Warning: This page contains spoilers for the October 13, 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 Royalty) for Friday, October 13, 2023 (Season 40, Game 25):
Before his death in 2005, he said he was “probably the last head of state to be able to recognize all his compatriots in the street”
(correct response beneath the contestants)
Today’s Jeopardy! contestants:
Joe Velasco, a director of customer care originally from La Mirada, California |
Lawrence Long, a nursing student & stay-at-home uncle from East Bend, North Carolina |
Sam Stapleton, a college consultant from Los Gatos, California |
Andy’s Pregame Thoughts:
The semifinals begin today for the first Champions Wildcard competitions; today features Sam Stapleton, Lawrence Long, and Joe Velasco—and I am expecting a hard-fought, closely-contested match. It honestly would not surprise me if two players had scores north of $20,000 going into Final Jeopardy today. Both Sam and Lawrence had very strong quarterfinal matches, and I think today’s game will come down to who does a better job at finding the Daily Doubles.
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Correct response: Who is Prince Rainier III (of Monaco)?
More information about Final Jeopardy:
(The following write-up is original content and is copyright 2023 The Jeopardy! Fan. It may not be copied without linked attribution back to this page.)
Prince Rainier III (though I’d be incredibly surprised if just “Prince Rainier” wasn’t accepted on its own) served as Prince of Monaco from 1949 to 2005; he very famously wed American actress Grace Kelly in 1956. Rainier’s April 2005 death was overshadowed by the death four days earlier of Pope John Paul II. The line regarding recognizing all of his compatriots appeared in Rainier’s April 2005 Los Angeles Times obituary and was a reference to Monaco’s small size.
The ruling house of Monaco has been a topic that Jeopardy!‘s writers reference a great deal; the show’s 11th episode, back in 1984, had the following Final: “N.Y. financier Al Grimaldi is next in line for throne of this Mediterranean principality”. (Al Grimaldi, of course, became Prince Albert II of Monaco in 2005 on Rainier’s death.)
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Game Recap & Tonight’s Game Stats:
Looking to find out who won Jeopardy! today? Here’s the Friday, October 13, 2023 Jeopardy! by the numbers, along with a recap:
Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: We Whistle While You Work; Back To School, Sports Star; Let’s Get Medical; Who Said This?; Awards & Honors; Like A Rock)
Lawrence got off to the best start, buoyed by an early Daily Double! A judges’ reversal in Sam’s favor made things much closer after 30 clues!
Statistics at the first break (15 clues):
Lawrence 6 correct 1 incorrect
Sam 5 correct 1 incorrect
Joe 2 correct 2 incorrect
Today’s interviews:
Joe wanted to dress as Captain America at Disneyland because he’s “certainly a huge Chris Evans fan”.
Lawrence had “stay-at-home uncle” merch.
Sam thought “just when I thought I was out, they pulled me back in”.
Statistics after the Jeopardy round:
Lawrence 9 correct 1 incorrect
Joe 9 correct 2 incorrect
Sam 9 correct 2 incorrect
Scores after the Jeopardy! Round:
Lawrence $6,000
Joe $4,600
Sam $4,000
Double Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: Landlocked Countries; Pre-Fame Celebs In Ads; Craftsmanship; Vocabulary; ‘Round Midnight; Felonious Monks)
Sam’s charge began early, finding and converting a True Daily Double to open the round! Unfortunately, Joe wasn’t successful on his, and he was just out of score contention going into Final. However, a strong last few clues from Lawrence means that Sam didn’t have a runaway, either!
Statistics after Double Jeopardy:
Sam 19 correct 2 incorrect
Lawrence 17 correct 3 incorrect
Joe 16 correct 5 incorrect
Total number of unplayed clues this season: 0 (0 today).
Scores going into Final:
Sam $18,400
Lawrence $10,000
Joe $7,300
Lawrence came so close to being correct; unfortunately, he wrote that Rainier was a king and not a prince—and on Jeopardy!, that’s the sort of mistake that the judges will not accept! A heartbreaker for Lawrence as Sam advances to the finals on the Triple Stumper!
Tonight’s results:
Joe $7,300 – $0 = $7,300 (Who is King Hussein?)
Lawrence $10,000 – $10,000 = $0 (Who is King Rainier?)
Sam $18,400 – $1,601 = $16,799 (Who is Juan Carlos I) (Finalist)
Other Miscellaneous Game Statistics:
Daily Double locations:
1) WHO SAID THIS? $600 (clue #9)
Lawrence 2200 +2200 (Sam 1600 Joe 200)
2) LANDLOCKED COUNTRIES $1600 (clue #1)
Sam 4000 +4000 (Lawrence 6000 Joe 4600)
3) VOCABULARY $2000 (clue #16, $12800 left on board)
Joe 7800 -2500 (Sam 14000 Lawrence 5200)
Overall Daily Double Efficiency for this game: 168
Clue Selection by Row, Before Daily Doubles Found:
J! Round:
Sam 4 4 5 5
Lawrence 3 3 4 3*
Joe 5
DJ! Round:
Sam 4* 5 4 5† 3† 4 5 3 3 4
Lawrence 2† 1†
Joe 3 5 2 5*
† – selection in same category as Daily Double
Average Row of Clue Selection, Before Daily Doubles Found:
Sam 4.14
Joe 4.00
Lawrence 2.67
Unplayed clues:
J! Round: None!
DJ! Round: None!
Total Left On Board: $0
Number of clues left unrevealed this season: 0 (0.00 per episode average), 0 Daily Doubles
Game Stats:
Sam $16,000 Coryat, 19 correct, 2 incorrect, 29.82% in first on buzzer (17/57), 2/3 on rebound attempts (on 7 rebound opportunities)
Joe $9,800 Coryat, 16 correct, 5 incorrect, 31.58% in first on buzzer (18/57), 2/2 on rebound attempts (on 5 rebound opportunities)
Lawrence $8,400 Coryat, 17 correct, 3 incorrect, 29.82% in first on buzzer (17/57), 2/2 on rebound attempts (on 6 rebound opportunities)
Combined Coryat Score: $34,200
Lach Trash: $9,800 (on 8 Triple Stumpers)
Coryat lost to incorrect responses (less double-correct responses): $10,000
Lead Changes: 6
Times Tied: 0
Player Statistics:
Sam Stapleton, career statistics:
104 correct, 9 incorrect
5/6 on rebound attempts (on 14 rebound opportunities)
32.28% in first on buzzer (92/285)
9/10 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $28,600)
1/5 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $18,200
Lawrence Long, career statistics:
118 correct, 22 incorrect
8/9 on rebound attempts (on 24 rebound opportunities)
33.63% in first on buzzer (114/339)
8/11 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $15,600)
4/6 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $12,867
Joe Velasco, career statistics:
66 correct, 14 incorrect
4/4 on rebound attempts (on 16 rebound opportunities)
29.91% in first on buzzer (67/224)
3/5 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $3,000)
2/4 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $10,750
Andy’s Thoughts:
- Lawrence added extra incorrect information—and that will turn correct responses into incorrect responses every time.
- I should also point out that on LIKE A ROCK $600, Sam’s response of “What is the AT&T?” does not fall within the bounds of the category, even though the full name of the event is the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am; Ken was correct in outright ruling incorrect and not asking for more specificity.
- Today’s box score: October 13, 2023 Box Score.
Final Jeopardy! wagering suggestions:
(Scores: Sam $18,400 Lawrence $10,000 Joe $7,300)
Sam: Standard cover bet over Lawrence is $1,601. (Actual bet: $1,601)
Lawrence: You have to be correct to win. Go all in. (Actual bet: $10,000)
Joe: Honestly, I’d go all in here—the margins are close enough that you might have a faint hope if Sam overbets, and second and third place pay out identically at this stage ($10,000). (Actual bet: $0)
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My mind went straight to Monaco knowing it had to be a small place with royalty. I just said Rainier, though – didn’t know ‘the third’.
As soon as I saw the category “Royalty”, I knew I wasn’t going to get it. I’m terrible at this. I took a wild guess at “Who is the King of Sweden?” I was thinking of the Swedish Prime Minister who was gunned down in the street walking home without security, and wondering if Swedish royalty were similarly blasé about walking in the street. But even if that had been the answer, without the name, I still would have drawn a blank—as I did all this week, except for the very easy “nausea” question—which makes me feel nauseated.
P.S. Hi Judith P.! I always go back a few days, not just one, so don’t worry, I do get your posts, even if we are at opposite ends of the clock!
Thank you for saying you feel nauseated instead of saying you were nauseous (and me replying, “oh, you’re not that bad”).
Hi RedRose, Thanks again for letting me know that you read my previous note to you, which I posted for the October 10th daytime Jeopardy! episode. Sadly, I also missed today’s Final! clue. Since I lived in Japan, I could only come up with “Emperor Hirohito” for the “Royalty” clue. However, Hirohito actually died in 1989 when I was living there, and his son Akihito instantly became the new emperor. So, I already knew that my guess was wrong. Sigh… Judith P.
If not for the category, I would have very confidently answered with Pope JPII.
I am no expert on royalty but still that was a heartbreaker semifinal for lawrence just like what happened with Ben Chan previously. I would have just said Rainier the second but not the third.
The ruling being absolutely correct doesn’t make it hurt any less 🙁
I wonder if they would have taken Rainier Grimaldi as a correct answer…. It avoids the III issue..
I’m guessing so. Ken told the contestants afterwards that Rainier on its own would have been acceptable.
Ah, I hadn’t seen it yet that Ken did say that. I was going to ask you, so thank you for the answer in advance. 🙂 Like the old adage goes, “sometimes less is more.” I really liked Lawrence. 🙁
What was the question about IMHO?
VOCABULARY $400: Now found in some dictionaries, IMHO, when used in emails & texting, is short for this phrase
Basically, “in my honest opinion” and “in my humble opinion” would both be considered acceptable.
I don’t remember that quoted bit from the stories that saw print here, and I wouldn’t have thought of Ranier without some other hint.
On the Final Jeopardy, not really having much of an idea who the answer refered to, Guessed Juan Carlos of Spain, but even IF Juan Carlos had been right, I believe I would have been ruled wrong, since the correct response called for a specific person, and, there is a King Juan Carlos II of Spain.
I know understamd why Sam was ruled wrong with his response of At&T, as Andy said, to fit the category they needed at Pebble Beach.
And, even if Lawrence had said PRINCE Rainer, his correct title, I believe he still would’ve been ruled wrong, despite Andy’s belief otherwise, since the answer called for a specific person, and, there have been other prince Rainiers. (Andy, you have reported that the producers are telling the players to be specific, whenever possible.)
Sam reported on Reddit that the players asked post-game if just “Who is Rainier” would have been accepted; Ken said that Rainier on his own would have been fine.
That makes total sense to me (rather than being an exception to the producers telling the players to be specific) because he was THE ONLY head of state named Rainier to die in 2005 and the point of the clue was the quote, not the reign. (And Rainier was his first name, not his surname.)
Also, Rainier I and Rainier II were called ‘Lord’ instead of ‘Prince’ and ruled Monaco over half a millennium ago so not only would they have been unlikely to have made a statement such as that, it would be more than HIGHLY unlikely that anyone now would know to quote them.
BTW, I was really surprised that Lawrence knew that it was probably the head of state of little Monaco and that the one who died around 2005 was Rainier, but did not know that Monaco is a principality. I thought Monaco was best known for three things — being small, having a lot of [grand] casinos, and being a principality (not necessarily in that order). [And the 4th most well known thing was probably that Rainier had married superstar American actress Grace Kelly.]
If Sam reported thst the people at the Judges table to;d Ken that “Who is Rainier?” would have been accectable, then it would’ve been. Even though TO ME it violates the “rule” of when an answer calls for a specific person, that person’s first and last, or, with royalty, name, and, number is needed. Like in the Presiential Proclaimations category, with the clue about the order creating the Warren Commission. A pkayer responded with “Who is Johnson?” He was prpmpted to say “Who is LYNDON JohnsonJ”