So Dave and I are about a week behind watching Jeopardy! on account of some travel and stuff. Tonight we got back into it after seeing the NCAA final and we were shocked when Alex walked out at the beginning of the show—and he had the beginnings of a righteous-looking mustache going on!
You may be aware that Alex shaved his mustache back in 2003, so it was weird to see it again. It was...nostalgic? We could actually hear giggling from the audience as he said his opening spiel, and I couldn't help but feel for the guy as he stood there and ignored the obvious disbelief and disrespect from the crowd. I mean, I've been a mustache guy for almost a year now, and I can tell you it's a tricky thing working with facial hair. It's a commitment, first off, and it's a risk. Finding a long weekend to get the first few days of growth done away from possible ridicule is not easy, especially if you're on TV five nights a week and you have a long history of 'stachery behind you.
Trebek, back in the glory days, and a more recent Trebek
showing off his rarely seen left side.
But that's where we got really confused. See, they film five episodes of Jeopardy! back to back, knocking out a week's worth of shows in one day (Monday contestants have to bring five changes of clothes just in case they win four straight), and the DVR said this was last Tuesday's show. That means Trebek would have to have grown his mustache in the short break between taping Monday's episode and Tuesday's, a feat I'm not willing to grant him capable of. It was just too weird.
It gets weirder: sometime in Double Jeopardy the camera flashed back to Alex at his podium, and the mustache was gone. Completely gone. And not a hint of razor burn or anything. I goggled. Dave said, "He must've shaved it off during the commercial break because no one liked it." "No way!" I stated in flat disbelief. "No way. It just doesn't add up."
But then I started doing some subtraction instead, counting back the days to last Tuesday. And there was our answer (question?): last Tuesday was April Fools' Day. Let no one say that Alex hasn't got a sense of humor. The man's a genius.1
Check it out for yourself right here.
1 If nothing else, he had the foresight to make an April Fool's Day joke who-knows-how-many months in advance. That takes dedication.
1 comment:
You may be way too into the show, but that was a funny one. On Trebek's part. My answer for whatever the next Final question is: William Faulkner.
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