Ken Jennings Today: What Is the 'Jeopardy!' Star Up To?

Not many game show contestants have made a lasting impression like Ken Jennings. In 2004, Ken captured the hearts — and TVs — of millions by winning a whopping 74 games of Jeopardy!, and appearing on the show for six months. A record still to this day.

After his streak ended, Ken’s national fame, not surprisingly, was extended and he appeared on numerous talk shows, including The Tonight Show, The Late Show With David Letterman, Live With Regis and Kelly, and even Sesame Street. Once a software developer, Ken has maintained his career as a professional brainiac since appearing on the game show.

The beloved TV personality made a big step in his career when he was announced as a guest host on the iconic program following Alex Trebek‘s death in November 2020. Jeopardy! revealed Ken, as well as Katie Couric, Aaron Rodgers, Bill Whitaker and Mayim Bialik, will host the show to fill the absence of the legendary presenter, who died of pancreatic cancer at age 80.

“We will honor Alex’s legacy by continuing to produce the game he loved with smart contestants and challenging clues,” executive producer Mike Richards said in a statement. “By bringing in familiar guest hosts for the foreseeable future, our goal is to create a sense of community and continuity for our viewers.”

When the Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time champion made his debut as host in January 2021, he was overwhelmed with emotion as he took the podium. Looking back on his epic journey, Ken said sharing the stage with the late star was “one of the greatest honors of [his] life.”

“Not many things in life are perfect, but Alex did this job pretty much perfectly for more than 36 years, and it was even better up close. We were dazzled by his intelligence, charm and grace,” he praised. “Like all Jeopardy! fans, I miss Alex very much and I thank him for everything he did for all of us. Let’s be totally clear: No one will ever replace the great Alex Trebek. But we can honor him by playing the game he loved.”

Keep scrolling below to learn more about what Ken is up to today.

He’s an Author

After being crowned the “King of Trivia Nation,” it was only natural that Ken became an author of trivia books. Some of his books include Brainiac, which talks about the obsession with trivia in America, Ken Jennings’s Trivia Almanac, which is the biggest trivia book ever assembled in America, and Maphead, about his “lifelong obsession with geography.”

In addition to trivia books, Ken has also penned a parenting book called Because I Said So!, as well as The Junior Genius Guides.

He’s a Commercial Star

After losing on Jeopardy! on a question about H&R Block, Ken has appeared in numerous commercials. The Seattle resident has had guest spots in ads for FedEx, Allstate, Microsoft, Cingular, IBM, and yes, even H&R Block. Ken also speaks at colleges and at corporate events on the importance of learning.

He’s Still in the Game Show Circuit

Clearly, game shows are in Ken’s blood, as he’s appeared on many more since his stint as a Jeopardy! contestant ended. He appeared as a host for two GSN Live shows, Stump the Master and Clued In. He also returned to Jeopardy! a few times for tournaments, racking up three second-place finishes and the championship title of The Greatest of All Time in 2020.

Ken has also appeared on the show Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? In addition to keeping his trivia game strong, Ken also had a column for Mental Floss magazine called “Six Degrees of Ken Jennings.”

In addition to his hosting gig on Jeopardy!, Ken is appearing on the new game show The Chase, which premiered on ABC in early January 2021. Ken stars alongside fellow Jeopardy! alums Brad Rutter and James Holzhauer in the “heart-racing quiz show where three competitors must pit their wits and face off against the Chaser, a ruthless quiz genius determined to stop them from winning cash prizes,” ABC explained in a press release.

He’s Social Media Savvy

Ken’s Twitter was named one of “The 75 Best Twitter Accounts of 2014” by Paste magazine, ranking it at #10. He doesn’t have an Instagram account, but he has over 450,000 followers on Twitter. Aside from posting random fun facts and irreverent observations about society on social media, Ken also runs a blog. Every Tuesday, Ken emails subscribers seven trivia questions, one of which is designed to be Google-resistant.

He’s a Family Man

When he’s not hosting or playing trivia, Ken is busy being a family man. He has been married to his wife, Mindy, since 2000. They have two kids — son Dylan and daughter Caitlyn.

“My home office is right by the front door, so as soon as the kids are home from school, they come barreling in,” Ken once told Life Hacker. “I thought about putting a lock on the door, but I ended up just embracing the catastrophe. I work as fast as I can so that I can be mostly done with the day’s writing before the quiet ends.”