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Alex Trebek has died at 80 years old. (1 Viewer)

The Obsolete Man

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This was originally a post for something else, but that's been fixed.

So...

Buzzr already has an In Memoriam bumper airing, and I figure they'll announce a memorial marathon soon. They have (at least) Classic Concentration, Double Dare, and To Tell The Truth '91 to air where he hosted. Wonder if he did any panel or guest appearances on any 70s shows that they could use?

It's always interesting seeing his work outside of Jeopardy.

Especially with Jesse Ventura and Charles Nelson Reilly

 
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Ejanss

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Buzzr already has an In Memoriam bumper airing, and I figure they'll announce a memorial marathon soon. They have (at least) Classic Concentration, Double Dare, and To Tell The Truth '91 to air where he hosted. Wonder if he did any panel or guest appearances on any 70s shows that they could use?

Looking at Buzzr again makes you realize:
For all the guff that 70's game-show hosts took in the day (Bob Barker looks like a slimeball, knowing what we know now, and Monty Hall still comes off as a total b'tard), you have to admire a TV profession that will not pass this way again.

Bill Cullen and Gary Moore of the 50's-60's panel shows, the down-to-earth Alan Ludden, the suave charm of Richard Dawson, the playful energy of Bob Eubanks (he was less of a jerk on Card Sharks than he was on Newlywed Game), and the goofy party-host that was Gene Rayburn, it was just not something you could hire any actor for and get the same thing. Look at poor Rod Serling on "Liar's Club" if you don't believe me.

And rappers and black-comics, in today's Steve Harvey/Family Feud idea that only poor inner-city black people watch game shows, even less. :(
 
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David_B_K

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It's always interesting seeing his work outside of Jeopardy.

I remember a show that aired here in Houston in the late 70's after the late news on Sunday nights called Witness to Yesterday. It was a Canadian show hosted by Canadian Patrick Watson, and featured actors (many also Canadian) playing historical figures being interviewed by Watson. Among the actors I most remember are Richard Dreyfuss as Billy the Kid, Christopher Plummer as the Duke of Wellington (reprising the role from Waterloo) and surprisingly, Alex Trebek as Mark Twain. Trebek was really quite credible in the role. I had seen Hal Holbrook's live Twain show on stage, and Alex really gave him a run for his money. Under the makeup, and with the change in voice I could scarcely tell it was Alex. (I think this show was the inspiration for one that Steve Allen later hosted called Meeting of the Minds, in which Allen would ask questions of people from different historical periods who were on the same show, like guests on the couch on Johnny Carson. While I could accept one guest at a time, it seemed unreal to have Steve Allen interviewing Cleopatra and Oliver Cromwell at the same time.)

My wife and I are avid Jeopardy! watchers and will miss Alex terribly. I knew he probably would not be around much longer, but I expected to see him retire from the show shortly before the end, so this sudden announcement is a bit of a shock. I guess there are so many shows taped there will be a lag between his death and the last show. I know Ken Jennings is probably the next host, but I think they would do well to get an actor like Alex who is not destined for superstardom to take over.
 

joshEH

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It's a shame they never got the real Alex Trebek to host one of the SNL Celebrity Jeopardy sketches, though I think playing Alex Trebek was one of the funniest things Will Ferrell ever did. :lol:
He did actually appear in at least one SNL "Celebrity Jeopardy!" sketch that I can remember, as a surprise-cameo -- during Will Ferrell's final SNL episode in May, 2002.
 
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Malcolm R

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I know Ken Jennings is probably the next host, but I think they would do well to get an actor like Alex who is not destined for superstardom to take over.
I hope it's not Jennings. Alex mentioned a couple of people he thought would be good choices as successor, and Jennings was not one of them. I've seen Jennings a lot recently on "Master Minds," and he doesn't strike me as host material.
 

theJman

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Pancreatic cancer takes no prisoners, it's one of the few varieties of that C word where there is absolutely nothing you can do about it. I don't watch game shows - so I only know him by name - but I do know the guy was a stalwart of the genre.
 

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I have a friend who has just passed year four since her diagnosis. She has had surgery (Whipple procedure), chemo, and has just finished 7 days of radiation. She is hanging in there with lots of love from family and friends. The outlook may still be bleak, but there is hope.
 

Jake Lipson

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Jeopardy will air repeats for the last two weeks of this year in order to save Alex's final episodes until after the holidays. This means Alex's final episode will now air January 8, 2021 rather than Christmas Day.


The show will resume production on Monday with Ken Jennings as the series of "interim guest hosts" and begin airing those episodes on January 11. Ken Jennings is the first guest.
 
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Adam Lenhardt

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I hope it's not Jennings. Alex mentioned a couple of people he thought would be good choices as successor, and Jennings was not one of them. I've seen Jennings a lot recently on "Master Minds," and he doesn't strike me as host material.
LeVar Burton's name has been floating around, and I think he would be a good choice. I don't think anybody will have a 36-year run like Alex did, though.
 

The Obsolete Man

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LeVar Burton's name has been floating around, and I think he would be a good choice. I don't think anybody will have a 36-year run like Alex did, though.

A 63-year-old isn't a longterm plan of any kind. A fun guest host in this upcoming interim? Yeah. But if Sony is planning on setting the show up for its next phase, you don't get someone who is retirement age.
 

Malcolm R

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Disappointed at the "guest host" decision. Seems kind of disrespectful to me, that they're saying Alex Trebek can be replaced quickly and with a rotating roster of any random person they can find, with no experience or training. It implies that Trebek was just going through the motions in a job any person with 10-minutes of instruction can do.

Perhaps it's the truth, but it still seems disrespectful to me. IMO, they should have suspended production until they could come to a decision about a new, permanent host. They have to have people in mind, knowing for years this was coming. They should not be starting from scratch in the search.
 

Johnny Angell

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Disappointed at the "guest host" decision. Seems kind of disrespectful to me, that they're saying Alex Trebek can be replaced quickly and with a rotating roster of any random person they can find, with no experience or training. It implies that Trebek was just going through the motions in a job any person with 10-minutes of instruction can do.

Perhaps it's the truth, but it still seems disrespectful to me. IMO, they should have suspended production until they could come to a decision about a new, permanent host. They have to have people in mind, knowing for years this was coming. They should not be starting from scratch in the search.
I take the opposite viewpoint. Alex is so hard to replace they don’t want to make a permanent selection right away. They’re giving themselves time to reflect and to make the best choice they can.
 

Robert Crawford

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Disappointed at the "guest host" decision. Seems kind of disrespectful to me, that they're saying Alex Trebek can be replaced quickly and with a rotating roster of any random person they can find, with no experience or training. It implies that Trebek was just going through the motions in a job any person with 10-minutes of instruction can do.

Perhaps it's the truth, but it still seems disrespectful to me. IMO, they should have suspended production until they could come to a decision about a new, permanent host. They have to have people in mind, knowing for years this was coming. They should not be starting from scratch in the search.
I don't agree it's disrespectful at all. I think they're doing their due diligence in naming a permanent host by rotating/auditioning different people in the temporary host role. I see nothing wrong with them taking their time in the host selection process.
 

The Obsolete Man

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I don't agree it's disrespectful at all. I think they're doing their due diligence in naming a permanent host by rotating/auditioning different people in the temporary host role. I see nothing wrong with them taking their time in the host selection process.

Oddly enough, Jeopardy has the best producer for the job.

Mike Richards came in as EP of The Price is Right in Drew Carey's second season. So, Richards has proven he can take a longrunning game show with a new host replacing a beloved institution of a host, update it, yet keep it faithful and successful.

TPIR is really the best comparison to what Jeopardy will soon be going through. And to be honest, they got extremely lucky on Price, because Drew looked bad in that first season where they just plugged him into the same old Bob Barker formula and hoped for the best. But, after Richards came onboard and started working with what they had instead of what they used to have, it all worked out. So, perhaps since he knows the pitfalls, they can be avoided with the Jeopardy transition, because like Bob Barker, you can't replace Alex Trebek. So don't try. Let the show hold its own (because it can) and work with the strengths of the host you've chosen instead of trying to make them a carbon copy of the person they're following.
 

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