My Jeopardy! Story: The Taping

It's the afternoon of 12 August and I am driving home from doing errands. The phone rings, but I don't recognize the number. Usually, I don't answer these types of calls, but my intuition told me to answer this one. It was one of the producers of Jeopardy, and he began the conversation by reviewing the info on my application. At the end he asked if everything was correct, and I mentioned that I would be moving in a month. Who do I contact in order to update my information? He said, "Well, you made the show! You're going to be on Jeopardy!" I let out a whoop of excitement. He told me the basics and then later emailed me a whole bunch of forms and more info. It was time to plan a trip to Los Angeles in a month. I now began hitting the Trivial Pursuit cards pretty hard and a few crossword puzzles too. 

I flew in on Monday, 14 September, and got there close to 2. The beach was a car ride from the hotel, and my friend and I wanted to go out some place fun on Tues night so I rented a car. Driving in LA is crazy by the way. They honk all the time at everything, and I can't tell you how many times I almost got hit. Gas is pretty expensive there too so I'm glad I wasn't having to drive much. After I unpacked, readied my clothes for Tuesday, and rested, I headed toward the beach. I spent about an hour out there and it was what I needed. I was starting to get nervous, but listening to the waves calmed my soul. It was cloudy so I didn't see much of a sunset, but I had the beach mostly to myself. I then picked up my friend at the airport, and we headed back to the hotel. It was close to 10 at this point so we went to sleep. I was surprised that I was able to get to sleep pretty quickly. My nerves usually keep me awake. In the morning I got ready for the day. The studio paid for my breakfast at the hotel, and my friend came down with me. Guests are to arrive at 10 so she had more time than I did. It was kind of fun at breakfast to try and figure out who the other contestants might be. The shuttle was supposed to arrive for us at 7:15 so at 7 I went back upstairs to get my things. There where some others in the lobby that I saw on my way up, but when I came back down at 7:12 the lobby was empty! The shuttle was outside and unmarked. I wasn't the last one on, but I did almost miss it. The other contestants were pretty friendly, and we chatted on the way. Two other people were in my audition group in Kansas City so that was pretty cool. (If you look closely at the picture from the audition in the last blog post, you will see a guy in a black shirt. He was on the shuttle.) The lady next to me was Christine, a school teacher from Boston, accent and all. I don't know how far away the studio actually was considering that it was morning traffic and rain on top of that. We arrived at the studio, were met by a couple of producers, and went through security. 

Water tower at Sony Pictures Studio

The Jeopardy! soundstage is right next to the Wheel of Fortune soundstage so that was cool to see. Once we got to the green room we had to turn off all cellular devices. That way our friends and family couldn't communicate any clues or anything to us. They also told us we weren't allowed to go anywhere without a producer present. Apparently the movie Quiz Show is pretty accurate, and because of all the cheating that used to happen there are now a lot of rules to be followed. We went over paperwork, making sure our info was correct, filling out tax forms, going over our interview/introduction stories, and practicing the Hometown Howdy (Who is me? Beth Horn. Who's Beth Horn? That's me!). After I got the call that I was going to be on Jeopardy! I was sent a 3 page form to fill out to find out interesting facts or stories about me that they could use for the interview portion of the show. From that document they chose 5. We practiced those stories and then decided on 1 that would work the best and Alex might use. He has a card that lists the 5 stories the producers chose, and he can pick whichever story he wants, but they also make a recommendation. During all this people were heading back to make up which is two small cubicle-sized rooms in the green room. My person was Lisa and one of the producers later told me she used to work with Bob Fosse. I wish I had more time to hear her stories! There was also a lengthy time of going over all the rules (again Quiz Show). A representative from the Sullivan Co who monitors quiz shows came in to meet with us and check on us. This all took about an hour. 

Then we all headed out to the set to do rehearsals. To be honest, the set was a lot smaller than I imagined. On TV it looks like a big expanse to me but in real life not so much. They showed us the different cameras and how the podiums worked. Did you know there are little elevators behind the podiums to make the contestants all the same height? It is easier for the camera people that way. Rehearsal consisted of them filming our Hometown Howdy and then we played Jeopardy! They paired us up against each other in a lot of different ways. We went through all the rounds including final Jeopardy! One of the contestants was what they call a local alternate. He lives in LA and had come last week in case someone did not show up. They didn't use him so he was back again this week. Alex was not present during rehearsal but I did see him arrive. He came in on the other side of the stage, wearing a button down, tshirt, and jeans, and he walked straight to his dressing room. I felt pretty good during the rehearsal. I was comfortable with how everything worked (buzzer, indicator lights). We were all pretty evenly matched. Again, I was surprised that I wasn't as nervous as what I thought I would be. I was in game mode and I came to play and to win! Bring it on! 

My guests and I outside the Jeopardy! soundstage.

After rehearsal we went back to the green room. This was our last chance to eat, drink, and use the bathroom before the show began. We also found out who would be competing in the first show. While they did this they brought in the audience. The audience area is divided into 2 sides. House left is for general or open audience. Anyone can come and sit there to watch a show. House right is for the contestants and guests of contestants. I found out later that before we came out for the actual taping they had a Q&A for the audience members and told them the basics and background of the show. Again, contestants cannot be left unguarded so they sit in the audience when they are not competing. We were given strict instructions before we went out that we were not to look at, make eye contact, or communicate in anyway with our guests. Again, don't want to do anything that might look like cheating. Anyway, we found out who was going to be on the first show...and my name was drawn! We were matching off against the champion from the previous show so the other person and I had to draw a piece of paper to say where we would stand. I drew a 2 so I got to stand at the podium in the middle. My nerves kicked in a bit here. To be one of the first this week. To face off against the champion. To be in this moment. Out we went. They miked us and got us to the right height (I didn't need the elevator--not much surprise with my natural height and wearing boots), and then one of the producers went to each of us and we got to wave to our guests at that point, making sure there was no secret communication between us. Then the show began. 

Did you know the announcer Johnny has been with Jeopardy! since the beginning? He is one of the last of his kind. It is that point when Alex comes on the stage and we actually get to see him. The actual taping of the show is a bit of a blur for me. They tape the show true to time so we would play for a bit and then take a commercial break. On those breaks, we contestants would get some water, touch up makeup, have us buzz in to make sure the buzzers were still working, and the audience members got to ask Alex questions. During one commercial break, we got our pictures taken with Alex and by ourselves at the podium. It was trickier to buzz in than what I thought. When I thought I had buzzed as soon as Alex stopped talking or the lights went off, one of the others got there before me. It may look like I didn't know much, but that was because I didn't ring in fast enough. I am quite pleased with how I competed.

After the show they bring the three of us up front to talk with Alex. They film us during this because this is what you see I think when the credits roll. This is the only time I was able to interact with Alex and that lasted maybe a minute. Afterwards, we were ushered off the stage. There is 6-7 minutes between each taping. The champion has to change clothes, and the other 2 sign a receipt of the winnings they will receive. They then have the choice on leaving the studio or sitting with their guests in the audience to watch other tapings. After 3 shows they take a break for lunch and then come back to tape the last two shows.  The show will air Monday, 26 October and I will receive my winnings 120 days after that. It was an experience of a lifetime!