I am pleased to tell you that my attempt to record Jeopardy! at my parents’ every week worked. This is wonderful news! Now I never have to miss a Saturday episode. More practice, and more blogging.
I watched last week’s Saturday episode this morning. I kept track of my score via the Coryat method, because I didn’t want to travel with my Jeopardy Challenger. Here are the scores and images of my Coryat scoresheet from the episode that aired 10-16-10 (More good news: I am able to insert images into blog entries from this computer today):
Sheryl Silverstein 12400 Chris d’Orso 6000 Dave Belote 21200 Me 17400
Now, I want to gripe again about the Coryat method’s shortcomings, specifically that Daily Doubles and Final Jeopardy have no bearing on one’s final score. First, I knew the answer to this Daily Double in Art and Artists and I wished I could wagered on it: “This ‘Joy of Life’ Fauvist studied law, but turned to painting when recuperating from an operation (Good choice!).”* Then, I thought going into the final that I should have a chance at winning. (Dave had a lock on the game at least against his opponents on the show.) This time it didn’t matter because I did not know the answer to this Final Jeopardy clue in The 13th Century: “In 1298 this explorer created his ‘Description of the World.'”* I am also consoled somewhat because I can still compare myself to the other players via j-archive; they include the Coryat score of each player. In this case, I still lost to Dave. *shrug*
This weekend’s contestants were:
(from left to right; Dave Belote, S.R. Sidarth, and Denise Feder. My Dad remembered Dave from the last time we watched a Saturday Jeopardy! together!)
Sidarth found the Daily Double in the Jeopardy round. He appeared to be looking for it, as he started deep in seemingly every category he went to. He put a twist on the old, “I’ve always wanted to say this…” instead saying something like, “Who hasn’t wanted to say this…” (Make it a true Daily Double!) In this case the wager was 2400. The category was Business and Industry. This was the clue: “In 1907 9-year-old Michael Brady posed for this company’s symbol wearing overalls, a cap & wooden shoes.”* I got this one right, but Sidarth missed it. Still, at the first commercial break, he was neck-and-neck with is opponents: Dave had 2200, Sidarth had 2000, and Denise had 1800.
By the end of the Jeopardy round, though, Dave had a huge lead. He swept the last category of the round, Ghostbusters, which Mr. Trebek said was celebrating its 25th anniversary last year. My dad and I both wondered why Dave didn’t go to that category sooner, since it was his wheelhouse. It even seemed like a strong category for him when he chose the first clue of the round. He said something like, “Gotta do it…Who You Gonna Call for 200!” So Dave had 7600, Sidarth had 3000, and Denise had 3600 at the end of the round.
My dad and I were happy that “C” is for Catholic was a category in the Double Jeopardy round. Both Dad and Dave forgot the category for this clue, which was also a triple-stumper that I got right: “It’s the official renunciation of marriage for ‘the more perfect observance of chastity.'” They both said “annulment.”
Speaking of triple-stumpers, I also got this one in Notable Names: “His father Earl Little was a Baptist minister & an organizer for Marcus Garvey.”*
Sidarth found the first Daily Double in the Double Jeopardy round, in Dedicated. He picked up 4000 on this clue: “His ‘Cat’s Cradle’ is ‘For Kenneith Littauer, a man of gallantry and taste.'”*
Dave found the next Daily Double, in the 800 spot with two clues remaining. He wagered a whopping 6000 on this clue in Notable Names: “This lieutenant colonel and his men were vanquished in about an hour on June 25, 1876.”* Thanks to his correct response, Dave had a lock on the game with 27200. Sidarth had 12600, and Denise had 4800.
The Final Jeopardy category was Toys. The clue: “In 1963, sculptor Phil Kraczkowski was paid $600 to design this Hasbro toy’s original head.”* My mom and I nodded at each other before the clue was even completely read. Imagine our shock when our guess (which we didn’t even think of as a guess) was incorrect! Even Mr. Trebek saying afterward that there was a movie made about the toy that year (last year) led us to believe we were right. (Although a little voice did tell me that “Toy Story 3” came out this year.) All three contestants answered the same thing we did. The audience groaned loudly when Mr. Trebek revealed the correct response (and at the same time seemed to say, “Duh!” with his tone). The audience probably thought the same thing we all did. Since Dave had a lock on the game, you will see him next week! And I know I’ll see it too because I can record it now!
*Matisse, Marco Polo, Dutch Boy, celibacy, Malcolm X, Vonnegut, Custer, G.I. Joe
