Thread by @chrisjacobsHC

THREAD: Since I was there for the episode’s taping in November, I want to share a touching story about #AlexTrebek and one of tonight’s @Jeopardy contestants.

Alert for West Coast audiences—spoilers ahead… 1/15

@Jeopardy In sum, tonight’s @Jeopardy featured two challengers (Shanu George and Priscilla Drobes) who struggled against the returning champion.

Shanu battled—lost big on some Daily Doubles, and bounced in and out of the red—but got out of the hole in time to stay for Final. 2/15

@Jeopardy But of the two challengers, Priscilla struggled most. I could see the contestant coordinators trying to help her with the signaling button at @Jeopardy’s first commercial—she clearly was having difficulty ringing in. 3/15

@Jeopardy Once she did master the signaling button, however, Priscilla struggled with her responses. I’ve seen that happen even with @KenJennings—you try so hard to ring in, and then realize you don’t know the correct response to the clue! 4/15

@Jeopardy @KenJennings You could tell Priscilla was nervous—she was shaking while giving her responses—and at a certain point, the tension builds on itself. You start trying to force things, and you just get yourself further in the hole. She was having that kind of night. 5/15

@Jeopardy @KenJennings Sitting in the audience, I felt badly for her. I ended up forcing things a bit during one of my own @Jeopardy games, so I know what that feels like up on stage—and it isn’t fun at all. 6/15

@Jeopardy @KenJennings Anyway, Priscilla ended up with a sizable negative score at the end of Double @Jeopardy. While Shanu got out of the hole in time to hang around for Final, Priscilla did not. 7/15

@Jeopardy @KenJennings The touching moment regarding #AlexTrebek came after Final @Jeopardy. While contestants who finish Double @Jeopardy in the red aren’t on-stage for Final, they’re supposed to come back on stage AFTER Final, for the closing credits. 8/15

@Jeopardy @KenJennings I don’t think Priscilla knew this. The producers motioned for her to go back on-stage for the closing credits, and the body language suggested a mix of confusion (“I have to go back up there?”) and shock (“I have to go back up there???”) 9/15

@Jeopardy @KenJennings The @Jeopardy closing credits roll, and Veronica (who defended her title, BTW) and Shanu talk politely with Alex. Priscilla just stands there, not really knowing what to do—and probably wishing she were anywhere else in the world than on that stage. 10/15

@Jeopardy @KenJennings After the closing credits end, #AlexTrebek goes up to Priscilla and pulls her aside (something not seen on-camera). I will readily admit that I was on the other side of the studio—i.e., well out of earshot—so do not know specifically what they said. 11/15

@Jeopardy @KenJennings That said, I know that after my last @Jeopardy game, Alex told me not to overthink things, and not to second-guess myself for my mistakes. I did just that, of course—I’m a perfectionist, and it’s in my nature. 12/15

@Jeopardy @KenJennings But after having watched that interaction between Alex and Priscilla—albeit at a distance—I couldn’t help but think that if a 79-year-old battling pancreatic cancer had told me there are bigger things to worry about than a bad game of @Jeopardy, I would probably listen. 13/15

@Jeopardy @KenJennings And after that episode taped on November 12, I couldn’t help but be struck by the way—again, based on my observations at a distance—#AlexTrebek was trying to comfort someone else, even as he fights for his own life. 14/15

@Jeopardy @KenJennings Now that the @Jeopardy episode in question has aired, I can share that story with the world.

I hope you enjoyed it. And I hope it serves as a reminder to us all that it’s never a bad time to bring kindness and compassion into someone else’s life. END

.@FDRLST has turned this @Jeopardy thread into a post. I’m donating the proceeds from the post to @lustgartenfdn for pancreatic cancer research - and I encourage those who appreciated this story to donate too! thefederalist.com/2020/01/19/a-t…