Final Jeopardy: Sports Mascots (4-8-16)

Today’s Final Jeopardy question (4/8/2016) in the category “Sports Mascots” was:

This major league team has no mascot today, but from 1979 to 1981 used a mustachioed fella named Dandy.

New champ Ken Sansone won $15,900 yesterday despite a tough Final. In the last game of the week, he is up against: Ricky Young, originally from Canyonville, OR; and Kim Rohrer, from Ossining, NY.

Round 1 Categories: Bird Words & Phrases – U.S. States – They Sing, They Act – There’s Chemistry Between Us – 7 Up – Bring Your “B” Game

Kim found the Jeopardy! round Daily Double in “7 Up” under the $1,000 clue. Only 5 clues were left after it (all in the Bird category). She was in second place with $3,400, $2,000 behind Ricky’s lead. She bet $800 and guessed China That was WRONG.

When the G7 Economic Group was formed in 1976, this was its only Asian country.  show

WHAT IS JAPAN?

Ricky finished in the lead with $6,600. Kim was second with $4,400 and Ken was last with $2,200.

Round 2 Categories: A Swedish King Named Gus – Me and My Literary Arrow – Villains in the Comics – World Landmarks – 19th Century Transportation – “Get” Going

After 15 clues, Ricky found the first Daily Double in “World Landmarks” under the $2,000. In the lead with $13,800, he had $5,400 more than Kim in second place. He bet $3,000 and he was RIGHT.

The El Caracol structure at the ruins of this ancient Mayan City in Mexico served as a 10th century observatory. show

WHAT IS CHICHEN ITZA?

Ricky found the last Daily Double in “Transportation” under the $1,600 clue. There were 8 clues left. He was in the lead with $19,200 now, twice as much as Kim in second place. He bet $4,000 and he was RIGHT.

The first production one of these in the U.S. was 1893’s Orient-Aster, preceding the Indian brand by 3 years. show

WHAT IS A MOTORCYCLE?

Ricky finished in the lead with a runaway $25,200. Kim was next with $12,400. Ken ended up in third place with $1,000. He really had a bad time today between the buzzer, guessing and mispronouncing Neanderthal!

ALL of the contestants got Final Jeopardy! right.

WHO ARE THE NEW YORK YANKEES?

“The biggest bust in Yankees history was 7 feet tall, made $40 every home game and spent most of his brief career in the upper deck. From 1979 to 1981, the Yankees employed a mascot named Dandy. He was big and blue and a spectacular failure—a historical oddity for a proud franchise that has collected 27 world championships but would just as soon forget he even existed.” That’s from a WSJ article ironically entitled The Yankees’ Long-Forgotten Mascot. Poor Dandy was the object of much derision as evidenced by comments in the above video: “It looks like something that’s gonna pick your pocket in the subway.” and “Dandy was a hot mess.”

Learn more from Bonnie Erickson, the woman behind Dandy.

Ken bet $999 bet. He finished with $1,999.

Kim bet $10,399 bet. That brought her up to $22,799.

Ricky bet $399. He won the match with $25,599 and took over the Jeopardy! champ title. Great game!

The category “A Swedish King Named Gus” wasn’t in anyone’s wheelhouse and they left it for last. Here are two of the triple stumpers from it:

($400) – Carl XVI Gustaf, current King of Sweden, is the great-great-grandson of this British monarch
($2000) – A patron of the arts, Gustav III reigned over an intellectual & cultural period of the 18th c. called Sweden’s this.

Kim wanted to give the right answer to that last one but she didn’t buzz in! She would have broken Ricky’s lock! But, as Alex pointed out, he’d have won by a buck no matter what.

2 years ago: TWO of the players got this FJ in “Historic Irony”

Theodor Herzl was inspired to begin the work that’s the foundation for modern Zionism by an opera by this composer. show

WHO IS RICHARD WAGNER?

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