Former “Jeopardy" Contestants Are Sharing Memories From Their Time On The Game Show And Alex Trebek

"Thinking today about his family and his Jeopardy! family—which, in a way, included millions of us."

Alex Trebek, the longtime host of Jeopardy, died on Sunday after having pancreatic cancer.

"Alex Trebek passed away peacefully at home early this morning, surrounded by family and friends," a spokesperson for the game show said in a statement.

Trebek, who hosted more than 8,200 episodes throughout his career on the game show, was adored by many. Fans of all ages from across the county have been sharing what the game show and Trebek meant to them.

Former Jeopardy contestants are also sharing their condolences and memories from their time on the show.

Ken Jennings, who in 2004 won 74 consecutive games of Jeopardy and earned more than $2.5 million, tweeted, "Thinking today about his family and his Jeopardy! family—which, in a way, included millions of us."

Alex wasn’t just the best ever at what he did. He was also a lovely and deeply decent man, and I’m grateful for every minute I got to spend with him.

James Holzhauer, who won 32 consecutive games on the show last year, said "one of the great privileges of my life to spend time with this courageous man while he fought the battle of his life."

It was one of the great privileges of my life to spend time with this courageous man while he fought the battle of his life. You will never be replaced in our hearts, Alex. https://t.co/LLoUASRMa9

Brad Rutter, another Jeopardy champion who has broken records with his wins and earnings, tweeted, "There will never be another."

Just gutted. There will never be another. RIP, Alex, and thank you so much for everything. https://t.co/4FMlgaFYvI

A more recent contestant, Burt Thakur, went viral last week after he told Trebek, "I learned English because of you."

After Trebek asked Thakur if there were "any family members back home cheering you on," the contestant shared an emotional story about how he grew up watching Jeopardy every night with his grandfather.

"It's a pretty special moment, man," Thakur told Trebek, fighting back tears. "Thank you very much."

Alex's impact is immeasurable. Thank you for sharing, Burt!

On Sunday Thakur shared a passage from the poem “Death” by Rainer Maria Rilke and added, “I am overwhelmed with emotion right now and my heart goes out to the Trebek family.”

When with proud joy we lift Life's red wine up To drink deep of the mystic shining cup And ecstasy through all our being leaps— Death bows his head and weeps. I am overwhelmed with emotion right now and my heart goes out to the Trebek family. #Jeopardy #alextrebek @jeopardy

More former contestants shared their condolences and memories on Twitter.

On my taping day, during one of the Q&A sessions during a commercial break, somebody asked Alex if he ever wanted to be on "Wheel of Fortune." "No," he responded, "I already know how to spell."

This is devastating. I don't even know what to think. https://t.co/1qf9bKj2Ff

2005, I lose my third show on Jeopardy and join the audience for the next taping. Alex is warming us up, asks for questions. "Who's your favorite philosopher," I shout. "Mark Twain," he yells back. No hesitation. The more I think about it, the better an answer it is. RIP

RIP Alex, you lived a long, full life. https://t.co/fTPv9eXWRE

My 2019 was incredibly lucky. #jeopardy 💙💜

One thing that can’t be overlooked here is that Alex kept showing up for work during the hardest year and a half of his life for *us*. He knew he was more than a game show host. I don’t know if he understood exactly why we felt so deeply for him, but he understood that we did.

Absolutely heartbreaking to lose someone who meant so much to so many. Even if this show hadn’t changed my life in so many ways, this loss would be immeasurable. https://t.co/8mn0ObbxNp




Topics in this article

Skip to footer