Lots of ammo in yesterday’s episode…BOOM!
Today’s contestants:
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| Dan Adkison |
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| Carol Golliher |
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| Nathan Fuller |
Dan was a one-time champ coming into today. Mr. Trebek is right – We have had some rough games lately. Clues are being left covered, and tonight was no exception. Also, I was 0/3 on finals this week when I started this episode. Read on to see if I found redemption!
I started strong by sweeping G to H, but I kicked myself hard (okay, I could have) for mixing up “There Will Be Blood” with the correct response on this clue in The Most Popular Netflix Movies: “The popularity of this Coen Brothers film has nothing to do with Javier Bardem’s bowl cut as killer Anton Chigurh.” You may remember I covered this book and movie back when I was reading/watching Oscar-nominated Best Adapted Screenplay movies. To make matters worse, I read Upton Sinclair’s “Oil!” (fab) and watched the movie from which it was supposedly adapted. (Take my advice; don’t waste your time on it.)
I did get this triple-stumper, in Yo-Yo Ma: “At a 2009 black tie gala, Yo-Yo accompanied this prime minister of Canada, who sang ‘With a Little Help from My Friends.'”
The next clue wound up being the last one of the round, in the same category. Oh yeah, it was a Daily Double. Champ Dan found it. He wagered 1000 of his 4800. Nathan had 2400 and Carol had 3800. This was the clue: “‘Yearning of the Sword’ is a Yo-Yo Ma cut on the soundtrack of this 2000 movie with Chow Yun-Fat & Michelle Yeoh.” This was a barely-brainer for me, if I can coin a term. Dan got it, too.
These Double Jeopardy categories seemed tailor-made for me. I mean, Game Shows? In the Bookstore? (See this conversation between me and Robert Thursday morning.) Science “B”? (It seemed a sign that I knew the answer to J!’s tweeted clue from that category.) And the icing on the cake: 4-Letter Crossword Regulars, which naturally I swept. In spite of that plus getting two more triple-stumpers, I managed to get just 15/28 right in the round.
I have to wonder how in the heck anyone knew this in The Hazards of Dukes (Carol got it): “The Duke of Clarence was executed in the Tower London in 1478; Shakespeare said he was drowned in this.” I’d never even heard that word before. I did get this next clue, a triple-stumper that Carol and poor Nathan both negged on in In the Bookstore: “‘Destiny of the Republic’ is ‘A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President’–his lingering death.”
A weird coincidence related once again to tweets with Robert Thursday morning: He and I talked about auditioning for this show, and I later tweeted a picture of me the day I passed the test. (Dig the cute dress and haircut.) Oh yeah, the J! clue: “On the U.S. version of ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire,’ this is the lowest amount you earn for a correct answer.” I thought the correct response was $500! But as I told Robert this morning, I’m out of the loop now that Millionaire doesn’t air anymore where I live. Poor Nathan negged on this one, too. He and I negged on this one in the same category, and it put him in the hole: “‘Is it bigger than a breadbox?’ became a popular catchphrase on this classic game show.” Then, happily, I got this triple-stumper instantly: “The movie ‘Quiz Show’ told the story of the scandal involving this 1950s game show.”
Dan found the Daily Double, in 4-Letter Crossword Regulars. I was happy he wagered all of his 4600 on this clue: “This fruit of the blackthorn tree flavors a type of gin.”
I thought I was doomed when I saw the Final Jeopardy category: Who Was President When…? But a happy surprise: This was the easiest final of the week so far, or at least the most gettable. The clue: “…the Jets beat the heavily favored Colts in Superbowl III.” Phew! Sadly, Nathan got this one wrong, too, and lost 200 of his 1200. Dan got it right and added 9000 to his 9600. Carol missed this one. (All three contestants guessed something different!) She lost 6000, making Dan a two-time champ! He’s good. I like watching him.
My Coryat was a disappointing 17200. Here is the message board thread to yesterday’s episode.