xx things you probably didn't know about 'Jeopardy!'

jeopardy

Host Alex Trebek and competitors on "Jeopardy!" in 2012.
Getty/Handout
  • "Jeopardy!" is on its 38th season, but even avid watchers may non know these fun facts.
  • The current iteration of the testify premiered in 1984, but the original series aired in 1964.
  • Ken Jennings holds the tape for the longest winning streak at 74 games.

The show is technically 57 years onetime.

Fine art Fleming was the original host of "Jeopardy!"
NBC

The first-e'er episode of the show premiered in 1964 and was on air until 1975. "The All New Jeopardy!" and so ran from 1978 to 1979.

Both of those shows were canceled, and today's version of "Jeopardy!" premiered in 1984.

At that place's an unofficial fan-run archive that has nearly every "Jeopardy!" inkling in history.

Prospective players can written report sometime clues on the fan site.
NBC

J! Annal files transcripts of every episode of "Jeopardy!"

Fans can find every clue and competitor from the game show's 37 seasons, and according to Slate, the fan site has "changed how the game is played."

Prospective contestants can report up on the 412,883 (and counting) clues, which gives them an edge if/when they make it on the show.

"Jeopardy!" has aired over 8,000 episodes.

The show films about 46 days a year.
NBC

The modern iteration of the game show is currently on its 37th season.

According to the official "Jeopardy!" website, the evidence tapes 5 episodes a 24-hour interval around 46 days a twelvemonth for the regular-season episodes, meaning there are most 230 new episodes shot every year.

By the end of the 36th season in 2019, the show celebrated airing 8,000 episodes.

"Jeopardy!" has more Emmys than any other game show.

It's won dozens of awards over the years.
Getty/Ben Hilder

The bear witness has accumulated 39 Emmy Awards, more than any other game evidence on television set.

"Jeopardy!" has also won a Peabody Award in 2011, which is one of the nigh prestigious awards in dissemination.

As of 2016, there have been vii no-win games of "Jeopardy!"

A no-win "Jeopardy!" game doesn't happen very frequently.
Kris Connor/Getty

Co-ordinate to The Jeopardy! Fan, with information from J! Archive, there accept been seven games of "Jeopardy!" where all three contestants were left with $0 at the end of the episode.

Alex Trebek's given proper noun isn't actually Alex.

Alexander is his center proper name.
Sony Pictures Television

The late "Jeopardy!" host was on the show for over 36 seasons, but even longtime fans may non know that his commencement proper noun isn't actually Alex.

According to Britannica, the Canadian Tv set personality was born George Alexander Trebek.

Merv Griffin, the creator of the show, too wrote its theme song.

This popular tune has generated millions.
Scott Gries/Getty

Media mogul Merv Griffin created both "Jeopardy!" and "Wheel of Fortune," and he'due south also the man behind the old's iconic theme vocal.

The song is called "Think," and according to The New York Times, Griffin originally wrote the song as a lullaby for his son — and he did information technology in less than a infinitesimal.

That stroke of genius reportedly earned him effectually $80 one thousand thousand in royalties by 2010, according to Mental Floss .

The man behind the voice of "Jeopardy!" is Johnny Gilbert.

Johnny Gilbert is a legendary announcer.
Ethan Miller/Getty

Nearly people associate Trebek with "Jeopardy!" just fans may not know that Johnny Gilbert is the announcer who kicks off every testify.

Per the "Jeopardy!" website, he'south referred to as the prove's "resident entertainer."

The record for virtually consecutive games won is held past Ken Jennings, who won 74.

Ken Jennings won 74 games in a row in 2004.
Getty

In 2004, Ken Jennings ended his legendary 74-game run with total earnings of over $2.five 1000000.

In the regular season, that'southward the well-nigh anyone has ever made playing "Jeopardy!" But Brad Rutter just edges Jennings out if tournaments are included.

His all-time winnings are $4,938,436 and Jennings' are $4,370,700.

Season-38 contestant Amy Schneider recently earned the second-identify spot for most consecutive wins with her xl-game streak. Her full earnings added to $1.4 million.

There's a team of people who brand the video clues.

"Jeopardy!" video clues are created by a defended squad.
Kris Connor/Getty

Sarah Whitcomb Foss and Jimmy McGuire are a part of The Clue Crew, and they've traveled over one.3 meg miles around the earth creating video clues for the game show.

According to the bear witness's website, they "accept recorded clues in over 300 cities, 46 countries, all 50 states and on all 7 continents."

Contestants didn't utilize to have to wait for the total clue earlier hitting the buzzer.

Ken Jennings on "Jeopardy!"
Getty Images/Handout

Fans of the show know that ane of the cardinal rules of the game is that contestants must look for the host to finish the clue completely earlier they can press their buzzer. Only that wasn't always the instance.

According to the official "Jeopardy!" website, earlier on in the evidence's history, contestants could ring their buzzer at any indicate during the inkling — which led to "quick guesses, negative scores and full general confusion."

At present, there'south a coiffure member who's tasked with enabling the players' buttons the moment the terminal syllable of the last word of the clue is read.

Different things are happening behind-the-scenes during each commercial break.

The contestants don't actually get a run a risk to rest.
Courtesy Jeopardy Productions, Inc.

Jennifer Quail, an eight-time "Jeopardy!" Champion, let fans in on what happens during the game bear witness's commercial breaks.

She wrote on Quora in 2020 that during the kickoff commercial intermission they picture show "pickups," or rerecordings for moments where the host or presenter coughed or mispronounced something. The product team also gives the contestants pep talks and tells them if they're doing anything wrong.

During the second commercial suspension, they go along with any new "pickups" and the ii "challenger" contestants (those going up against the reigning champion) take a photograph with the host.

The tertiary commercial break is the busiest. Whatsoever remaining "pickups" are rerecorded, and the players get a half-sheet of paper for the final wager. They turn that in, and then they have to lock in their answers for the Final Jeopardy question.

Contestants aren't immune to brand certain wagers, including $69.

At that place are five banned wagers on the game show.
IBM

There are 5 dollar amounts that "Jeopardy!" contestants aren't allowed to wager on the bear witness.

The sexual allusion 69 was banned in 2018, according to a 2019 tweet from Jennings. And 32-time "Jeopardy!" winner James Holzhauer added in his own tweet that there are iv other banned wagers on the show.

Per Mashable, those numbers seem to exist $666, $14, $88, and $1488, the first one considering of its satanic connections and the final iii for their connection to white supremacy groups.

The evidence has been known to pull a few April Fool's Day pranks.

Alex Trebek walked on to an episode of "Jeopardy!" without pants.
NBC

Back on Apr one, 1997, Trebek and the host of "Bike of Fortune," Pat Sajak, switched jobs for the day as a prank.

In 2016, the prove as well pulled off a number of April Fool's jokes.

Trebek walked out without any pants on, the contestants' podium numbers were flipped backward for a few seconds, Trebek wore a fake mustache for a brief moment, and the music from "Wheel of Fortune" played during i of the clues, to name a few.

The lowest score in "Jeopardy!" history is $-6,800.

Stephanie Hull on "Jeopardy!"
NBC

On March 12, 2015, Stephanie Hull made history equally the lowest-scoring "Jeopardy!" contestant. Her terminal score was $-6,800.

She told Slate in 2020 that she hasn't rewatched her episode since information technology aired, but she does take some theories about why she did so poorly.

"The Daily Doubles were gotten by the other players and that is really key in terms of strategy," Hull said. "…  And the other affair was I buzzed in and answered incorrectly on every $two,000 question."

Even if they terminate up in the negatives, players always walk away with some money.

Brad Rutter, Larissa Kelly, and David Madden with Alex Trebek, winners of the first-ever "Jeopardy!" squad title in 2019.
Carol Kaelson/Sony via AP

Even though some contestants terminate their run with a negative dollar amount on their podium, they don't actually owe that money to the prove, according to Bustle.

In fact, since 2002, every person who has competed on the show has walked away with some compensation.

The winner keeps their score and brings it to the next episode, the second-place contestant walks away with $two,000, and the third-place histrion gets $1,000.

The bounty is reportedly intended to pay for the players' travel and adaptation costs.

Contestants on the show's Tournament of Champions get to pick a movie to lookout man in the greenroom.

Arthur Chu competed on a "Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions."
NBC

In 2014, "Jeopardy!" Champion Arthur Chu wrote an article for Mental Floss detailing his experience at that twelvemonth'southward Tournament of Champions.

He shared that while the contestants are waiting in the greenroom in between their rounds, they all vote on a DVD to watch. And at that place's a niggling bit of strategy that goes into the determination.

"The movies are all vetted by 'Jeopardy!'s' writing staff to ensure they comprise no spoilers for the tournament itself," he wrote. "This means that it'south to your advantage to choice a moving-picture show that contains a lot of popular culture references that you can tick off in your mind every bit things that won't come upward."

When Trebek was hosting, the bear witness filmed a week'southward worth of episodes in one day.

Roger Craig on the "Jeopardy!" set with host Alex Trebek.
Courtesy Jeopardy Productions, Inc.

Co-ordinate to the official "Jeopardy!" website, the bear witness usually tapes all of its episodes for the week in a single day.

In 2016, when Trebek was still hosting the show, the site took fans through a typical filming day.

The host would wake up at 5:fifteen a.thou., pull up to the studio around half-dozen a.m., and immediately starting time his preshow rituals — which included reading the newspaper and doing the crossword. After reading through all the shows' scripts, the first of five filmings begins.

Before each taping, Trebek changes into a new suit.

He was typically on his fashion home by four:xv p.m.

The most someone could win on a single episode is over $500,000, just no one ever has.

James Holzhauer on "Jeopardy!"
Jeopardy Productions, Inc./AP

According to Wired, the highest possible score on a unmarried game of "Jeopardy!" is $566,400. But no 1 has gotten close to attaining that.

The current Hall of Famer with the highest single-game winnings is Holzhauer, who won $131,127 in 2019.

In the wake of Trebek's death, the show is screen-tested a number of potential hosts.

Katie Couric guest-hosting "Jeopardy!" in 2021.
NBC

Trebek died in November 2020 after complications with pancreatic cancer.

The iconic host started off the show's 37th season in September 2020, and his final episode aired in Jan.

The prove appear that it would be resuming production with a number of guest hosts — starting with Jennings. Public figures like news anchor Katie Couric and NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers fifty-fifty tried their hand at hosting the legendary game testify.

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