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Warning: This page contains spoilers for the October 4, 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 American Immigrants) for Wednesday, October 4, 2023 (Season 40, Game 18):
His 1904 will stipulated that “all the sums hereinbefore specified for prizes shall be used for prizes only”
(correct response beneath the contestants)
Today’s Jeopardy! contestants:
John Bussard, a Marine aviator originally from Ringoes, New Jersey |
Kendra Blanchette, a registered dietitian from Elk Grove, California |
Evan Roberts, a chemistry teacher from Louisville, Kentucky |
Andy’s Pregame Thoughts:
Yesterday’s Jeopardy! saw Lawrence Long parlay a mid-game True Daily Double into a runaway game and a spot in the semifinals! Today sees Evan Roberts, Kendra Blanchette, and John Bussard return to the Alex Trebek Stage. Of these three players, John was the strongest player in his initial run, putting up an average Coryat of nearly $25,000, but getting an unlucky loss to future ToCer Andy Wood.
Another reminder that due to the MLB playoffs this week that if you’re in the Central Time Zone and watching on an ABC station, you might have the show pre-empted because of the baseball. Yesterday’s game was done in well under three hours, so that should bode well for baseball spilling into the Eastern Time Zone airtimes.
Also, Quarterfinal #2 of this season of Celebrity Jeopardy airs tonight; this week sees sees Timothy Simons (Jonah on Veep), Lisa Ann Walter (Melissa on Abbott Elementary), and Brian Baumgartner (Kevin on The Office) take part, at 8:00 PM (7:00 PM Central) on ABC.
(Content continues below)
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Correct response: Who is Joseph Pulitzer?
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.)
Remember, wills aren’t dated to when a person dies, they’re dated to when they’re written. Thus, the will that Joseph Pulitzer wrote endowing a journalism school at Columbia University and awarding the Pulitzer Prizes was dated April 16, 1904. In that will, Pulitzer stated, “I am deeply interested in the progress and elevation of journalism, having spent my life in that profession, regarding it as a noble profession and one of unequalled importance for its influence upon the minds and morals of the people.”
You can find extracts from Joseph Pulitzer’s 1904 will at the website for the Pulitzer Prizes.
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Game Recap & Tonight’s Game Stats:
Looking to find out who won Jeopardy! today? Here’s the Wednesday, October 4, 2023 Jeopardy! by the numbers, along with a recap:
Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: Earth Science; Please Bear With Me; We Try To Stay Neutral; Art For Art’s Sake; State Of The Estate; Mirror Words)
While Kendra found the Daily Double just before the break to extend her lead, both Evan and John found good categories after the break; the scores were high and the game was lively by the midway point!
Statistics at the first break (14 clues):
Kendra 6 correct 0 incorrect
John 4 correct 0 incorrect
Evan 3 correct 0 incorrect
Today’s interviews:
John has been planning his upcoming wedding.
Kendra heard from a lot of other people with Type 1 diabetes who recognized the insulin pump that she wears.
Evan was victim of an on-set April Fools prank in his first appearance.
Statistics after the Jeopardy round:
Kendra 9 correct 0 incorrect
John 11 correct 1 incorrect
Evan 8 correct 0 incorrect
Scores after the Jeopardy! Round:
Kendra $6,200
John $5,800
Evan $4,000
Double Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: Where’s The Problem?; How’s The King Taking It?; Waxing Philosophical; Animal Verbs; Looney Tunes; Merry Melodies)
Kendra’s strong play continued—she failed to give an incorrect response on the main game—and she had a commanding lead after picking up $5,000 on the Daily Double. However, she didn’t hunt for the second one, which gave John an opportunity to keep himself in the game, an opportunity he took very good advantage of! Things were still very much to play for with one more clue to go.
Statistics after Double Jeopardy:
Kendra 20 correct 0 incorrect
John 19 correct 3 incorrect
Evan 12 correct 2 incorrect
Total number of unplayed clues this season: 0 (0 today).
Scores going into Final:
Kendra $23,200
John $14,200
Evan $6,000
John did what he needed to after the commercial break—be the only player correct in Final. However, he failed to do what he needed to do during the commercial break; his bet of $0 meant that he gave Kendra today’s victory, as Kendra moves on to the semifinals!
Tonight’s results:
Evan $6,000 – $6,000 = $0 (Who is Nobel)
John $14,200 + $0 = $14,200 (Who is Pulitzer?)
Kendra $23,200 – $5,201 = $17,999 (Who is Nobel?) (Semi-Finalist)
Other Miscellaneous Game Statistics:
Daily Double locations:
1) WE TRY TO STAY NEUTRAL $600 (clue #14)
Kendra 2600 +1600 (Evan 1000 John 2200)
2) HOW’S THE KING TAKING IT? $800 (clue #10)
Kendra 12200 +5000 (Evan 7600 John 5000)
3) MERRY MELODIES $2000 (clue #23, $7200 left on board)
John 9000 +6000 (Evan 5200 Kendra 21200)
Overall Daily Double Efficiency for this game: 169
Clue Selection by Row, Before Daily Doubles Found:
J! Round:
Evan 3 4 2 2
Kendra 1 3 4 1 3*
John 1 5 2 5 1
DJ! Round:
Evan 4 5 1 2
Kendra 1 2 3 4 5 2* 3† 4† 5† 1 3 4 1
John 3 5 2 3 4 5*
† – selection in same category as Daily Double
Average Row of Clue Selection, Before Daily Doubles Found:
Kendra 2.78
John 3.27
Evan 2.88
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:
Kendra $18,000 Coryat, 20 correct, 0 incorrect, 31.58% in first on buzzer (18/57), 0/0 on rebound attempts (on 5 rebound opportunities)
John $10,200 Coryat, 19 correct, 3 incorrect, 36.84% in first on buzzer (21/57), 0/0 on rebound attempts (on 2 rebound opportunities)
Evan $6,000 Coryat, 12 correct, 2 incorrect, 22.81% in first on buzzer (13/57), 1/1 on rebound attempts (on 3 rebound opportunities)
Combined Coryat Score: $34,200
Lach Trash: $13,200 (on 9 Triple Stumpers)
Coryat lost to incorrect responses (less double-correct responses): $6,600
Player Statistics:
Evan Roberts, career statistics:
45 correct, 6 incorrect
3/3 on rebound attempts (on 15 rebound opportunities)
25.15% in first on buzzer (43/171)
2/2 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $7,000)
1/3 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $10,467
Kendra Blanchette, career statistics:
83 correct, 8 incorrect
9/10 on rebound attempts (on 24 rebound opportunities)
31.58% in first on buzzer (72/228)
4/5 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $9,600)
1/4 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $16,500
John Bussard, career statistics:
78 correct, 5 incorrect
5/5 on rebound attempts (on 10 rebound opportunities)
40.94% in first on buzzer (70/171)
4/5 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $9,400)
2/3 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $19,600
Andy’s Thoughts:
- I would remind viewers and potential commenters to read the above recap & article, as it very likely answers any questions you may have.
- Today’s box score: October 4, 2023 Box Score.
Final Jeopardy! wagering suggestions:
(Scores: Kendra $23,200 John $14,200 Evan $6,000)
Evan: Bet at least $4,400 to pass John in case he bets the minimum to give him a chance at victory. (Actual bet: $6,000)
Kendra: Standard cover bet over John is $5,201. Don’t bet more, just in case John doesn’t bet enough. (Actual bet: $5,201)
John: To have any chance of winning, you need to have at least $18,000. Thus, you have to bet at least $3,800. (Actual bet: $0)
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I got “Joseph Pulitzer”—even remembered his first name, although I guess “be more specific” doesn’t matter with a last name like “Pulitzer”. (A welI-known) immigrant, the date, a prize, and the journalistic precision of his instructions were what gave it to me. I drew a total blank on Monday’s “Presidential Proclamations” question, but got yesterday’s and today’s, so the week is looking up. But will this continue tomorrow? As the saying has it, “Pride goeth before a fall!”
Well done! 👏 Like MarkO, Nobel was the only name that came to my mind, although I knew he wasn’t an American immigrant, and the given date was after the Nobel Prizes were established.
Hi RedRose, Thank you again for your most-recent comment to me. I did go back & read it. My first gut-level thought about today’s Final! was Alfred Nobel. But, I knew that he never immigrated to the U.S. So, I quickly thought of Mr. Pulitzer. I couldn’t recall his first name, though. Good thing last names only are acceptable! Judith P.
I went for the wrong prize. I said Alfred Nobel even though I was pretty sure he was not a American immigrant.
I was also “pretty sure” Nobel wasn’t an American immigrant, especially since the Nobel Awards are not given out in America [thanks Sheldon Cooper for me knowing that for sure]. The next awards that came to mind were the Pulitzer Prizes for which I did not know presentation location nor his immigrant status, but I thought “hereinbefore” sounded like an elite newspaperman’s words.
At this level of gameplay you really need to be playing to win and proper wagering is key
Correct—and John did not bet anything and he had the correct response!!!
I managed to get the name Pulitzer after seeing the clue about him being an american immigrant. Still though I didnt think of nobel
Not sure why John bet nothing in Final Jeopardy. That guaranteed that Kendra would win no matter what.
I’m with the others – why in the world bet zero in this situation unless you are certain Kendra will get it right (but how could you be?) and you just want to guarantee second place. He simply gave the game away. Seems like bets of zero are getting more popular lately, and I don’t understand it.
Yeah, John’s bet is confounding, to say the least. They are paying $5k for 2nd and 3rd place in these Quarterfinal matches, so anything other than going for the win makes no sense. That being said, I am not critical of anyone who makes it on the stage to play Jeopardy, as I could never do it. The closest I can come is going to a taping, which I did last year and intend to do again in the near future.
Andy, I think you are being kept so busy your mind keeps running ahead of your fingers. You had another one of those kinds of typos today . . . which game John an opportunity to keep himself in the game . . . instead of “which gave John”.
Feel free to just delete this comment if you would prefer.
I can see where Evan and Kendra came up with Nobel. The Nobel prizes are certainly at least one of the most well known prizes awarded. But it seems they forgot the category, American Immigranta. Nobel never immigrated to the US/ Though I didn’t have Andy’s fact about wills, and, even though without Andy’s fact about wills the year didn’t seem to fit, I said Pulitzer.
I won’t criticize John’s betting strategy, I have to presume he read the scores going into Final, thoguht Kendra wouldn’t have the correct response, and, would bet high. Unfortunately, for John, while Kendra actually didn’t have the correct response, her wager WASN’T as high as John presumed it would be
There are, apparently, only three certain things in life – death, taxes, and my Jeopardy brackets being busted in game three of a tournament!
🙁