Jeopardy! begins new era on Monday without Alex Trebek
Posted January 11, 2021 11:35 am.
LOS ANGELES (NEWS 1130) – Jeopardy! starts a new era on Monday night, airing the first episode of the long-running game show without Alex Trebek as host.
A video tribute to Trebek closed Friday’s episode of the quiz show, the final one that he taped before pancreatic cancer claimed his life on Nov. 8.
The show will now continue with a series of interim hosts, starting with veteran Jeopardy! champion Ken Jennings.
“Sharing this stage with Alex Trebek was one of the greatest honours of my life. Like all Jeopardy! fans, I miss Alex very much,” Jennings says.
All new episodes continue on Jeopardy! this week. Ken Jennings steps in as first in a series of guest hosts. pic.twitter.com/76zy6nbyUF
— Jeopardy! (@Jeopardy) January 10, 2021
“Honestly, I’m with the audience. I don’t want me out here, I want to see Alex out here. I know exactly how they feel when they see anybody else behind this lectern,” he says in a video posted to Twitter. “But, you know, there are tens of millions of people who love this show, we love this show, Alex loved this show. I’m just happy to fill in and help out.”
Ken has come a long way from his contestant days. Here are Ken's thoughts from behind the lectern as first in a series of guest hosts. pic.twitter.com/0HaxSv8mmW
— Jeopardy! (@Jeopardy) January 11, 2021
The game show plans to rotate a few guest hosts, with the L.A. Times reporting Katie Couric will be next.
Trebek, who had hosted Jeopardy! for 36 years, kept working for nearly two years after his diagnosis with pancreatic cancer. He apparently wasn’t certain that Friday’s episode would be his last when it was recorded.
The Canadian-American, who became a household name throughout his long career, was 80 years old.
https://twitter.com/Jeopardy/status/1347668470289244161