Jeopardy!

"This... is... Jeopardy!"America's top-rated syndicated quiz show entered into its 29th season on September 17, 2012. Many subscribing stations have renewed the show through Season 32 (2015-2016).

The show was originally created in the 1960s by Merv Griffin, a famed television host, musician, and actor. Irritated by the impossibility of trying to create a quiz show because of scandals that had taken place involving that genre, Griffin was inspired by a suggestion from his wife Julann to create a show wherein contestants were presented with clues in the form of answers, and had to phrase their responses in the form of a question. He originally was going to title the program What's the Question?, but ended up discarding that original title when a skeptical NBC network producer rejected his original concept, claiming, "It doesn't have enough jeopardies."

The original Jeopardy!series premiered on March 30, 1964, as a daytime program on NBC. With Art Fleming as host and Don Pardo as announcer, that series continued to air until January 3, 1975, and also spawned a weekly syndicated version that aired within the 1974-1975 season. Later came a revival, The All-New Jeopardy!, which ran from October 2, 1978 through March 2, 1979; for this version, Fleming was joined by announcer John Harlan.

The most successful incarnation of Jeopardy! is the current syndicated version, which has aired continuously since September 10, 1984, featuring the Canadian-born Alex Trebek as its host, joined by announcer Johnny Gilbert. This particular version of the program has lived up to its slogan as "America's Favorite Quiz Show," with over 6,000 episodes aired, and currently averages 25 million viewers per week. The show has featured over 10,000 different contestants over the course of its 29-year run, and a host of prominent personalities - including royalty, Presidents, film stars, television personalities, famous athletes, and Nobel laureates - have either presented special clues or appeared as contestants on the show. Since its premiere, the syndicated version ofJeopardy! has outlived 300 other game shows, won a record 30 Daytime Emmy Awards and a Peabody Award, and gained a worldwide following with a multitude of international adaptations. In addition, both TV Guideand the Game Show Network (GSN) have ranked it #2 on their respective lists of the 50 greatest game shows of all time.

The longevity of Jeopardy!'s popularity has led it to being referenced and parodied in many television shows, films, and works of literature over the years, including such popular programs asSaturday Night Live, The Simpsons, Cheers, and The Golden Girls. Educators throughout the United States have created their own versions of the quiz show's game to encourage student participation in class, and even IBM has used the show to exhibit its artificial intelligence system "Watson" and have it compete against two of the show's finest champions in a "man versus machine" competition.