"Jeopardy!": The Reign of James Is Over

If you have been recently watching "Jeopardy!", the game show whose syndicated version with host Alex Trebek is now in its 35th season, it's likely for two reasons:

(1) James Holzhauer, a pro sports bettor from Las Vegas, became the second contestant ever to earn more than two million dollars on the show.  His reign spanned 32 episodes between April and June (with a two-week break for a previously scheduled teachers tournament), ending his run with more than $2.4 million added to his bank account (before taxes, of course).  Only Ken Jennings, with winnings of over $2.5 million in 75 appearances, has won more.

Holzhauer rewrote the "Jeopardy!" record book as often as Wayne Gretzky did during his hockey career, which included winning the most money on a single program 15 times,  He usually started the round at the bottom of the board (where the high-value clues are), then bet big when the "Daily Double" appeared, usually leaving his opponents in the dust by the time the "Final Jeopardy" category appeared.

On the telecast of June 3, the person who finally beat Holzhauer at his own game was a librarian from Chicago named Emma Boettcher.  But you'll still see James Holzhauer in special tournaments in the near future.  He won't soon be forgotten.

(2)  Holzhauer's success was a welcome distraction for the show and its fans, with the announcement a few weeks earlier that Trebek had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.  Trebek is 78, and has said he plans to keep working through the treatments.  He's done more than 7000 episodes of "Jeopardy!", and is signed up through 2022.

In recent media interviews, Trebek has said his cancer is currently in remission.  Though it wouldn't hurt for the show's producers to have a Plan B in case Trebek can no longer continue, longtime viewers are wondering if their favorite show really is in jeopardy.