Thursday, March 23, 2017 Game Recap & Discussion [SPOILERS]

[Leander]

No chance on this FJ. Never saw the opera, didn't know the character was a valet, and never heard of "picaresque." And I'm not really seeing how picaresque is derivative of Figaro - even if you spotted me all of that.

So, they went from a really good FJ to one that I guess favors opera lovers - although I'd be curious to know how many of them would get this. (Congrats to Stephanie!).

I had no idea what picaresque meant, but the opera date and character description pointed to only one person, so an instaget for me on the opera side.

[IronNeck]

Definitely curious what happened with Kevin's second DD; he was very good at geography. Did he just not see the Spanish flag?

LT: Batman, Madrid

FJ: Very familiar with the term picaresque as well as with the extraordinary life of Pierre Beaumarchais. On the flip side, I'm terrible at opera.

Took me 15 seconds to get it.

[twelvefootboy]

Congrats, Kevin. I'm anxious to hear your inside scoops. Is the taping studio cold? How do you follow the opponent's score, is there a visible sign or monitor you can see? you must know your own score somehow? Most important, will your check come soon

I thought this FJ might be a triple stumper and was hoping you'd slide in on a good wager, and you would have. Instead, it was Stephanie with the sole solve.

For FJ, I tried hard to think of a simple derivative name for about 10 seconds that might be hoity toity sounding (like Puck). Then I just enjoyed the music. At least AT is back to explaining the solutions. This FJ clue is weaker than other recent ones. Nobody is going to think twice about this one.

The buckwheat clue is the first stand and stare for the top row boxes I remember seeing, without even a bad guess. I got it from the pancake TOM, not the Rascals.

I'm waiting for someone to shout out to Maven because she made a second row (I think) box clue! She is like Savoir-Faire!!

[harrumph]

For FJ I figured they wanted a Mozart opera named after a character, which eliminated The Magic Flute and left Figaro.

[Category 13]

I feel bad for Kevin and Robin, who wagered properly on FJ only to get beat by an unwise wager from third. I'll be rooting for the two challengers tomorrow. More specifically, I'll be rooting for Stephanie to finish DJ in 3rd with a crush to the leader.

[BigDaddyMatty]

Coryat: $29,200
41 R/4 W
DD: 2/3
FJ:
LT: Lyndon Johnson (DD), buckwheat, "we are all..."

I don't know much about opera. I don't know the word "picaresque." I do know, however, that "picar" kinda sounds like "Figar(o)." Luckily, that was enough tonight.

Did somebody say buckwheat? Did somebody say Figaro?

[flutist319]

What was up with the category "Preposition 5"? I was a bit confused at first because I expected the answers to have five letters, or something. I don't think Alex ever explained it. Is it a reference to something? Or is it something obvious I'm missing?

[BigDaddyMatty]

What was up with the category "Preposition 5"? I was a bit confused at first because I expected the answers to have five letters, or something. I don't think Alex ever explained it. Is it a reference to something? Or is it something obvious I'm missing?

The preceding category was On The Ballot, so it was a pun on Proposition 5, something one would expect to see on the ballot. I also thought that maybe it would be prepositions with five letters, but it turned out to just be a category where the five correct responses were prepositions.

[This Is Kirk!]

No chance on this FJ. Never saw the opera, didn't know the character was a valet, and never heard of "picaresque."

The only reason I know the word is it's the name of an album by The Decemberists and I looked up the definition of the word when the album came out.

I didn't write down "Figaro" till probably 20 seconds in, and didn't have much confidence in it, but the year seemed correct for Mozart and I didn't have anything better. I'll take it!

[BobF]

For FJ, I put Jean-Luc Picard just to have something. Once Alex said the word was "picaro" I realized what it was.

[Elijah Baley]

No chance on this FJ. Never saw the opera, didn't know the character was a valet, and never heard of "picaresque."

The only reason I know the word is it's the name of an album by The Decemberists and I looked up the definition of the word when the album came out.

I didn't write down "Figaro" till probably 20 seconds in, and didn't have much confidence in it, but the year seemed correct for Mozart and I didn't have anything better. I'll take it!

I'm embarrassed to say that the date threw me too. It seemed so early for some reason, like way too early for Mozart. So, it was about a complete a fail as possible. But those writers do love their opera trivia; I only wish that Bugs Bunny had gone a little further with the opera send-ups!

[AFRET CMS]

The "little rascal" hint was a funny one even though it was not enough to help me get buckwheat.

I stalled on "Alfalfa" thinking "but that's not a grain...." Glad I didn't ring in.

[AFRET CMS]

Congrats, Kevin. I'm anxious to hear your inside scoops. Is the taping studio cold? How do you follow the opponent's score, is there a visible sign or monitor you can see? you must know your own score somehow? Most important, will your check come soon

A -- they warn us to bring a sweater since some find the studio a little cool. I was very comfortable in the audience with a long-sleeved shirt, and never noticed the temperature at all once on stage. It may have been a bit warmer on stage due to the lights, but it was neither warm enough nor cool enough for the temperature to be noticeable either way.

B -- to the left of the game board, not visible on TV, is a monitor at floor level for video clues. The cameras that focus on the contestants are behind and above that monitor. Above the cameras, at about the level of the top of the game board, is a set of three score displays. They're in "mirror order," with the defending champion's score on the right as you look at them and the score for contestant #3 on the far left. You may notice contestants looking up and to the left when considering a DD wager. I've seen some contestants on TV glancing pretty regularly at the scores, but I found I was so focused on the game board the only times I thought to look at the scores were during pauses for DDs and commercials.

C -- they tell us the check will come roughly 90-120 days after airing, so I'll be watching the mail in August and September! And to address the elephant (I've gotten MANY inquiries from friends and family about "What are going to do with your new wealth?"), I can disclose that contestants sign a form acknowledging that we are independent contractors and not employees. We signed a LOT of forms, and I can't remember if a withholding form was one of them. However, the contestant winnings are considered earnings from self-employment and have to be reported on Schedule SE on federal income tax. So -- fed income tax (for us in our bracket, it will be about 20-22% or so effective rate), plus California state income tax, plus Colorado state income tax (state taxes totaling about 5-6%), plus self-employment tax (both employer and employee portion of FICA and Medicare) of 15.7%, I think. Whew! Total of close to 40% for taxes. Plus I have a "special" zinger -- I started Social Security last year when we retired. Since I'll be 65 this summer, I have an SS earnings cap of $16,920. I give up $1 in SS for every $2 earned in excess of that. So, after I file my 2017 taxes in 2018, that will get folded into next year's SS calculation and I'll have about $9,000 deducted from SS payments in 2019.

So, after the dust settles, we'll be able to pay a reasonable amount for my daughter's upcoming wedding plus enough left over to trade in our 17-year-old minivan on maybe a 4-5-year-old minivan. Which is absolutely wonderful, since we went to California blessing my good fortune to get picked for Jeopardy and very well prepared in case I won $1000 in my first and only game. The money is nice, it's money we didn't have before -- but the experience was absolutely PRICELESS!

[AFRET CMS]

I feel bad for Kevin and Robin, who wagered properly on FJ only to get beat by an unwise wager from third. I'll be rooting for the two challengers tomorrow. More specifically, I'll be rooting for Stephanie to finish DJ in 3rd with a crush to the leader.

I have to respectfully disagree. Both Robin and Stephanie were great competitors and fun opponents. Both Robin and I had the opportunity to win, but Stephanie pulled it out and was deservedly crowned champion.

On a personal note, all of the contestants that day were fun and interesting people, and I thoroughly enjoyed the honor and privilege of being in the group. I think I probably had more interaction with Stephanie than I did with most of the other contestants. We sat next to each other at the green room table during the two-hour briefing and forms completion session in the morning, and chatted during pauses in the activities. We also had a very nice lunch conversation between the Wednesday and Thursday shows, and I got to see pictures of the daughter Stephanie talked about during the post-commercial chat. Finally, after my exit from the show, my family and I stayed for the Friday episode to watch Stephanie defend her title. We wound up on the sidewalk together waiting for our respective cabs after taping was done, and it was fun to have a final chance to share our excitement about the day's experience. She's every bit a personable in real life as she comes across on TV, and I had a total blast spending the day with her and the other contestants!

[AFRET CMS]

Definitely curious what happened with Kevin's second DD; he was very good at geography. Did he just not see the Spanish flag?

I don't know that I saw it clearly on the monitor, but I also have to admit if I saw the flags of Spain, Mexico, and Colombia side-by-side I'd probably misidentify them. Thought process was "Christopher Columbus = Cristobal Colon in Spanish, therefore Colon --> Columbus --> Colombia, Colombia = Bogota." Win some, lose some. Darn.

[alietr]

However, the contestant winnings are considered earnings from self-employment and have to be reported on Schedule SE on federal income tax. So -- fed income tax (for us in our bracket, it will be about 20-22% or so effective rate), plus California state income tax, plus Colorado state income tax (state taxes totaling about 5-6%), plus self-employment tax (both employer and employee portion of FICA and Medicare) of 15.7%, I think. Whew! Total of close to 40% for taxes. Plus I have a "special" zinger -- I started Social Security last year when we retired. Since I'll be 65 this summer, I have an SS earnings cap of $16,920. I give up $1 in SS for every $2 earned in excess of that. So, after I file my 2017 taxes in 2018, that will get folded into next year's SS calculation and I'll have about $9,000 deducted from SS payments in 2019.

I don't think you're right, Kevin. I'm not a CPA, but I think you may want to look at this more carefully or get some professional advice. As far as I know (and remember from my taxes), it is considered miscellaneous income (I believe you get a 1099-MISC), which is characterized as "Other Income" on your 1040 (Line 21, not Schedule C -- you're not engaged in an ongoing business). So first of all, you don't pay any self-employment taxes or Medicare. In addition, you should get a credit on your Colorado taxes for any California taxes you pay. As I said, if you have any questions, seek professional assistance, but I think you're wrong here (and much to your benefit).

[twelvefootboy]

I feel bad for Kevin and Robin, who wagered properly on FJ only to get beat by an unwise wager from third. I'll be rooting for the two challengers tomorrow. More specifically, I'll be rooting for Stephanie to finish DJ in 3rd with a crush to the leader.

I have to respectfully disagree. Both Robin and Stephanie were great competitors and fun opponents. Both Robin and I had the opportunity to win, but Stephanie pulled it out and was deservedly crowned champion.

Kevin,
Just catching up to the posts again - thanks for the intel and insider info. I've traveled a lot and my bucket list was empty until I started watching this show seriously right after Cindy Stowell's appearances (which led to me discovering this site). Now - I have to see a taping day (or two?) is on my bucket list. And, I suppose it needs to be during Alex's tenure.

Best of luck going forward, I know it is a life changing event with or without the money. And thanks for defending Stephanie, she won it by the rules and I don't get the sour grapes. My 96 year old father doesn't play his Skip-Bo cards correctly, but we still root for him to win (OK, we help him a little

[AFRET CMS]

However, the contestant winnings are considered earnings from self-employment and have to be reported on Schedule SE on federal income tax. So -- fed income tax (for us in our bracket, it will be about 20-22% or so effective rate), plus California state income tax, plus Colorado state income tax (state taxes totaling about 5-6%), plus self-employment tax (both employer and employee portion of FICA and Medicare) of 15.7%, I think. Whew! Total of close to 40% for taxes. Plus I have a "special" zinger -- I started Social Security last year when we retired. Since I'll be 65 this summer, I have an SS earnings cap of $16,920. I give up $1 in SS for every $2 earned in excess of that. So, after I file my 2017 taxes in 2018, that will get folded into next year's SS calculation and I'll have about $9,000 deducted from SS payments in 2019.

I don't think you're right, Kevin. I'm not a CPA, but I think you may want to look at this more carefully or get some professional advice. As far as I know (and remember from my taxes), it is considered miscellaneous income (I believe you get a 1099-MISC), which is characterized as "Other Income" on your 1040 (Line 21, not Schedule C -- you're not engaged in an ongoing business). So first of all, you don't pay any self-employment taxes or Medicare. In addition, you should get a credit on your Colorado taxes for any California taxes you pay. As I said, if you have any questions, seek professional assistance, but I think you're wrong here (and much to your benefit).

Excellent! If that's the case, that will just fold it into our ordinary income for the year and save a few dollars. I actually have a call in to our financial advisor (couldn't disclose before the show aired what the details were), so I appreciate the additional info. Our taxes are usually pretty humdrum, so I normally use tax prep software. Next year, though, we're already planning a using a professional. Wonder if Ken Jennings might have a recommendation about who to call after his FJ with Nancy Zerg.

[AFRET CMS]

The "little rascal" hint was a funny one even though it was not enough to help me get buckwheat.

I needed no hint for Zenger as may not have known the name in 1984 while by 2017 I've seen him plenty of times for clues to snap up the trash.

I had "safe" as part of NSFW, but of course "suitable" as given by the contestant works as well for a correct response. Is there a third "S" that would pass muster as well?

The FJ! clue was one that gave me a response half right as for the six letters required I had the first two and last one correct.

Kevin, congrats on being able to play three games of J! and well done with a consistent Coryat score in each one. It's tough to overcome the 0/3 on big clues in the same match. On the plus side you were part of the streak ending and a full slate of 61 clues revealed today. Thank you for your part in that and for the extra insight you have shared about the games.

Thanks for the kind words. I'll share some thought process behind the FJ tomorrow, in hopes that folks won't be bored with trivial details. But Jeopardy! fans like trivial details, don't they?

And here, assuming that people aren't already tired of hearing from me, is the promised additional backstory to the FJ clue.

The "clever valet, 1780s opera" pointed pretty directly to Figaro, but the reference to "picaresque" was a bit of a curve. My immediate response was, "They want us to say Figaro, but they're trying to trick us -- that's not how Figaro got his name!"

I had a very clear and very specific memory from a long ago freshman or sophomore music appreciation class where we discussed this particular subject. We learned then that Figaro came from "son of Caron," the boyhood nickname of Beaumarchais, the writer who invented the character in a series of plays upon which all of the Figaro operas are based. Since he was the only boy among the six children, Beaumarchais was known as "Fils Caron," pronounced "Fee Caroe". Beaumarchais supposedly considered himself a clever rascal, and Figaro was therefore a bit of an alter-ego.

The reason my memory is so clear and specific is that my mother was a huge fan of Leslie Caron, who starred in "Gigi" and "An American in Paris." I shared the Figaro story from class the next time I had dinner with my folks, and we had a silly discussion at dinner about whether or not Gigi might have been related to The Barber of Seville (yes, I know, but we had MANY odd dinner conversations in my family!).

I actually had some correspondence with the producers after the show about it. I provided the "Fils Caron" info and cited several references. They acknowledged that the Fils Caron hypothesis is a recognized possibility, but so is the "picaro" derivation, and provided other references that supported "picaro." Turns out that there are several hypotheses, and no academic consensus about which one is correct -- Beaumarchais never specified, so all is speculation.

The producers pointed out that the clue said "might have been" instead of "was," so it certainly implied more than one possibility.

I spent the think music trying to come up with a better answer, and drew a blank. I should have written down Figaro even though I didn't think it was right, but just couldn't pull the trigger. Which, in my opinion, means even more props to Stephanie for committing to the answer.

It was great ride while it lasted, and this week has been tremendous fun. There's so little time with so much to do between episodes ("Quick, change your shirt, do you need the restroom?, better drink some water, time to get your makeup touched up, need to get re-miked, time to get back on stage, let's go") that things didn't sink in for me until after taping was done, and by then my final memory was of losing. This week, I got to enjoy a day or two of being a champion.

Every single Jeopardy! player has an opportunity to set a record. Each of us has strong categories, and each of us has unwelcome categories (pop culture? Oh, no! Current music? Ouch!). Some meet their unkind board in their first game, some in their third, some in their 21st, and one in his 75th. But once everything is over, we each leave the show tied with Ken Jennings -- every single contestant has one regular Jeopardy! loss on our record.

Wonderful group of people -- both staff and contestants. I would do it again in a heartbeat!

[alietr]

Wonderful group of people -- both staff and contestants. I would do it again in a heartbeat!

Yeah, but don't wear the same tie!