Although Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek has revealed that he’s most likely leaving the show in 2020, the show’s still got plenty of life left after 35 impressive years in syndication. And even following Trebek’s (whose replacement, naturally, remains unclear as of now) waltz into the quiz-show sunset, his legacy shall continue on Hulu, which has struck a deal with Sony to debut Jeopardy! in streaming form as of Friday. Trebek made the announcement himself in the above promo clip, and the binging shall commence in grand style.

To begin, Hulu has curated 60 episodes full of fan-favorite moments and beloved contestants — like the long-running champion and King of Peer Pressure, Ken Jennings — throughout the years. In addition, special-event episodes like some of the Tournament of Champions, College Week, and Kids Week shindigs are also immediately available.

There’s no word yet on exactly how much of the Jeopardy! back catalogue will eventually surface on Hulu, or if new episodes will appear like magic. However, this launch arrives after the show earned the 2017 Emmy for Outstanding Game Show (to reach a record-holding total of 34 Emmys over the years) and could help Hulu gain some ground in the ongoing streaming wars. Here’s another promo clip that includes some pop-culture callbacks that viewers should recognize. Happy streaming.

Instagram

Fans are running out of time to see Alex Trebek on Jeopardy! but they also might be running out of time to see a new addition for season 35 of the game show.

Jeopardy‘s new season started up on Monday after a summer break, and Trebek came back to give answers to yet unasked questions with some new facial hair. Perhaps predictably, a loyal fanbase had a lot of thoughts about the new look.

On Monday, Jeopardy! posted on its official Instagram account that fans can vote whether Trebek keeps the beard or not.

And on Twitter, an official vote seems to be underway as of Monday night.

It’s not clear if a vote one way or the other if the beard stays or goes, but as of Tuesday night, the beard squad is overwhelmingly winning right now. It is a strong look, though it does make him look a bit older. For fans who love Trebek and don’t want him to leave, another reminder of our mortality in the white facial hair of a game show hero is far from reassuring.

Still, it looks like the beards have it, and considering that the show is taped well before it airs in syndication, whatever decision Trebek went with in the past is just what we’ll have to go with on air moving forward.

Getty Image

It seems as if Alex Trebek should maybe reconsider quitting his day job. On Monday night the Jeopardy! host moderated the Pennsylvania Governor debate between incumbent Democrat Tom Wolf and his Republican challenger Scott Wagner, and it did not go great!

Instead of doing what a moderator is supposed to do, which is “moderate,” Trebek inserted himself into the debate and became argumentative at times, at one point even lecturing the audience on how they should choose a candidate to vote for. He took particular umbrage with Wagner’s opposition to a proposed severance tax, which would be imposed on the state’s natural gas industry, and proceeded to grill the candidate on the issue himself.

When Wagner attempted to counter with the fact that Pennsylvania’s impact fee already generated 217 million dollars in revenue from the natural gas industry last year, Trebek interrupted to get the last word in. “You’re not taxing them that much because most of them are based in Texas or Oklahoma,” he said, and then bluntly informed Wagner that he was out of time.

The audience immediately and loudly began booing Trebek, and his performance was likewise panned by political strategists and other observers.

“Tonight was a disappointment for anybody who watched the debate,” remarked Charlie Gerow, CEO Of Quantum Communications in Harrisburg. “The two candidates are different in issues and in style and those differences were not highlighted because Alex Trebek got in the way. He went out of his way in the beginning, saying he was not going to get in the way, then he got in the way.

Kurt Knaus, director of the Ceisler Media & Issue Advocacy, also located in Harrisburg, fumed that it was exactly what one would expect from a Hollywood star.

“It was more entertainment than debate,” he said, adding that it was especially disappointing being that this was the single debate for the Pennsylvania gubernatorial race. “It was more of a debate between Alex Trebek and Scott Wagner. Those two went tit for tat much of the time. I thought Trebek questioned Wagner a lot more than he did the governor.”

Twitter naturally also had some thoughts, including from elected officials on both sides of the aisle.

At one point, Trebek also went off on a bizarre rant against the Catholic church, which was pointed out by others.

Overall general consensus is that Trebek definitely showed a bias against the Republican candidate, but unfortunately in the end that doesn’t help either party out. You can watch a clip of the awkwardness over at Mediaite.

(Via Mediaite, Reading Eagle)

Sony TV

For the last 34 years — 54 if you count previous, non-Alex Trebek iterations — Jeopardy! has reigned as the thinking person’s game show. The trivia program is so brainy it doesn’t even air on the classic game show antenna channel Buzzr (though they do run Classic Concentration, also hosted by Trebek in the late ’80s and early’90s). But its smartness is why it’s one of few game shows that lives on Hulu. And soon it will be one of the few game shows taking up bandwidth on Netflix.

As per The Hollywood Reporter, 45 episodes of the quiz great will be heading to the streaming giant starting this Tuesday. Those near-four dozen will be a subset of the 60 that dropped on Hulu this August. They’re not current episodes, of course — which you can watch simply by turning on ABC, if you live in the northeast at least, most weeknights — but a greatest hits collection culled from the show’s deep, deep archives: Tournament of Champion episodes, College Championships, Kids Weeks, some fan favorites.

They may not include the few episodes this fall in which Trebek, whose former mustache is at least as iconic as Tom Selleck’s, showed up on set with a shocking beard.

Despite being synonymous with Jeopardy! for much of his career, Trebek is the second person to host the show. His predecessor was Art Fleming, who performed presenting duties when it was an NBC daytime show starting in 1964, before moving to nighttime duties in 1974. Jeopardy! was also off the air from 1975 to 1978 and then again from 1979 to 1984, meaning the general populace where probably a bit dumber during those periods.

Starting Tuesday, Netflix users have the option of endlessly rewatching Jeopardy! episodes and memorizing the answers/questions, just like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day. Once you’ve plowed through the 45episodes, feel free to stay on the streaming service and watch Season 8, Episode 14 of Cheers, in which know-it-all Cliff Clavin makes a disastrous appearance on Trebek’s show.

(Via THR)

Sometimes Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek does “interesting” things, like when he was recently booed while moderating a debate between the Pennsylvania gubernatorial candidates. Even so, we still love him, which is why we’re all quickly going to get over the horrifying, nightmare fuel-making image that is Trebek shooting a promo for Wednesday’s Halloween-themed Jeopardy! while dressed as, and standing next to, KISS band member Gene Simmons.

“Boy, I hope I got this KISS makeup right,” Trebek says while stroking the massive wig of fake black hair. After Simmons, also dressed in full KISS regalia, tells him “you’re looking good, don’t worry,” the pair launches into the promotion. “Clues from Gene Simmons!” the host declares. “On Jeopardy!” the ridiculously long-tongued bassist adds. So yeah, Wednesday’s episode is going to be interesting.

If that weren’t enough, however, the game show’s Twitter account released a behind-the-scenes video of Trebek and Simmons getting into character in the hair and makeup department over at CBS. The pair then concludes the segment by wagging their tongues at the camera, so we’re all going to have to live with that image until the next shocking thing comes along in the next five minutes or so. But hey, at least Trebek decided to go back on his previous comments about leaving the show in 2020 and decided to renew his contract with CBS — along with Wheel of Fortune‘s Pat Sajak and Vanna White — through 2022.

CBS

(Via The Hollywood Reporter)

Some terrible news for Jeopardy! fans broke on Wednesday afternoon. Alex Trebek has released a video message, in which he reveals that he has been diagnosed with advanced (stage 4) pancreatic cancer. TMZ reports word from sources who say he received this diagnosis today, and he definitely hopes to finish recording the current season of his long-running game show. The outlet further states that he’s remaining as upbeat as possible following the news.

Here’s what Trebek declares in his recorded message, in which he vows to defeat cancer. The host states that he wants to be as transparent as possible with his audience, and Trebek even cracks a joke about his contract requiring him to continue hosting for multiple years:

“Hi everyone, I have some news to share with all of you and it’s in keeping with my longtime policy of being open and transparent with our Jeopardy! fan base. I also wanted to prevent you from reading or hearing some overblown or inaccurate reports regarding my health. So therefore, I wanted to be the one to pass along this information. Now, just like 50,000 other people in the United States each year, this week I was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer. Now normally, the prognosis for this is not very encouraging, but I’m going to fight this, and I’m going to keep working. And with the love and support of my family and friends and with the help of your prayers also, I plan to beat the low survival rate statistics for this disease. Truth told, I have to! Because under the terms of my contract, I have to host Jeopardy! for three more years! So help me. Keep the faith and we’ll win. We’ll get it done. Thank you.”

Last year, questions about Trebek’s future with Jeopardy! swirled as he mulled over retirement, but priorities have clearly changed. He’s now pledging to beat his bleak diagnosis and stick with the show that he’s hosted since 1984 for more seasons to come. We wish him all the good health in the world and are rooting for a full recovery.

(Via TMZ)

Getty Image

One of last week’s bigger shocks was the news that Alex Trebek, longtime host of quiz show Jeopardy!, has been diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer. Trebek revealed the news in a typically professional, terse, yet quietly droll video message, in which he assured his many brainy fans that he intends to fight the disease and continue as host of the show that made him a television and trivia legend.

Now Jeopardy’s second-most-famous star has weighed in: Ken Jennings, who holds the record for the show’s longest winning streak — 74 games, a feat he achieved in 2004 shortly after the program loosened rules about how long contestants can remain on the show. Jennings already tweeted about Trebek, calling him “the last [Walter] Cronkite: authoritative, reassuring TV voice you hear every night, almost to the point of ritual.” He also spoke to Vulture. Now Jennings has penned a moving essay for The New York Times about the host of the show that made him famous.

“Let me be clear: This is not an elegy,” Jennings wrote, before saying he hopes he’ll keep the job for a long time coming. “It’s impossible to even imagine the show with anyone else. But he’s been doing one job so long, and so well, that I think we sometimes take him for granted. Let’s make sure that we appreciate the man as long as we have him.”

Jennings admitted he doesn’t know Trebek all that much more than those who haven’t spent a good chunk of a year correctly showing off his arcane trivia prowess. “He remains, I like to say, a riddle wrapped in an enigma wrapped in a Perry Ellis suit,” Jennings wrote.

Alex Trebek fascinates America, but we don’t quite get him. He’s a game show host, but he’s not hearty or ingratiating. He’s a comedy signifier, most famously lampooned by Will Ferrell on “Saturday Night Live” for many years, but he also seems to be in on the joke. My picture of him has been built up in little glimpses over the years, to the point where I finally feel confident handling the endless stream of “What’s Alex like?”

Jennings reveals that Trebek is “all business” when the game is on; understandably, as he “has 61 clues to get to.” He does loosen up when the cameras are off, though, taking “studio audience questions at every break, sometimes slipping into funny accents or even bits of soft-shoe.”

He also reiterates his comparison to Cronkite, adding one to Johnny Carson, saying they may be gone, “but Alex Trebek remains, the last of the old-school broadcasters who once visited us every night as a matter of ritual.” And just to remind you: This isn’t an elegy, as Jennings said, Trebek’s not going anywhere.

(Via The AV Club)

Twitter

 

The game show world and trivia nerds alike were shocked when longtime Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek announced he had pancreatic cancer last week. Trebek, who said he was likely to vacate his hosting duties beside the big board in 2020, sparked an outpouring of support when he gave his health announcement to fans who have spent years watching him host Jeopardy!

The thought of losing Trebek was hard for everyone — the Canadian game show host is forever tied to the quiz show and has been a familiar face on your TV before (or after, depending on your syndication market) Wheel of Fortune for decades. Trebek’s health and future at the podium are uncertain right now, but it’s clear that he’s well-loved by fans. And he took some time to thank those fans a week after his health update was made public.

On Thursday, the official Jeopardy! account tweeted out a video of Trebek thanking fans for the “hundreds of thousands” of messages in various forms of media that Trebek has read over the last week.

“I’ve heard from former contestants — even Watson, the IBM computer, sent me a get well card,” Trebek said. “Now, obviously I won’t be able to respond to all of you individually, but I did want you to know that I do read everything I receive.”

It’s a nice gesture to thank fans, but the message also serves as news that he’s gotten so many messages in the first place. And it’s awesome to know that if you sent kind words his way, Trebek has read them. And despite his diagnosis, he called himself “lucky.”

“I am thankful for the kind words, the prayers and the advice you have offered and I’m extremely touched by the warmth you have expressed in your comments to me,” Trebek said. “I’m a lucky guy.”

It’s hard not to love Trebek for the way he does his job on TV, and we wish him nothing but the best in his fight. It’s hard to imagine him not on TV on weeknights after dinner, and it’s even harder to imagine him not here at all.

Getty Image

While current champion James Holzhauer’s dominance has been at the forefront of Jeopardy! in recent days, fans of the show are cognizant of the current situation with longtime host Alex Trebek. Earlier this year, Trebek announced that he is battling Stage 4 pancreatic cancer, and while he was going to keep hosting, the show’s beloved host would fight the ailment.

With the show’s 35th season marching towards its conclusion, Trebek found it important to address the show’s audience about what the future holds. Everyone’s favorite quiz show host recorded a video that was posed to the official Jeopardy! Twitter account in which he announced his plan to come back for season 36.

Trebek, on the final day of filming for this season, thanked fans for their “continuing messages of encouragement and support” with a special shoutout to “the many cards I’ve received from young people.” He then went on to say he always wants to be honest with fans, and preparations are already being made for next season.
https://twitter.com/Jeopardy/status/1118603861105659904

“So, I look forward to seeing you once again in September with all kinds of good stuff,” Trebek said to close the video. The day where Trebek no longer hosts Jeopardy! is coming, but it’s good to know we still have time before that day comes.

Beloved Jeopardy host Alex Trebek stopped by Good Morning America on Wednesday to provide an update on his health, after having been diagnosed with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer earlier this year. Despite ups and downs, Trebek has filmed 50 episodes since his diagnosis, but plans to rest and recuperate over the summer months before returning for season 36 in September.

Despite the seriousness of his condition, Trebek opened up on his cancer battle with his trademark combination of candid honesty and sense of humor. “My oncologist tells me I’m doing well, even though I don’t always feel it,” he told host Robin Roberts, who herself is also a cancer survivor:

I’ve had kidney stones, I’ve had ruptured discs so I’m used to dealing with pain, but what I’m not used to dealing with is the surges that come on suddenly of deep, deep sadness, and it brings tears to my eyes. I’ve discovered in this whole episode, ladies and gentleman, that I’m a bit of a wuss, but I’m fighting through it — my platelets, my blood counts are steady, my weight is steady, the numbers that are cancer indicators, those are coming down. So, I’ve got another chemo next week and we’ll do a review to find out where things stand.”

Chemo affects people in different ways, and people have to understand that. There’s nothing wrong with saying, ‘Hey, I’m really depressed today and I have no idea why. Why am I crying?'”

On a lighter note, Trebek also took a moment to discuss James Holzhauer, the latest Jeopardy sensation who recently hit the $1 million mark in the shortest span ever in the game’s history. Trebek admitted that he’s just as excited as the rest of America watching the 34-year-old gambler lay waste to competition night after night. So much so that the phenomenon has forced him to “change a view” that he had held for many years.

“And that is that the Ken Jennings record would never be broken,” Trebek admitted of Holzhauer, who has now won 74 consecutive games. “But I look at James and I say, ‘Oh my gosh, look at what he’s doing.'”

Near the end of the interview, Roberts steered the conversation back to the subject of Trebek, who gave a heartfelt answer about how much the outpouring of support has meant to him, when asked what he’s learned him himself since his diagnosis.

“I think I’ve learned that I’m an extremely lucky individual. Because in spite of the fact that this diagnosis is not a good one, I have managed to receive so much love from so many people, and quite often you don’t get that during your lifetime,” he told Roberts. “After you’re passed, after you’re dead, people will say, ‘He was such a nice guy, we really liked him,’ but I’m getting all that before that event. So it makes me feel really, really good.”

The winning streak of James Holzhauer has captivated Jeopardy! viewers for weeks now, but so too has host Alex Trebek’s ongoing battle with pancreatic cancer. Ever since the esteemed television icon revealed his cancer diagnosis back in March, fans have been lending their support to him while wondering how the 78-year-old presenter is able to cope with the intense treatments. In a new interview with CBS Sunday Morning set to air this weekend, Trebek explains this and other related items — like his new hairpiece.

Speaking with anchor Jane Pauley in his own home, Trebek revealed that the treatment caused him to suffer intensely painful stomach cramps. “This got really bad. I was on the floor writhing in pain,” he explained. “And it happened three or four times a day while we were taping. So that was a little — little rough on me.” Despite the pain, however, Trebek refused to cancel any Jeopardy! tapings because of it:

“I taped the show, and then I made it to the dressing room on one occasion, just barely, before I writhed in pain and cried in pain,” Trebek says. “So — and I had 15 minutes before the next show. So I got myself together and spasms of that kind usually last about 10 to 15 minutes. So all right, here we go again. ‘Anybody got any pain pills?’ And I don’t like taking pain pills. But — so I — I got through it. And the producers were very kind. They said, ‘Look, if you — If you don’t want to do the show — we’ll just cancel taping.’ I said, ‘No. We’re here. We’re doing the shows.'”

And then there’s the matter of his hairpiece, which Trebek had to start wearing when his chemotherapy inevitably led to hair loss. Ever the game show host, he turned it into a sort of challenge. “So what the challenge for Jeopardy! viewers right now is to figure out, ‘Is that Alex’s real hair, or is that a full hairpiece?’ Because they all know that when you start chemo you lose your hair. So which is it?”

Even Pauley couldn’t resist inspecting Trebek’s hairline as he explained this challenge. “This is not the real me,” he revealed to her. In amazement, the CBS Sunday Morning anchor responded, “Wow!”

Trebek’s full interview for CBS Sunday Morning airs this Sunday, May 12th at 9 a.m. ET/PT on CBS.

Getty Image

Less than three months after Alex Trebek revealed a bleak medical diagnosis, things are looking so much better. The Jeopardy! host previously disclosed to fans that he had stage 4 pancreatic cancer while defiantly insisting that he’d beat the illness. He later admitted to feeling sadness during his battle, which includes intense rounds of chemotherapy, but he continued taping his long-running game show while enduring severe pain. Now, Trebek has told People that his doctors believe he’s “near remission.”

That’s incredible news, given the 9 percent five-year survival rate for pancreatic cancer patients. Indeed, Trebek calls his medical update “kind of mind-boggling” while adding that some of his “tumors have already shrunk by more than 50 percent.” In addition to his medical care, Trebek believes that all the positive vibes coming his way have worked plenty of good:

“I’ve got a couple million people out there who have expressed their good thoughts, their positive energy directed towards me and their prayers. I told the doctors, this has to be more than just the chemo, and they agreed it could very well be an important part of this. I’ve got a lot of love out there headed in my direction and a lot of prayer, and I will never ever minimize the value of that.”

Trebek still has more rounds of chemotherapy to endure, but his doctors have also told him that they have never seen such a drastically positive response to a patient until he arrived. Here’s to hoping that this success continues until Trebek officially receives the all-clear signal.

(Via People)

Getty Image

Over the years, Jeopardy! categories have elicited some pretty comical sound bites. Some of the most entertaining moments come when contestants choose from a “rap” category and Alex Trebek gives his best impression of popular rappers. On Thursday night’s episode of Jeopardy!, Trebek tried to capture Lil Jon‘s signature joyous catchphrase.

Lil Jon was the $800 answer for Jeopardy! contestants. The question referenced his popular song “Turn Down For What” and his familiar slogan, “yeeeeeeeahh.” Alex Trebek read the question and gave his best shot at mimicking the rapper’s voice.

Though the question was technically referencing Dave Chappelle‘s impersonation, no Alex, you were not close.

Jeopardy! contestant E.J. ended up correctly answering, “What is Lil Jon?”

More popular rappers were the answer to several of Thursday night’s Jeopardy! questions. The $400 question showed a photo of Lil Wayne with 2 Chainz, while Trebek mentioned their collaborative album ColleGrove, then asked the contestants to correctly name Lil Wayne. The same contestant ended up getting the answer right, “Who is Lil Wayne?”

Lil Yachty was the answer for the category’s $1,000 question.

Trebek is back as a host on the show after a battle with pancreatic cancer earlier this year. He recently opened up about his diagnosis on an episode of Good Morning America. “I think I’ve learned that I’m an extremely lucky individual. Because in spite of the fact that this diagnosis is not a good one, I have managed to receive so much love from so many people, and quite often you don’t get that during your lifetime,” he said. “After you’re passed, after you’re dead, people will say, ‘He was such a nice guy, we really liked him,’ but I’m getting all that before that event. So it makes me feel really, really good.”

JEOPARDY/YOUTUBE

James Holzhauer‘s record-setting Jeopardy! run came to an end earlier this month, but he’s still making news. No, it has to do with leaked footage or conspiracy theories — Holzhauer, who took home $2,464,216 over 33 appearances on the long-running game show, donated a portion of his winnings to a Chicago-area pancreatic cancer walk in Alex Trebek’s name.

In March, the Jeopardy! host publicly announced that he has stage 4 pancreatic cancer, and although he’s “near remission,” not everyone is so lucky (Trebek called his medical update “mind-boggling,” given the nine percent five-year survival rate for pancreatic cancer patients). During Holzhauer’s winning streak, Ann Zediker, a resident of Naperville, Illinois (where “Jeopardy James” used to live), invited him to the 2019 Naperville Pancreatic Cancer Research Walk in July. “At the end of the day, I had nothing to lose,” Zediker told CNN. “My heart told me it was the right thing to do.” Holzhauer replied, saying he unfortunately wouldn’t be able to attend, but “he sent her a donation for $1,109.14.”

At first, Zediker was confused by the dollar amount. But then it dawned on her — the number represented his daughter Natasha’s birthday. “There was no expectation on my end,” she told CNN. “I was just thrilled that he responded. I knew that Alex’s story had an impact on him, just like it has an impact on anyone who’s working with a family member who’s going through pancreatic cancer.” (Via)

Holzhauer’s message with the donation: “For Alex Trebek and all the other survivors.” The Naperville Pancreatic Cancer Research Walk is put on by the Lustgarten Foundation, where “100 percent of your donation goes directly to pancreatic cancer research.” To discover more, or to donate, click here.

(Via CNN)

Getty Image

Jeopardy! is known for eliciting some pretty hilarious answers, but it’s always disappointing when none of the contestants get an answer right. That was the case on Friday night’s episode, when none of the participants could figure out a clue involving The 1975.

Jeopardy! is currently hosting an installment of Teen Tournament, in which the contestants are between the ages of 13 and 17. The recent episode had a question which referenced The 1975’s sophomore album I Like It When You Sleep, For You Are So Beautiful Yet So Unaware Of It. Host Alex Trebek gave the young participants the clue, “I like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it was a no. 1 album for this ‘yearly’ band.” A short silence followed the clue because none of the contestants knew the right answer. “Who are the 1975?” Trebek then answered for the teens before moving on to the next question.

In other recent Jeopardy! news, the long-running winner, James Holzhauer, donated a portion of his prize money to a cancer organization in Alex Trebek’s name. Trebek publicly announced last March that he has been diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer. Since the original announcement, Trebek has said he’s “near remission” and continues to host the show.

Getty Image

Alex Trebek‘s Jeopardy! contract is up in 2020 and it sounds like he’s ready to move on from a life of demanding answers in the form of a question. The longtime host of the syndicated game show was asked in an interview with TMZ if he’s done after his contract ends in 2020, and he didn’t shy away from imagining a world without Jeopardy! in it.

When Jeopardy! get viral attention, it’s often his reaction to the moments that adds to the weirdness. That’s his job, after all, and it will be strange to consider the show without him.

But according to his interview with TMZ, there’s a good chance he’s done. Asked the odds that he stays after 2020, Trebek said it’s “50/50 and a little less.”

Trebek said he does have a suggestion for his replacement, and it’s actually someone from the sports broadcasting world.

“I mentioned to our producer not too long ago that a fella who does play-by-play for the Los Angeles Kings,” Trebek said. “They should consider him.”

That’s Alex Faust, a 29-year-old broadcaster who replaced the legendary Jim Miller on Kings games in 2017. That would be a bit of a darkhorse pick given how high-profile the postion of Jeopardy! host has become under Trebek’s control, but is recommendation probably merits some attention.

Trebek was asked about a female host, and he suggested CNN contributor and lawyer Laura Coates. Trebek has hosted Jeopardy! since 1984 and had brain surgery early in the year, which put production of the show on hiatus. But it doesn’t seem like there’s any particular reason Trebek might leave, it just might time to go.

Although Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek has revealed that he’s most likely leaving the show in 2020, the show’s still got plenty of life left after 35 impressive years in syndication. And even following Trebek’s (whose replacement, naturally, remains unclear as of now) waltz into the quiz-show sunset, his legacy shall continue on Hulu, which has struck a deal with Sony to debut Jeopardy! in streaming form as of Friday. Trebek made the announcement himself in the above promo clip, and the binging shall commence in grand style.

To begin, Hulu has curated 60 episodes full of fan-favorite moments and beloved contestants — like the long-running champion and King of Peer Pressure, Ken Jennings — throughout the years. In addition, special-event episodes like some of the Tournament of Champions, College Week, and Kids Week shindigs are also immediately available.

There’s no word yet on exactly how much of the Jeopardy! back catalogue will eventually surface on Hulu, or if new episodes will appear like magic. However, this launch arrives after the show earned the 2017 Emmy for Outstanding Game Show (to reach a record-holding total of 34 Emmys over the years) and could help Hulu gain some ground in the ongoing streaming wars. Here’s another promo clip that includes some pop-culture callbacks that viewers should recognize. Happy streaming.

Instagram

Fans are running out of time to see Alex Trebek on Jeopardy! but they also might be running out of time to see a new addition for season 35 of the game show.

Jeopardy‘s new season started up on Monday after a summer break, and Trebek came back to give answers to yet unasked questions with some new facial hair. Perhaps predictably, a loyal fanbase had a lot of thoughts about the new look.

On Monday, Jeopardy! posted on its official Instagram account that fans can vote whether Trebek keeps the beard or not.

And on Twitter, an official vote seems to be underway as of Monday night.

It’s not clear if a vote one way or the other if the beard stays or goes, but as of Tuesday night, the beard squad is overwhelmingly winning right now. It is a strong look, though it does make him look a bit older. For fans who love Trebek and don’t want him to leave, another reminder of our mortality in the white facial hair of a game show hero is far from reassuring.

Still, it looks like the beards have it, and considering that the show is taped well before it airs in syndication, whatever decision Trebek went with in the past is just what we’ll have to go with on air moving forward.

Getty Image

It seems as if Alex Trebek should maybe reconsider quitting his day job. On Monday night the Jeopardy! host moderated the Pennsylvania Governor debate between incumbent Democrat Tom Wolf and his Republican challenger Scott Wagner, and it did not go great!

Instead of doing what a moderator is supposed to do, which is “moderate,” Trebek inserted himself into the debate and became argumentative at times, at one point even lecturing the audience on how they should choose a candidate to vote for. He took particular umbrage with Wagner’s opposition to a proposed severance tax, which would be imposed on the state’s natural gas industry, and proceeded to grill the candidate on the issue himself.

When Wagner attempted to counter with the fact that Pennsylvania’s impact fee already generated 217 million dollars in revenue from the natural gas industry last year, Trebek interrupted to get the last word in. “You’re not taxing them that much because most of them are based in Texas or Oklahoma,” he said, and then bluntly informed Wagner that he was out of time.

The audience immediately and loudly began booing Trebek, and his performance was likewise panned by political strategists and other observers.

“Tonight was a disappointment for anybody who watched the debate,” remarked Charlie Gerow, CEO Of Quantum Communications in Harrisburg. “The two candidates are different in issues and in style and those differences were not highlighted because Alex Trebek got in the way. He went out of his way in the beginning, saying he was not going to get in the way, then he got in the way.

Kurt Knaus, director of the Ceisler Media & Issue Advocacy, also located in Harrisburg, fumed that it was exactly what one would expect from a Hollywood star.

“It was more entertainment than debate,” he said, adding that it was especially disappointing being that this was the single debate for the Pennsylvania gubernatorial race. “It was more of a debate between Alex Trebek and Scott Wagner. Those two went tit for tat much of the time. I thought Trebek questioned Wagner a lot more than he did the governor.”

Twitter naturally also had some thoughts, including from elected officials on both sides of the aisle.

At one point, Trebek also went off on a bizarre rant against the Catholic church, which was pointed out by others.

Overall general consensus is that Trebek definitely showed a bias against the Republican candidate, but unfortunately in the end that doesn’t help either party out. You can watch a clip of the awkwardness over at Mediaite.

(Via Mediaite, Reading Eagle)

Sony TV

For the last 34 years — 54 if you count previous, non-Alex Trebek iterations — Jeopardy! has reigned as the thinking person’s game show. The trivia program is so brainy it doesn’t even air on the classic game show antenna channel Buzzr (though they do run Classic Concentration, also hosted by Trebek in the late ’80s and early’90s). But its smartness is why it’s one of few game shows that lives on Hulu. And soon it will be one of the few game shows taking up bandwidth on Netflix.

As per The Hollywood Reporter, 45 episodes of the quiz great will be heading to the streaming giant starting this Tuesday. Those near-four dozen will be a subset of the 60 that dropped on Hulu this August. They’re not current episodes, of course — which you can watch simply by turning on ABC, if you live in the northeast at least, most weeknights — but a greatest hits collection culled from the show’s deep, deep archives: Tournament of Champion episodes, College Championships, Kids Weeks, some fan favorites.

They may not include the few episodes this fall in which Trebek, whose former mustache is at least as iconic as Tom Selleck’s, showed up on set with a shocking beard.

Despite being synonymous with Jeopardy! for much of his career, Trebek is the second person to host the show. His predecessor was Art Fleming, who performed presenting duties when it was an NBC daytime show starting in 1964, before moving to nighttime duties in 1974. Jeopardy! was also off the air from 1975 to 1978 and then again from 1979 to 1984, meaning the general populace where probably a bit dumber during those periods.

Starting Tuesday, Netflix users have the option of endlessly rewatching Jeopardy! episodes and memorizing the answers/questions, just like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day. Once you’ve plowed through the 45episodes, feel free to stay on the streaming service and watch Season 8, Episode 14 of Cheers, in which know-it-all Cliff Clavin makes a disastrous appearance on Trebek’s show.

(Via THR)