Warning: This page contains spoilers for the July 23, 2026, 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 Authors) for Thursday, July 23, 2026 (Season 42, Game 229):
She sometimes signed letters “Charles Thunder”
(correct response beneath the contestants)
Today’s Jeopardy! contestants:
Jacqueline Ziegler, a set designer from New York, New York
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Matthew Riggle, a community college math instructor from Madison, Alabama
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Dean Zach, a creative writing graduate student from Pearland, Texas (1-day total: $36,000)
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Andy’s Pregame Thoughts:
Yesterday saw Dean Zach pick up $36,000 in one of the more impressive debut performances in the history of the show. The Unified Prediction Model was very impressed with the $17,200 that Dean picked up on the Daily Doubles in yesterday’s game, with his debut ranking close to (but not quite at the level of) famous debuts like Myron Meyer (who held the first-day record of $50,000 for a very long time) and James Holzhauer. That being said, Sam Ryan and Grace Biermann have also had incredibly strong opening performances this week, only to fall off on Day 2. Today’s challengers—New York set designer Jacqueline Ziegler and Alabama community college math instructor Matthew Riggle—are certainly hoping that there’s a Day 2 drop off from Dean.
Regardless, though, as we enter the penultimate first-run game of Season 42, this is another reminder that ever since the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike, the Tournament of Champions cut-off is not until a number of weeks into Season 43. (While this is subject to change, and I’m sure the show will very likely make its own announcement to this effect in the next seven weeks, I am currently operating on the assumption that the cutoff will be the episode airing December 4—60 episodes into Season 43. Of course, the show’s taping and airing calendar could move that cutoff in a couple of weeks in either direction, but the cutoff is certainly not going to be the end of this season.)
I had initially thought about posting this section tomorrow, but I’ve decided to post it today instead. At this time last season, I had briefly entertained the idea of getting out entirely. That being said: I can definitely say that my current plans are for me to continue operating this site for the entirety of Season 43. That doesn’t mean I am 100% happy, though, with everything—especially the community and the fandom at large. Certainly, if I were offered a sufficient amount of money to do something else, I would seriously consider that other offer. But without any realistic other options, I really have no choice but to proceed ahead, in spite of the massive iceberg that is the state of publishing in 2026.
I have also certainly done some introspection and recollection over the past weeks and months, and I can tell that overall I am a much more cynical, much more jaded, and much more angry person than I was when I took over the full-time operation of this website nearly 10 years ago. When I took over this site full-time, I could honestly say that I was making meaningful friendships with like-minded people, many of whom had just been on the show. But I can honestly say that it’s felt like years since that’s happened for me. Honestly, that probably has a lot to do with the fan community at large—especially the incessant complaints about everything from contestant mannerisms to tournaments—that have just worn down my personality, to the point where I’m left feeling that even my teammates probably only want to keep me around because my average number of 2s per game in the Online Quiz League still outweighs my Oscar the Grouch turn at this point. But with the job market in general being so ugly overall, there really isn’t anything else to do but keep running this site, as much as it is a strain on me.
(Content continues below)
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Correct response: Who is Charlotte Brontë?
More information about Final Jeopardy:
(The following write-up is original content and is copyright 2026 The Jeopardy! Fan. It may not be copied without linked attribution back to this page.)
Did you know that Brontë is Gaelic for “thunder”? If you did, this probably becomes a much easier Final Jeopardy clue. If not, there’s still a good way in; all of the Brontë sisters often used male-presenting pseudonyms in order to advance the literary standing of their respective works, with Anne picking names starting with A, Emily picking names starting with E, and Charlotte picking names starting with C.
I also quite enjoy the brevity of today’s Final Jeopardy clue; there’s something very satisfying about only seeing six words, but still being able to communicate the necessary hints in order to solve the clue.
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