Final Jeopardy: American Artists (1-19-24)

The Final Jeopardy question (1/19/2024) in the category “American Artists” was:

In the 1920s he used wire, string & other materials to fabricate “models in motion” for a miniature circus scene

Today’s Champions Wildcard contestants are: Bryan White, a senior regulatory compliance analyst orig. from Santa Maria, CA; Erin Portman, a high school English teacher from Naperville, IL; and Rachel Clark, a director of client strategy from Washington, DC.

Round 1 Categories: America before 1800 – The Book Title Animal – Let’s Play a Game – British TV – Meet Me in St. Louis – From S to Y

Erin found the Jeopardy! round Daily Double in “America Before 1800” under the $600 clue on the 17th pick of the round. She was in second place with $3,200, $400 less than Rachel’s lead. Erin made it a true Daily Double and she was RIGHT.

Reconstructed in the 1930s, the original Governor’s Palace in this colonial capital was built from 1706 to 1722 show

WHAT IS WILLIAMSBURG?

Erin finished in the lead with $8,600. Rachel was in second place with $5,400 and Bryan was last with $1,800. All clues were shown.

Round 2 Categories: Asian Capital Cities – Musical Theater – Agriculture – Newer Words & Phrases – Existentialism – Famous Forgeries

Rachel found the first Daily Double in “Musical Theater” under the $1,200 clue on the 9th pick of the round. She was tied for the lead with Erin at $11,400, $7,000 more than Bryan in second place. Rachel bet $1,400 and came up with Avenue Q. That was WRONG.

Of course it features the title song that says, “Come and meet those dancing feet on the avenue I’m taking you to…” show

WHAT IS “42nd STREET”?

Erin got the last Daily Double in “Famous Forgeries” under the $1,200 clue, with 6 clues left after it. She was in the lead with $15,800, $6,400 less than Bryan in second place. Erin bet $5,000 and guessed Salinger. That was WRONG.

Clifford Irving gambled (wrongly) that this reclusive billionaire wouldn’t step forward to debunk a forged 1971 “autobiography” show

WHO IS HOWARD HUGHES?

Bryan finished in the lead with $12,200. Erin was in second place with $11,200. Rachel was last with $10,000. All clues were shown.

TWO of the contestants got Final Jeopardy! right.

WHO IS ALEXANDER CALDER?

Alexander Calder (1898-1976) was an American sculptor, the son and grandson of two well-known sculptors. Calder became famous for his “Cirque”, which he staged in Paris for an audience that included Marcel Duchamp. The miniature circus was the forerunner to Calder’s famous moving artwork that became known as mobiles. Marcel Duchamp is credited with coining “mobiles”, a tidbit that has turned up in several Jeopardy! clues.

Cirque Calder is an exhibit at the Whitney Museum, and while many of us have baby bearskin rug photos, “Man Cub” is a life-size nude sculpture of Alexander Calder at age 4 in the Metropolitan Museum. Alexander Stirling Calder, the child’s father, was the sculptor.

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Rachel got it right. She bet $1,201 and finished with $11,201.

Erin got it, too. She bet $9,000 and finished with $20,200.

Bryan thought it was Jasper Johns. He lost $10,300, leaving him with $1,900. That made Erin Portman the winner and a semi-finalist.

A triple stumper from each round:

THE BOOK TITLE ANIMAL ($800) Let’s toss around “Mrs. Frisby & the ___ of NIMH”

($1000) Not just for the birds, & a Man Booker Prize finalist: “___ English”

More clues on Page 2

2 years ago: NONE of the players got this FJ in “Cemeteries and Memorials”

60,000 are at rest in a National Memorial Cemetery opened in 1949 in the crater of an extinct volcano in this state show

WHAT IS HAWAII?

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