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Ken Jennings can't lose on Jeopardy!!

voicegy

voicegy

macrumors 65816
Jan 1, 2002
1,429
17
Sandy Eggo - MacRumors Member since 1-1-2002
My post regarding Ken's religion being slammed if this were found out to be a "fixed" run has been interpreted correctly by some of the posts that followed mine.

Ken has become, by proxy, and through not fault of his own or set up, somewhat of a "poster boy" for the Mormon religion due to his fame. If his run on the show were "fixed," and it were to be proven, there would be natural fallout on the Mormon religion from some of the public at large. That's all I meant. The Mormon religion itself would continue on, of course, but this episode would leave a bad taste in people's mouths.

No, producers would NOT repeat the mistake of the 50's again. Period. That scandal rocked the entire community, and standards and practices were set in place to keep the whole game show world from ever again stepping into that soup...there's way too much at stake, and it's simply not only not worth the risk, but unneccessary.
 
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mickey

macrumors newbie
Jul 9, 2004
6
0
I may go to hell for this, but he looks like a Mormon. For all their attempts at converting people Mormons tend to look alike since they started from a small gene pool. This is most pronounced in Utah of course
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Oh, puh-leez.

Most of the original Mormon settlers to Utah were from England and Scandanavia. We have a lot of blonde people. But the "gene pool" is no smaller than Europe's. Since then, people have moved here from all over the world. Most of the people in my neighborhood are Mormons. One guy is Ethiopian. Another couple is mixed-race (mom black, dad white) who met in the Army. A neighbor's wife was from Scotland, originally. Pretty diverse neighborhood, by any standards.

There are more Mormons in California than there are in Utah. There are nearly as many in sub-Saharan Africa as there are in Utah, and they tend not to be particularly blonde over there.

Ken just looks like Ken.

-mickey
 
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mickey

macrumors newbie
Jul 9, 2004
6
0
Everyone knows the "story" Jeopardy is telling, but heres the real story...
Ken was a computer programer/tech support with Sony Pictures Entertainment Company, the parent company to Sony Pictures Television, which produces Jeopary. He was fired by Sony for inappropriate use of company resources. (He was using their servers to run his own web-based business, but thats a whole other story). So anyway, Ken was able to come up with some strange company policy loopholes and had a beautiful case against Sony for what he called his "wrongful termination". He met with VP David Hendler and they struck a deal to prevent Ken from suing Sony. Heres a quick overview of their agreement. Ken was able to show that had he settled out of court with Sony, the likely payout would have been $2 million+. Had the case been heard in court, he could have taken Sony for upwards of $4 million (much of that going to cover Ken's legal fees). Ken had always wanted to be a contestant on Jeopardy, but wasn't allowed because he was an employee of Sony. No longer an employee, he now had his chance, but would have to wait until the next regular season began taping after Labor Day. To drop the case, David agreed to get Ken onto the show and allow him several weeks to make some money on the show. The agreement stated that Ken will continue to win shows and remain the champion until he has earned at least $1.75 million dollars, and won at least 47 consecutive shows, setting a new record for most wins on a game show. Ken is a really smart man in his own right, and the shows producers only tell him the correct answers to 85% of the questions before the show is taped. Mr. Jennings is confident enough that once he has gone past the 47 shows and is no longer receiving the answers, he can continue on his own to earn over $2.18 million, the all-time record for winnings by a game show contestant. If you are a fan of Ken and/or the show, I won't post anymore information here.
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As somebody who knows the man and his background, I can tell you that whole thing is a total fabrication. There isn't a hint of truth in it whatsoever.

-mickey
 
Awimoway

Awimoway

macrumors 68000
Sep 13, 2002
1,511
33
California
Jeez, Mickey, have a sense of humor. The 'story' is just a little harmless, jealous fun.

Actually, I think the look-alike thing isn't so far off. It's not for genetic reasons though. But Mormons, most of them very conservative people, tend to dress and comb their hair alike. They tuck their shirts in. They comb their hair on the side. They shave. They shower daily. Terrible, I know.

On the other hand, as a Mormon, I find that non-Mormons tend to look a lot alike. Beards, goatees, and other small animals writhing bushily on their faces. Enough piercings to make a metal detector short circuit. Enough tattoos to wallpaper a small apartment. They don't tuck their shirts in or wash their clothes regularly. :p

Stereotypes, people, it's all stereotypes. Just a little harmless fun. I have facial hair and don't tuck my shirts in either. Next thing you know I'll be a dope-smoking liberal and my bishop will have to discipline me. :rolleyes: ;)
 
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mickey

macrumors newbie
Jul 9, 2004
6
0
There's a difference between suggesting that folks dress alike, and suggesting they come from a shallow gene pool.

But Mormons, most of them very conservative people, tend to dress and comb their hair alike. They tuck their shirts in. They comb their hair on the side. They shave. They shower daily. Terrible, I know.
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For the most part, that's true. But not always. I shave once a week, regular as clockwork. ;) I'm wearing worn-out jeans, an "Imagine No Liberals" smiley-face tee shirt, and my hair is kind of spikey.

-mickey
 
jefhatfield

jefhatfield

Retired
Jul 9, 2000
8,803
0
mickey said:
.

Oh, puh-leez.

Most of the original Mormon settlers to Utah were from England and Scandanavia. We have a lot of blonde people. But the "gene pool" is no smaller than Europe's. Since then, people have moved here from all over the world. Most of the people in my neighborhood are Mormons. One guy is Ethiopian. Another couple is mixed-race (mom black, dad white) who met in the Army. A neighbor's wife was from Scotland, originally. Pretty diverse neighborhood, by any standards.

There are more Mormons in California than there are in Utah. There are nearly as many in sub-Saharan Africa as there are in Utah, and they tend not to be particularly blonde over there.

Ken just looks like Ken.

-mickey
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i think the most racially diverse religion in the world has to be the jehovah witnesses since they spread their religion/denomination faster than anybody i know in every country on the globe...even though i have some disagreements with certain aspects of the religion, i have to commend their passion for spreading their gospel and it continues to be the fastest growing religion in the world, percentage-wise

it's interesting when you see their literature and they have people from every country and culture represented...only the most aggressive evangelism campaign over a number of years can cause that and they are out in every neighborhood in my region everyday, year in and year out...some religions have people go out on limited missions and i did some work in college for intervarsity christian fellowship, but after that, i was not too active in evangelism...my former employee is a jehovah witness and he considers his whole life a mission of evangelism from college where he was converted to old age...he recently moved and there is no doubt he will continue to go door to door the day he settles into his new surroundings as much as possible...he will get a job but he considers that a side dish which goes along with his main calling as an ordained minister and evangelist...which all jehovah witnesses become if they are serious and which is the goal of the entire religion

the bible states that some are evangelists while others work with other gifts...but my friend and all his parishioners believe all are evangelists and i suppose in a couple of centuries, the jehovah witnesses can very well become the biggest religion in the world

but then take the religion of my ancestors, shinto of japan...it's not a religion which is heavily evangelized and for the most part, shintoists are japanese ;)
 
jefhatfield

jefhatfield

Retired
Jul 9, 2000
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actually it would be fun to look at the contestants on the show and look at the features of the men

how many are clean shaven? how many part their hair from the side? how many tuck their shirts in? how many have body piercing or tattoos?

i think it's safe to say most of the contestants are not mormon but will have tucked in shirts, be clean shaven, and part their hair from the side

and it's generally true of adults in american society...mormon or non mormon...sure some people have facial hair and many have tattoos but it's still the minority who sport the facial hair, body piercing, and tattoos

but one can certainly make good money if they owned a tattoo and piercing business and it's certainly way more common now than twenty years ago

ironically the two mormons i knew in my town both parted their hair right down the middle ;)
 
wdlove

wdlove

macrumors P6
Oct 20, 2002
16,568
0
Doctor Q said:
Here we go again. Reruns are over and the new season starts tonight.

Ken is back.
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Thank you for the update Doctor Q. Go Ken, good luck. Wow still champion and a new season.
 
FredAkbar

FredAkbar

macrumors 6502a
Jan 18, 2003
660
0
San Francisco, CA
I watched him for the first time tonight. It was crazy to watch, I just saw a couple minutes of the first round, but he just kept answering question after question (or questioning answer after answer, I guess), the other 2 contestants just stood there stumped. I turned back halfway through and Ken had like $24,000 and the other two had a couple thousand each. Unfortunately the ESPN 25th Anniversary show was going on at the same time so I couldn't watch much Jeopardy.
 
MongoTheGeek

MongoTheGeek

macrumors 68040
Sep 13, 2003
3,303
32
Its not so much where you are as when you are.
FredAkbar said:
I watched him for the first time tonight. It was crazy to watch, I just saw a couple minutes of the first round, but he just kept answering question after question (or questioning answer after answer, I guess), the other 2 contestants just stood there stumped. I turned back halfway through and Ken had like $24,000 and the other two had a couple thousand each. Unfortunately the ESPN 25th Anniversary show was going on at the same time so I couldn't watch much Jeopardy.
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They didn't seem like that hard of questions for the most part. at home on the couch I got a few he didn't and vice versa.

Anyone notice his grand total. 1,331,661? bizarre.
 
kgarner

kgarner

macrumors 68000
Jan 28, 2004
1,512
0
Utah
Here's a possible clue to how far he goes. The info is uncorroborated but interesteing none the less. Do not read if you want to be surprised by how far he goes.
 
jefhatfield

jefhatfield

Retired
Jul 9, 2000
8,803
0
kgarner said:
Here's a possible clue to how far he goes. The info is uncorroborated but interesteing none the less. Do not read if you want to be surprised by how far he goes.
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i guess nothing is a secret

kgo radio, san francisco, always spoils the truth about survivor

i knew weeks in advance that richard hatch won, but i kept calling him rudy...i don't watch the show but one of the talk show hosts on the show is a big fan and keeps up on rumors, which, so far, have been true every season...so no matter what topic is on kgo that day, some caller is bound to bring up survivor

if they really want to keep it a secret, they should tape the thing live...of course with a 7 second delay ;)
 
wdlove

wdlove

macrumors P6
Oct 20, 2002
16,568
0
I just heard it mentioned on NBC Radio News the Ken Jennings lost in his 75th game. It's kind of sad, but he has won over $3 million. Will be interested to hear is he gets to keep his winnings. Somewhere I heard that if you loose, you loose your winnings. Hopefully for Ken that is just only relates to the 75th game winnings. His loss was inevitable, no one is invincible.
 
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dotnina

macrumors 6502a
Aug 19, 2004
856
0
wdlove said:
I just heard it mentioned on NBC Radio News the Ken Jennings lost in his 75th game. It's kind of sad, but he has won over $3 million. Will be interested to hear is he gets to keep his winnings. Somewhere I heard that if you loose, you loose your winnings. Hopefully for Ken that is just only relates to the 75th game winnings. His loss was inevitable, no one is invincible.
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As far as I know, when you don't come in first place on "Jeopardy!", you lose that day's winnings. I believe you get prizes when you're in either 2nd or 3rd place, however.

He will, however, keep what he's earned on the other 74 games. :)
 
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