‘Jeopardy!’ Producers Regretting Making Every Answer Of Memorial Episode ‘Alex Trebek’

CULVER CITY, CA—Wincing as each correct answer ballooned the episode’s budget, Jeopardy! producers told reporters Thursday they were now regretting their decision to make “Alex Trebek” the correct response to every clue in their first installment without the iconic host. “In retrospect, we should have just done one question about Alex and left it at that,” producer Lynne Ingles said of the episode, in which the first clue—“This Canadian-born TV personality won seven Daytime Emmys during his 37 years hosting a popular syndicated game show”—was followed by 60 additional clues to which the correct response was also “Alex Trebek.” “It made for a really nice moment when that first contestant buzzed in and said, ‘Who Is Alex Trebek?’ However, by the fourth or fifth time, the emotional impact had been pretty well blunted. We also thought there would be some incorrect responses in there to keep things interesting, but it turns out the contestants caught on really fast and whizzed right through categories like ‘Guinness World Record Holders For Most Episodes Of A Game Show Hosted’ and ‘Celebrated TV Presenters Who Had Cameos In Multiple Episodes Of The Simpsons, Saturday Night Live, and How I Met Your Mother.’ Clearly, this was a huge mistake.” At press time, producers were reportedly bracing themselves as the contestants wrote down their wagers for the Final Jeopardy! category, “Beloved Game Show Hosts Who Bravely Carried On In Their Roles After Receiving A Diagnosis Of Stage IV Pancreatic Cancer.”