‘Jeopardy!’: Ken Jennings, Sam Buttrey & More Wish Johnny Gilbert Happy 97th Birthday

Martin Holmes July 14, 2025, 9:20 am

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Johnny Gilbert, the iconic voice of Jeopardy!, turned 97 on Sunday (July 13) and was honored with a heartfelt tribute video featuring past contestants and current crew members.

“From all of us here at Jeopardy!, happy birthday to the one and only Johnny Gilbert! 🎉 🥳🎂,” the official Jeopardy! Instagram page captioned the video, which included special messages from the likes of host Ken Jennings, Tournament of Champions finalist and Inside Jeopardy! co-host Sam Buttrey, and long-time producer Sarah Whitcomb Foss.

“Johnny Gilbert is not just the voice of Jeopardy!, but its heart and soul,” Jennings said of the legendary announcer.

“I still get excited when I hear you say ‘This Is Jeopardy!’,” Buttrey added.

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“The Foss girls love you, Johnny,” Foss said in a video with her two young daughters, Taylor and Reagan. She also commented on the video, writing, “We love you Johnny Gilbert. Happy Birthday to one of the very best!”

Gilbert joined Jeopardy! in 1984 when the show’s creator, Merv Griffin, reintroduced the series as a daily syndicated program. The former host, the late Alex Trebek, convinced Griffin to hire Gilbert after meeting the announcer at a dinner party and being impressed with his voice. He has served in the role ever since.

When Jeopardy! celebrated its 9,000th episode in March 2024, Griffin was brought to the stage to mark the milestone moment. He shared stories with the studio audience, including how “[The show] was bought for 13 weeks” when it first started in syndication. “If it didn’t do well in 13 weeks, that was the end of the show,” he explained. “Obviously, it’s done very well.”

“So, for what it’s worth, thank you very much from a very humble guy on Jeopardy!” Gilbert added.

Fans also celebrated Gilbert’s 97th birthday with messages of support, with one Instagram user writing, “Happy 97th birthday to this legendary announcer of America’s favorite answer & question show. Who is Johnny Gilbert?”

“Happy birthday Johnny thank you for coming into my house for 43 years. Your voice calms me ❤️down,” said another.

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“Biggest icon to jeopardy, still at it at 97!” added a Reddit commenter.

“It is quite frankly incredible that he still appears to be in as robust health as he is currently. his voice and presentation for the show are still as sonorous as they have always been, and that is just astounding to me (in a positive sense, of course),” another added.

“WHAT?! 97?! I had no idea, that’s absolutely incredible. What a guy!” wrote another.

One fan added, “I have no idea how he maintains such a voice at 97. I’ll find it hard to settle for anyone else when the time comes. Happy birthday to an icon.”

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