About Ira Riklis Trivia
OK, it’s true. I’m one of those people that yells at a television screen when there’s no one else in the room. I’m not like a friend of mine that yells at the television screen because either former President George W. Bush or former Vice President Cheney is speaking and he disagrees violently. You see, my friend is a dyed in the wool liberal. I was worried about him and asked if he realized that Bush or Cheney can’t hear him heckle them through the TV. He replied that he knew they couldn’t hear him, but it still made him feel better to scream at them. Personally I’m a moderate to leaning liberal and unlikely to scream at almost any politician on the TV. I am one of the ever so sought after swing voters, capable of voting Democratic or Republican, but living in New York State I’m not sure that has any meaning. New York is not even close to being a swing state.
Ira Riklis and Jeopardy!
No, I’m a Jeopardy! addict. I love trivia. I am a treasure trove of meaningless, but somehow oddly interesting, information. I’m rarely challenged on my information as I tend to win about 9 out of 10 challenges. When I was young, Jeopardy! was a daytime show. It was a nice little bonus of being sick and staying home from school that I got to watch Jeopardy! I had once attended a filming of the show and as luck would have it, I was home sick when that week was broadcast. I watched with my grandmother and she was so impressed and proud that her grandson knew all the answers; I didn’t have the heart to tell her that I had already heard these questions. So like most aficionados of Jeopardy!, I like to demonstrate my mastery of the arcane, obscure, and sometimes ridiculous. So I play along and announce my answers out loud. This is where the TV screen comes in. If there is no one else in the room, I’ll yell my answer at the TV screen. Some of my proudest moments have been on Final Jeopardy! when the three contestants all answer wrong, but I had the correct answer. This tends to initiate a little victory dance not unlike those performed by NFL players when they score a touchdown. I once tried out for Jeopardy!, but alas, I wasn’t good enough to make the cut.
It is comforting to note that I’m not alone in this strange behavior. About 10 years ago I attended another taping of Jeopardy! Before they began filming, the Producers spoke to the audience. The Producers noted that Jeopardy! fans tend to want to demonstrate that they know the answers as well and therefore will scream their answers at the TV screen should there be no one else in the room to hear. AH, vindication; well, at least I’m part of a community that all have the same strange customs.
One odd little trivia item about this trivia show, my father was once a $1,000 “Answer” (now $2,000) in Double Jeopardy! under the category of Business and Finance. The “Answer” read (remember, in Jeopardy! the board provides an Answer and the contestant must provide the Question) “He is the millionaire owner of Playtex, McCrory and Schenley and is married to singer/actress Pia Zadora.” In shock, I turned to my wife and said that I think I know this one. Of course, none of the contestants had the answer, but this was not reason for a victory dance.
I thought it would be fun to share on the internet some of the interesting items that I have accumulated through the years. So here goes…