Good morning, everyone. On Sunday November 8, 2020, long-time “Jeopardy” host Alex Trebek passed away from pancreatic cancer at the age of 80. I have to admit that his passing hit me hard. I have plenty of memories of watching him host “Jeopardy!” and doing a great job at it. In a sense, he was like a family member to everyone watching the show every weeknight. He will be missed by everyone, including myself.
Alex Trebek was born on July 22, 1940 in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. He grew up in a bilingual household that spoke both English and French. His first job was as a bellhop in the same hotel that his father worked at as the head chef (the Nickel Range Hotel). After he finished high school, he attended college at the University of Ottawa. Before graduating from college in 1961, he started his broadcasting career with the Canadian Broadcasting Company. A couple of shows that he hosted while with the CBC were “Music Hop” and “Reach for the Top”. His first game show in the United States was called “The Wizard of Odds”, which only lasted for a year. Then, he hosted “High Rollers”, which also did not last very long. Other shows that he hosted in the 1970s and early 1980s were “Double Dare” (not the Nickelodeon one), “The $128,000 Question”, “Battlestars”, and “Pitfall”. After years of hosting shows that did not last very long at all, he got the “Jeopardy!” job in 1984. At first, he was an executive producer in addition to being the host of the show. At one point, he was the host of three shows (“Jeopardy!”, “Classic Concentration”, and “To Tell the Truth”). Throughout his 36 years of hosting “Jeopardy!”, he did so with professionalism, class, and a sense of humor. He made every contestant feel welcome in the studio, including Ken Jennings (who has won the most consecutive games in the show’s history with 74, winning over $2.5 million dollars during the streak). He was an encouraging host, telling contestants that are struggling to keep their head up and look ahead to the next clue. Even when he was diagnosed with Stage 4 Pancreatic Cancer in March of 2019, he still hosted the show with the same demeanor. No matter how much pain he was dealing with (both physically and emotionally), he still made it through each day of taping (which was a whole week of shows in one day). He did so until a couple of weeks before he sadly passed away on Sunday, November 8, 2020.
Not only was he a great host of “Jeopardy!” for over 3 decades, but he was also a loving husband and father. He was married to his wife Jean for 30 years and had 2 kids in Matthew and Emily. When Alex passed away on Sunday, they were by his side at their home in California. During his life, he was involved with many charities, including World Vision and United Service Organizations. His donations over the years have helped many people around the world, including children in struggling countries and his alma mater, the University of Ottawa. He made appearances in many TV shows, including “Cheers”, “The Simpsons”, and “Seinfeld”. He was spoofed on “SCTV” by Eugene Levy and on “Saturday Night Live” by Will Ferrell. In July of 2020, he released a memoir called “The Answer Is… Reflections on my Life”, which is a book that I highly recommend to any fan of “Jeopardy!” and anybody in general. In the book, he talks about everything from his broadcasting career to his family life. He also talks about his charitable work and being the repairman for his own house.
Overall, Alex Trebek lived a great life. He did his job with class, kindness, and a sense of humor. He will be missed by everyone who watched him for years on “Jeopardy!” and on other programs that he was involved in. He will be remembered as a great host, a loving husband and father, and an overall great person. I will end this post with these words: Rest In Peace, Alex Trebek.
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