Today, we bid farewell to Alex Trebek, host of Jeopardy. The final episode with Alex as host was taped on December 25, 2020 and aired today. It was followed by a montage, tracing Alex’s years as the host of Jeopardy.
The viewing aftermath was strangely emotional. I found myself missing the presence of this kind and humble figure. Our society mourns the loss of pop culture icons but today felt different. I am led to believe that it is because Jeopardy was (and will continue to be) a daily gameshow. An observation was once made of Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston when they were married; fans found it easier to approach Aniston but appeared intimidated by Pitt. The observer deemed this to be a result of Pitt being a movie star while Aniston “appeared in everyone’s living room on a weekly basis.” Imagine the impact of appearing in someone’s living room on a daily basis. This was the case for me when I was growing up in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada in the 1990s. Wheel of Fortune aired at 7 PM and Jeopardy aired at 7:30 PM. It was something which my family eagerly anticipated. Dinner with the gameshows followed by dishwashing and homework. It was a regular, comforting, familiar routine. Pat Sajak, Vanna White, Alex Trebek and Johnny Gilbert had become part of our family.
My viewing of Jeopardy became more sporadic as I entered adulthood. In my early twenties, I would work late and get home late. Things changed. The routine was less predictable than it had been in my grade school years. Jeopardy continued to air and my mom enjoyed watching it.
After my marriage, Jeopardy once again became a regular part of my visits home. It would air at 7:30 on weeknights and Saturdays. My mom and I would hurry home from our Saturday grocery shopping to make sure we could have everything put away and eat dinner with Alex Trebek. I feel sad now to think that on my next visit home (whenever that will be), the Jeopardy episodes we watch together will not be hosted by Alex Trebek. But they will still continue, the way he would have wanted.
We often associate pop culture icons or those in “showbiz” with glamour, fame and fortune. In contrast to this stereotype, Alex Trebek showed himself to be a gentle, generous and humble soul. The clips from the montage outlining his years of hosting were sweet, warm, funny and human. Above all, his consistency and reliability in showing up for us on a daily basis and bringing his friendly personality to the show are what make him memorable and enable us to recall him with affection and love.
Rest in peace, Alex Trebek. We’ll miss you ❤ ❤ ❤
Saranya Murthy 