The over thirty-year run of “Jeopardy!” has always been a staple in American homes in that time period but this year it has certainly made national news a couple of times.
Beloved “Jeopardy!” host Alex Trebek recently revealed in a heartfelt speech that he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and more recently, contestant James Holzhauer, has been on a tear like we’ve never seen before, obliterating records and becoming a household name in the process.
And “Jeopardy!” just achieved another milestone after it beat this juggernaut show in the ratings.
“Jeopardy!” new rock star contestant, James Holzhauer, is on one of the craziest game show streaks in the history of American game shows.
The only record that Holzhauer hasn’t broken were two records set by 2004 contestant Ken Jennings when he went on a 74-game winning streak with a total earnings of $2,520,700. By all accounts, it looks like the 35-year-old savant will eventually break those records as well.
Many people are annoyed with how badly Holzhauer is demolishing the competition and they don’t find it fun at all to see someone crush it like he does.
Another, Rob, wrote “Wife: (deep sign) well… this is boring.”
It’s understandable. A direct parallel has been the New England Patriots and the Golden State Warriors over the last 5 years. It’s almost a foregone conclusion they’ll at least reach the championship game and then most likely win it all once they get there.
But others furiously disagree and the proof was in the pudding because “Jeopardy!” officially beat “Judge Judy” in the ratings who is year in and year out the highest paid television personality for that exact reason.
According to Variety, “viewers have taken notice of the Las Vegas sports gambler’s impressive run. Ratings for the show have reportedly increased from 9.6 million viewers during his early April appearances, to 12 million by the end of the month. As a result of the boosted numbers, “Jeopardy!” dethroned “Judge Judy” as the reigning ratings champion for the past two weeks.”
Clearly, people love to see Holzhauer dominate everybody and the ratings dictate that. Or maybe they tune in every night hoping someone will rival him – praying for an upset.
Holzhauer told a student newspaper for Shaler Area Middle School in Glenshaw in a recent interview, “I was an undisciplined student, but I set a goal for ‘Jeopardy!’ and really focused on achieving it. No one has ever played ‘Jeopardy!’ like I do, but I didn’t let that stop me from approaching the game the way I thought I should.”
All that goes to show you is how formal education might be a little overrated. In Holzhauer’s case, he didn’t need public schooling or higher education to become one of the world’s most knowledgeable people.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerburg famously dropped out of Harvard his sophomore year and became one of the richest people in the world.