Scratchy at best

      Today’s season 25 Coryats:
Originally 4-28-09: 32400 (35400 without negs)
Originally 4-29-09: 18000 (23600 without negs) I smashed it in the Jeopardy round, but got only 9 right in Double Jeopardy, and had two 2000 negs and one 1600 one. 🙁
Originally 4-30-09: 27200 (29400 without negs). I’ve actually met Jean Cui. She’s been at the unofficial Jeopardy! reunion the past couple of years. In fact she and I read clues at the same site the first year. As for Liz Murphy, she was there the first year too but I didn’t have the nerve to introduce myself. I wonder if Jean and Liz saw each other there.
     Coincidentally I checked the History Bowl site today for 2013 news, but there wasn’t any.
     Joshua Brakhage is going for his third win today! Here he is with his opponents:

Joshua Brakhage of South Coffeyville OK

Sean Link of Terryville CT (I like his Howdy. Who knew Ted Knight was from Terryville?)

Lauren Thomas of Owensboro KY

     Unfortunately Sean negged right out of the gate, which doesn’t seem to happen very often. This was the clue in At the Website of the Cabinet Dept.: “On July 11, 2012 2 of the 3 ‘top issues’ at this department’s site were simply ‘Iraq’ & ‘Afghanistan.'” Lauren and I got it right. But Sean got this last one right after Lauren got 4 in the category: “The Bureau of Reclamation & the National Park Service are on the organizational chart for this department.” Lauren looked like she was trying to ring in, though.
     Were you guys alarmed at the information in this clue, in European History?: “In 2012 the mass killer of 77 people in this Scandinavian country got the maximum sentence–21 years.” I should’ve rung in on this one in that category: “In 1653 he dismissed the ‘long parliament’ saying, ‘Be gone, you rogues. You have sat long enough.”
     We didn’t hear from Joshua til near the end of the first segment. He got 3 right and had 2200 though. Lauren had gotten 6 right and 2 wrong, and had 1800. Sean had gotten 5 right and the one wrong, and had 3200.
     I thought both Sean’s and Lauren’s interviews were awkward today. And was Joshua looking at Lauren with admiration? I think so! He finally found the Daily Double later, with 2 clues left after it. He’d gotten 6 right since the break and had 5600. Lauren had gotten 3 right and had 3400. Sean had gotten 3 right and one wrong, and had 4600. Here’s the clue, in Dem Bones: “Because it supports the head, the topmost vertabra is called this, also the name of a mythical giant.” This clue could’ve been in yesterday’s Back Words! Joshua added 1400 to this score. Joshua got one of the next clues, and Sean got the other. Joshua had 7800 at the end of the round, then, and Sean had 5600. Lauren still had 3400.
     Were you surprised by the lowercase letters in small state capitals? Joshua found the first Daily Double of the round in that category. He’d gotten 3 right and had 10600. Lauren had gotten one right and had 3800. Sean had gotten one right and one wrong, and had 6400. Joshua wagered 4400 (!) on this clue: “The completion of the DuPont Highway in 1924 was a catalyst in this capital’s growth.” I was happy to get this one right. Joshua had it wrong, though.
     Sean found the next Daily Double, in Name the Poet. He’d gotten 3 right since the last Daily Double, and had 8000. Lauren had gotten one right and had 4600. Joshua had gotten 7 right and had 13800. Sean wagered 2000 on this clue: “A tree that may in summer wear a nest of robins in her hair.” Neither Sean nor I got it.
     I got this triple-stumper in That’s a Clown Question, Bro: “‘Send in the Clowns’ is from 1973’s ‘A Little Night Music’ by this legendary Broadway songwriter.”
     At the end of the round, Lauren had gotten 3 right and one wrong, and had 9800. Joshua had gotten one right and had 14600. Sean had gotten 2 right and one wrong and had 7600.
     The Final Jeopardy category was Musical Theatre. This was the clue: “Before this show hit Broadway in 1964, one of its working titles was ‘The Luckiest People.'” The song crossed my mind. However, I knew nothing about it but those few words. This clue was a triple-stumper. I was scratching my head when Sean said “Yentl,” but he really came closer than anyone else (if any of these responses can be closer than another). He lost 2000. Lauren lost 9799, and Joshua lost 5001. We’ll see him Monday, then.
     My Coryat today was 27000 (30200 without negs).
     And of course, the ToC list:
1. Monica Thieu $100,000 (College Champion)
2. Patrick Quinn $100,000 (Feb. 2012 Teacher’s Champion)
3. Colby Burnett $100,000 (Nov. 2012 Teacher’s Champion)
4. Jason Keller $213,900 (9 wins)
5. Keith Whitener $147,597 (7 wins)
6. Stephanie Jass $147,570 (7 wins)
7. Joel Pool $116,800 (6 wins)
8. Dave Leach $98,054 (6 wins)
9. David Menchaca $115,503 (5 wins)
10. Kristin Morgan $69,058 (5 wins)
11. Paul Nelson $54,900 (5 wins)
12. Jason Shore $85,200 (4 wins)
13. David Gard $84,700 (4 wins)
14. Ashok Poozhikunnel $69,002 (4 wins)
15. Dan McShane $62,001 (4 wins)
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16. Patrick Morrison $80,701 (3 wins)
17. Francis Lansangan $78,401 (3 wins)
18. Matt Samberg $61,402 (3 wins)
19. Andy Baggarly $60,402 (3 wins)
20. Kris Hamilton $60,301 (3 wins)
21. Alistair Bell $56,800 (3 wins)
22. Paula Menasche $55,100 (3 wins)
23. Stephanie Fontaine $54,500 (3 wins)
24. Joey Falco $53,999 (3 wins)
25. Susan Jann $53,800 (3 wins)
26. Erin Zweiner $53,399 (3 wins)
27. Beau Henson $51,203 (3 wins)
28. Margaret Swanson $48,000 (3 wins)
29. Joshua Brakhage $49,605 (3 wins)
30. Claudia Gray $45,202 (3 wins)
31. Dan Adkison $37,400 (3 wins)
32. Jacob Silverman $35,998 (3 wins)
33. Jessamine Price $26,803 (3 wins)