‘Jeopardy!’: Alex Trebek Stops a Contestant From Doing Her Julie Andrews Impression and Twitter Was Let Down
During the first commercial break on Jeopardy! this week, a contestant was ready to burst into song for Alex Trebek, eager to show off her allegedly spot-on Julie Andrews imitation.
It didn’t happen and Twitter’s disappointment was strongly felt.
The ‘Jeopardy!’ 2020 Teachers Tournament
The 2020 Teachers Tournament was filmed before the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic took hold in the nation and around the world.
The tournament is a two-week series of games, with teachers from schools around the United States competing for the $100,000 prize and a chance to return to play in the Tournament of Champions.
Taped in February 2020 before US schools were shut down and online learning commenced, Alex Trebek said in a show clip of the teachers appearing in this year’s tournament, “That’s why we have the Teachers Tournament — to honor the men and women who spend so much quality time with us and with our children.”
Alex Trebek and the almost-singing contestant
On the Jeopardy! episode in June 2020, the 79-year-old host was conducting his usual contestant interviews after the show’s first commercial break.
When he got to contestant Meggie Kwait, a middle-school humanities teacher from New York City, the topic of how Kwait’s friends tell her she can do a perfect impression of Julie Andrews came up. The contestant sheepishly asked Trebek if he would like to hear her sing a bit?
The six-time Daytime Emmy award winner turned to Kwait and simply said something along the lines of, “No, sorry, we can’t allow that,” and moved on to the next contestant.
Kwait, tweeting about the encounter, wrote “I just want to put out there that Alex Trebek looked hopefully over at the producers to ask if I could sing a little Julie Andrews, but they called out that it was a royalties issue. If he ever wants a private concert, I’m all over it!”
Twitter users were disappointed
At Kwait’s explanation on Twitter, the show’s fans expressed their disappointment with the producers’ inability to allow the contestant to sing perhaps “My Favorite Things” or “The Sound of Music.”
Her supporters on the social media site are ardent.
“You’re my favorite in the Teachers Tournament this year!,” said one tweet.
Another tweet curiously asked the contestant what she would have sung. She replied, “My go-to is “I Loved You Once in Silence,” because her swoopy vowels are easiest to imitate there. But “Lonely Goatherd” is probably what I would have gone for on the spot.”
Fans are clearly enjoying this contestant’s spunk in the game.
“Thanks for explaining this, Meggie,” another fan said. “Really enjoying watching you and we are rooting for you, hope to see you win it all tomorrow.”
“I’m loving your enthusiasm, sense of humor, and sass!,” a fan tweeted.
Finally, a Jeopardy! fan, not happy that Kwait wasn’t permitted to sing, boiled it down to dollars and cents, regarding royalty concerns.
“Like Jeopardy! couldn’t afford to pay a few royalties. Or wouldn’t this be covered under ‘fair use’?”
