This is my first time trying to write an episode recap, so bear with me! Also there WILL be spoilers, so hold off on reading if you haven’t watched yet.
From yesterday’s post, here’s where we left off:
Another special person in the audience was Ryan Long's son, Nathan. He was seated with Ryan's family in the row behind us, and I think he was the only child in the audience that day. One of the crew members came over and asked him if this was his first time visiting Jeopardy! He enthusiastically replied, “Yes, but I have a question - when is Ryan Long going to come out on stage?!?”
He didn’t have to wait long, because Ryan was scheduled to play the first game of the day along with Megan Wachspress and Maureen O’Neil. (We did not know who was playing until they walked out before their game.) The contestants were ushered on stage one by one by Jeopardy! staff, including makeup & hair people to do touch-ups once the contestant removed their mask. When Ryan walked out I heard Nathan gasp and whisper-squeal, “That’s my daddy!”
As I mentioned before, I was seated in the front row on the right side with Cindy Zhang and Sam Kavanaugh. The audience was smaller than a regular taping, with friends/family/invited guests only.
The contestants settled into their podiums and it was time to begin the first game of the day. At the beginning of each game, Producer Sarah Foss reads some important technical information which I did not write down and therefore do not remember! It’s something like show number / date / things like that. Sarah also does the contestant intros in the studio - you hear Johnny Gilbert on TV, but he records them from home later.
Outfit Details
When I saw Maureen walk on stage I wrote “autumnal” in my notebook. In her original run, Maureen wore mostly black & white, so she added some color for this occasion. I love the rust orange color of her shirt (especially on Halloween!), and I appreciated that she rolled up her blazer sleeves for a pop of color. Her necklace is fantastic.
Megan is wearing her outfit from her first episode (but with a new bob haircut - very cute!) She always had blouses with interesting details - like these twisted sleeves! She is wearing the necklace from her original run as well, which she told a story about in one of her anecdotes
Ryan was the king of minimalism during his original run - rotating a purple shirt & a white shirt, plus a black sweater vest and a grey sweater vest. Today he wore the white shirt & grey sweater vest, but added a tie that he had not worn before! He also got a fresh haircut & new facial hair style.
Ken is wearing a new tie for the debut of the 30th Tournament of Champions. This tie has shiny, pink “jellybean” shapes on a greyish background. Love it with the pink shirt. I couldn’t stop staring at the tie in person - it reflected the light in a mesmerizing way.
Vibe Check
Every game I tried to write down a word or phrase to describe each player’s “vibe” on stage. I make no claims on accuracy and this is just for fun!
Ryan Long - lumbering
This sometimes has a bit of a negative connotation but I mean it in the most positive way! Like very laid back but with powerful potential.
Megan Wachspress - precise
Megan was so precise & intentional in the way she held her buzzer, the way she enunciated words, her posture at the podium.
Maureen O’Neil - cool
There’s a reason Maureen has a reputation as the “cool aunt,” this is very much the impression I got of her. She leans on the podium a bit, she grabs the top of the podium with her left hand, and kind of crosses her feet in a very relaxed stance.
Mistakes and Retakes
Ken misspoke Maureen’s hometown as Rye Beach, NH (which I believe was her hometown during her original run) rather than Cambridge, MA. I think then he said Cambridge, NH once and they had to redo it again.
In Single Jeopardy (yes, I’m calling it that now), Ken said “and now the final clue” when there were still two clues on the board. When this happens, he just stops and then starts again.
When it was time for Final Jeopardy, they put the dividers up and had the contestants write their wagers, but then for some reason they had to have Ken retape something from earlier. So they had to put the dividers back down, clear the wagers, and have the contestants rewrite their names for continuity in the shot.
I wrote down “Ken retape intro again” but my notes are a mess. I *think* this is what he was retaping when they had to reset everything before FJ, and it was his introduction at the top of the show. I can’t remember why though - maybe they realized it was too long and wanted him to do a shorter one.
Basically there are a lot of little hiccups during a taping, during commercial breaks a lot of the time they will have Ken reread a few clues in a row where either he mispronounced something or the inflection was just odd. Unless there is a major mistake they just do those during breaks since the clue is onscreen for the TV viewers, they just need Ken’s audio. The parts where he is on screen (top of the show spiel or contestant anecdotes) they usually redo immediately if there’s a mistake.
Also this section is not at all to pick on Ken! He does great and you can tell he is harder on himself when he flubs a line than anyone else is. It was just fascinating to me to see the work that goes into making a clean product for TV!
Interesting clues/categories
This game was rough. It seemed like nobody could really get a good momentum going (I counted 15 Triple Stumpers). Probably a combo of a difficult board with some tough categories and also “opening day jitters”.
At the beginning of the game, Sam K. turned to me and said “Daily Double will be in Streets of America for $800” and he was RIGHT! I know that’s a skill he has carefully honed as a Jeopardy! champion, but to me it was complete witchcraft. (I was suitably impressed either way.)
I loved the Heavenly Bodies category and was so happy Megan rocked 4/5 of the clues.
Later that night, after taping, I was hanging out with some contestants and Megan asked me if I had known the Daily Double she missed (photosphere) and I told her I did and was trying very hard to telepath the answer to her in the studio!
I was ESPECIALLY glad she got Cassiopeia, because at Jeopardy! Honors during my blue carpet interview, Buzzy Cohen was trying to identify some of the constellations on my dress and I think he specifically mentioned Orion & Cassiopeia! He also said maybe the contestants could study my dress during the ceremony, so it was such a fun coincidence to see that clue come up the next day.
The Parliament of Vowels category was TOUGH, I’m not sure I even understood what was going on with that until I watched it back again today. Curious if it would have gone any better had the clues been played in order.
Overheard Segment
Ken: “Final Jeopardy works like that.” (I do not remember what he meant by this, I guess that it really decides the outcome?)
Ken: “Megan you look nervous”
Megan: “Ok, but this is what happened…”
Megan: (I don’t have exact quotes) but she talked about how in one of her games she missed a question on Native history that she should have known, so when this clue came up she was afraid of missing it and started overthinking it and panicking.
Other stuff
Sometimes Ken stands at his podium during breaks and is getting instructions from a producer in his earpiece. Then he will start responding and it looks like he is standing over there talking to himself. It just made me laugh the first time I saw it.
I mentioned previously that Ryan’s family, including his son, was sitting behind us. His kid was disappointed when his dad didn’t win, but I think they left after that game and went to do fun things in California! So I feel like it turned out ok for Ryan.
After each game, there is a break and the audience is free to mill around. I headed out to the Memorabilia Hallway (surely there’s a catchier name for this area) and saw Mattea Roach and then Matt Amodio! Normally all the contestants hang out on the Wheel of Fortune set, but since Amy, Matt, and Mattea didn’t have to play a “real” game that day and their exhibition game wouldn’t tape until the end of the day, they were allowed to roam freely in the audience. Free-range champions!
I told Matt I liked his argyle sweater (he was glad I approved) and got a quick pic with him before it was time to go back into the audience.
I’m sure I’m forgetting some things, but I hope you enjoyed this incomplete behind-the-scenes look at Game 1. Congrats to Maureen!
I’m excited to share Game 2 with you tomorrow! Subscribe to get it delivered to your inbox, if you enjoy the aesthetic of having 732 unread emails.
I’m so glad you took notes so that we can all be privy to these recaps! ❤️
Matt’s hair looks so good!