Eric McCandless/ABC
Ken Jennings Wins ‘Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time’ and the $1 Million Prize!
Our game show dreams have come true! The TV gods have been very generous already in 2020, especially with Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time having blessed us with quiz show goodness. The television event brought iconic winners Ken Jennings, James Holzhauer and Brad Rutter together to compete for an impressive grand prize of $1 million. After four rounds of play, we have our winner: Ken Jennings is the GOAT!
“Based on their previous performances, these three are already the ‘greatest,’ but you can’t help wondering: who is the best of the best?” Alex Trebek, who has hosted the series since 1984, said in a press release. The beloved 79-year-old, of course, is in the midst of battling stage IV pancreatic cancer, which he announced in March 2019.
Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time had trio competing in a series of matches to see who would be the first to win three. The first contestant to do so would win the $1 million while the others would win $250,000 each. The special began Tuesday, January 7, and aired until Tuesday, January 14, when Ken won his third match. The runner-up was James with one win and Brad, who didn’t get a chance to snag a win, was in the fight. It was a truly thrilling tournament!
Here is a handy guide to who won each episode:
Tuesday, January 7: Ken Jennings
Wednesday, January 8: James Holzhauer
Thursday, January 9: Ken Jennings
Friday, January 10: Ken Jennings
Tuesday, January 14: N/A
Wednesday, January 15: N/A
Thursday, January 16: N/A
Heading into the tournament, each player had already earned their spot in the Jeopardy! history books. Ken set the record for the longest winning streak — 74 games — and amassed $3,370,700 in winnings. Brad had won the most money across any TV game show, raking in $4,688,436, while never losing to a human opponent (until now). James held the record for all 15 of the top single-day winnings amounts, bringing in a total of $2,712,216. Impressive, right?
“I am so blown away by the incredibly talented and legendary Alex Trebek, who has entertained, rallied and championed the masses for generations — and the world class Jeopardy! team who truly are ‘the greatest of all time,'” Karey Burke, president of ABC Entertainment, said. “This timeless and extraordinary format is the gift that keeps on giving and winning the hearts of America each week. We can’t wait to deliver this epic and fiercely competitive showdown — with these unprecedented contestants — to ABC viewers and loyal fans everywhere.”
“We’re excited to bring Jeopardy! to primetime! It’s been a long time in the making — we wanted to create a unique experience sure to wow not just our fans, but all audiences,” Mike Hopkins, chairman of Sony Pictures Television, said. “We are thrilled to have James, Brad and Ken, three powerhouse players each worthy of the title ‘The Greatest of All Time.’ With Alex hosting, this is truly going to be something special. I can’t wait to see who comes out on top!”
To find out when Jeopardy! airs where you live, visit here!
