‘Jeopardy!’ Bosses Address Controversial Ruling That Stopped Ken Jennings in His Tracks
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Jeopardy! viewers are still reeling over last Friday’s (October 13) episode, which saw former Season 38 champion Lawrence Long eliminated from the Champions Wildcard tournament in controversial fashion. Now show bosses are explaining the decision that halted filming and even had host Ken Jennings feeling bad for the unlucky loser.
The highly debated moment came during Final Jeopardy! after Long gave an answer that was technically right but deemed incorrect because of an unnecessarily added extra word. The situation was so tense that producers said they “stopped down the taping” to research the answer further.
Long went into Final Jeopardy! with $10,000, placing him second to former Season 37 champ Sam Stapleton at $18,400. Despite being behind, Long still had a chance at victory, depending on his answer and wager.
The final clue, under the category “Royalty,” read: “Before his death in 2005, he said he was ‘probably the last head of state to be able to recognize all his compatriots in the street.'”
Prince Rainier III (of Monaco) was the correct answer, which Long knew, except he wrote “King Rainier.”
Host Ken Jennings tried to offer some sympathy as he told Long his answer was incorrect. “Lawrence, I think you’re thinking of the right guy. Unfortunately, Monaco does not have kings, so we cannot accept that,” Jennings said.
It was then revealed that Long had wagered his entire $10,000, which would have doubled his total. “So close,” Jennings added before declaring Stapleton the episode’s winner.
Fans felt for Long, with one commenter on YouTube writing, “I feel bad for Lawrence, and this was a little hard for me to watch.”
Another said, “Tough break for Lawrence. That mistake cost him at least $15,000.”
One commenter asked, “If Lawrence just wrote “Rainier,” would that be considered correct?”
Well, Jeopardy! producer Sarah Whitcomb Foss answered that question on this week’s Inside Jeopardy! podcast.
“We stopped down the taping,” Foss shared. “We were looking for any reference to a ‘King Rainier’ to start backing up a case for why it could also be accepted, but we couldn’t find anything.”
She continued, “That was the hardest part when Lawrence said, ‘So if I had just said Rainier, would I have been marked correct?”
Foss was referring to a post-game clip of Jennings talking to Long after the episode. In the clip, Jennings tells the unfortunate contestant, “Lawrence, you were within a hair. I don’t feel great about that. We did some research. Monaco does not style its leaders as kings and queens.”
Long is then heard asking if they would have accepted just “Rainier,” to which Jennings replies, “‘Rainier’ would have been fine; I don’t know if you want to know that, but yeah.”
Foss’ co-host, former Tournament of Champions winner Buzzy Cohen, agreed with the ruling, even if it was hard to watch.
“It’s the tough ruling, but it’s the right ruling,” Cohen stated. “Everyone wants, when someone’s in the spirit of the right answer, to give it to them, but rules are rules.”
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