DANGER! fans took a step back to discuss hosting Ken Jennings and his tendency to occasionally fight with contestants.
The former champion, 50, was named sole successor to Alex Trebek after 48-year-old Mayim Bialik was dropped from the series.
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The 40th season of Jeopardy! will end at the end of July, which means Ken is about to wrap up the first season as the show’s sole host.
Fans took to an internet thread discussing how he has grown into his role as successor to the late Alex.
One viewer titled his Reddit post: “What do you think of Ken?”
They explained: “I like Ken, good personality. However, my family and I have noticed on several occasions that he makes rude comments and facial expressions to players.”
They clarified in capital letters: “IN SOME CASES, NOT ALWAYS.”
The user added: “He’s a smart guy, there’s no denying that; However, I feel like his intelligence comes through as a host, and when a contestant responds wrong, he looks at them, like, ‘How did you not know that?’ “
‘HE’S SASSY, BUT SO IS TREBEK’
Dozens of other fans showed up to defend Ken and argue that while he may seem rude, that’s exactly how Alex was as a host.
“He’s sassy, but so is Trebek,” one user responded.
“Yeah, it almost feels like an intentional homage to Trebek when Ken does that, so I don’t mind,” another explained.
“Trebek was much more sassy,” wrote a third. “Actually, my wife and I are watching Ken race right now, and Alex is top-notch cheeky.
A fourth agreed: “Ken is much nicer and makes fewer cutting comments.”
So did a fifth: “Definitely, and it’s all in good fun. People need to relax about it a little, I think. It’s a game show. Alex can be downright cruel sometimes.”
“As much as I appreciate and respect Alex Trebek, I often found him rude or condescending,” wrote a sixth.
“And I was always surprised that this wasn’t talked about more often.
“I think Trebek gave more of a game show vibe to Jeopardy (which it obviously still is), while Ken gives it more of a quiz bowl show (which it also is), just two slightly different flavors of the same thing.
“In my opinion, Ken carried the torch well,” they concluded.
HARD WITH HARMEYER
Ken’s tendency to be arrogant was evident during Adriana Harmeyer’s 15th win last month.
Adriana won the landmark game by getting Final Jeopardy right, which Ken made it very clear he wasn’t sure she would do.
The “GEOGRAPHIC NAME IS ALMOST THE SAME” clue was: “Legend has it that in 1876 a dragon built for the “Ring” cycle had its neck sent to this Middle Eastern capital, not the right German city.”
Colleen – her opponent – hit the track as “Beirut” and took the lead, meaning it was all up to Adriana.
Ken highlighted Adriana with a surprising comment when it came time to reveal his answer.
He highlighted how insecure she seemed during the 30 seconds and didn’t write anything until the end.
“Adriana has been oblivious to Final Jeopardy, but she looked at this one for a long, long time,” he said bluntly.
Adriana revealed that she, in fact, invented “Beirut”.
“At the last second, she did it!” Ken exclaimed as the audience gasped.
Adriana added $10,000 to win $23,600 for a total of $349,600 in 15 days (she was, as fans know, defeated in the next game by Survivor’s Drew Basile).
“She just keeps going!” Ken added as she shook her head and smiled in disbelief. “Great game from all three.”
HAVOK HOST
Ken holds the record for longest winning streak on Jeopardy! history with 74 consecutive victories in 2004.
Alex hosted the modern iteration of the show from 1984 until November 2020, after losing a battle with pancreatic cancer.
After his death, things got a little chaotic, as viewers know all too well.
After a series of guest hosts, officials announced that producer Mike Richards and actress Mayim would take over as co-hosts.
However, in August 2021, Richards resigned due to resurfaced sexist comments and Ken stepped in to share hosting duties with Mayim.
In July 2022, it was announced that Mayim and Ken would continue to host together in season 39, leaving.
However, following the show’s hiatus in the summer of 2023, it was revealed that Jennings would take over as permanent host for season 40.
Mayim announced in a personal Instagram message in late December 2023 that she would “no longer host” the show.
Danger! Host timeline
Danger! has had a tumultuous history regarding hosts following the death of the iconic Alex Trebek in 2020. Here are every host since the game show’s inception in 1964.
Art Fleming – from 1964 to 1975, he was the original host of the daytime version of Jeopardy! on NBC.
Alex Trebek – From 1984 to 2020, the late, great Alex hosted the modern iteration of Jeopardy! for 36 years until his death from pancreatic cancer.
Guest Hosts – 2020 to 2021, Jeopardy! tested a series of guest hosts for one- or two-week stints, including Anderson Cooper, LaVar Burton and Aaron Rodgers.
Mike Richards – 2021, he was named host for a week before resigning amid controversy. He was the show’s executive producer at the time.
Mayim Bialik – 2021 to 2023, when Mike was announced as the show’s new host, Mayim was chosen to host tournaments and primetime specials.
Mayim and Ken Jennings – 2022 to 2023, 74-time champion Ken (the winningest contestant of all time) joined Mayim as guest host and they shared hosting duties.
Ken Jennings – 2023 to present. Last December, Mayim announced on Instagram that she would “no longer” host Jeopardy! after a long hiatus, having defended the writers’ strike, and Ken was named sole host.
Ken now runs all editions of Jeopardy! including Celebrity Jeopardy!, the late night show and other primetime specials such as Masters.
“As the Hollywood holidays begin, I have some Jeopardy! news,” she began her post.
“Sony has informed me that I will no longer be hosting the syndicated version of Jeopardy!”
Danger! cobbled together a similar message on Instagram an hour later, and it has since been reported that Mayim broke the news without consulting the show first.
Ken later said he “understood” the decision, as the shows “don’t have two hosts”.
HAPPY WITH ‘LESS MONEY’
Ken is reportedly tied to a $4 million contract as the series’ singular host.
The US Sun previously reported that his contract is not yet long-term.
However, Ken is happy to take a pay cut to ensure he continues to host for decades to come.
“Danger! is Ken’s religion; he lives it and breathes it and despite all the outside pressures, he’s not going to screw it up,” the source shared.
“What he really wants more than anything is to stay and make this position work long term.
“And if that means making less money to ensure his longevity, you can bet your life he would be in the game.
Of course, Ken is already comfortable. He earned $2.5 million from his record 74-game competitive streak, $4.3 million including tournaments.
That said, Alex reportedly earned $10 million a year at the end of his 36-year tenure, which is more than double Ken’s salary, even before a possible pay cut.
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This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
