Ken Jennings

Trivia and trademarks

During his Jeopardy! appearances, Jennings became known for several quirky behaviors:

Related Topics:
Jeopardy! - Behavior

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• Each day he wrote his name in a different way, with styles ranging from simple (such as cursive script or block letters) to artistic (such as dots or a bas relief outline).
• He kept a plush "Totoro" toy, from the movie My Neighbor Totoro in his pocket, as a good luck charm.
• During his college speaking tour, he admitted that the strangest fan gift he ever received was "Popo".
• He often pronounced foreign words, phrases, or locations with an accent.
• He frequently would give answers in clever ways. Examples include "What are the munchies, man?" when given a clue about midnight food cravings, and "What be ebonics?" On his final episode, his response to "A category about Nothing" en espanol was "¿Qué es nada?"
• On Final Jeopardy and the Daily Doubles he almost always wagered an amount that could bring his total to a multiple of $5,000 or $1,000. Host Alex Trebek commented on this several times, and he even occasionally guessed what wager Jennings would make.
• Prior to his 30th game, Jennings did not want to beat the $52,000 single-day record of former five-day champion Brian Weikle just "for the sake of beating it" (from the Jeopardy! forums). He intentionally tied his record three times. However, in his 38th game, Jennings entered Final Jeopardy with a total only $600 shy of the record (and, in fact, had exceeded the record in the Double Jeopardy round before missing a question at the end), and beat it with a final total of $75,000. On his 71st game, he broke the record a second time with a win of $55,099. Jennings has only made three other attempts to break Weikle's $52,000 record (in his 30th, 39th, and 65th games), but incorrect Final Jeopardy! responses prevented him from succeeding.
• He often shook his head in disbelief when his total cash winnings were announced at the start of each episode/game.
• When guessing, he would phrase his responses in such a way as to make it clear he was in doubt of the answer himself, and openly expressed surprise when he gave the correct response.
• He often said "What's...?" instead of "What is...?"