As many of you may know, I am a fanatic of all game shows. From “1 vs. 100” to “You Bet Your Life,” I really enjoy the genre. I guess I’ve always loved to play games and to compete against the contestants on TV.
Through basically all of my 40-year-old life, Alex Trebek has been a constant. He was a host I’ve watched since seeing it on a GoldStar black-and-white TV in my grandparents dining room to now watching it in HD on my DVR.
by Brent Maze
Next week as we begin 2021, the final days of that era will play out on WTOK at a 11 a.m., as Trebek’s final episodes will be airing.
I know his death occurred nearly two months ago, but it won’t completely sink in until I see Ken Jennings or someone else host “Jeopardy!” for the first time.
Now, I did see the one episode Trebek didn’t host in my lifetime. That was an April Fools Day special, when Trebek and Pat Sajak switched shows for the day.
However, this will be different.
In some ways, seeing this will remind me of all of the great people we’ve lost in the last year. Unfortunately, we lost a few more in the waning days of 2020, as we lost Edmund Phillips, Dr. L.B. Adkins and Dr. Horace May, who passed away on Sunday.
It’s been a difficult year for all of us. Some of them were close relatives while we lost greats like Trebek and others like Kobe Bryant, Regis Philbin, Charley Pride, Sean Connery and so many others. When reflecting on the year, it really surprised me just how many people we’ve lost.
To be honest, I don’t know how “Jeopardy!” will survive without Trebek. I hope it does, but he is a person who can’t be replaced, only followed.
Contact Brent at bmaze@-newtoncountyappeal.com.
