed. I was rescheduled for a flight the next day at 6:30 a.m. – from Minneapolis to Los Angeles via Atlanta?! But if I hadn't gone that way I'd never have seen some amazing-looking pieces of cake at a place called, fittingly, Piece of Cake. I walked by like 3 times. The clerks greeted me but all I did was stare at the cake.

Flying to warmer weather? Check out Piece of Cake at the Atlanta Airport! Delta Terminal A pic.twitter.com/IUt3TPdXQj
— Piece of Cake (@pieceofcakeinc) January 27, 2014

It occurs to me that something from them would be a fun giveaway, wouldn't it, in honor of 80s week?

I was given a hotel room and a voucher in Minneapolis, but I was told I'd have to wait 2 hours to get my suitcase back for the night. I decided being coherent the next day was (slightly) more important than looking okay, so I went back to my hotel with just an airline-issued overnight kit. No makeup, dress, hair stuff, nothing, and I knew I’d have to go to the studio that way if I wanted to see any of the 80s episodes. To think I'd been worried my elbows wouldn't be scrubbed.
The t-shirt in the kit was useless. Of course it was huge but also sheer. I purposely hadn’t done my hair either, knowing I would be the next day. My mom took my picture so that I could show my sister the top I was wearing:

The airline also gave me $25 to spend on dinner either at the airport or the hotel, and I chose the latter. I was proud of myself for calculating well enough to come within like 10 cents of the $25. I was less proud when I walked out of the restaurant with an armload of pizza.

The flights the next day were uneventful, thank goodness, although a fire alarm did go off as the plane was about to board in Minneapolis. Of course I arrived in L.A. too late for the morning session but just in time for the afternoon one. That’s the Thursday and Friday episodes, then. As luck would have it, Andy has to cover the Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday episodes this week anyway! And I will learn the Monday and Tuesday results like you will, by watching the show on TV. I do know the Wednesday result only because Mr. Trebek mentioned it at the beginning of the Thursday episode. I thought after Friday’s episode he’d reveal everyone who won. But he didn’t! He did say that the finals were airing in May. He must’ve been gearing up to say that – he had asked around during the commercial break when the finals would be on TV.

The same guy that worked there when I was a contestant, "Mel," gave audience members the rundown on what to do and expect. But I didn’t hear this before, of course! I was worried because he acted like we should’ve already shown someone our ticket, but if I were to walk up to that person right then it would’ve created a significant interruption. The guy said I was in no matter what, but the audience seating looked packed, and I doubt anyone came after me. Another potential problem, and a heads-up if you ever print your tickets to take to the studio – I printed mine for the next day (regular episodes to air in April) on the back of this ticket. Luckily they let me keep the sheet of paper but this wasn’t routine, and they didn't look very happy. So, learn from my mistake!

I kept my fingers crossed that I didn’t miss Jerome Vered play. He’s the only of the 80s contestants I've actually met. I thought it was a good sign when I saw Alan Bailey, Michael Rooney, Mark May, Hans von Walter and Cliff Galiher walk by just feet away from me, but it was with a heavy heart - I so desperately wanted to say hi! I had not met Hans and was so eager to. I thought I didn’t look bad considering the circumstances. But it still wasn’t good enough for me to come forward since I’d see everybody at the pub the next day in a much better state! I haven't let on that I saw them and was so close, but they'll know now if they read this. ;-)

It was interesting walking in as an audience member and not a contestant. I was tempted to slap the green room door as I walked by! Contestant coordinator Glenn was reading clues to the contestants, just like he had when I played. A dead giveaway that Jerome hadn’t played yet – he was rehearsing! So was famous Frank Spangenberg.
I was very happy - I can't even tell you how much so - to be seated on the same side of the studio as the 80s contestants. This means I could watch their every move and hear much of what they say. So I got to see the contestants, even if they'd already played. I thought Jerome saw me, but now I'm not sure. I avoided eye contact on purpose since at that time he hadn't played. But when I saw him the next night at O'Brien's pub, I got the impression he hadn't seen me. He asked me why I didn't say hi. I was taken aback but later when I got my wits about me I explained about having to come to the studio wearing the same clothes as the day before, etc.

I thought I couldn't stand to see the Jeopardy!/Wheel of Fortune montage one more time (except for the guy who says "A group of pill-pushers" when trying to solve the puzzle), but Leslie Frates helped make it enjoyable. I haven’t seen "Groundhog Day," but do you know the part where Bill Murray says “Meh-hee-co” while watching Jeopardy!? Apparently it was Leslie he was copying, because she cheered and took high-fives from her peers at that part of the montage! If I remember correctly, the montage used to even show Leslie. This time it didn't.
I sat on the opposite side of the studio as Alan Bailey et al. I thought about teasing them by standing on my tiptoes and waving from my side, but I was on the wrong end of my row. I stood up later, and Michael Rooney saw me do it and looked. I hadn’t met him though, so he didn’t know me. I laughed as I sat down.
There was no sign of contestant coordinator Robert! That was disturbing. I took action after I got this tweet:

@vamosdavid Awesome. How are Maggie and Robert and the gang (if you saw them)?
— Josh Frumkin (@jfrumkin) December 19, 2013

I tweeted Teachers Tournament champ John Pearson.

@vamosdavid Maggie, Robert, and Corina.
— John Pearson (@learnmegood) December 19, 2013

He said Maggie, Robert and Corina were there. I got to see and talk to Robert myself at the taping of the 90s and 2000s decades a couple of weeks ago, and he's pictured in this post. All three of the Clue Crew were present at the taping and were introduced to the crowd. I recognized the ladies that did my makeup both days I was at the studio to tape, and I recognized the guy, "Mitch," that did my microphone.

Come back every day this week for much more. As for my appearance that day, maybe I needn't have worried after all - While we audience members were filing out of the studio, two high school girls told me they like my top.

Andy here with the first recap of the Tournament of the Decades - 80s!

The 15 people who will be playing this week:
India Cooper
Chuck Forrest
Jim Scott
Leslie Frates
Leszek Pawlowicz
Andrew Westney
Richard Cordray
Tom Nosek
Leslie Shannon
Phoebe Juel
Mark Lowenthal
Frank Spangenberg
Tom Cubbage
Bob Verini
Jerome Vered

Today's contestants:

A fun fact:

My favorite fun fact about last night's game: all three players had trailed Leslie Frates in various games heading into Final. #Jeopardy
— The Final Wager (@TheFinalWager) February 4, 2014

J! round categories:
PRE-80s HISTORY
NAME THE BIBLE BOOK
ON THE "M"ENU
BORN IN THE USA
PERSONAL SPACE INVADERS
VALLEY GIRL SPEAK

Some early controversy on the ON THE "M"ENU $800: This 2-word term means chemistry & physics have come to the kitchen; liquid nitrogen & lasers might be involved. Jim said "molecular", then "molecular cuisine". Chuck said "molecular cooking".

I was expecting absolutely anything after watching Arthur for most of last week; after all, Chuck started the strategy that Arthur is now using! He did have the best buzzer luck over the first few clues, though, and got the Daily Double under BIBLE BOOK $600. He also got $1600 back for "molecular cooking", leading to scores of:

Chuck $3,400
Jim $400
India -$400

Chuck bet $1,500. His clue: "But the Lord sent out a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest". Chuck's correct response put him at $4,900 and us at our first break!

One of Jim's episodes of Jeopardy! was repeated over and over again in the film "Groundhog Day".

Chuck is now spending his time in Italy working for the UN organization, the International Fund
for Agricultural Development.

India, at point point, had a bit role on "Law & Order" as a hotel clerk!

The second half of the round saw Chuck go on a buzzer roll. India and Jim tried in vain to keep pace!

Scores after 30:
Chuck $8,700 (13 right)
India $3,200 (7 right, 2 wrong)
Jim $1,600 (7 right, 2 wrong)

DJ! round categories:
WORLD LITERATURE
ALSO A TYPE OF FOOTWEAR
PHYSIOLOGY
BROADWAY MUSICALS
"S"ITIES
LATIN

One comment on PHYSIOLOGY:

May have had no clue what was going on during that phys exam last week but I just KILLED the #Jeopardy #physiology category #REALlifeskills
— Allie Dennis (@alliepdennis) February 4, 2014

(Congratulations! Because doing well on Jeopardy! clues is really what matters.)

This round belonged to India. She got 7 of the first 12 clues, prior to finding the first Daily Double, under LATIN $1200. Scores:
Chuck $11,900
India $8,000
Jim $3,200

India bet $4,000. Her clue: This phrase literally means "until seasickness" And we have ourselves a game, as India gave the correct response!

Just a few clues later, India switched over the PHYSIOLOGY $800, and found the final Daily Double! Scores:
India $14,000
Chuck $11,900
Jim $4,800

India bet $1,500. A little small for an $800 box if you ask me. Her clue: When you swallow, this flap of cartilage acts like a lid to the larynx. India went for "uvula" and fell to $12,500.

A huge $3,200 swing in WORLD LITERATURE $1600: In 1956 he published "La Chute", or "The Fall"; the next year he won the Nobel Prize for Literature. Chuck said "Sartre" and India picked up a huge rebound!

A surprising Triple Stumper in BROADWAY MUSICALS $1200: This show with a street in its title had songs like "I'm Not Wearing Underwear Today"

With Chuck down by just $1,800, the final clue was PHYSIOLOGY $2000 (Take a gamble and name this longest cranial nerve, which runs from the brain through the neck & thorax to the abdomen). Chuck didn't hazard a guess, meaning that scores going into Final were:

India $18,500
Chuck $16,700
Jim $3,200

FJ! category: PRESIDENTS & FIRST LADIES

FJ! clue: The only foreign-born first lady was the wife of this man who served in the diplomatic corps from age 14

Jim 3200 + 3000 = 6200
Chuck 16700 + 16700 = 33400
India 18500 - 16500 = 2000

And Chuck Forrest is the first player in the final tournament! I'll be back tomorrow with the next game!

You didn't come for this but here's my Coryat for the weekend anyway: 29600 (31000 without negs). The episode originally aired 11-23-12, and the first time I played my score was 26400 (29000 without negs).
Next, Andy and I got an e-mail from Sony announcing their new "Sports Jeopardy" app, for iOS and Android. It's 99 cents though. If you try it let us know what you think.
Now for what you have come for: Who will join Chuck Forrest in the final Battle of the Decades week? Here's a tweet Andy dug up about the contestants:

How can it be Battle of the Decades 1980s on #Jeopardy when everyone competing won in the 1990s?
— Derek Luiz (@derekluiz) February 5, 2014

Leslie Frates

Andrew Westney

Leszek Pawlowicz

I was impressed by Leslie's poise off the bat today. I didn't realize she was a Spanish teacher. That explains "Meh-hee-co"!
I said what Andrew did on this one in Business & the Market: "In 2013 Facebook dangled $3 billion in cash in front of this photo-messaging company, which said no." On the next clue I said what Leslie did (same category): "This giant Peoria-based company purchased Era Mining Machinery in 2012." Leszek picked both of these up!
At the first break:
Leslie 400 (5 right and one wrong)
Leszek 4600 (8 right)
Andrew 800 (2 right and one wrong)
It did my heart good when Andrew referred to his wife as a "knockout." Would that we were all that lucky! He soon found the Daily Double in Book Covers.
Leslie 2000 (3 right)
Leszek 5600 (2 right)
Andrew 3000 (4 right)
He wagered 2000 on this clue: "From 1969: The puppeteer's hand hold the control piece, with the strings attached to the title." He got it right! At the end of the round:
Leslie 3000 (One right)
Leszek 6400 (One right)
Andrew 6000 (One right)
Leslie found the first Daily Double of Double Jeopardy, in 8-Letter Words.
Leslie 6200 (3 right)
Leszek 10000 (4 right)
Andrew 9600 (3 right)
She wagered 4000 on this clue: "If you grasp all the symbols seen here at a glance, this field must be your hobby."

Leslie got it right!
I got this triple-stumper in Clarinets & Seafood: "Tilapia is known in Israel as this apostle's fish; tradition holds he caught one & found a coin in its mouth." I vaguely remembered a picture of this in my children's Bible. By the way, what is the meaning of this category name?
Leszek found the next Daily Double, in Run EMC. There were 2 clues left on the board after this one.
Leslie 13800 (3 right and one wrong)
Leszek 16000 (7 right and one wrong)
Andrew 12400 (2 right)
He wagered a whopping 10000. Here's another tweet Andy picked:

That man is in it to win it....$10,000 on a daily double. Wow! #jeopardy
— Victoria Jones (@Vicj1s) February 5, 2014

This was the clue: "The equation would never have made it big in its original version, which was conceived as the equivalent m = this." I had no idea but Leszek got it. Anyone know this?
At the end of the round:
Leslie 13800
Leszek 25600 (One right and one wrong)
Andrew 13600 (One right)
Care to say how you'd wager as each contestant?
The Final Jeopardy category was 20th Century Women Authors. This is the clue: "Readers' letters to this author about her 1948 short story asked where the title event was held & if they could go & watch." This was a total instaget for me. Andrew and Leszek got it too. Andrew doubled his score, while Leslie lost 9801. (Was the fact that she wrote "Shirley" a coincidence, or could she not remember the last name?) Leszek added 2400, enough to see him in the final week. I like this guy because he and I were on the same page when someone spoiled the 80s week match-ups prematurely. I pointed this out to Sony but if they cared I don't know.
My Coryat today was 9400 (14000 without negs). Today it might've helped (or maybe not) if I'd noticed the "u" in quotation marks sooner, in Where "U" Goin'? I'm eagerly waiting to see other people's Coryats, but I haven't seen any yet.
One year ago: Talk about boggling
Two years ago: Egg on their faces
Three years ago: "Watson"'s coming...Are you ready?

Andy here with another recap from the Battle of the Decades! No pictures, though.

Today's contestants: Leslie Shannon, Tom Nosek, and Richard Cordray!

J! round categories:
WE LOVE PLANET EARTH
IN THE CITY'S NEWSPAPER
SAINTS PRESERVE US
"F"IVE-LETTER WORDS
2 FIRST NAMES
LIKE HENRY JAMES?

Lots of Xs on my scorecard in tracking the first part of this game; there were 5 negs combined amongst the three players. Scores after the first break:

Leslie $2,800
Richard $400
Tom $200

Leslie Shannon says she owes her entire career to Jeopardy!; a Wall Street Journal reporter ran a feature on her and it led to 15 job interviews!

Tom has a theory, "run and find out", from Rikki-Tikki-Tavi in the Jungle Book.

Richard, when running for office, used a bumper sticker that Alex recalled as a favourite... "The answer is Richard Cordray"

Richard seemed to enjoy taking the Forrest Bounce in the hunt for that Daily Double. It was Leslie who found it, though, under HENRY JAMES $400. Scores:

Richard $5,200
Leslie $3,200
Tom $400

Leslie bet $2,000. Her clue: I like the symbolism in this novel, such as the shattering of the title object. Leslie's instant correct response put her at $5,200!

By the end of the round, the scores sat at:

Richard $5,400
Leslie $5,400
Tom $400

DJ! round categories:
19th CENTURY OPERA
BACK IN THE USSR
STARTS & ENDS WITH THE SAME VOWEL
'80s BABIES
CINEMA OF MY YOUTH
I'M HEADING TO...

There were more negs to go around in this round, and it kept one player from being able to pull away from the pack! By the end of OPERA, Tom had the lead, in fact!

The Daily Double hunting also stopped in this round!

There also seemed to be many jump cuts in the tape for Alex to explain various rulings in this episode.

Leslie found the first Daily Double under I'M HEADING TO... $1600. Scores:

Leslie $7,400
Tom $4,800
Richard -$200

Leslie bet $3,000. Her clue: I'm heading to the banks of this African river that flows between Zimbabwe & Zambia on its way to the Indian Ocean. Leslie went for Limpopo and fell to $4,400.

CINEMA OF MY YOUTH $2000 had the final Daily Double and this one was Tom's! Scores:

Tom $6,400
Leslie $5,600
Richard $600

Tom bet $400. His clue: Leopoldine Konstantin tells Claude Rains, "We are protected by the enormity of your stupidity" in this Hitchcock film. Tom had no answer and fell to $6,000.

Leslie negged twice with "Baby Jessica" in '80S BABIES, leading to the following tweet:

Leslie, stop trying to make "Baby Jessica" happen, it's not going to happen...#Jeopardy
— Kiersten Walters (@Kiers10W) February 6, 2014

Overall, this was a very difficult game! I lost track of all of the negs! Richard got the final $2,000 clue to give him a fighting chance in Final. Scores going into Final:

Tom $6,000
Leslie $3,600
Richard $2,600

And back to the Interwebs:

These champions are certainly doing horrible for a battle of the decades show. #jeopardy
— Kevin Thang (@Skip2MyJays) February 6, 2014

FJ! category: THE PERIODIC TABLE

FJ! clue: Of the element symbols that don't match the element's English name, this element's English name is alphabetically first

Richard 2600 + 2600 = 5200
Leslie 3600 - 3600 = 0
Tom 6000 + 1201 = 7201

Tom Nosek is the next player into the tournament; 3 more players tomorrow!

Have you guys caught those commercials about classic Jeopardy! episodes airing on "Crackle"? It's poorly explained in my opinion, but the reference is to this page. I've begun to track my Coryats on those episodes, and I encourage you to join me! I'm putting the label "Crackle" on every post that has those Coryats.
I'm leaving tonight for the Build Your Blog Conference in Salt Lake City. I'll remind you but I plan to document the experience at my other blog. At first I was going in order to learn things (I still have so many questions!) and get ideas from other bloggers. Now I'm thinking of networking and finding some monetization opportunities. Hence the creation of a Facebook page. Now you know I'll do anything to watch every Jeopardy! episode in person and attend the pub quiz each time too (shy of actually moving out there).
I notice that the show airs at 6:30 in Salt Lake City, which means I can watch Jerome Vered again even though I've seen this one too and Andy is covering it.
It helps that today I didn't have to watch this episode first - I already did, from the studio audience! This is the first time I've watched an episode on TV that I've seen from the audience. So I don't have a Coryat today. (Do you suppose these episodes will rerun during the summer hiatus?)

Phoebe Juel

Frank Spangenberg

Mark Lowenthal
(This guy looks like my Uncle Johnny today. I didn't notice it in the studio.)

Johnny had to re-record Frank's intro during a break. I guess there was something wrong with it! I have the word "doctorate" written on my notes.
You know how Mr. Trebek said at the top of the show that Richard Cordray won't receive $5000 and that he paid his own way to L.A.? Contestant coordinator Maggie flew up the audience stairs at that point and asked Richard if that was okay that Trebek said that. Richard said yes. :-) I didn't know who he was til then!
Speaking of Maggie, I saw her hug Frank, and he looked like a giant. Look at him next to Phoebe at the end of today's show!
Okay, what is Grandson of Wood?
Mark found the first Daily Double of the game in The Country Due South.
Phoebe 400 (2 right)
Mark 800 (2 right)
Frank 0
Mark wagered 1000 on this clue: "Of Sofia, Bulgaria." Mark got it right!
I didn't know the answer to this one in Pro Sports Teams, but someone in the audience sure did: "This team began play in 1995 & acquired its first superstar, Vince Carter, in 1998." He put his palms up while nobody rung in, like, "Come on guys!" I know how he feels! (See below.)
At the first break:
Phoebe 1400 (2 right)
Mark 5600 (4 right)
Frank 400 (One right)
I couldn't come up with this question in Boom "Box" from the audience but I was jumping out of my chair: "Red Smith & Frank DeFord are giants of this place." I had just checked out one of the latter's books from the public library. I thought reading sportswriting would improve my blog writing! This was a triple-stumper, and the last clue of the round.
Phoebe 3400 (4 right and one wrong)
Mark 6400 (2 right)
Frank 2400 (6 right and one wrong)
Phoebe found the first Daily Double of Double Jeopardy, in Civil War Generals.
Phoebe 5000 (2 right)
Mark 8000 (One right)
Frank 4400 (3 right)
Phoebe wagered 2000 on this clue: "A Texas fort is named for this Confederate general who led the Texas brigade of the army of northern Virginia."

Sorry; I had my phone plugged in and I was unwilling to move it!

She got it right!
Mr. Trebek pronounced this "Danielyn" (like "Daniel-in") in In the Courtroom during the game and had to re-record it later: "In 2013 a court ruled that Dannielynn Birkhead, child of this late model, was owed $49 million." He still would've gotten it wrong; he said, "What was it supposed to be?" ?!? Phoebe got this right anyway and the next clue was the Daily Double in the same category.
Phoebe 14600 (7 right)
Mark 8000 (One right and one wrong)
Frank 6400 (One right)
Phoebe wagered 2500 on this clue: "Defense witnesses in this comedian's 1964 obscenity trial included game show panelist Dorothy Kilgallen." She got it right.
I was shocked from the audience when this was a triple-stumper in Rhyming Song Titles: "Roy Orbison: 'Know the heartaches I've been through.'" I didn't need the "rhyming" to get it!
At the end of the round, Mr. Trebek said "We have quite a game!"
Phoebe 17100
Mark 10400 (2 right)
Frank 14000 (4 right)
I can tell you from the audience it sure felt like Phoebe was kicking the boys' butts.
The Final Jeopardy category was Countries of the World. This is the clue: "Once a poor British protectorate, in 2012 this peninsular country ranked as the world's richest per capita." Mark was wrong and lost 1400. Frank was wrong too and lost 6801. Phoebe was wrong too - she lost 15000. (I was wrong too.) The studio audience was stunned.
Good on ya, Mark, and we'll see you in the finals!

One year ago: She Could. Go. All. The. Way!
Two years ago: Greer and Clothing in Los Angeles
Three years ago: A fitting champion for Superbowl weekend

Can I Be A Phlebetamist?

State the obvious

Some more firsts for TJF

Slightly Delayed

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2 Women, 1 Neanderthal

Why Andy Cheers For People

The Rob Ford School of Wagering

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This time, it's urgent

French twist

It's yesterday once more

Zee it now

Twitter Abuzz

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All is vanity (Day One of the Decades Tournament, spoiler-free)

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Knockout punch

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Any Facebook friend of TJF is a friend of mine