Warning: This page contains spoilers for the June 23, 2023, game of Jeopardy! — please do not scroll down if you wish to avoid being spoiled. Please note that the game airs as early as noon Eastern in some U.S. television markets.
Here’s today’s Final Jeopardy (in the category Female Authors) for Friday, June 23, 2023 (Season 39, Game 205):
At age 9 in 1883 she moved west, where she met Annie Pavelka, a young pioneer on whom she would later model a title character
(correct response beneath the contestants)
Today’s Jeopardy! contestants:
Ron Nurwisah, an editor originally from Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
Donna Matturri, a librarian from Columbus, Ohio |
Ben Goldstein, a content marketing specialist from Dexter, Michigan (5-day total: $49,298) |
Andy’s Pregame Thoughts:
Ben Goldstein’s very cagey Final Jeopardy! bet last night worked out incredibly well for him, as he is now a 5-day champion. He’s the first 5-time winner to average less than $10,000 a win since the dollar values were doubled and holds the record for the lowest adjusted 5-day total in the history of the show’s syndicated version. As I said yesterday, though—he has done very well to play each day’s boards better than his opposition—and that’s really all you can ask of a Jeopardy! contestant. Today, Ron Nurwisah & Donna Matturri hope that they can end Ben’s streak at five victories.
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(Content continues below)
Correct response: Who is Willa Cather?
More information about Final Jeopardy:
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I know I’ve already said it once this week, but it bears repeating: the show’s contestant coordinators have always said that the best preparation for the show is to watch the show. The works of Willa Cather show up multiple times per season; in this case, Annie Sadilek Pavelka is the inspiration for Cather’s famous 1918 novel My Ántonia. The story is told from the perspective of an orphan from Virginia, Jim Burden, who moves to Nebraska as a pioneer near the end of the 19th century, and meets the Bohemian immigrant Ántonia Shimerda and her family. Due to the show’s longtime inclusion of Willa Cather in its literature canon, this Final is definitely going to reward the player who has paid attention to the show for a lengthy amount of time.
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Game Recap & Tonight’s Game Stats:
Looking to find out who won Jeopardy! today? Here’s the Friday, June 23, 2023 Jeopardy! by the numbers, along with a recap:
Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: Remember Baseball?; Books & Authors; Animal Change A Letter; Who Reigned In England When…; I Learned It On Schoolhouse Rock; Kids Of The ’70s, Rejoice!)
Ron jumped out to an early lead; unfortunately, a missed Daily Double saw his score drop down; he finished the round in third place. Ben led after 30 clues, with Donna in second.
Statistics at the first break (15 clues):
Ron 5 correct 0 incorrect
Ben 5 correct 0 incorrect
Donna 3 correct 0 incorrect
Today’s interviews:
Ron curls…in Brooklyn.
Donna coordinates her library’s trivia game.
Ben is probably going to put his winnings towards his next house.
Statistics after the Jeopardy round:
Ben 10 correct 1 incorrect
Donna 5 correct 0 incorrect
Ron 9 correct 2 incorrect
Scores after the Jeopardy! Round:
Ben $5,000
Donna $2,600
Ron $2,400
Double Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: African-American Firsts; Qui”zz”ical; On Broadway; A Chemistry Test; Musical Act Etymology; Same First & Last Letter Geography)
Ben and Ron got to the Daily Doubles, and they were both correct! This meant that all three players were above $10,000 going into Final!
Statistics after Double Jeopardy:
Ben 20 correct 1 incorrect
Ron 16 correct 2 incorrect
Donna 14 correct 0 incorrect
Total number of unplayed clues this season: 34 (0 today).
Scores going into Final:
Ben $16,200
Ron $13,800
Donna $11,400
Donna the librarian was the only player correct today in Final; that means she becomes the new Jeopardy! champion! She’ll return to defend her title on Monday.
Tonight’s results:
Donna $11,400 + $6,000 = $17,400 (Who is Willa Cather?) (1-day total: $17,400)
Ron $13,800 – $13,800 = $0 (Who L M Montgomery?)
Ben $16,200 – $11,500 = $4,700 (Who is Alcott?)
Other Miscellaneous Game Statistics:
Daily Double locations:
1) WHO REIGNED IN ENGLAND WHEN… $1000 (clue #17)
Ron 4200 -2800 (Ben 2800 Donna 1200)
2) MUSICAL ACT ETYMOLOGY $1600 (clue #10)
Ben 8600 +1600 (Donna 4200 Ron 3600)
3) SAME FIRST & LAST LETTER GEOGRAPHY $1600 (clue #14, $19200 left on board)
Ron 4800 +3000 (Ben 12200 Donna 5000)
Overall Daily Double Efficiency for this game: 14
Clue Selection by Row, Before Daily Doubles Found:
J! Round:
Ben 3 4 2 2 3 5 2 3
Donna 1 4 1
Ron 5 3 4 5 1 5*
DJ! Round:
Ben 5 2 2 3 4* 5† 2†
Donna 1 1 3
Ron 3 3 4 4*
† – selection in same category as Daily Double
Average Row of Clue Selection, Before Daily Doubles Found:
Donna 1.83
Ben 3.13
Ron 3.70
Unplayed clues:
J! Round: None!
DJ! Round: None!
Total Left On Board: $0
Number of clues left unrevealed this season: 34 (0.17 per episode average), 0 Daily Doubles
Game Stats:
Donna $11,400 Coryat, 14 correct, 0 incorrect, 24.56% in first on buzzer (14/57), 0/0 on rebound attempts (on 2 rebound opportunities)
Ben $16,200 Coryat, 20 correct, 1 incorrect, 35.09% in first on buzzer (20/57), 0/0 on rebound attempts (on 1 rebound opportunity)
Ron $15,200 Coryat, 16 correct, 2 incorrect, 28.07% in first on buzzer (16/57), 0/0 on rebound attempts (on 1 rebound opportunity)
Combined Coryat Score: $42,800
Lach Trash: $9,200 (on 9 Triple Stumpers)
Coryat lost to incorrect responses (less double-correct responses): $2,000
Player Statistics:
Ben Goldstein, career statistics:
118 correct, 20 incorrect
2/3 on rebound attempts (on 32 rebound opportunities)
36.36% in first on buzzer (124/341)
2/5 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: -$3,600)
1/6 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $13,000
Donna Matturri, career statistics:
15 correct, 0 incorrect
0/0 on rebound attempts (on 2 rebound opportunities)
24.56% in first on buzzer (14/57)
0/0 on Daily Doubles
1/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $11,400
Ron Nurwisah, career statistics:
16 correct, 3 incorrect
0/0 on rebound attempts (on 1 rebound opportunity)
28.07% in first on buzzer (16/57)
1/2 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $200)
0/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $15,200
Donna Matturri, to win:
2 games: 38.754%
3: 15.019%
4: 5.820%
5: 2.256%
6: 0.874%
Avg. streak: 1.633 games.
Andy’s Thoughts:
- Today’s box score: June 23, 2023 Box Score.
Final Jeopardy! wagering suggestions:
(Scores: Ben $16,200 Ron $13,800 Donna $11,400)
Ben: Standard cover bet over Ron is $11,401. Because the scores are evenly spaced, you should not go over this number. (Actual bet: $11,500)
Donna: Limit your bet to $6,599 to have the best chance of winning on a Triple Stumper. (Actual bet: $6,000)
Ron: If you don’t think Ben will cover again, go all in. Otherwise, bet exactly $9,001, because of the evenly spaced scores. (Actual bet: $13,800)
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I told myself that, being an avid reader and a former librarian, I should be able to answer this question. So I bet my entire winnings. Lol Good thing I came up with Willa Cather. Thinking this might be a triple get. If not, the librarian should surely come up with the answer.
I too am an avid reader, a habit picked up from my librarian father (of fond memory). But I knew Willa Cather from reference, never having actually read any of her works. This has happened a couple of times before, and feels a bit like “cheating”: but I know that getting the right answer, even from general knowledge, is still what counts in Jeopardy!
I’ll make a friendly wager with you with no action required on your part. I have my doubts about this being a triple get. If I am wrong and all three players come up with the correct response, I will buy The Complete Works of Willa Cather and start reading it immediately. I’ll even update my progress here😁 (based on the page count, I expect it might take about two weeks to finish). Good luck!
For what it’s worth, https://j-archive.com/showgame.php?game_id=851 was a triple-get.
😰… Is it too late to change my wager?😅
Aah, that was 17 years ago… I’m sure everyone’s forgotten by now!🤞
Yes, Michael, too late. It really could only be Wilder or Cather. Maybe you’ll get lucky and someone will pick Wilder. Good luck! But, should you lose, you will enjoy the books!
Sorry Kathleen, but at least you were right about the librarian getting it!
In the spirit of sportsmanship (and because it’s such a good deal), I’ll still buy Cather’s Complete Works, but it will have to wait for me to trim my To Read List a bit (it’s a pretty big stack 😿).
Thank you, Michael. You put a smile on my face and added some fun to my day!
I went with Wilder….at least Kathleen thinks that was a reasonable guess 🙂
Female Author + Pioneers = Cather (or Wilder)
Since Laura Ingalls Wilder’s stories were self-inspired, that leaves only Cather.
That’s pretty much exactly how I arrived at the correct answer, as well.
For some reason this clue pointed me toward “O Pioneers!” by the same author. Whatever gets you to the right solution. Personally, the only Cather novel I have read is “Death Comes for the Archbishop,” but I should read some of the others now that I am retired and have the time.
? I don’t know anything about the author. I don’t even remember the clues she has been mentioned in over the past couple of seasons😢😅 Oh well… 4-1 for the week isn’t bad.
Current FJ! streak: 1L
This should be a triple get! Even though my first guess was Laura Ingalls Wilder, I rethought my guess. . .so of course, Willa Cather!
If anyone gets this right it will be the female librarian. Its a category made to order.
Not loving this clue because it also points to Lucy Maud Montgomery (Anne of Green Gables), who also happened to be 9 years old in 1883.
Another Canadian alternative answer that seemingly fits the clue, like Lake Champlain.
Bit of a stretch? Yes they were the same age, but Montgomery grew up on Prince Edward Island (where Anne is from, too), and PEI is a lot of wonderful things, but west isn’t one of them!
As a fan of Willa Cather, she came to mind immediately. Of her relative contemporaries it couldn’t have been Edith Wharton. but I guess at least one contestant will answer Laura Ingalls Wilder.
Laura Ingalls Wilder would be a VERY poor guess as her books were autobiographical [SOMEWHAT fictionalized, but barely]. The only female TITLE character she did was a book about her mother, which would have been modeled after her actual mother, not just someone she had met. However, your having said her as “at least one contestant will answer” her (rather than doing so yourself), even though you turned out to be wrong, contestants HAVE certainly given worse responses than that before.
I ama huge fan of willa cather and still her books makes me want to read them again. I will need to find one in my local library hopefully soon. Congrats to the librarian winning today.
I had to read “My Ántonia” in college, so this was an easy one for me.
As a person who volunteered at my local library for 25 years, I agree!
I had read and liked Willa Cather books long ago, but the main reason I was able to get this correct in (well under) the 30 seconds was because I had incorrectly given Willa Cather as my FJ! response a few months ago! [As I recall that was for a clue that bore some similarity to this one and also resulted in some wrong guesses (from others) concerning Ann of Green Gables, but I have not been able to find it to confirm that.]