Alex Trebek | Illustration by Kayli Thompson | The Wright State Guardian
Alex Trebek, the host of “Jeopardy!” has died after hosting 36 years of the show at age 80.
A Guinness World Record holder, Olympic torch runner, a 7-time Daytime Emmy award winner husband and father, Trebek passed away due to his pancreatic cancer, a battle that he openly fought.
Before “Jeopardy!”
George Alexander Trebek was born on July 22, 1940 in Sandbury, Canada. He grew up in a French-English household. His father had emigrated from Ukraine, and his mother was a Franco-Ontarian.
He attended Sandbury High School and graduated from the University of Ottawa in 1961 with a degree in philosophy. While he attended university, he was interested in a career in broadcast news.
After his graduation from college, he began working for the Canadian Broadcasting Company (CBC). He would eventually read their national radio news, and cover other special events for CBC.
Trebek first moved to the United States in 1971 in order to host The Wizard of Odds, a new game show for NBC. Trebek hosted other game shows like “Pitfall”, “High Rollers”, and “Double Dare” until he got the job to host “Jeopardy!” In 1984.
36 years of shows
With over 8,000 episodes, “Jeopardy!” has become a staple of our culture. For context, that’s over 166 days straight of shows. In 2014, he was awarded a Guinness world record for the person who has hosted the most game show episodes. Trebek commented on that award, “I’m just enjoying what I’m doing.”
During his time hosting “Jeopardy!”, Trebek also cameoed in many other popular shows, such as “The Simpsons”, “Conan”, “How I Met Your Mother”, and “Saturday Night Live”.
In 2019, Trebek announced his diagnosis of pancreatic cancer on social media, and said “I’m going to fight this… I plan to beat the low survival rate for this disease.”
Trebek spent his final days just how he wanted to, with his wife next to him, and with his children. In his memoir, he wrote, as reported by USA Today, “Here I am wanting to enjoy what might be the last of my days, and, what, I’m supposed to just stay at home and sit in a chair and stare into space? Actually, that doesn’t sound too bad.”
Trebek’s Passing
Many famous figures mourned the loss of the host. Former president Bill Clinton commented, “Hillary and I loved watching Alex Trebek on Jeopardy through the years. He made knowledge fun and valuable. We will miss him very much.”
After Trebek’s passing, the show’s executive producer Mike Richards said in a recording, “This is an enormous loss for our staff, crew, his family, and millions of fans.
There is no announcement yet as to who will be the next host of “Jeopardy!”, but there has already been much speculation.
No one can truly replace Alex Trebek, but someone has to fill his spot. If it is a former winner, Ken Jennings looks like someone who could hold the position, with a record 74 straight wins on the show, and the winner of “Jeopardy!’s” “Greatest of All Time Tournament.”
Other popular names thrown out are ABC News host George Stephanopoulos, Star Trek’s LeVar Burton, and Former News anchor Katie Couric.
One thing is for sure, though. “Jeopardy!” will continue, but it will forever be without the man who we’ve all come to love.
