By Theron Larkins
Staff Writer
CARIBOU, Maine — If someone were to pose a question regarding what one television program has entertained generations of intellectuals more than any other for over half a century, the answer would be “Jeopardy!” Or perhaps, “what is Jeopardy!” would be the more appropriate answer, in this case.
From the early days of Art Fleming to the current iconic host, Alex Trebek the show created by media mogul Merv Griffin has been delightfully stumping viewers and contestants, alike, who have tested their wit during the show’s 50 year reign.
On Tuesday, March 11th an episode of the famous title aired with one of Caribou’s own standing front and center. Kirsten Albair, of Caribou, took her place at one of the three prestigious podiums to square off against two deserving competitors. Albair clashed in a battle of brains with two bright young aspiring champions. First, Tony Knechtges, who is an engineering manager from Grafton, Ohio and last, but certainly not least, Arthur Chu. Chu is a compliance analyst and voiceover artist from Broadview Heights, Ohio, who’s currently in the midst of a 12-show winning streak. At the time of the March 11th airing the compliance analyst was involved in a streak that saw his 10-day cash winnings total at $277,200.
Both Albair and Knechtges were looking to overthrow the impressive reign Chu was hoping to build on. Chu is the first player to make it through a 10-game streak in a long time, according to Albair, and there was no doubt in her mind that he would continue to aggressively battle for first place, despite getting off to a rather slow start.
Albair was able to capitalize on a slow start by Chu, as she quickly found herself with a total score of $4,400 halfway through the first round. After Chu completed a true Daily Double, he ended the round with a score of $4,000, just $400 behind Albair’s leading total, while Knechtges brought up the rear, with a score of $1,400.
For most, the thought of being on a nationwide broadcast on such a well-known televison program is daunting. Albair mentioned that the taping of the March 11th episode actually occurred in November. The fact that the show is not live may have somewhat of a calming effect on contestants, but with money and pride both on the line, it’s hard for anyone to remain completely composed during such a stressful competition. However, Albair claimed that her nerves were the least of her worries, as she was much more concerned with simply proving to herself she could be on the illustrious show.
“No, I wasn’t nervous, at all. The hardest part, by far, was getting the timing right, on the buzzer,” said Albair with a laugh.
She was, of course, referring to the button contestants must press in order to be called upon to answer the question,
“You have to wait until Alex is finished reading the question, obviously, but it can be more complicated and tougher than it seems,” she said. “If you buzz in too early you have to wait a certain amount of time before you can buzz in again. Getting that timing down was definitely the most challenging part.”
Most contestants, or even simply just viewers would claim the hardest part to be the often difficult questions contestants must navigate through on their way to Final Jeopardy, but for Albair, the questions were little more than a formality.
During Round 2, Chu completed another Daily Double, wagering $4,000 and bringing his total to $8,800. This turn of events left Albair in second place, trailing by $4,000. Chu found the last Daily Double in “Give My Regards to Broadway” under the $1,200 clue. In the lead with $16,400, he now had $10,000 more than Albair, in second place. He bet $5,000 and mispronounced the name of the actress so it was judged as incorrect.
Chu finished in the lead with a runaway $17,000. Albair was next with $5,200 and Knechtges was in third place with $2,200. After a clue for the Final Jeopardy question led to Chu and Albair correctly answering “what is ‘The Catcher in the Rye’?” the competition was officially over. Chu, with his final wager of $3,000 was once again champion and brought his final tally up to an even $20,000. His 11-day total was now at $297,200. Albair finished with a score of $5,999 and Knechtges ended the competition at $200.
For Albair, the second-place finish was not important, nor was the $2,000 prize she took home for her efforts.
“From the first online qualifying test I took last year, my goal was just to make it on the show. The online test starts out with about 100,000 applicants. From there, it eventually gets narrowed down to roughly 400 people, who get an audition,” said Albair.
From those 400 aspiring Jeopardy contestants only three could be selected for the March 11 broadcast, and Albair managed to get her name on that short list.
“Winning wasn’t important at all to me, but the experience was what really mattered,” Albair continued. “I told myself from Day One, up until the filming in Los Angeles, to just take things one step at a time and enjoy whatever happened, and that’s exactly what I did.”
