Wednesday, July 10, 2013 Game Recap & Discussion [SPOILERS]

[Archivists]

Game Recap for Show #6648, 2013-07-10

CONTESTANTS
Beth Morgan, a marketing consultant from Palo Alto, California
Stacie Larson, a public librarian from Orlando, Florida
Ben Ingram, an I.T. Consultant originally from Florence, South Carolina (whose 7-day cash winnings total $157,733)

OPENING REMARKS
Alex: Thank you, Johnny. And welcome, ladies and gentlemen. Well, the big question of course now is the B.B. Question --Who can beat Ben? Can these two young ladies, Beth and Stacie, do it? We're gonna find out in this half hour. Good luck to all three. Here we go. Jeopardy! Round. Here are the categories. Hope you like them.

JEOPARDY! ROUND CATEGORIES
2013 POSTAGE STAMPS (5/5)
FLANDERS (5/5, including 1 correct Daily Double)
LADIES IN DIS-TRESS (3/5)
CROSSWORD CLUES "L" (5/5)
NONFICTION (5/5)
PARTS OF THE WHOLE (3/5)

THE RIGHTS & THE WRONGS
Ben: 11 R (including 1 rebound and 1 DD), 1 W
Beth: 8 R, 0 W
Stacie: 7 R (including 1 rebound), 2 W

Clues revealed: 30
Triple Stumpers: 4
Jeopardy! Round Potential Lach Trash: $3,000



JEOPARDY! ROUND DAILY DOUBLE
Ben found the Daily Double on the 2nd clue. Ben had $600, Stacie was scoreless, and Beth had nothing in the bank. Ben wagered $1,000.

FLANDERS $800: Great painters from Flanders include this man, whose work is seen here

SCORES AT THE FIRST BREAK
Ben: $4,400
Beth: $1,200
Stacie: $1,000

CONTESTANT INTERVIEWS



Alex: Like so many of our Jeopardy! contestants, Beth Morgan has a special talent and one I have never heard of. You can spin fire poi?

Beth: Well, you've obviously never been to Burning Man in Nevada. So, I picked it up there, and you take Kevlar wicks at the end of a metal chain, you soak it in kerosene, you take two of them, and then, you just spin them in different shapes and formations.

Alex: While they're lit?

Beth: While they're lit, yeah.

Alex: Why do you do this?

Beth: 'cause it's awesome.

[Laughter]

Beth: It sounds neat. It looks neat. It's daredevil-ish.

Alex: You do this sober?

Beth: Oh, you've got to. You don't want to --

[Laughter]

Alex: Okay.




Alex: Stacie Larson is a public librarian. Would you do that?

Stacie: No. No, I would set myself on fire.

Alex: Oh, okay. Now, your husband, who is a Latin major, proposed to you in Latin?

Stacie: He did. It was the formal dance for the fall, and the theme was "all roads lead to Rome." So, he decided to take advantage of the opportunity, and he got down on one knee and proposed to me in Latin.

Alex: Did you understand what he was saying, or did you just figure it out because the guy's on his knees in front of you?

Stacie: Mostly, there was a visual cue. There were enough words I kind of recognized. But what I didn't know was how to say "yes" in Latin.

[Laughter]

Alex: And what did you say?

Stacie: "I don't know how to say 'yes' in Latin!"

[Laughter]

Alex: That's what you responded?

Stacie: Yes, and then I said "yes."

Alex: I think he figured that you were gonna say "yes" anyway.




Alex: Ben Ingram. Last week on our program, after you had won your third or fourth game, you told me that you were gonna use some of the money to buy a new bed 'cause you have a single bed, and you wanted a king-size 'cause you're a tall guy. Now you have added to your shopping list. You want to get --

Ben: A snooker table, a big 9x6 one, but my girlf--

Alex: That's a big table.

Ben: That is a big table but --

Alex: Need a lot of space.

Ben: That's true. My girlfriend, Liz, says there's not enough space in my place, lovely lady that she is. So, maybe I'll just add a new room, and we'll see what happens.

[Laughter]

Alex: That's why he's the Jeopardy! champ. [pointing to his head] Huh? Huh?

[Laughter]

TRIPLE STUMPERS IN THE JEOPARDY! ROUND
PARTS OF THE WHOLE $200: Bait pedal,
locking bar,
spring
(Stacie: What's a fishing rod?)

PARTS OF THE WHOLE $1000: Prince of Wales handle,
runner,
rib

LADIES IN DIS-TRESS $800: In 1955's "The Virgin Queen", this actress didn't lose her head but lost a lot off the top in the title role

LADIES IN DIS-TRESS $1000: This actress' character in "My Sister's Keeper" shaves her head in sympathy for her cancer-stricken child

SCORES AT THE END OF THE JEOPARDY! ROUND
Ben: $6,400
Beth: $4,200
Stacie: $3,000

[Archivists]

DOUBLE JEOPARDY! ROUND CATEGORIES
CITY PARKS (4/5, including 1 correct Daily Double)
SUPERHERO ALTER EGOS (1/4)
THIS & THAT (4/5)
IT'S EXTINCT! (4/5, including 1 missed Daily Double)
OCCUPATIONAL VERBS (3/5)
"R" IS FOR RELIGION (4/5)

THE RIGHTS & THE WRONGS
Ben: 9 R (including 1 rebound and 1 DD), 2 W (including 1 DD)
Beth: 6 R, 0 W
Stacie: 5 R, 2 W

Clues revealed: 29
Triple Stumpers: 8
Double Jeopardy! Round Potential Lach Trash: $14,400



FIRST DOUBLE JEOPARDY! ROUND DAILY DOUBLE
Ben snagged the next Daily Double on the 4th clue. Ben had $8,400, Stacie had $2,600, and Beth was at $4,200. Ben wagered $4,000.

CITY PARKS $1600: You can see the 1905 Wright Flyer III in a park in this Ohio city

SECOND DOUBLE JEOPARDY! ROUND DAILY DOUBLE
It was Ben who snatched up the last Daily Double of the game on the 24th clue. Ben had $14,800, Stacie had $2,200, and Beth was at $9,000. Ben wagered $2,000.

IT'S EXTINCT! $1600: (Sarah of the Clue Crew shows a fossil on the monitor.) From the shape of the protrusions on its molars, this prehistoric mammal had a name meaning "breast tooth"
(Ben: What is pectadon?)
...
(Alex: Less than a minute now.)

TRIPLE STUMPERS IN THE DOUBLE JEOPARDY! ROUND
THIS & THAT $2000: In 1887 she got herself committed to an insane asylum to write an expose for the New York World

OCCUPATIONAL VERBS $1600: To steer, as a captain may steer a ship through rough waters

SUPERHERO ALTER EGOS $1200: Oliver Queen

SUPERHERO ALTER EGOS $1600: Barbara Gordon

SUPERHERO ALTER EGOS $2000: Ben Grimm

CITY PARKS $2000: This Chicago park's conservatory features 4 greenhouses, including the Orchid House with over 20,000 orchids

OCCUPATIONAL VERBS $2000: As a noun it means a clergyman; as a verb it's to attend to another's needs
(Stacie: What is pastor?)

"R" IS FOR RELIGION $2000: This Veda is the oldest & most important text of Vedic Hinduism
(Ben: What is the Bhagavad Gita?)

SCORES ENTERING FINAL JEOPARDY!
Ben: $14,000
Beth: $9,400
Stacie: $5,000

FINAL JEOPARDY! CATEGORY
AUTHORS

VENUSIAN MONOLOGUES/MARTIAN CHRONICLES
Two-thirds for first place. Stratton's Dilemma.
Ben: Wager $4,801 to cover Beth.
Beth: You ought to wager to cover Stacie, but since you cannot win on a Triple Stumper if you do so, you should choose between wagering $0 and maximizing your winnings by betting all $9,400. You are in Stratton's Dilemma, calling for a wager of more than $600 (to shut out Stacie) or less than $200 (risking the possibility of being passed from behind by Stacie). Go with the smaller bet if you believe a Triple Stumper is more likely than a singleton miss by Ben.
Stacie: Seeing as you don't have enough money to win on a Triple Stumper (you will lose by at least $4,200), you might try betting $4,401, playing for a win if Beth tries to two-thirds Ben (though, from this position, a wager of all $5,000 is acceptable and perhaps preferred as it forces Beth to cover you).

FINAL JEOPARDY! CLUE
He quit pursuing a Ph.D. in 1926 to pursue drawing, but you might say he gave himself the degree anyway

FINAL SCORES
Stacie: $5,000 + $4,250 = $9,250 (Who was Dr Seuss?) (3rd place: $1,000)
Beth: $9,400 + $9,399 = $18,799 (Who is Dr. Suess) (2nd place: $2,000)
Ben: $14,000 + $4,801 = $18,801 (Who is Dr. Seuss?) (8-day champion: $176,534)

Total Potential Lach Trash: $17,400

GAME DYNAMICS


CORYAT SCORES
Ben: $13,400, 20 R (including 2 DDs), 3 W (including 1 DD)
Beth: $9,400, 14 R, 0 W
Stacie: $5,000, 12 R, 4 W
Combined Coryat: $27,800

BATTING AVERAGES
Ben: 21/61 = .344
Beth: 15/58 = .259
Stacie: 13/58 = .224
Team: 49/63 = .778

MISCELLANEOUS INTERESTING CLUES
FLANDERS $400: These flowers growing on a WWI battlefield inspired their mention in the poem "In Flanders Fields"
(Stacie: What are lilies?)

NONFICTION $1000: This pastor has written the inspirational books "Become a Better You" and "Your Best Life Begins Each Morning"

2013 POSTAGE STAMPS $1000: A series featuring classic muscle cars included the GT500 Mustang designed by this man
(Ben: Who is Iacocca?)

OCCUPATIONAL VERBS $800: To alter something in a tricky way; it may be done to a baseball or to a photo
(Stacie: What's to touch up?)

IT'S EXTINCT! $2000: The last of this bird in the wild was said to have been shot in Ohio on March 24, 1900; one in captivity made it to 1914

CITY PARKS $800: A 1905 statue in Portland, Oregon's Washington Park was the USA's first of this Shoshone woman
[The end-of-round signal sounds.]

CORRECT RESPONSES
(Peter Paul) Rubens
a mouse trap
an umbrella
Bette Davis
Cameron Diaz
Dayton
mastodon
Nellie Bly
pilot
Green Arrow
Batgirl
the Thing
Lincoln Park
minister
the Rigveda
Dr. Seuss
poppies
(Joel) Osteen
(Carroll) Shelby
doctor
a passenger pigeon
Sacajawea

[shayes]

have never found the need to post until reading yesterday's discussions- specifically from Jeopardy Lover and his offensive demand. Were you born with extreme temerity, or did you acquire that trait somewhere in life?

[whammy007]

Boy, that was a cake Final. Not surprised to see a triple-get, and I expect close to 100% on the week's poll.

Decent but unspectacular game for me, though I did run Crossword Clues and the four shown Superhero Alter-Egos.

Also, did anyone else notice that Alex mis-pronounced Ilia in the first round? Guess he's not a Trek fan, or at least prefers Next Generation.

[Bamaman]

Well, it won't be 100% thanks to my brain freeze. The bit about drawing got me all confused (the category was authors, not artists) and never got back on track. Wound up with Dr. Spock.

[jeff6286]

Authors
He quite pursuing a Ph.D. in 1926 to pursue drawing, but you might say he gave himself the degree anyway.

Spoiler

Who is Dr. Seuss?

Ben Ingram: $14,000+$4,801=$18,801...now an 8-day champion with $176,534
Beth Morgan: $9,400+$9,399=$18,799
Stacie Larson: $5,000+$4,250=$9,250

[TenPoundHammer]

Anyone else trapped by the mousetrap clue (Parts of the Whole, $200)? Don't blame them for the TS there.

Osteen was my only get in Nonfiction. Surprisingly, I recognized his face. (Also, his last name is pronounced with a long "O", I believe.)

Ran Crossword Clues "L" easily.

DJ! really hit a rough patch. I counted six TSes in a row.

Dayton was my only get in City Parks. The other had literally nothing for me to go on.

Lach Trash on Mastodon. Yay.

Also fell for the minister/pastor trap even though I've heard of ministering to others' needs.

Wow, if there was a way to misconstrue FJ!, I did it. Authors had me thinking entirely in novelists. Drawing only got me as far as children's novelists, but I was coming up completely blank there, unable to pull out either E. B. White or Kenneth Grahame. "Degree anyway" was totally meaningless to me. A psychiatric writer? Someone psychiatric who would've written? Freud? Then come the reveal, I headslapped so hard that I knocked my completely useless brain right out of my head. Glad to see I wasn't the only one who fluffed it.

[xxaaaxx]

Cute clue...for 600, in the J! round. As a FJ, it was instaget + an eye roll.

At this point, if you set the over/under at 12.5 days, I'd take the over, despite how ugly (U-G-L-Y) the middle of the DJ round was, or perhaps because of it. He leaves himself open like that on occasion, but so far only one(?) person has taken advantage. I never want to come across as if I'm insulting these contestants, but we need better challengers.

[skullturf]

I came up with one incorrect response that was exactly the same as a contestant's: "fishing rod" instead of "mousetrap". I just figured, the word "bait" was in there, and it was near the top of the board...

Nice FJ. I didn't "know" it: I didn't know Seuss had ever been a PhD student, and I was mildly worried because I thought the 1926 date sounded a little early. But even though I had a second or two of mild panic when the clue was first revealed, I very quickly realized: it must be somebody who had a nickname or pen name containing the word "Doctor". That led to the correct response even if I wasn't sure about all the details. At least it was the 20th century. (Also, "drawing" = an author whose books had illustrations. However, there was a second or two when I thought it would have something to do with anatomy or medical illustration.)

[BADuBois]

So the champ keeps on crushing all in his path... I'm sure during the taping that day, hushed whispers were being exchanged among the other contestants... almost like being in WW I and seeing your fellow soldiers rise up over the trenches and rushing out, only to be cut down in minutes...

FJ was an Instaget. Years ago my then-literary agent represented both me *and* Dr. Seuss... guess who's phone calls got returned first...

[Frank Hardy]

With eight wins & $176,534, Ben moves into first place in the 2013-14 ToC standings.

[alamble]

Decent but unspectacular game for me, though I did run Crossword Clues and the four shown Superhero Alter-Egos.

Anyone but me spit out Oracle on the Barbara Gordon clue before realizing they were aiming for Batgirl?

[bpmod]

And, thanks to the "previews", I knew who would win today's game as soon as Alex finished his opening remarks.

Brian

[StevenH]

This was another board that I thought was well written but just didn't play to my strengths at all. This seemed like an underwhelming game while watching it from home, but once again, I can't fault the contestants here. I feel like the board attacked their weaknesses, too.

That superheroes' real names category was brutal. I went 1/5. I didn't know Batgirl but I feel like I should have earned money for knowing that Yvonne Craig and Alicia Silverstone both played her!

It took me about 5 seconds to understand the FJ clue. Once I did it was an instant get, but it was a pretty dumb clue.

I am enjoying watching Ben more and more. I don't think that he knows a great deal more than his opponents, but his combination of buzzer speed, strategy, and mental stamina really makes him fun to watch.

[Plactus]

Anyone but me spit out Oracle on the Barbara Gordon clue before realizing they were aiming for Batgirl?

I said both ("What is Oracle, or Batgirl?"). Both are correct.

[Paucle]

That superheroes' real names category was brutal. I went 1/5.

Pretty sure you went 1/4. (I think that was the unrevealed clue.)
Beth clearly thought she knew super-hero AKA because she kept going there, yet nobody got any of them. And they weren't exactly "Roc Krinn." These were easy. The only one that may have given me a pause a year ago was Oliver Queen, but then we got Arrow, a show I enjoy.

[jeff6286]

For the clue asking for a word meaning to steer a ship, I said "guide", when they were looking for "pilot". I sort of thought it wasn't the answer they were looking for , but both are jobs and both are verbs, so it seems at least possible that they would have taken it. Anyone disagree?

[Bamaman]

I said skipper for the boat clue.

[StrangerCoug]

Well, it won't be 100% thanks to my brain freeze. The bit about drawing got me all confused (the category was authors, not artists) and never got back on track. Wound up with Dr. Spock.

Ditto here, except that I failed to come up with an answer at all. My thought processes didn't deviate far from TenPoundHammer's very much (I figured he wrote primarily for an adult audience and tried to imagine a book with those black-and-white line drawings every so often). Maybe given a minute, but not 30 seconds.

Thought lunchmeat was severely overvalued at $1,000.

[whammy007]

Anyone but me spit out Oracle on the Barbara Gordon clue before realizing they were aiming for Batgirl?

I said both ("What is Oracle, or Batgirl?"). Both are correct.

I said them in reverse order, figuring they would be looking for the first/most recognizable role, but I'm sure they would have to accept both.