Tuesday, June 10, 2008

I'll take French Canadians for $400, Alex.

Tomorrow I'm auditioning for "Jeopardy." This is my second attempt so I'm feeling cool and confident, trusting that I will have learned an enormous amount about science by watching "Bones" DVDs for the last two weeks and an enormous amount about geography by getting lost in Brooklyn for an entire day last weekend. Still, though, I have my fingers crossed that I will only be tested on the following categories:

Battlestar Galactica
My Childhood
My Best Friends
Pie
Foods That Are Nearly As Good As Pie
That Time I Got Lost In The Met
Horse Racing
Why David Duchovny Is Hot
Obscure Roman and Greek Trivia That Only I Know
Potpourri

Any advice for a would-be contestant? Any important trivia items you feel I should know before the big test? Please share!

19 comments:

Florinda said...

Good luck! One of my secret dreams is doing that myself (not so secret now, huh?).

-ic0re said...

Answer:
A fruit-based dish, where a buttery sweet dough is crumbled on top of the fruit and then baked

-ic0re said...

Answer:
A successor to Julius Caeser, I am renowned for selling the sexual favors of my immediate family to wealthy aristocrats, and then subsequently executing the same aristocrats for said sexual conduct.

-ic0re said...

Answer:
While dead, I am the son, brother, and former lover of three main characters.

Jodie said...

Good luck!

I think the thing to remember about Jeopardy is that for the most part, they're not looking for an obscure answer- it's usually something general, and often has little to do with the category (like the category is about music, but ends up being about what country Beethoven was born in).

And if The Golden Girls has taught us anything, it's that you have to be well-liked to get on Jeopardy. Don't be a Dorothy Zsbornak!

Anonymous said...

LIZ! This is awesome! I have only tested for the show once (College Tournament, Fall '97 when the testing was in Kansas City, of all places), so I won't claim to pass along any useful advice other than to relax, have fun and be your awesome self. Good luck!

Anonymous said...

How cool would that be! Good Luck.

Unknown said...

I do not think Jeopardy has been missed in my house in my 27 years of life. This includes the VERY occasional video cassette recording for MAJOR events.

My mom was on, I tried out twice, my grandmother was supposed to be on but had a family conflict. We're smarties, we are.

Anyway what I've been noticing lately is a trend towards not the esoterica but a wide ranging knowlege of the basics, chemical elements, bodily organs, celebutants, books, and of course history.

I wish you luck, it's 1/2 brains and 1/2 style.

Shan said...

Good luck, Liz! Your list reminds me of this:

Civil Servants
Stamps from Around the World
Mothers and Sons
Beer
Bar Trivia
Celibacy

To see that in all its glory:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=botdmsQilnU

And dammit, "three people who have never been in my kitchen" IS technically accurate. ;-)

You'll have to give us a full recap of the experience.

Suck it, Trebek!

Beth said...

We'll all be cheering you on!!! I would count myself lucky if there was a Joss Whedon category. Other than that...I would be totally screwed.

Anonymous said...

Awesome. I made to the "we'll let you know" round of college jeopardy twice. Here's my advice:

1) Buzz in first all the time

2) Get all the answers right

3) Look telegenic

That's gotta be it, right?

Ms. Meg said...

Go girl! I hope you get on so I can brag to everyone that I know you. My categories would be:

Harry Potter
The First Five Seasons of Friends
Project Runway
the Dewey Decimal system
Plays that Prominently Feature the F Word
Red Carpet Fashion from the Last 3 Years

Mary B said...

I saw a guy I went to law school with on there once. He was a *savant* type of guy, so I wasn't too surprised to see him. I think he had trouble ringing in on time and that was his downfall. You have to have a fast trigger finger, I think.

MandyU said...

80% of the time if the answer has to do something with Rock/Pop music, my family has found that "Who is Phil Collins?" is the proper response (at least when playing Trivial Pursuit.

If the answer has anything to do with South African geography, go with the Republic of Mozambique. P.S. They speak Portuguese there too!

The Other Laura said...

Good Luck!

Unknown said...

Good luck! Can't wait to hear that you are on the show!

Anonymous said...

May the Force be with you!

Camera Obscura said...

My half-sister made the college tournament, then broke her foot between getting a slot and filming it. I think she's the only contestant to be allowed to sit instead of stand; I know she's the only college tournament contestant to do so.

She didn't win her round.

Anonymous said...

The answer to most "which family" questions is either going to be Romanov or Kennedy ;).