Final Jeopardy: Renaissance Men (10-4-21)

Today’s Final Jeopardy question (10/4/2021) in the category “Renaissance Men” was:

10 years before a more famous work, he wrote in 1503 that the way to deal with rebels is to placate them or eliminate them

33x champ Matt Amodio, a PhD student from New Haven, CT has now won $1,267,801. In Game 34, he takes on these two players: Elizabeth Mitchell, a student and part-time engagement specialist from Rosemead, CA; and Mike Howard, a retired ironworker and writer from Peculiar, MO.

Round 1 Categories: 4-Letter Book Titles – Baseball Hall of Famers by Initials – Inconceivable! – If at “First” – You Don’t Succeed – Fry Fry Again

Matt landed on the Jeopardy! round Daily Double in “If at ‘First'” under the $800 clue on the 9th pick. Matt was in the lead with $6,600, Elizabeth & Mike were both at negative $1,000. Matt bet $6,600 and he was RIGHT.

Primus inter pares is Latin for this, the member of a power-sharing group with a little more juice than the rest. show

WHAT IS FIRST AMONG EQUALS?

Matt finished in the lead with $18,600. Elizabeth was second with $400 and Mike was last at negative $1,000. No clues went uncovered.

Round 2 Categories: Rivers of Asia – The Arts – Medical Terms – This Category Is Filler – Sci-Fi Movie Synopses – Before & After

Mike found the first Daily Double in “Rivers of Asia” under the $1,600 clue on the 2nd pick. He was in second place with $1,000 now, $17,600 less than Matt’s lead. He bet $2,000 and he was RIGHT.

This lake of Israel famous for its biblical associations is fed and drained by the Jordan River. show

WHAT IS THE SEA OF GALILEE?

Matt got the last Daily Double in “Medical Terms” under the $2,000 clue on the 9th pick. Now leading with $24,600, he had $20,400 more than Mike in second place. Matt bet $5,000 and he was RIGHT.

Often administered through an inhaler, it’s the 14-letter term for a medication that opens up the airways. show

WHAT IS BRONCHODILATOR?

Matt finished in the lead with a runaway $46,000. Mike was next with $4,200 and Elizabeth was in third place with $2,200. No clues went uncovered.

TWO of the contestants got Final Jeopardy! right.

WHO IS NICCOLÒ MACHIAVELLI?

According to his bio on Stanford’s Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Niccolo Machiavelli was appointed Second Chancellor of the Republic of Florence in 1498 and “for the next fourteen years, he engaged in a flurry of diplomatic activity on behalf of Florence…. A large body of extant letters, dispatches, and occasional writings testify to his political assignments as well as to his acute talent for the analysis of personalities and institutions.” It was during this time period that he wrote “On the Method of Dealing with the Rebellious Peoples of Valdichiana” (1503).

In 1512, Machiavelli’s fortunes changed drastically when the Medici toppled the Florentine government. Suspected of conspiring against the Medici, he was imprisoned and tortured for a short period in 1513. Forced to retire, he turned his attentions to literary pursuits and is believed to have written “The Prince”, his most famous work, in 1513 and possibly 1514. “The Prince” was not formally published until 1532, 5 years after Machiavelli died.

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Elizabeth went with 18th century writer & philosopher Voltaire. That cost her $2,000 and left her with $200.

Mike got it right with an acceptable misspelling — Machiovelli. His $201 bet brought him up to $4,401.

Matt also got it right. He bet $37,000 and won the game with $83,000. That beats his previous top payday of $74,000. Game 34 is now the biggest single payday of Matt Amodio’s run. His 34-day total is $1,350,801.

A triple stumper from each round:

4-LETTER BOOK TITLES ($400) In Chapter One of this book, “a great fish” severs a woman’s femoral artery, the blood now “a beacon… clear and true”

($600) Coming between “Night” & “Day”, it’s the middle title in Elie Wiesel’s acclaimed trilogy

More clues on Page 2

2 years ago: TWO of the players got this FJ in “Symbolic Objects”

To complete one of its regular trips, in 1948 it took a boat across the English Channel; in 1952 it took a plane en route to Finland show

WHAT IS THE OLYMPIC TORCH (or Olympic Flame)?

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