"As most of you already know, I only use real "Jerry's Nugget" cards to work with and have been doing so for many years. As these cards happen to be extremely rare to find on the market (I am obviously talking about the original Jerry's Nugget cards and not the recently reprinted ones) and they excite the magical world a lot, I am therefore constantly asked how many I own, how long have I owned them, what deal I made to get them and with whom, why do I have so many cards, why did I choose these specifically, why don't I want to sell them, why, why, eh?! And I hear such amazing stories about myself on these famous "Jerry's Nugget" cards that I decided to speak on the subject myself today."This sounds very promising! Duvivier then goes on to tell the story about how the Jerry's Nuggets gained their legendary reputation, and the unique qualities they have. In France in the 1970s, American playing cards were quite rarely seen, and Duvivier knew a French pilot commandant called Reyno who loved magic, who would occasionally bring back cards from the US to a small circle of French magicians. At this time even standard Bicycle and Tally Ho decks were prized by these French conjurers, so besides them a Jerry's Nugget deck was considered a real crown jewel.
"In 1999 (if I'm not mistaken) my daughter Alexandra and I were hired to perform for a whole week at Magic Castle and then for a few contracts in Las Vegas. You may think that I had only one idea in mind at the time: a trip to the original casino where my favourite cards were from, Jerry's Nugget! Michael Weber had told me that there were still a few decks for sale there, so as soon as we arrived I immediately asked Philip Varricchio, who had come to pick us up in a limousine, to take us there. He was rather surprised, as we hadn't even put our bags down at the hotel (yes, I'm a fool) and the old Jerry's casino wasn't really known for being a must-see place! So I told him that I wanted to go there to buy Jerry's Nugget cards. According to him it was impossible to get them for the simple reason that they hadn't been around for a long time, but I was so insistent that he finally complied (hey, hey, hey!). When we arrived there, we went to the gift shop of the casino and I asked the salesman if he was selling their decks.Probably the key sentence in that account is this, and the best translation seems to be something like this:
- Yes," he told me, "I have a few.
He shows me a small piece of wall in the back of the store where a hundred decks were on display. I ask about the price. Not even expensive!
- Well, I'll take them," I say (laughs).
And of course I ask if he has more in reserve! Yes, there were about a hundred boxes left (each box containing a large number of cards, 144 decks!). After a little negotiation, the unit price was even lowered to less than $1.
That's it, that's how it happened and that's it. In fact, in all this story, the most difficult, the longest and the most expensive was to get the stock back to France.
Since then, I've been seeing, little by little, the bids going up on these cards in a rather hallucinating way, whereas, of course, that wasn't my initial motivation at all. From the moment I bought the remaining stock, it's as if everyone wanted to own even more! But I just wanted to have enough stock of Jerry's Nugget decks because I'm a card fanatic and these in particular. I use these cards because they're the best cards I know and I've fought like a big man to own enough of them for me (I should mention that I never had a middleman or a partner to buy these cards). Anyone could have done as I did and I don't understand why no one did: you just had to take the trouble to go to this casino, because the cards were available! In any case, now they are all warm and cosy in different safes, which I won't tell you about. They say I'm the person with the most cards in the world, but I have to say I don't care. I know Chris Kenner is the one who planned it, he has a lot of them too. I've been offered golden bridges to sell a few packages, or even my entire stock. I've had some incredible offers over the years. I never intended to create a buzz with these cards: I just use them for my own personal consumption, that's all...because they're my favorite cards."
Project Info | Status | Backers | Avg Pledge | Ending | Comments |
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Feudum: The Queen's Army Foil the Queen's treachery and rise to power in this solo player variant of the game Feudum! (Has currently earned $56,316 of $15,000) | 375% | 1402 | $40 | 08-21 | kicktraq |
Chess Workshops for the Underserved We are providing educational and fun workshops for the underserved youth in our community. (Has currently earned $531 of $100) | 531% | 26 | $20 | 08-21 | kicktraq #take2 |
1879 London Adventure and Sourcebook This is for the art & printing budget for two books already written and laid out, an adventure set in London and the London Sourcebook. (Has currently earned $8,374 of $7,500) | 111% | 124 | $68 | 08-21 | kicktraq #rpg |
Dungeons of Doom III - Dragon Slayers - Star Hat Miniatures Delvers Lost in the Dungeons of Doom 3: Heroic scale fantasy miniatures sculpted by hand and cast in metal for RPGs and Tabletop Games. (Has currently earned $12,144 NZD of $1,000 NZD) | 1214% | 101 | $120 NZD | 08-21 | kicktraq #minis |
Espionage: The Card Game Espionage is a 4-8 player illustrated party card game based around secrets, politics and ruling the world. (Has currently earned £3,570 of £3,500) | 102% | 60 | £60 | 08-21 | kicktraq |
Hands in the Sea - 2nd Edition A card driven wargame inspired by "A Few Acres of Snow". Players take over the role of Rome and Carthage, during the First Punic War. (Has currently earned $44,951 of $20,000) | 224% | 738 | $61 | 08-21 | kicktraq #2.0 1st ed |
Ancient Dice: 50,000 Year Old Dice Prehistoric dice, handcrafted from Ancient Kauri, the world's oldest wood - perfectly preserved since The Stone Age! (Has currently earned £15,419 of £1,000) | 1541% | 745 | £21 | 08-22 | kicktraq #dice |
Right Or Racist - Hilarious Trivia Game About Stereotypes The Party Trivia Card Game About Stereotypes (Has currently earned $1,692 of $500) | 338% | 68 | $25 | 08-22 | kicktraq #take2 |
Blind Wizard Brawl Blind Wizard Brawl is a phygital game (hybrid tabletop game which requires a free app) about bluffing your spells to victory! (Has currently earned £2,447 of £2,900) | 84% | 125 | £20 | 08-22 | kicktraq |
VISITOR in Blackwood Grove A mysterious Visitor has crashed in Blackwood Grove. Race to figure out the secret rule as the Agent or the Kid in this induction game! (Has currently earned $29,777 of $9,000) | 330% | 1321 | $23 | 08-22 | kicktraq |
Gameception - The Game Within A Game Enhance your game night by playing a game while you play other games. Intrigued? Learn more... (Has currently earned $9,364 of $2,500) | 374% | 393 | $24 | 08-23 | kicktraq |
Ogrezine - The Ogre Magazine Ogrezine is a collection of Ogre articles curated by line editor Drew Metzger. Also, we have some minis. (Has currently earned $11,320 of $1,000) | 1132% | 810 | $14 | 08-23 | kicktraq |
Polite Society: The Jane Austen Board Game The ultimate game for literary nerds and board gamers alike. "Why not seize the pleasure at once?" (Has currently earned $41,760 AUD of $18,000 AUD) | 231% | 867 | $48 AUD | 08-24 | kicktraq |
Legacy: Life Among the Ruins 2nd Edition A tabletop RPG about rebuilding after the apocalypse, now funding its second edition. Tell your saga of rediscovery across generations! (Has currently earned £37,076 of £8,000) | 463% | 1017 | £36 | 08-24 | kicktraq #rpg |
Super Chibi Round 3 ROUND 3! It's time for Super Chibi Round 3, This time with a touch of fantasy. (Has currently earned $1,574 of $900) | 174% | 58 | $27 | 08-25 | kicktraq #minis |
PALADIN: Warriors of Charlemagne Charge into the exciting medieval world as a paladin of the great Charlemagne! Based on the award-winning game King Arthur Pendragon! (Has currently earned $58,880 of $10,000) | 588% | 1048 | $56 | 08-25 | kicktraq |
Container: 10th Anniversary Jumbo Edition! A reprint of the classic economic game "Container" by Mercury Games! This classic returns in a 10th Anniversary Jumbo Edition! (Has currently earned $88,396 CAD of $12,500 CAD) | 707% | 853 | $104 CAD | 08-25 | kicktraq #2.0 1st ed |
Rise of Cthulhu - Final Stock Sale Rise of Cthulhu is a strategic card game of influence and horror for 2 players. (Has currently earned $7,474 of $2,000) | 373% | 173 | $43 | 08-25 | kicktraq |
Cover Me Do you have what it takes to predict the new trends in fashion? Build the best portfolio and become the most famous magazine! (Has currently earned €4,803 of €7,500) | 64% | 70 | €69 | 08-25 | kicktraq |
Cauldron: Bubble and Boil Board Game Cauldron: Bubble and Boil is a board game of hexing, gardening and potion brewing. May the best (or worst?) witch or warlock win! (Has currently earned $9,899 of $14,700) | 67% | 184 | $54 | 08-25 | kicktraq #take2 |
Stonehaven Adventurers 2017 We're producing a diverse group of 28mm miniature heroes for role-playing, dungeon-crawling, dragon-slaying, and tabletop wargaming. (Has currently earned $21,644 of $3,000) | 721% | 317 | $68 | 08-25 | kicktraq #minis |
Ninjitsu! - the Ninja card game for all ages A gorgeous game of bluffing and subterfuge for 2-5 sneaky ninjas. The standalone sequel to the hit game Scuttle! (Has currently earned $80,845 of $3,000) | 2694% | 2480 | $33 | 08-26 | kicktraq |
Final Boss: The card game A card game where players compete against each other to defeat the Final Boss. (Has currently earned €17,240 of €9,000) | 191% | 523 | €33 | 08-27 | kicktraq |
CRIT KIT - Dice Tray and Portable Dungeon CRIT KIT - Dice Tray and Portable Dungeon with modular walls. (Has currently earned $2,186 of $2,500) | 87% | 18 | $121 | 08-27 | kicktraq #bling |
Before The Earth Explodes: A retro sci-fi card game. Use clever tactics and intuition to do whatever it takes to claim the glory for saving humanity...BEFORE THE EARTH EXPLODES! (Has currently earned $7,642 of $6,000) | 127% | 298 | $26 | 08-27 | kicktraq |
Project Info | Status | Backers | Avg Pledge | Ending | Comments |
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Adventure Game Mats Kickstarter Exclusive: 10 Fantasy designed Adventure game mat that can be used for your campaign or gaming purposes. (Has currently earned $1,469 of $1,250) | 117% | 19 | $77 | 09-20 | #bling |
Allegiance - Official Trading Card Game Gain Allegiance with a nation's warriors, and they will embrace orders and lead you to victory in this collectable trading card game. (Has currently earned $588 of $85,000) | 0% | 6 | $98 | 09-12 | #hmm |
Avertigos- A 3D Boardgame with Flying Sail-Ship Miniatures A unique Board Game with moddable Sail-Ships engaging in innovative 3D Tactical manoeuvres on the Table top. (Has currently earned $48,525 of $102,481) | 47% | 178 | $273 | 09-24 | |
BIDBIDBID - a funny auction card game An auction card game with strategy and funny for 2-4 players.5 minutes to learn,happy to play. (Has currently earned $265 CAD of $10,000 CAD) | 2% | 8 | $33 CAD | 09-17 | |
Biggest Baddest Baddie Card Game Have you ever wondered what it would be like to control a fire-breathing giant chicken that has on steel armor? Sure you have! (Has currently earned $259 of $3,500) | 7% | 7 | $37 | 09-14 | |
Boardom Busters: 4 Games Of Skill Returns! We are bringing back this small collection of skill games for everyone to enjoy! (Has currently earned $209 of $25) | 836% | 32 | $7 | 08-20 | |
BraveGuard Heroic adventures await in this exciting fantasy world. Guide your Hero on a path to become the Champion! (Has currently earned $10,429 of $37,000) | 28% | 154 | $68 | 09-14 | |
Chronicles of the Wayfarer - The Lawgiver, Unmasked Boyd's Toys is producing a high quality and very detailed resin bust to help support our ongoing project, Chronicles of the Wayfarer. (Has currently earned $1,473 of $1,000) | 147% | 33 | $45 | 08-28 | #bling #minis |
Crokinole 2018 Beech Hardwood 2-4 Player Dexterity Game This great dexterity game is the #4 Family Game of All Time & normally costs $300 or more! "Get a high-quality board at 1/3 the price!" (Has currently earned $13,745 of $30,000) | 45% | 118 | $116 | 09-06 | |
Death Path - Card & Dice Game from Zlurpcast Death Path is multi-player card & dice game set in the near future in which Subjects are forced to navigate through a fearsome maze. (Has currently earned $6,017 of $10,000) | 60% | 99 | $61 | 09-14 | |
Digital Dungeon Rooms 50+ Assorted Beautiful Detailed Digital PNG Catacomb, Sewer & Dungeon Rooms for Fantasy RPG. Available for 25mm, 28mm and 32mm scales. (Has currently earned $3,647 AUD of $750 AUD) | 486% | 59 | $62 AUD | 09-07 | #bling |
Era of Battles Era of Battles: Alliances, Apocalypse, and Exodus. These are strategy card games that take place in a high fantasy setting. (Has currently earned $745 of $10,000) | 7% | 8 | $93 | 10-03 | |
Eschaton: Sigils of Ruin An expansion for the cult strategy deck-building game. (Has currently earned $2,219 of $3,500) | 63% | 89 | $25 | 09-18 | #expansion base game |
Expedition: The Horror The first expansion for Expedition: The Roleplaying Card Game. New mechanics, enemies and abilities inspired by Cthulhu! (Has currently earned $7,171 of $7,000) | 102% | 243 | $30 | 09-16 | #expansion base game |
Fatcats: a fun, family card game with a sinister twist. Fatcats is a strategic card game of temporary alliances. Team up to rule the city...but be careful: it's every fatcat for themselves. (Has currently earned $2,499 of $8,000) | 31% | 56 | $45 | 09-15 | |
Forager - Tabletop Napoleonic Skirmish Game - Stand to Games A fast fun Napoleonic tabletop skirmish game where players command several individual characters to complete scenarios and play games. (Has currently earned £3,820 of £4,500) | 84% | 101 | £38 | 10-13 | |
Frills & Fauna: Overlords Frills & Fauna is back and this time we're offering a more sinister selection of miniatures for your pleasure. (Has currently earned £714 of £300) | 238% | 19 | £38 | 08-31 | #minis |
Heroes of Karth: Deathmatch™ A fantasy deck-building strategy card game for 2-4 players based on the Heroes of Karth™ book series. (Has currently earned $1,081 CAD of $2,000 CAD) | 54% | 13 | $83 CAD | 10-13 | |
Lazy Gamer Tables These tables are great for map storage and usage for any tabletop game. Also fits most standard board games. (Has currently earned $2,896 of $20,000) | 14% | 13 | $223 | 09-16 | #bling |
Legends of Draxia: Corrupted Mana Expansion New Spells, Buildings, and Characters bring direct PvP action into the fantasy-themed resource management card game, Legends of Draxia (Has currently earned $4,490 of $2,500) | 179% | 70 | $64 | 10-02 | #expansion base game |
Ogre Cheerleaders Ogre Cheerleaders: Cheering as good as they smell! A fun, light-hearted, set-collection game for 2(ish)* players. (Has currently earned $923 of $3,600) | 25% | 43 | $21 | 09-14 | |
Omnitray: The Modular Board Game & Tabletop Player Organiser Omnitray is a fully customisable, modular board game and tabletop gaming player aid that assists you with a range of your gaming needs (Has currently earned £15,752 of £1,500) | 1050% | 273 | £58 | 09-05 | #bling |
Penguin Brawl: Heroes of Pentarctica Summon a penguin, arm it to the teeth, and lay waste to your enemies in this fast paced action card game created to make people smile. (Has currently earned £5,671 of £12,000) | 47% | 267 | £21 | 09-21 | |
QST - THE TABLETOP GAME SUBSCRIPTION BOX! QST is the subscription tabletop game box that delivers a BRAND NEW, NEVER-BEFORE-SEEN game crafted by CREATIVE SUPERSTARS every month! (Has currently earned $23,026 of $600,000) | 3% | 129 | $178 | 09-29 | |
Radiant - A War in Three Ages The Radiant Cycle has turned again—the War of Three Ages is upon us. Control the beautiful land of Perim with trick-taking battles. (Has currently earned $12,054 of $8,200) | 147% | 298 | $40 | 09-14 | #take3 |
Roil: The Strategy Card Game of Noble Power Buidling A family friendly strategy card game for 2-5 players. Build your court, steal cards, and allow cruel fate to brutalize your opponents. (Has currently earned $791 of $4,500) | 17% | 12 | $66 | 09-18 | |
Samurai Vassal - The Card Game A fun and fast card game that mimics how samurais competed against each other by earning their daimyo’s trust in Feudal Japan. (Has currently earned HK$8,540 of HK$30,000) | 28% | 41 | HK$208 | 09-28 | |
Spirit Realms - Tengoku-SR Tengoku-SR is an epic fast paced turn based family friendly card game where players create armies, defend forts & capture Thrones. (Has currently earned $140 of $10,000) | 1% | 3 | $47 | 10-01 | |
Superhero: 2044 RPG with Miniatures Description to come. (Has currently earned $929 of $100,000) | 0% | 17 | $55 | 10-15 | #rpg |
Swords in the Stone - Arthurian themed d6 Dice! Whoso pulleth out these dice from this dice bag is rightwise king born of all England! These d6s are 19mm and full of Arthurian theme! (Has currently earned $3,736 of $2,200) | 169% | 117 | $32 | 09-02 | #dice |
Tanto Cuore: Winter Romance Winter Romance introduces Butlers, romance & new game mechanics to Tanto Cuore! Ignite the fires of love to escape the cold of winter! (Has currently earned $60,531 of $20,000) | 302% | 472 | $128 | 09-14 | #expansion base game |
Time Machine Death Race! Start up your machines and load the booster packs.It's time to fight your way through all the checkpoints and return victorious or die! (Has currently earned $419 of $10,000) | 4% | 9 | $47 | 09-24 | |
Unstable Unicorns A strategic card game that will destroy your friendships...but in a good way. (Has currently earned $220,256 of $10,000) | 2202% | 4909 | $45 | 09-15 | |
Vanagard Vanagard is a collaborative table-top story telling game. (Has currently earned $4,271 CAD of $12,700 CAD) | 33% | 114 | $37 CAD | 09-14 | |
Vegas Wits & Wagers Turn your living room into a Vegas casino. Wits & Wagers is history's most award-winning party game, and it just got better. (Has currently earned $14,406 of $30,000) | 48% | 360 | $40 | 09-08 | #expansion base game |
Wanted Earth Miniatures Board Game An action packed miniatures board game for 1-7 players. Play as heroes defending Earth or alien races trying to take it over! (Has currently earned $18,654 of $49,000) | 38% | 213 | $88 | 09-20 | #take2 |
Wizards' Towers Wizards' Towers is a family game about building tower from wooden elements and casting spells to attack other players towers. (Has currently earned £764 of £6,000) | 12% | 21 | £36 | 09-14 |
Questions | Answers |
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Any chance of you taking over as the host of Jeopardy if/when Alex Trebek retires. Any discussions to that effect happening? | We need to get that rumor started. I'd say there's virtually no chance, since they would probably interview people WITH ACTUAL TV HOSTING EXPERIENCE. |
But that said, what a dream job. I would take it in a heartbeat. Trebek works on-set like 4-5 days a month, and I'm sure a big Sony truck full of cash backs up to his house once or twice a week. I just need to work on my French pronunciation and my transparently false sympathy at wrong answers. | |
Do you still talk to Alex Trebek ever? Are you guys friends? | Contestants don't get to fraternize with Alex very much. This is partially due to federal laws that (still, 50+ years after the quiz show scandals) make it a felony to rig a game show. It's probably also due to the fact that Alex doesn't WANT to hang out with the contestants that much. |
Still, I feel like we bonded. I remember he came back on stage and got a little teary-eyed after I lost my last game, which surprised me and then choked me up a bit. It was just like Brian's Song only we are both white and instead of getting cancer I just got kicked off a game show. | |
Follow-up: have you ever randomly encountered Watson in the streets or social function, and given him an icy stare? | It's so awkward. "Hello, Ken." "Oh...hello, Watson." Long pause, neither of us blinks. Room gets really quiet. Finally the nervous hostess takes my arm, leads me away from the buffet table telling me there are other people I simply MUST meet. Watson goes back to shoving bacon-wrapped shrimp in his stupid mouth because he's all old and stupid and fat now. |
Do you ever watch Jeopardy and scream at your TV. HOW DID YOU NOT KNOW THAT!? | Ha, my son is 10 and he wants to watch Jeopardy EVERY NIGHT NOW. I always beg him to turn it off. It's my favorite show but nowadays when I hear the music and the smooth Canadian tones of Alex Trebek I find myself getting all nervous and keyed-up. Like I'm back in 'Nam all of the sudden. |
When you were on Jeopardy, what was the housing situation? Did they provide a hotel, or did you live in the area? | A lot of people are surprised to hear that Jeopardy doesn't normally pick up contestants' travel costs. You fly out, get a hotel, rent a car, all on your own dime. |
In my case, I always stayed in this DISGUSTING little motel right by the 405 in Culver City. At first I chose it because (a) it was right next to the studio and (b) the marquee out front still said "COLOR TV! PHONES!" like I'm sure it had in 1965. This place was a craphole, but I kept on staying there with the hookers and whatnot during my entire 75-game streak. Didn't want to mess with my routine. | |
I did Kids Jeopardy back in '02 and they paid for a roundtrip flight to LA for me and my family, 4 nights in the Beverly Hilton, and $600 in spending money for the trip. Guess the adults get a raw deal. | Yup. Tournaments are all-expenses paid. The regular joes get bupkis. |
YOU ARE THE 1%!!! | |
Care to speak about the "hoe" incident? How much did Alex Trebeck bust your balls about that afterwards? | Here's the clip] ([Link to www.youtube.com.) |
The only thing I remember happening during the next break is that "Al" guy on the end saying he was glad I beat him to the buzzer. He was also going to say "What is a ho?" and he was some kind of Lutheran pastor from Minnesota, he thought his congregation would never let him live it down. | |
I also wanted to ask the Jeopardy writers if that was a set-up, like that question was specifically phrased to get someone to say "What is a ho?" I suspect so. | |
So did you actually know the right answer and just want to say 'ho' on national television? | CORRECT YOU HAVE CONTROL OF THE BOARD. |
How many blunts do you smoke per day neff? | Um no offense to /trees but there's a reason why you never saw Snoop on Jeopardy 75 times in a row. |
If you could play any two historical figures in Jeopardy, who would they be and why? | Warren G. Harding and Caligula, because I hear they were dumb as posts and I'M THERE TO WIN BABY. |
What was the must surprising myth you debunked in "Because I Said So!" | I guess there are over a dozen good studies now showing no link between sugar and hyperactivity in children. Weird, right? Parents are so invested in this "sugar rush" idea because no one wants to believe "Ugh, my kids are being a terror at this birthday party." They want to say, "Hey, that's what you get for filling my kid up on soda and cake." |
Have you read "Under the Banner of Heaven," and if so, what was your reaction to Krakauer's portrayal of the Mormon faith? | I have read it. Pretty simplistic view of how Mormonism's (occasionally) violent past affects the community today. I'm Mormon and virtually nothing in it felt familiar to me. |
Have you seen "Book of Mormon", and if so, your reaction? | Saw it on Broadway last year! Paid through the nose and it was worth every penny. I laughed until all my sphincters gave out. There's your blurb for Playbill. |
Obviously it's in terrible taste, but it's in SUCH terrible taste that it seems almost beside the point to complain about that. | |
In regards to the question on Under the Banner of Heaven: You are a pretty skeptical, wry person. I find it hard to believe that you can accept Joseph Smith's version of events and prophecies. How do you reconcile your innate rational mindset with the fact that your religion, like many belief systems, may be founded on the words and ideas of a charlatan? | Yeah, it's always weird when Mormons and not-Mormons talk about Joseph Smith. BY DEFINITION, Mormons will think Smith had some kind of connection to the divine. BY DEFINITION, anyone else will assume he was a con man. Hard to bridge that gap. |
Thanks for the AMA. You're the man. | His story is weird, sure, what with the angels and the plates and all. No question. I don't think it's fundamentally any weirder than the founding myth of any other religion, though. But more to the point, I like that it seems mysterious and weird. It's very compelling to me, this idea of a 19th-century farm boy seeing God and then spending the rest of his life trying to build "Zion," a holy city, where his people can live and worship together and help one another. The whitewashed Mormon idea of a saintly, no-warts Joseph Smith is bogus, of course, but so is the assumption that he was just a creepy Jim Jones type. |
Any words of wisdom for a high school trivia team? We admire you. Edit: SURPRISE! i am female. | If you get the chance, talk to a girl sometime so you can tell your teammates what it was like. |
Will you name my new cat? | "Callipygian." It means "possessing beautiful buttocks." |
Is this how English linguists flirt? | With each other's pets. :( |
Anything cool behind the contestant podium that I should know about? | Some boxes of raisins in case you get hungry and a catheter thing if you have a nervous bladder. A lot of times when it looks like somebody is pondering an answer or a wager, he's just peeing. |
No, not really. They're mostly hollow, each one has some kind of PC under it running the buzzer and touch-screen. One time the side case panel fell off my opponents' computer with a loud CLANG! They had to stop tape and the producer came running onstage shouting "The wheels are coming off the wagon!" in mock horror. | |
I told this story on-line one time and got an email from a disappointed Jeopardy publicist saying I "didn't have to tell EVERYTHING." So now I'm nervously waiting for my phone to ring. | |
You're obviously a very intelligent man, why does religion still hold resonance in your life? | No idea, but "resonance" is definitely the right word. I can't rationally defend believing in God, but the idea has some essential rightness to me that I can't imagine living without. Atheists are free to read that as "Aha, he needs the comforting crutch!" but that's sort of reductive. It's not how it FEELS to believe. The miracles of my own consciousness and the existence of the universe seem to naturally imply the existence of God to me in exactly the same obvious way it precludes it for others. |
I always think about the mathematician and writer Martin Gardner, who was one of the most famous skeptics of his time, always hanging out with James Randi and those guys. And yet, to his dying breath, he held on to some weird kind of deism from his youth. He at least HOPED, he said, that there could be another, better world beyond this one. That's how I feel, I guess. | |
Will you be a reference on my next job application? It's competitive as fuck out there. | Sure. "I first met ologies wasting time during the middle of the work day on Reddit, a practice I'm sure he'd continue at your company..." |
I have to say, the inscription you put in my copy of Braniac is far and away my favorite ever, so thanks for that. | You're welcome! I'm not sure that Rush Holt joke has aged all that well. |
I guess that's not a question so... how'd you get so awesome and stuff? | If I'm awesome at all it's only because I was bitten by a radioactive game show contestant as a child. (It was that weirdo with the beard who figured out how to cheat at Press Your Luck.) |
You are open about your Mormon faith as well as pretty openly and visibly progressive in your viewpoints. At least in terms of how the Mormon church is portrayed in the media, this comes off as unusual. I'm wondering if you can talk at all about that. I know you've been vocally critical of a lot of media depictions of your religion, and I'm wondering if this is a part of it. Is there a larger current of progressive Mormonism that just gets ignored? | By the numbers, there are certainly more conservative than progressive Mormons in the US, but plenty of Mormons are lefties like me. Famously, Harry Reid, one of the most powerful Democrats in the country, is Mormon. |
The easy link between Mormons and conservative politics is really intensified by the fact that Mormons in mountain west states like Utah really ARE the nuttiest nuts on the nut tree. That's where you get the little towns mandating gun ownership or banning U.N. helicopters over their airspace or whatever. But I feel like that has more to do with frontier isolationist thinking in general than anything specific about Mormon belief. Over half of LDS church members live outside the US now, for example, and my experience is that Mormons in places like Europe and South America are social progressives by and large. | |
What is one advantage you have over Watson? | Pretty much my only advantage over Watson is my Jimmy Stewart impression. Watson's is shit. |
Where did the Kennections quiz idea come from? I love it | "Kennections" is a weekly quiz] ([Link to www.parade.com I do in Parade magazine, aka that awesome section in the middle of the Sunday paper where they have like fajita recipes and interviews with Kurt Russell. Parade proposed the HILARIOUSLY punny name, which I put up with because at least this way they can't fire me. Or if they do, they have to replace me with someone else named Ken. Ken Burns, maybe? The concept comes from any number of game shows from my childhood where solving each round would give you one clue to some uber-puzzle, which is how Kennections works. There was even a 80s trivia board game with a similar gimmick, which you can still find at garage sales sometimes: Stage II. |
Initially I had a hard time believing your twitter account was you and not an imposter because the humor wasn't very PG (not that I have a problem with that), that said: you're damn funny! Ever thought about doing stand up? Or is writing the only way you want to approach humor? | I don't really think I'm a good fit for stand-up. Those guys are legitimately FUNNY funny. Twitter mostly rewards clever, not funny. As the great Simpsons writer George Meyer once said, "Clever is the eunuch version of funny." Truer words were never spoken. |
Plus all the travel, the heckling, the flop-sweats when you do a bad set, plus can you imagine being the guy who tries to go from being a Jeopardy contestant to doing stand-up? "HA HA CAN YOU DO FIVE MINUTES IN THE FORM OF A QUESTION?" "I'LL TAKE YOU'RE NOT FUNNY FOR $400 ALEX LOL!!!" | |
Maybe someday I'll write a book about funniness and have to try it out in George Plimpton "Paper Lion" fashion. But don't hold your breath for the Comedy Central special. | |
What's your favorite palindrome? | Here's one I made up on Twitter a while back. It's a little poem. |
Pee with gin. Night. I weep. | |
What advice would you give to someone who wants to be on JEOPARDY? | WATCH THE SHOW. Every day, without fail. Watch it standing up. Pretend to click a ballpoint pen when you know the answer and try to match the timing of whoever's doing well that day. |
BRUSH UP. If there are lists of things you sort of know, get them down pat. Don't take up studying a whole new area (baseball, physics, opera) you know nothing about. But if you could know all the presidents with their dates in office, for example, or all world countries with their capitals, that would be awesome. | |
JUST HAVE FUN. Look, it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and most people will last less than half an hour. So don't hang everything on the outcome. Just try to enjoy the ride. You'll probably relax and play better today. | |
Also, don't wear a sweater, you will look like a douche. Make sure your story doesn't mention your cats. | |
You're still the Jeopardy King in my eyes, Ken!!! Are there any plans to get you back on the show at all? | I only got the call in 2011 because IBM had a computer that could play Jeopardy. So maybe if somebody ever teaches like a chimp or a dolphin to play? I would totally come back for that. |
Ken plays against a chimp and a dolphin. | That's cool that Trebek grew the mustache back just for this special TV event. |
Ken what's your favourite kind of ice cream? I like all flavours pretty much. | Cool story bro. |
What subjects do you feel are under-represented on Jeopardy? | Proportional to their importance in the grand scheme of the universe: science, especially physics, engineering, and math. |
Proportional to my interest and expertise in them: Marvel Comics of the mid-1980s | |
Serious question: During your first run on the show, did you lose on purpose because you were tired of the game, made enough money, were homesick, etc? | People always ask if I took a dive. Ugh. Look, I had a summer job where I was making like $35K PER HALF HOUR. No way was I quitting. I just got a question I didn't know. |
A while ago I looked at the old episodes and I found at least 12 during my run where if just one question goes the other way, I lose. So it was really stretching the laws of probability for me to be on that long. The odds are on even a really good player losing MUCH sooner, what with the Daily Doubles and random categories and all. | |
What is a subject you would fail miserably at if it were a jeopardy category? | VIDEO GAMES POST-1995. |
What is your favorite breakfast cereal? | Marshmallow Mateys. Nautically-themed Lucky Charms clone that poor people and college students buy in the big plastic bags at Grocery Outlet. So, so good. |
Once at Mall of America, i remember seeing a cereal that was entirely the marshmallows from Marshmallow Mateys. | Yeah but think of the sad inner-city kids who have to eat the all-oat-piece leftovers. :( |
Why don't you go on Wheel of Fortune? | I'm blackballed from game shows now, like the card-counters who get kicked out of casinos. I'd need an awesome disguise to go on Wheel, like maybe a big handlebar mustache and a Texas accent. |
If you could have any superpowers what would they be?* Who is your favorite musician? | The answer to both is "Flaming Lips." |
What was your first purchase after receiving all of your Jeopardy! moneys? | I think we got our first widescreen TV (we were sort of poor before that) and that fall my wife and I took a trip to France and Spain. Those were sort of the big blow-outs. Pretty boring, sorry. If you want to picture me in a rap video with a jacuzzi full of Cristal, feel free. |
What does Trebek smell like? | He smells like Canada. Pine needles and maple syrup and a thick, beaver-y musk. |
Have people you go to church with ever been offended by your tweets? | I don't think anyone at church reads my Twitter PLEASE DON'T TELL THEM ABOUT IT. |
Ken, a lot of people see you as very smart. What is one thing that you've done in your life that wasn't that smart? Possible something in your teenage years? | I majored in computer science even though I really loved English literature. I thought CS seemed more practical/lucrative than writing or teaching. |
Fast-forward ten years and I'm a crappy programmer and, through the weirdest of longshots, Jeopardy gives me a chance to quit my job and become a writer like I always wanted to. | |
Bottom line: the thing you like/are good at IS A SACRED THING. Don't screw around with it. Don't sell out too young. Not everybody gets Trebek-delivered redemption from that dreary office job like I did. | |
How did the Howard Stern appearance come about? That was a great segment, loved it. | I guess somebody at Sirius saw the book and thought it would be a fun twist on "Win Fred's Money." I was pretty nervous...I've heard that segment a bunch of times and Fred NEVER loses. |
Congrats on beating Fred! | Beating Fred, $5,000. Meeting George Takei] ([Link to ken-jennings.com) PRICELESS. |
Enjoyed you on Stern this week. Btw, good on you not to push the 'silicon' and 'silicone' difference. | Ha, yeah. Trivia people are my people, but "BUT BUT BUT YOU'RE WRONG" is about my least favorite of their personality traits. |
What's the oddest thing a fan of yours has done? | Somebody wanted me to sign their baby with Sharpie once. OMG WE'RE NEVER WASHING THIS BABY AGAIN!!! |
Having a twitter account with nearly 100,000 followers, how do you deal with the no doubt thousands of insufferable idiots you must have tweeting bile at you? Any memorable trolls? | There's a Darwinist process that's gotten rid of most of the trolls or the easily offended, either me blocking or (more likely) them unfollowing. |
Personally I think you're one of the greatest at the twitter game, long may you continue :) | I still get stern lectures sometimes about how THAT'S NOT FUNNY BECAUSE... but that's just part of Twitter. Somehow it always seems so just and deserved when you get the ego-boost of the stars and retweets, but such a terrible, Rwanda-level injustice when someone DOESN'T like a joke and is a dick. |
What is the least intelligent thing you've ever done? | I'm totally absent-minded. Always losing my keys and stuff. A couple months ago I flew to the Midwest and back and managed to leave one of my carry-ons in the overhead BOTH OUT AND BACK. Had to go running back to the gate both times. So I have Alzheimer's at 38 basically. |
What is your favorite Simpsons quote? | It's not the biggest laugh, but the one I find myself saying most is probably "as was the style at the time!" which Grandpa Simpson appends to crazy wrong facts about the past. When you think about it, it's pretty useful in conversation, especially when people are telling boring stories. |
Do you prefer Trebek with or without his mustache? | His "FREE MUSTACHE RIDES" shirt is way less funny now. |
If you were to write the perfect Jeopardy question, what would it be? | It would be one of those circular-logic ones that Captain Kirk uses to make computers freak out and explode. Suck on THAT, Watson. |
I loved the Book of Lists as a kid, do they still make that? do you remember those? what other trivia books are awesome? why is every sentence of mine a question? and are you reading it like my voice is rising annoyingly at the end of each one? | Ha, I loved The Book of Lists! I'm writing a series of "amazing facts for kids" books now and a childhood friend said, "Make sure you get all the facts right!" Because we both remembered facts from trivia books we read as kids that turned out to be not to be true but then we believed them for decades anyway. |
Have you ever hung out with John Hodgman? Do you two just have trivia-offs? You with actual trivia and he with fake trivia? | I've met Hodgman a couple times. What a nice guy. We definitely talked about he's the fake-trivia version of me. Like I can name 900 REAL hoboes off the top of my head right now. |
He's actually my real-trivia hero too because he's been on QI, the British quiz show with Stephen Fry, and I never have. | |
Hi Ken. Favorite Twilight Zone episode? | The famous, popular ones are famous and popular for a reason. But I also like "The Midnight Sun," the one with the heat wave. I saw it as a kid and had nightmares for years. |
What advice do you have for young Mormon people? | The same advice I have for any young people: STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM ME YOUR YOUTH AND VITALITY JUST REMIND ME OF MY OWN EVER-APPROACHING DEATH. |
Also, I know you can't smell it but some of you should take a shower. | |
Look: I don't want you to get offended, and I mean this in the most platonic, non-inflammatory manner possible, but may I make sweet, obscene monkey love with your brain? I'll be very respectful. | Okay but Pretty Woman rules. No kissing the brain. |
What is Halo? | I don't know why you say goodbye, I say Halo. |
I listened to you on Doug Loves Movies and you were very funny. Any chance you'll do more in comedy/podcasting? | DLM was so fun! I want people to invite me on podcasts. But only the big, prestigious ones. Not your little sleazy one. Sorry. |
You're quite hilarious on twitter. What was your take on the whole Chris Brown/Jenny Johnson debacle? | Team JennyJohnsonHi5. She and I used to play Draw Something back when that was a thing. |
Aha! In on the ground floor; looks like following you on twitter is finally paying off! Which was your favourite book to write so far and why? | I hate it when bands say "the new record" but the new book, with all the parenting myths, was a joy start to finish. I'm sort of a worry-wart as a parent, and now I feel a lot more confident about letting the kids run around without hovering and obsessing over every little thing. |
Plus I now know exactly how many times I got lied to as a kid. (A lot.) | |
Since there was no Slate news quiz today, will you refund my Slate subscription money? I believe I paid...uh...let's say $299.00. | Yeah, sorry. I write a news quiz for Slate.com every Friday, what I hope is a fun multiple-choice affair along the lines of Wait! Wait! Don't Tell Me! But the problem is the news just keeps happening 24/7, so I have to right the quiz at the very last minute every week. And this week I had the book launch so it didn't happen. |
How much do you hate the guys from Symantec? This was supposed to be their moment, man. | Those guys know what they did. |
Fuck, marry, kill. Alex Trebek, Rob Delaney, Watson. Go. | Uh, I'm here to talk about Rampart. |
Astro or Deano's probably. | One of you is correct but I don't want to get too specific. (I left all my cash winnings in an AV duct there just like Josh Brolin does in No Country for Old Men.) |
I sincerely hope Ken Jennings upvoted this. | BEEP BOOP BEEP MERRY--CHRISTMAS--YOU--OLD--BUILDING--AND--LOAN. |
This term for a long-handled gardening tool can also mean an immoral pleasure seeker. | What is your mom! WOOH RAISES HAND FOR HIGH-FIVE. |
(oops forgot to mention that for the purposes of this joke your mom's name is "Mrs. Shovel" or "Mrs. Weedwhacker" or something) | |
Opinions on Star Wars VII, go. | Retell Phantom Menace from the POV of those guys with the terrible, offensive Asian accents. I bet they have a story to tell! |
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