Final Jeopardy: Secretaries of State (5-16-14)

The Final Jeopardy question (5/16/2014), in the category “Secretaries of State” was:

Serving 160 years apart, these two Secretaries of State are the only ones who never married.

The final showdown of the 5-week Battle of the Decades has arrived! Brad Rutter brings $10,000 into today’s match; Ken Jennings has $7,000; and Roger Craig starts with nothing, after finishing in the red yesterday.

In this video, Colby Burnett went on record to say he would put his smart money on Ken to win. At the start of this game, we put our imaginary money on Brad, and here’s what happened:

Round 1: Brad found the Jeopardy! round Daily Double in “Organizations” under the $800 clue. He was in the hole for $200, $5,800 behind Ken’s lead. He bet the $1,000 allowance and he was RIGHT.

Now one big happy family, this mentoring group was formed by the union of 2 “sibling” organizations in 1977. show

Ken finished in the lead with $6,000. Roger was second with $5,400 and Brad was last with $1,800.

Round 2: Roger found the first Daily Double in “Lakes & Rivers” under the $1,200 clue. He had $10,200 — the exact same amount that he had yesterday when he found that disastrous Daily Double. This time he had $4,200 more than Ken in second place. “Don’t do it this time,” Brad piped up, but Roger did it! He came up with Manitoba and that was WRONG.

Sharing the name of a city, it’s the largest lake entirely within a Canadian province. show

Here’s the video of it, including the chat segment where they talked about EdemaGate.

Brad found the last Daily Double in “Non-Fiction” under the $1,600 clue. In second place with $2,600, he had $5,000 less than Ken’s lead. Brad said he’d keep a little bit around in case things go wrong and bet $2,000. Things went RIGHT.

The title of this essay collection by David Sedaris refers to his attempt to learn to speak French. show

Ken finished in the lead with $13,600. Brad was next with $11,800 and Roger was in third place with $2,000.

TWO of the contestants got Final Jeopardy! right.

WHO ARE JAMES BUCHANAN AND CONDOLEEZZA RICE?

Condoleezza Rice, 66th Secretary of State (2005-09), has never been married, a fact that she discussed in an interview with Piers Morgan in 2011. The 15th president of the United States, James Buchanan is often called “The Bachelor President.” Before he became known as that, he was the 17th Secretary of State from 1845 to 1849 under President James K. Polk. Buchanan was the last U.S. Secretary of State to become the American President. The others were Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, John Quincy Adams and Martin Van Buren. Here’s a list of U.S. Secretaries of State, with links to their biographies.



Roger got it right and doubled his score to $4,000.

Brad got it right but bet nothing so he finished this match with $11,800. His $10,000 from yesterday brought him up to $21,800.

Ken thought it was Buchanan and Albright (Albright is actually Madeleine’s former husband’s last name). He lost his $13,001, winding up with $599 to add to yesterday’s $7,000. He finished second with $7,599, winning $100,000. Roger won $50,000 and Brad is the one who won another million.

Highly recommended: If you’re hoping to get on Jeopardy! and need to bone up on geography, lizardpoint.com is the place to go. That wouldn’t have happened to Roger if he took this quiz. They have other quizzes, like history and current world leaders, too.

2 years ago:: NONE of the players got this FJ in “Inventors”

The Natl. Inventors H.O.F. said his work “brought the South prosperity”, but he was out of business within 5 years. show

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38 Responses

  1. john blahuta says:

    well, in closing: it’s over and we all should thank VJ for an excellent job- as always!! nothing’s perfect (alex said “close to” when roger had 10.200 on day 2). IT was exactly THE SAME AMOUNT. also i think the 2 final episodes may have been taped on the same day, so roger was possibly still rattled from the first miss and he ALMOST got it. he got the province right instead of naming the lake. that would indicate that he was still somewhat shaken up.
    be that as it may: personally i was disappointed by the finals, but you can’t win them all. it’s refreshing to see that a show like j has so many followers (i talk to a lot of people and about 90% watch j, even if they are not the “learning” type. when working, they have to tape it, since j is on in hawaii @ 4.30)
    so another chapter closed and on to new things! and as a motto in general: if you learn just ONE thing that is worthwhile learning on any given day, that day was worth living. with that in mind: thanks again VJ, and thanks to all who posted, whether we all agree or not. a LOT of innovations and good things come from controversy. we have learned from history what happens when everybody just says “yes”. somehow the quest for knowledge must be planted in man, otherwise a show like j would not have survived that long.
    and in one form or another it will still exist when we (or most of us 🙂 ) will be long gone.
    as ovid said in his poem when he cited the speech of pythagoras:
    CUNCTA FLUUNT,NIHIL EST, TODO QUOD PERSTET IN ORBE…..
    may the human spirit and knowledge continue to flow forever.

  2. William K says:

    Yeah, Jeopardy’s definitely rigged…definitely rigged. [Shades of Dustin Hoffman’s “Rainman”…”countin’ cards…countin’ cards”.]

    LOL!

    Hey, I agree it’s always wise to be alert to potential fraudulence, but I think maybe a sliver of evidence would be a good first step in regards to Jeopardy.

    By the way, if this clip is working for readers here I think you might find it entertaining….

    It’s the Cindy Brady quiz show appearance that I referred to on the thread here earlier. For whatever reason, Roger seemed rather obviously to choke on the two 10,200 DDs that he attempted. It seems a reasonable conjecture that he was intimidated by facing Jennings and Rutter. If so, it’s difficult to be too hard on Roger since those two players have proven to be in a class by themselves particularly in their recall speed and buzzer quickness –in addition to their breadth and depth of trivia knowledge.

    P.S. I’ve had some trouble viewing Youtube clips on my computer of late…In any case, this one was found pretty quickly when searching for Brady Bunch clips, Cindy Brady quiz show freeze.

    Enjoy!

  3. jacobska says:

    I do not for one second believe Jeopardy is rigged. I also remember the days of Van Doren and the 21 quiz show. Although quite young at the time I remember my Dad talking about the Congressional hearings at the dinner table. Roger Craig holds a doctorate in Computer Science and more than likely earns a higher salary than Ken and Brad together. Brad is a struggling actor in Hollywood who blew some of his winnings on a Porsche that died on him. Ken has written several books that have not sold well. He also appears on other quiz shows periodically. I can’t see these young men risking their future lives on a quiz show the way Van Doren did. People get mentally tired which is what I observed this past week. Ken can and have missed obvious responses. We forget that he is human after all. No one can deny that Brad is a fast thinker and quick on the buzzer. Roger can truly get brain freeze when he knows the opponents he is playing against.

    I give all 3 players kudos for their stamina and fortitude. Van Doren and other players in the 50s were in an entirely different category. No pun intended. I’m sure you can read about Van Doren and his demise somewhere on the Internet.

    Don’t take the joy out of watching Jeopardy with what I consider unsubstantiated accusations. Let’s move forward with the anticipated return of Julia Collins and commenting on her strategies. Next week should be exciting. Have a good weekend!

    • john blahuta says:

      i am not saying that the CANDIDATES are involved, but j – or sony- might tilt things in favor of somebody (categories etc….) if it works out, fine. if not…
      nobody will ever be able to prove anything if only one side is “rigging”. and as a candidate you won’t think twice if by “accident ” there are all of a sudden categories that you are good at. you count your blessings and your money. i totally agree that people like brad,ken,roger, ANY contestant would NOT participate. but if a category “slips” in that favors a player….it may not always work out as intended, but we have to take their word for it that categories are “pre-selected”. well, the pairings in this toc were certainly slanted towards having the 3 guys in the final who then actually made it .you can also call that “rigging”, you don’t have to give a contestant the answers, there are other, more subtle ways. still, the 2 final days were all in all a disappointment.

  4. Pat says:

    Now we know for sure that Jeopardy really is rigged. Odds that Jennings didn’t know the answer was Rice are close to zero. (I even knew that one, and I am not close to being even the most amateur a trivia buff.) Watch Quiz Show again, or if you haven’t seen it. Jeopardy also controls who wins by manipulating the clickers. It’s all show-biz. Jennings winning 75 times in a row was incredibly entertaining. Seeing him lose is too. Wish Alex had commended the writers as well as the players at the end; they did (and do) a brilliant job.

    • Tom Clark says:

      I have thought the buzzers were rigged for years now, but it never occurred to me that players are told to throw the game.

      Although very young at the time, I lived through the quiz show scandals of the late ’50s and there’s no way they’d go through that again.

      Or am I being naive?

    • eric steele says:

      “We know for sure”? All because Brad won? More people know Ken. So, do you believe that they scripted Roger as well? It seems a little elaborate for an already winning scenario, with three high profile finishers.

    • john blahuta says:

      as far as the buzzers go, you are certainly right. WHEN can you buzz in? when alex spoke the last word of the clue?(he sometimes adds an extra word after the clue….) a certain time period, what. and it only takes 1/10 of an adjustment to make a big difference. and then it could be a “technical malfunction”…..
      as long as it is not a “64K $ question” rigging, i guess we have to live with some uncertainties. plus, sometimes electronic devices DO malfunction, so that one position can ring in 1/10 or 1/20 of a second earlier etc….
      in german there is a saying, translated it would be something like “he who pays gives the orders”. who pays? SONY. not alex.and if sony stays within areas that CAN’T be proven…well, what are you gonna do, right?

      • eric steele says:

        They may buzz in as there is one light that comes on for all three to see at once. At least that’s when their buzzer should become active.

  5. jacobska says:

    Congratulations to Brad. My conjecture about Ken’s reaction is he probably was thinking he lost to Brad again but could not show any emotion until his total amount was revealed. Remember when he came in second to IBM’s Watson was the only time he finished ahead of Brad. VJ correct me if I am wrong. For Roger I have one of my favorite quotes from one Whittier’s poems. “For of all sad words of tongue and pen, the saddest are these: ‘It might have been.’ ” As for me I can’t contain my excitement over the return of Julia Collins on Monday.

    • vj says:

      I’m not a whiz on Jeopardy statistics, jacobska. I mess them up all the time. On poetry though, I do have a considerable amount stored in my brain cells. For Roger, I would do a little Tennyson takeoff:

      ‘Tis better to have dared and lost
      Than never to have dared at all.

      • eric steele says:

        Nice

      • john blahuta says:

        by “takeoff” i guess you mean to substitute “loved” for “dared”? a variation? didn’t know “takeoff” could be used that way. another day, another thing learned.

      • vj says:

        yes, John, sort of. A takeoff is more of an imitation than a substitute

  6. eric steele says:

    Again VJ thank you for putting in the extra work this week, you and everyone else made this week fun. I am, however, wondering if you could post the end of Brad’s qualifying game: some may not realize how close he came to an early exit! It will be completely understandable if this request is not filled for any reason. Either way, you’ve been great!

    • vj says:

      sorry Eric, I don’t have those games anymore, I generally don’t keep the recordings more than a week! But as luck would have it, I did feature the last category from Brad’s March game where he got the lock on the last clue of Double Jeopardy in that week’s FJ recap

      • eric steele says:

        That’s it!!! Then in final jeopardy, Mike provides the correct response, whereas Brad does not. As I said, Brad was a split second from elimination. That coverage is so incredibly tight. Well done VJ!!

  7. William K says:

    I thought it was a little bit sad that Roger was quite noticeably flustered during yesterday’s “edema” flub, and now today’s “Manitoba” flub. Kinda reminded me of that old Brady Bunch episode where Cindy Brady freezes up during her big quiz show appearance.

    It takes a little away from the game to see big misses on relatively easy material.

    Ah well, Alex was right about the fact that the charm of this tourney was seeing some of the returning players from years past. Too bad at least one of the older players couldn’t have made the finals to mix it up a bit.

    • jacobska says:

      I really would like to have seen Chuck in the finals.

      • Tom Clark says:

        I wish final really meant final. If I never see ol’ Brad, Ken and Chuck again, somehow I’ll get along. These guys make up in ego what they seriously lack in charm.

        Of course, compared to Chu they’re all living dolls.

      • vj says:

        But you’re in the minority on that, Tom. This tournament has been very popular and I’m wondering if they will rerun the entire thing in the summer or just these last two weeks.

        • eric steele says:

          Are you trying to kill Tom?

        • vj says:

          nah, I like Tom really. He reminds me of my son in a way who can only take so much of Jeopardy because he can’t stand Trebek (he will watch sometimes to humor me, his dear mommy). Sure, I have my moments where I wish someone gets defeated myself, but I don’t understand why Tom and my son would rather not watch the whole game (and see the boards) just because someone on there rubs them the wrong way.

        • eric steele says:

          I feel that way about Nancy Grace.

    • eric steele says:

      I have to admit that many of them played better than I expected: I thought rust and the maturing process might be a bigger factor. I hope all that were previously undefeated in regular games got invited back.

      • Tom Clark says:

        Maturing? The three finalists were all under 40, although Jennings turns 40 next week.

        • eric steele says:

          No, my angry compadre, I was referring to William K’s “older players”.

      • john blahuta says:

        no “reply” space in your “nancy grace” answer. so let me just say this: if by accident i see her picture when switching to the wrong channel or even see/hear her on a trailer, i wish my tv would act on voice command and shut off when i just say “off”. i can’t find the button to switch or tuirn it off fast enough. having said that i can understand tom. i guess everybody has at least ONE person in his/her live you HATE for various reasons, no matter how mild mannered or peaceful you are otherwise. if i would start about n.g., vj would have to create an extra site…..

  8. Dee Dee says:

    I am curious about Ken Jennings reaction after missing FJ. He appeared confident right before they showed his answer and almost surprised that he got it wrong.

    • vj says:

      I thought it was weird too. After all, he knew he was wrong after Roger got it right.

  9. Tom Clark says:

    How sad that today we learn that Roger Craig is even more of an effin’ idiot than I thought he was yesterday.

    Nothing like learning from your mistakes, eh?

    But who can be sad on such a day?

    I’m just so happy to see the biggest winner of all time win another million. I’ve been glowing with inner joy ever since. In fact, I did cartwheels up and down my street out of sheer, uncontainable happiness.

    It’s so important to me to know that Rutter beat Jennings in the Battle of the Decades. It makes everything else seem so trivial.

    Now I’d like to comment on the FJ and Jennings losing the whole ball of wax because of it.

    Rice should have come immediately to mind because it’s well known by people who live in reality and not fantasy that she’s gay and has a female partner.

    So Jennings deserved to lose. Craig deserved to lose. Actually, Rutter deserved to lose, too. Think of it: He won even though he missed FJ yesterday and bet zero on it today. Wow, how exciting!

    I’m not subjecting myself to any more of these tournaments — especially considering Chu will be part of them from now on. Enough is definitely enough!

    • Fidel Malinis says:

      I think it is safe to assume that you injured your head and lost some of your short memory when you did the cartwheels.
      Or maybe you have yet to hear that same- sex marriages are now allowed.

    • john blahuta says:

      tom did not CRITICIZE rice for being gay, just that the clue said “MARRIED”. at least that’s my take on it.
      and if nancy grace were involved in jeopardy, tom’s comments would be mild and soft compared to mine….

    • john blahuta says:

      i might not always agree with you, but i like good sarcasm and cynicism…..just haven’t found my subject yet, at least not on jeopardy!!

  10. john blahuta says:

    what are the chances of missing a dd two days in a row with the exact amount each time? had he been right both times this would have been a swing of 40.800. the champ would most likely be roger, especially since he got today’s fj right and we don’t know if he would have gotten yesterday’s fj and how much he would have wagered.an old saying comes to mind, sort of as an allusion: fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me…
    well, in hindsight: if he wanted to stay in contention he really did not have that much of a choice.had he been right today and then made the necessary wager in fj – he got it- who knows. but brad could have gotten to 33.600 max. and ken’s miss on fj…the possibilities are endless. at long last it’s over and now:

    BACK TO NORMAL JEOPARDY !!!!