What Is...? A Jeopardy! Podcast

Obviously if there is a Final Jeopardy! about Borat, we are going to discuss Borat. And we talk about some other stuff this week too, as Paolo Pasco continues his fantastic run all the way to a Tournament of Champions berth, we have a new player in the JFAF game (The National Enquirer!) and a contestant has a reaction to missing a clue that greatly tickles us both. If you want to be tickled by more content, head on over to our Patreon at patreon.com/jeopardypodcast and support the show! You'll get a bunch of bonus episodes, access to our Discord, and more fantastic bonus content on the way. Don't miss out! SOURCE: NPR: "Kazahstan Embassy Responds to Borat" by Phyllis Fletcher and "'Very Nice!': Kazahstan, Outraged No More, Embraces Borat In New Slogan" by Bill Chappell; BBC Culture: "What Kazakhstan Really Thought of Borat" by Yerlan Askarbekov This episode was produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert. Special thank you to The Jeopardy! Fan and J-Archive.

That's right, your very favorite comedy podcast about America's Favorite Quiz Show is BACK for Season 3 of our show and Season 42 of Jeopardy!'s. And we go all the way deep on this one as we reconnect with Jonathan Hugendubler, we meet a few listeners of our show who find success on the J! stage, and the week proves ripe for anecdote and response of the week candidates. Plus, J! fans are fuming over Ken becoming an empty nester and we dive deep on the Spelling Bee. For our patrons, of course, our show never stopped, as we did bonus episodes all summer long over at patreon.com/jeopardypodcast, and had a blast doing it. John got a crash course in Broadway from Louis Peitzman, we watched Matt LeBlanc's porno, and we got lots more where that came from. Join today and never miss a new bonus episode PLUS hang out in our Discord with our very cool listeners! SOURCE: The Outline: "When Spellers Became Athletes" by Ann-Derrick Gaillot; The Boston Globe: "At This Year's Spelling Bee, Make Way for Meaning" by Ben Zimmer; New York Times: "Frank Neuhauser, A Speller's Speller" by Margalit Fox This episode was produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert. Special thank you to the J-Archive and The Jeopardy! Fan.

The most prestigious night in show business is here, it's the 2nd Annual Jeoppy Awards, presented by What Is...? A Jeopardy! Podcast. All the stars are out as we hand out the coveted awards to the surprise of the season, the Ken's Korner Award for Ken Jenningsism, and of course, the legendary Anecdote and Response of the Year. Plus, we introduce a few new awards, get our first-ever live acceptance speech, and we start the show with a monologue, featuring jokes about this past season of the show, written by professional TV writers! And John. The show will return for Season 42 next week, and our podcast will return for Season 3 on September 16th. Until then, join our Patreon, won't you? It's a great way to support the show and catch up on all the bonus episodes you missed before a new season gets underway. Head on over to patreon.com/jeopardypodcast for all the details! This episode was produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert. Additional material by Peter Miller.

The most prestigious awards season in television is here, as we kick off the 2025 Jeoppys with an interview with our second-ever Player of the Year, Drew Goins! From a tough loss in his initial game against David Erb to a surprise entry in the Tournament of Champions, we talk to Drew about it all. We learn how he has become friends with Lisa Ann Walter, how he monopolizes the children's section of his local library to prepare for the show, and of course, the Tinder/Grindr thing. Plus, we give Drew the chance to play everyone's favorite WIAJP Game: Jeoparedemption!, where he gets a chance to right some of the wrongs from the Alex Trebek Stage. And of course, we will return later this summer with the rest of the 2025 Jeoppy Awards, but until then, you can subscribe to our Patreon at patreon.com/jeopardypodcast. $5/month gets you access to our entire back catalogue of bonus episodes and every new one, including last month when Louis Peitzman and Blocked Party co-host Stefan Heck joined Emily and John to help John prep for the ATS stage himself. And as you know, our first-ever live episode is fast approaching, as we will be watching Matt Leblanc's softcore porno and the only way to get in is to be a patron! So join today! This episode was produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert.

We made it! It's the final week of Season 41 of Jeopardy!, and the first FULL season of WIAJP is in the books with this extra-long episode as Scott Riccardi aims to keep his superchampion streak through the summer break. Can he do it?! We find out here, as we definitely do impressions of Andrew Dice Clay, Scott definitely runs out of anecdotes, and Jeopardy! fans are fuming about the IRONCLAD LAW of the show. Plus, we dive deep on William Randolph Hearst. Please support the show over on our Patreon. It's just $5/month at patreon.com/jeopardypodcast for a bunch of bonus episodes with new ones coming up, access to our Discord, and access to our first-ever Zoom live show in August. We can't wait! Join today! SOURCE: Biography: "William Randolph Hearst"; American Aristocracy: "William Randolph Hearst" Special thank you as always to the J-Archive and The Jeopardy! Fan. This episode was produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert.

It's another huge week for Scott Riccardi on Jeopardy! as he becomes a super-champion and looks to carry his run all the way into Season 42 as we head into the final week of Season 41 gameplay. We have a fun time getting sidetracked on this episode as we discuss Love Island, Emily's stoned journey in Las Vegas becoming a reality, and the show's continued insistence on shoehorning Harry Potter content into so many clues, week after week. But we leave room to discuss the show too, as Scott is stretching for anecdotes, we get a Response of the Year candidate from Dave, and we dive deep on Disneyland. Support the show at patreon.com/jeopardypodcast, where $5/month gets you a new bonus episode every month! We have some live play coming up as John tries to brush up on some weak areas in his own J! play, and August will see our first-ever Zoom live episode, which will be a ton of fun and patrons-only. So join today! SOURCE: The Walt Disney Family Museum: "The Genesis of Disneyland" by David Mumford and Bruce Gordon. Special thank you to the Jeopardy! Fan and the J-Archive. This episode is produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert.

It's Scott Riccardi Week on Jeopardy! as the champion goes on a wildly impressive run, winning every game and racking up a very impressive money total. And the games are great too, with some more excellent competitors with even better names lined up to play against Scott. Plus, we get a Jeopardy! poem, a guy who hates music, a Justin Bieber lyric mishap, and we dive deep on the Hope Diamond. If you want to feel as rich as owning the Hope, donate to the show! Head on over to patreon.com/jeopardypodcast and for just $5, get all of our bonus episodes as well as a new one every damn month! This month, John gets his J! prep put to the test with some fresh boards created by hosts and guest hosts of this show, and next month, we have our first-ever live Zoom show planned. You won't wanna miss it! SOURCE: Smithsonian: "The Hope Diamond"; Forbes: "The Secret History of The Hope Diamond: How Pierre Cartier Sold A Cursed Jewel" by Francesca Cartier Brickell Special thank you as always to the J-Archive and The Jeopardy! Fan. This episode is produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert.

That's right, it's the first edition of Jeopardy! Couples Are Fuming, as the claim made by several news outlets that Jason Singer and his wife Susan McMillan were the first married couple to both win on Jeopardy! causes a stir between former players, J! fans, and the news outlets themselves. It's a dramatic week on the Alex Trebek Stage as well, as we tie the one-day champion streak, Jason's expressiveness leads to some wonderful "we feel you" moments, and we dive deep on the calamity that was Bush v. Gore. Speaking of calamities, you can donate to our Patreon and support the show! Just kidding. It's not a calamity. It rules. At patreon.com/jeopardypodcast, you can support us AND get at least one bonus episode every month. Last month, it was TWO as we recapped Masters and did a wonderful interview with Victoria Groce. You'll also get access to our very fun Discord, all of our back catalogue, and more fun stuff, so don't miss out! SOURCE: Vanity Fair: "The Path to Florida" by David Margolick. Special thank you as always to J-Archive and The Jeopardy! Fan. This episode was produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert.

It's a milestone week in Jeopardy! history as a Final Jeopardy! clue asks a contestant about her great aunt, whom she is also named after. It's serendipitous for that one-day champion who shares a theme with every other champion this week: they win one game. Jeopardy! closes in on the longest such streak in the show's history and we continue our streak of being stupid about this show as we discuss a few tricky Finals (and the fans who fume about them), speed stacking, a potential Response of the Year candidate, and we dive deep on Henry Clay Folger. SOURCE: Folger Shakespeare Library: "Our Founders"; Smithsonian Magazine: "How the Soon-to-Reopen Folger Shakespeare Library Came To Be" by Andrea Mays and James L. Swanson. Special thank you as always to The Jeopardy! Fan and J-Archive. This episode was produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert.

Don't worry, we aren't tired of Jeopardy! at all. But we are life-tired as John is still jet-lagged from his trip to Iceland and Emily is shaking off the effects of a long weekend camp reunion. And of course, that means this episode is as chaotic as Thursday's Final Jeopardy! was, as we have tons of bleary-eyed laughs covering a wild week of games and one of the most memorable FJs since we started doing the show. Plus, J! fans are loving Phineas & Ferb, Dan captures our attention with some very funny anecdotes, and we dive deep on the Biltmore estate. If you want to dive deep on our Masters coverage, there's only one way to do it: our Patreon! Head on over to patreon.com/jeopardypodcast to support the show and you'll get last week's episode recapping the entire Masters journey, and this week's episode, our exclusive interview with the Queen herself, Victoria Groce! It's so good and you will not wanna miss it, so join today and support the show! SOURCE: The Biltmore: "Our Story" by Bill Cecil. Special thank you as always to the J-Archive and The Jeopardy! Fan. This episode was produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert.

On this very special John-less episode of WIAJP, Emily is joined once again by writer, podcaster, Jeopardy! fan, and certified good driver Louis Peitzman. We recap a fun week of runaway games and enjoy Matt Massie's 3-game run. Matt, are you listening?? One contestant's anecdote has us saying mazel tov and the fans speculate about Ken's star meter rising. Plus, in lieu of a deep dive, an extremely shallow dive as we dream-cast our favorite Jeopardy! players into various reality tv shows.  You should dream-cast yourself as a patron of our very own podcast! Not only do you get the joy of knowing you're supporting us, but you also get bonus episodes! At patreon.com/jeopardypodcast, with a $5/month donation, you'll get immediate access to our full back catalogue of bonus episodes plus our 2-part Masters recap coming this week and next and featuring an exclusive interview with Victoria Groce. You can't miss it! This episode was produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert.

The world has gone mad as John officially enters the Jeopardy! contestant pool and we discuss this week of games with another spate of new champs as we say goodbye to Geoff Barnes and hello to "sullen, emo 'over it'" contestants Stella Trout and Joey Quismorio. We also have a conspiracy theory about the seemingly increased difficulty of this week's clues, Emily gets to see Dance Hall Crashers, J! fans are excited about the news of streaming, and we dive deep on the CN Tower (oo OOOOOO). The Jeopardy! Masters has just concluded and the only place to hear us talk about it is on our Patreon! Head on over to patreon.com/jeopardypodcast to support the show but also to hear our coverage (coming later this week) of the excellent Masters tournament AND an exclusive interview with the J! queen herself, Victoria Groce. Plus, you'll get access to all of our previous bonus episodes, access to our Discord, and MORE! SOURCE: The Torontoist: "The CN Tower is Dead. Long Live the CN Tower" by Kevin Plummer. Special thank you as always to The Jeopardy! Fan and J-Archive. This episode was produced by Producer Dan. Art by Max Wittert. Music by Nate Heller. Additional material by Chris Thayer.

It's another week with multiple champions, and for some reason, the Jeopardy! fans are FUMING about it! They complain when a champ wins too many games, but also when they win not enough. But hey, we have a nice time, as we get to meet a slew of new players this week, almost all of whom we like. Ken also basically says "shitpoo" on national TV, the noble "dik-dik" once again appears, and we go very, very deep on Dred Scott. If you want to go deeper on our show, why not donate to the Patreon? By donating $5/month at patreon.com/jeopardypodcast, you'll get a brand-new bonus episode every month, access to our Discord, and MORE! With the Masters almost over, we will have our exclusive coverage of the tournament only available on our Patreon, and last month, Andy Richter joined us to discuss his three appearances on Celebrity Jeopardy! It was a blast and you won't wanna miss it. SOURCE: Missouri Digital Heritage: "Missouri's Dred Scott Case:, 1846-1857" Special thank you as always to the J-Archive and The Jeopardy! Fan. This episode was produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert.

It's a big week for John on the pod, as he gets to set his own personal record and we wonder if the J! producers have it out for Vancouverites, as Brendan Liaw's great run comes to a harrowing end. We also get a couple of great games, John gives us an update on his Jeopardy! test experience, and J! fans are fuming (sort of?) about Jim's preparation for his Friday game. Plus, we dive deep on the first-ever woman to grace a professional British stage, Margaret Hughes! Support the show by donating to our Patreon! It's the only place to get our Masters coverage (coming up at the tournament's end!) and the only place to hear our exclusive interview with Andy Richter about his time on the show. Plus, you'll get immediate access to our entire back catalogue and our wonderful Discord. Join today at patreon.com/jeopardypodcast! SOURCE: Guinness World Records: "The Original Desdemona: The Scandalous Story of the First Stage Actress Ever" by Eleonora Pilastro Special thank you to the J-Archive and The Jeopardy! Fan. This episode was produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert.

It's an up-and-down week on J! as no champion really gains control of the left podium but we have a ton of fun with Ken going hard on referencing an anecdote, Andrew eats a lot of sandwiches, and J! continues to get horny with a "what is peen?" response. Plus, J! fans are upset with a Triple Stumper in FJ and we dive deep on Michael Dell. Join our Patreon! It's an exciting time as Andy Richter joined us for an interview last week, discussing his three appearances on Celebrity Jeopardy!, the Sony catalogue, and he tells us what it was really like to beat Wolf Blitzer real bad. You also get access to our entire back catalogue of bonuses and immediate access to our super fun and rad Discord. Come join the fun at patreon.com/jeopardypodcast. SOURCE: Academy of Achievement: "Michael S. Dell: Giant of the PC Industry"; Forbes: "Deal of the Century: How Michael Dell Turned His Declining PC Business Into a $40B Windfall" by Antoine Gara Special thank you as always to J-Archive and The Jeopardy! Fan. This episode is produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert.

It's a scattered week on Jeopardy! as we say goodbye to Ben Ganger and hello to a cavalcade of new champs, both deserving and perhaps a little bit lucky. We also deal with the most cringe game of the year as John's Canadian and Vancouver brother Keegan has one of the most devastating games in recent memory. Jeopardy! fans predictably fume about that game and a judges' ruling, we get an anecdote about birds, and we dive deep on The Beatles and their history at the Grammys. Support the show by heading over to patreon.com/jeopardypodcast, where $5/month gets you a new bonus episode every month, access to our entire back catalogue, and access to our wonderful Discord. We have a very special interview coming up on this month's bonus episode and all of our Masters coverage is going behind the paywall. So click on over and check it out! SOURCE: Los Angeles Times: "The Untold Story Behind the Last Beatles Song" by Stephen Thomas Erlewine; The Telegraph: "The Beatles, Now and Then, Review: A Loving but Dreary Attempt to Recapture the Magic" by Neil McCormick Special thank you as always to The Jeopardy! Fan and J-Archive. This episode is produced by Producer Dan. Art by Max Wittert. Music by Nate Heller.

It's been a real run of long-term champions recently and that continues anew this week as we say goodbye to Liam Starnes and hello to Ben Ganger, who puts together an impressive 4-game win streak. We also get a trifecta of hilarious Final Jeopardy! answers, a contestant tries valiantly to pronounce "Nate Bargatze", and friend of the show Alison Betts' innocuous comment on a Reddit post gets the J! fans fuming. Plus, we dive deep on Lee Child's creation, "Jack Reacher". Support the show! Head on over to patreon.com/jeopardypodcast, where your $5 donation will get you access to our entire back catalogue, access to our Discord, and access to our Masters coverage, which will join our usual monthly bonus episode this month (and that bonus episode is a DOOZY with a VERY special celebrity guest!). Help keep the show going and get more glorious content! Everyone wins! SOURCE: The Guardian: "Sacked at 40 and On the Scrapheap. Now Brummie Tops the US Book Charts" by David Smith; January Magazine: "The Persuasive Lee Child" by Ali Karim; Grantland: "The Curious Case of Lee Child" by Bryan Curtis Special thank you as always to the J-Archive and The Jeopardy! Fan. This episode was produced by Producer Dan. Art by Max Wittert. Music by Nate Heller.

It's Liam Starnes week on Jeopardy! as the 20 year-old goes on a run for the ages, and we love every second of it, from his Jeopardy!-themed birthday party to his endearing lack of knowledge about anything pop culture. John and Emily are reunited as Emily is on the mend from surgery and John is back home, and we revel in each other's company with the usual cavalcade of dumb jokes and observations. Plus, we get a contender for Response of the Year from Liam, Jeopardy! fans are very upset with a particular category, and we dive deep on the League of Nations. Join the Patreon! For just $5/month at patreon.com/jeopardypodcast, you'll get a new bonus episode every month, access to our Discord, and MORE! This month, we had Isaac Hirsch and Juveria Zaheer join us for some pre-Masters prep with our first-ever Live Play episode. It was a total blast. We also announce on this episode that all of our Masters coverage is going behind the paywall. Can't hear it if you don't have a membership! Join today! SOURCE: The US Office of the Historian: "The League of Nations, 1920"; History Channel: "The League of Nations" Special thank you as always to The Jeopardy! Fan and J-Archive. This episode is produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert.

With Emily continuing to recover from ass surgery, it's the famous "Wife of the Pod" Becca who joins the show to break down the week that was, from Andrew Hayes locking up a ToC berth to Steven Hoying wearing perhaps the brightest sweater in Jeopardy! history. Becca tells us her history with the show and how it's been woven into the fabric of her relationship with John, and John gets so distracted having to do the episode write-ups for the show, he forgets to do the Deep Dive. Oops! Meanwhile, Becca takes the reins of JFAF to review a tough Final and she relates to one of Andrew's anecdotes in a sincere and adorable way. Join the Patreon! This week, we released our latest bonus episode at patreon.com/jeopardypodcast, and it was our first Live Play edition of the show where Masters contestants Juveria Zaheer and Isaac Hirsch join us to warm up for the big tourney! John writes two boards for the occasion, and the episode is a ton of fun, as you'd expect with those two on tap. Plus, the episode is available in video so you can play along! That's available now along with our entire bonus episode back catalogue, access to our Discord, and more. Join today! SOURCE: National Geographic: "Jane Goodall" by Sarah Appleton. Special thank you as always to the J-Archive and The Jeopardy! Fan. This episode was produced by Producer Dan. Art by Max Wittert. Music by Nate Heller.

On a very special John-less episode, Emily is joined by a friend of the pod & true hunk connoisseur: Handsome Kevin Seccia™️! We recap an exciting week of games as we bid goodbye to Mike Dawson and say hello to Andrew Hayes. We also succumb to Anise’s charms, finally find out how tall Mike is, dive deep on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and set the record for most wrestling analogies ever made on this show. Do you smell what the pod is cooking? Join the Patreon! We've got a new bonus episode coming this week that you're going to love! For $5/month, you'll get all our bonus episodes, access to the Discord to hang with John and Emily and talk J!, and lots more! Head on over to patreon.com/jeopardypodcast and support the show! Special thank you as always to J-Archive and The Jeopardy! Fan. This episode was produced by Producer Dan. Art by Max Wittert. Music by Nate Heller.