Answer: The greatest game show host of all time.
Question: Who is Alex Trebek?
A handful of game show personalities have become icons. Vanna White somehow elevated turning lettered tiles to an art form on “Wheel of Fortune.” “The Price is Right” host Bob Barker made skinny microphones, spaying and neutering pets, and Adam Sander cool (see Barker’s work in “Happy Gilmore”). But nobody had the swagger, smarts and cultural cachet of Alex Trebek — who else could make tweaking facial hair so captivating?
Trebek, who died Sunday at the age of 80 after a long battle with pancreatic cancer, captained “Jeopardy!” for a record-setting 36 years. During that time he transformed an entire TV genre. Before Trebek, viewers at home often came up with correct answers ahead of the actual contestants — millions shouted “It’s ‘A Friend in Need is a Friend Indeed’” at the screen while a dumbfounded contestant looked to buy a vowel. Before Trebek, chance played a key role in so many shows (STOP AT A WHAMMY!). But the players on “Jeopardy!” were brainiacs and skill made them champions.
For decades, the players kept getting smarter and Trebek matched their pace. As host, he was even-handed, definitive and endlessly composed. Where viewers at home might laugh at a blunder, Trebek rarely cracked his calm. The worst a contestant might get from him was a choice: “Oooh, noooo, sorry. ”
As Trebek oversaw runs by savants such as computer programmer Ken Jennings and professional gambler James Holzhauer that enthralled a nation, he kept a side career as a pop cultural touchstone. He appeared as himself on what may be the most popular episode of “Cheers,” which features Cliff Clavin bombing the final “Jeopardy” round by writing, “Who are 3 people who’ve never been in my kitchen?” He appeared as the mysterious Man in Black in what is surely the most fun “X-Files” episode, “Jose Chung’s From Outer Space.” For decades, he popped up everywhere — “Saturday Night Live” and “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” “The Simpsons” and “Baywatch.”
By one tally, at least 400 game shows debuted and disappeared during the run of “Jeopardy!” Trebek outlasted all comers but his streak will come to an end on Christmas Day. His last episode of “Jeopardy!” will air posthumously on Dec. 25. Last year, Trebek revealed to the public he had stage 4 pancreatic cancer. He remained open about his treatments but he didn’t show the excruciating pain he felt during many recent tapings of the show. He made it clear: His diagnosis wouldn’t force him off the show.
On Sunday, Jennings took to Twitter to tell Trebek’s family and the crew of the show how much the host meant to him. In his tribute, Jennings spelled out what millions of fans would surely have loved to tell Trebek.
“Alex wasn’t just the best ever at what he did,” Jennings wrote. “He was also a lovely and deeply decent man, and I’m grateful for every minute I got to spend with him.”
"TV" - Google News
November 09, 2020 at 04:31AM
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Alex Trebek, who transformed and transcended TV game shows, dies at 80 - Boston Herald
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