Ken Jennings To Host “Jeopardy!”
In a statement, producers said Jennings will make his first appearance on the show on Feb. 15, the first new episodes in an eight-week run of all-new tapings. He’ll appear in Monday-Thursday tapings from then through March 1.
The show’s writers are plotting his episodes over the next few weeks. Jennings won 74 games in the venerable quiz show’s 35-year run before going out on an 11-game losing streak in the 2016 tournament of champions.
Alex Trebek hosted Jeopardy for 22 years until his death from pancreatic cancer on November 8th of this year.
Who is Alex Trebek?
Alex Trebek was born in Paterson, New Jersey on August 18, 1940, and grew up in the Washington DC area, the son of a Canadian father and an Austrian mother. While studying at American University, he started performing at the Harlow Theatre in Arlington, Virginia, performing his own brand of humor while impersonating Benny Goodman, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., and Andy Griffith.
After graduating in 1962, he began appearing on local shows in D.C., winning the job of host of Washington’s WMAL radio show in 1963. In 1966, he was an assistant producer for the quiz show College Bowl, and in 1967, hosted shows for several NBC stations including WRC-TV in Washington.
Trebek began hosting Jeopardy! in 1984 and has hosted every season of the show since then except for five years during the early 90s. He was inducted into the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame in 1998.
Who is Ken Jennings?
Ken Jennings, 46, is a social media consultant and author who has become the most successful “Jeopardy!” contestant in the show’s history. He has won four Jeopardy! tournaments and $2,795,000. His total winnings, $5,223,414.
He currently resides in the state of Washington with his wife, Mindy, and their two children.