For those of you who have been following my blog/life, you know that I recently got an email that said I had passed the Jeopardy! online test and was invited to go to an in-person audition in New York City.
This turned out to be, despite my earliest instincts, not a hoax.
Which was a good thing. I've long wanted to be on Jeopardy! and I was happy upon arriving at the Sheraton hotel in New York City that there actually was an audition there and that my name was on the list.
Upon arrival, I found the registration table and picked up my application. It asked for all the typical biographical information plus stuff like times I wouldn't be able to tape the show (I am always available to Jeopardy!, so I listed no dates of unavailability) and people I knew who were on the show. I only know of one or two and our contacts were incidental and fleeting, but I listed it. It also asked if I had any Quiz Bowl experience. I have none, though I am intrigued by the pop culture based quiz TRASH....wanna look into that for the future.
Then came the whirlwind. Her name was Maggie. Quickly, she swept us in the conference room after we had our Polaroids taken. (And given how Polaroid no longer makes the film for those cameras anymore, that may be the last Polaroid ever taken of me) I gave a huge smile and the picture wasn't half bad.
So much happened over the next 2 hours, it's really all a blur. In a nutshell, Maggie, the contestant coordinator in charge of everything gave us a really great stand-up routine. She was funny, she was self-deprecating, she was silly,she was flirty, she was glib and she was loud. She was great, always complimenting us when we did something well or when she needed more, she'd ask nicely, but directly
Our first task after our instructions was a 50 question in-person test. All of us in the room had already taken the online test and had passed. So we were all expected to do well. I don't remember most of the test, but I think I did at least okay. Unfortunately, we never will find out just how well we did as they keep them secret, along with the importance of one test compared to the other..
Regardless, once the tests were scored, we all went up in threes to play Jeopardy!. We used the same kind of "signaling devices" they use on the show and we were instructed how and when to ring in. I did okay, I suppose, the first clue I got wrong and I think I got two or three others right. After a brief time playing, we all got a brief interview. Mine focused on working for what I described as a large Philadelphia-based cable company. I made them laugh a few times and I got an unsolicited compliment from Maggie about my "beautiful smile". That made me feel good.
I was the last person of the entire session to be interviewed. After that, we were dismissed with the knowledge that were were now in the contestant pool for the next 18 months and may be called on at any time with just a few weeks notice. So hopefully, that wasn't the end of my Jeopardy! story.
Thanks to everyone for the great supportive emails and comments. It really meant a lot and helped me through my initial nervousness.
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