Who Is Amy Schneider? 6 Things to Know About ‘Jeopardy!’ Champion

Jeopardy! Amy Schneider
Jeopardy Productions, Inc.

Season 38 of Jeopardy! has made for some really impressive champions so far as Amy Schneider continues to dominate the game playing field.

Following in the footsteps of the show’s other recent champion, Matt Amodio, Amy is keeping calm, cool, and collected as she answers clues with ease among her competitors. As she continues to break records and make Jeopardy! history, we’re rounding up some things viewers should know about this impressive player.

Where Does She Rank Among Winners?

Upon her 14th victory, Amy became the fourth biggest winner from non-tournament games behind Matt Amodio ($1,518,601), James Holzhauer ($2,462,216), and current guest host Ken Jennings ($2,520,700). As of December 22, 2021, Amy . Will she keep it up? It certainly seems possible.

Jeopardy! Amy Schneider

(Credit: Jeopardy Productions, Inc.)

Where Is She From?

Amy hails from the San Francisco Bay Area as she currently resides in Oakland, California.

What Is Her Job?

According to Amy’s Jeopardy! profile, she’s currently working as an engineer manager.

How Is She Making Jeopardy! History?

Amy is the first woman to break the top earnings spots and is Jeopardy!‘s biggest-winning trans champion to date. She’s also the first out transgender contestant who will compete in Jeopardy!‘s Tournament of Champions.

What Is the Significance of Her Wizard of Oz Tattoo?

In one of Amy’s most recent episodes, she explained the origin of her tattoo which is covered during tapings. The image depicts a character from L. Frank Baum’s Wizard of Oz books, that Amy connected with when transitioning. As Amy further explained on Twitter, her tattoo is of Princess Ozma. “She had been the rightful heir, but was kidnapped as a baby by a sorceress, who enchanted her to become a boy. Eventually, the enchantment is lifted, and she is revealed to be the beautiful princess she always was. So it seemed like the perfect image to commemorate my transition!”

What Is Her Personal Connection to the Show?

During Amy’s introductory episode, she revealed she was the second person in her family to compete on the game show after her former brother-in-law played. Clearly, she’s surpassed him by a wide margin as she’s become one of the show’s top competitors.

See how Amy continues to fare as Jeopardy!‘s 38th season continues.

Jeopardy!, Weeknights, Check your local listings




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  1. G

    GoldRing

    Good for Amy. Brilliance is brilliance regardless of packaging.

    48 9

  2. C

    CyanStrawberry

    You go girl! Love watching your genius.

    24 6

  3. O

    OrangePopcorn

    I think greatness is greatness whether it's in sports or game shows. Let's appreciate the greatness that she's exhibiting. Tiger Woods brought me back to golf, James Holzhauer made Jeopardy "must see tv", I believe the same is true for Amy.

    20 4

  4. C

    CyanAirBalloon

    Rock, love watching her own the show . Living her best life rock on girl 💃🏼💃🏼💃🏼

    10

  5. G

    GreenPlane

    I think she is very brave because most people are blindsided. I like her and I hope she continues to go on. On. On. very smart lady which I applauded!

    12 3

  6. B

    BlueBoomerang

    Nice to see how smart some people are when they keep winning 🥇. They must’ve invested unbelievable time, patience and social sacrifice to able to be so smart. There winning are the tokens of there hard work. I want to see her win endlessly ❤️, Atta Girl 👧🏻 Amy

    14 5

    1. O

      OliveSword

      With your permission, one little clarification. Years of study don't make you smart, they make you educated. One is born smart, or not.

      2 1

  7. O

    OliveSailboat

    In the interviews she said she's from Ohio, lives in the Bay Area now

    8

  8. G

    GoldSubmarine

    Yay Amy! I used to listen to a podcast that she had with her former wife a few years ago. This was pre-trans. John Anneken is her former brother-in-law that was on Jeopardy.

    10 3

  9. O

    OliveRadio

    Amy is a great champ but this has been a terrible season of Jeopardy. Despite the great champs, too many uncompetitive runaway games. It gets too boring to watch when you practically know what the outcome is.

    17 11

    1. O

      OrangeLamp

      You obviously don't understand the concept of games.

      4 3

      1. O

        OrangeWeights

        Yes I do. All I was saying that desipte the many great champs, this season has been a failiure in my opionion because most of the games have been uncompetitive. And watching these games that have been mostly uncompetitive have been a complete bore. I

        5 5

    2. J

      Jena

      I agree. I don't mind a champion who wins 5 or 7, even 10 games. After that it gets a little boring and non-competitive. Especially when the games are blow-outs, and the 'champion' has a runaway lead and can't be caught. No suspense, no drama, no fun.

      17 12

  10. R

    RedHat

    What's your damage? The clothes, name , persuasion don't alter the knowledge. It's a game of intellect, period.

    4 2

  11. C

    CyanBike

    Yawn , I'm all for term limits

    2 1

  12. B

    BlueBandAid

    She is very funny

  13. G

    GoldHammer

    I very much appreciate that you let people post as freely as you do. I do like witty and thought-provoking conversation. What stays up is certainly your call. Thank you.

  14. G

    GoldHammer

    Some of these threads have so many redactions the remaining 'replies' are like the holes in swiss cheese. (i.e. They have no context, which totally subverts the poster's meaning.)

  15. O

    OliveDice

    I think Amy Scheider is great and miss her already. I wish her the best.

  16. O

    OliveBeer

    I m not a fan of hers! Her snickers after answers really bothers me n had ruined the fun of the game! If she host me n others will never watch Jeopardy again

  17. G

    GreenPlane

    Me 2, watching them runaway is great, they all have the same chance at the beginning of show to do something but they dont, its strange..

  18. G

    GreenPlane

    Agreed

  19. G

    GreenPlane

    I agree

  20. G

    GreenPlane

    I disagree, I like watching her take game for herself. Just my opinion, but i will say they had to have lowered the testing skills becaise when shes at 10k they have 200, thats very strange..

  21. G

    GreenPlane

    I agree, She's brilliant

  22. B

    BlueFan

    What is the big deal about Jeopardy? Almost all answers can be easily found on Google. Why be impressed with a person who knows them?

  23. O

    OliveLocomotive

    So a man is smarter than a woman? Misogyny and transphobia. Be better.

  24. R

    RedBone

    So happy for Amy!

    3 3

  25. O

    OrangeAirBalloon

    Right in the article you are commenting on it states

    "How Is She Making Jeopardy! History? Amy is the first woman to break the top earnings spots"...

    2 2

  26. R

    RedApple

    Woman

    4 4

  27. C

    CyanPopcorn

    Pretending, no. Emulating, yes. Which most people have no problem with, as long as they identify as such.

    1 1

  28. B

    BlueTooth

    Love her!

    1 3

  29. O

    OliveProcessor

    OMGosh, Amy's continuous wins are not in the least boring. I'm rooting for her and amazed at the breath of her knowledge. I loved watching Matt, as well, and rooted for him to go on forever, but Amy really as me hooked. I hope she keeps on winning...I had to endure 2 weeks of the professors competition, to get back to Amy. I did enjoy the professors, but...

    1 3

  30. R

    RedGoggles

    Go get that million, Amy! You can do anything!

    3 5

  31. O

    OliveUmbrella

    Maybe she should host the show after she's finished cleaning house? I'm sure Alex would approve and be proud.

    1 4

  32. P

    PurpleBottleOpener

    Why do you guys even care about her biological gender? Lowkey, it doesn't affect you. Be glad the LGBTQ+ community is being represented and succeeding in such a biased world, especially one that's dominated by old cis/het white guys. 🙎 It's not make-believe, and it's not harmful to anyone. Our world is evolving and opening up to everyone.

    2 5

    1. O

      OrangeAirBalloon

      Humans have been around for 200,000 years. It's taken women 199,850 years of struggle to make some headway and get some parity in a world dominated by men!!! 'Amy' is not helping women or achieving anything for women.

      3 2

      1. P

        PurpleBottleOpener

        For trans women, yeah, she is. Amy is showing people it doesn't matter who you are, you can still succeed. It makes me sad that you feel such a need to discriminate against trans women. You're obviously a TERF and want feminists to be quote-unquote, "Real girls".

        Cause ya know, you want to break stereotypes, but when anyone else wants to help, you kick them out of your little clique. "Amy", as you say, is inspiring people. It's pathetic that as soon as someone pops up, you immediately go onto your little computer and bash them. She's doing great, and you have something going on in your life you think warrants this kind of behavior, and it doesn't.

        2 2

        1. O

          OrangeAirBalloon

          I think Amy's achievement on Jeopardy is terrific and noteworthy. If you are trans that is fine too, you can live whatever lifestyle you choose to. But, you seem to think that women need your "help" to "break stereotypes". We don't. I paid my dues my whole life. And yet YOU "bash" me because I AM a woman!

          1 1

  33. G

    GoldPopsicle

    So women past menopause are "he" too? Got it.

    4

  34. G

    GreenApple

    Had enough. Always like to see the challenger win. Get tired of the same person winning.

    10 18

  35. G

    GoldMustache

    I think a person should be limited to so many weeks. Same person all the time is boring to watch. Also, other competitors don’t have a chance. Amy runs away with every show and makes show boring because you know she is going to win. Limit no if weeks allowed to play

    24 35

    1. C

      CyanStrawberry

      Long runs are great for the game

      3 3

    2. G

      GreenCloud

      Your logic eludes me. The other contestants have the same chance and have frequently hit the daily doubles and got them wrong. Don't be miffed at Amy because she's better informed than they are, that's not her fault.

      36 3

    3. C

      CyanStrawberry

      It's a rare event when someone goes on a winning streak over multiple shows. The questions would not be different with any other contestant, so why is it suddenly boring when the same one goes on a streak? In my opinion, it adds to the excitement to see how long one contestant can make their streak last.

      45 2

    4. O

      OliveSailboat

      Some people have more knowledge.

      Do you also think they shouldn't test applicants, just pick random people off the street? I'm in awe of polymaths like her.

      3 1

    5. G

      GreenToast

      Don’t watch then!

      4

    6. O

      OliveRadio

      I agree with you. There should be a cut off time.

      3 1

    7. B

      BlueBandAid

      Agree. I get bored after a week or so of the same winner.

      2

    8. O

      OliveSword

      In the original Art Fleming Jeopardy! episodes, I believe the limit was 5 wins and then off you went. Toodles! The excitement in having one person competing weeks on end is to see who is smarter than the champion. It’s the same reason why folks are drawn to loser sports teams on the professional and non-pro status - can they win at last? Will they lose?

      1