The Legendary Alex Trebek Has Died

November 8, 2020 / Posted by:

Because 2020 is a relentless diabolical demon who just couldn’t let the world have more than a minute of happiness, international treasure Alex Trebek has died. Alex was 80 years old. And yes, I just had to go with a picture co-starring Alex’s lusciously gorgeous mustache.

In March 2019, Alex Trebek announced that the horrendous piece of satanic trash known as cancer was fucking with him. Alex was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer and was fighting it hard. Alex’s cancer went into remission, but in July, he said it was back and messing with him something awful and he was done seeking traditional treatment. Alex, being the silver pillar of calm strength that he was, continued to host Jeopardy! even though he said that the cancer battle had put him into deep bouts of depression. Alex was continuing to fight the good fight for his family and other cancer patients. But sadly, Alex’s rep tells TMZ that he died this morning, just a week after his Saturday Night Live rival Sean Connery died.

A “Jeopardy!” spokesperson tells TMZ, “Jeopardy is saddened to share that Alex Trebek passed away peacefully at home early this morning, surrounded by family and friends.”

Some of us tap out of work if we have a sliver of a headache, but Alex kept taping new episodes of Jeopardy! up until October 29 and ABC says his final episode will air on December 25th.

Alex was born George Alexander Trebek on July 22, 1940 in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. Alex went to the University of Ottawa and while getting his degree in philosophy, he worked nights at Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, doing whatever they needed including announcing. That led to him reading the news on both CBC Radio and CBC Television, which led to him hosting a music show called Music Hop. And his journey to becoming a game show king started in 1966 when he hosted a high school quiz show called Reach For The Top. Alex hosted another gameshow called Strategy before moving to the United States.

Alex hosted the American game show The Wizards at Odds and then became one of the hosts of High Rollers. Here’s Alex looking like a distinguished dandelion while hosting with Ruta Lee:

Alex was the host of a handful of game shows like Double Dare (not that Double Dare), The $128,000 Question, and The New Battlestars before getting the job that turned him into everyone’s favorite witty and calm TV game show uncle.

Jeopardy! first aired in 1964 on NBC, and after it went syndicated, Alex became host in 1984. Here’s Alex and his iconic stache gracing Jeopardy!’s stage for the first time:

During his 36 years of hosting Jeopardy!, Alex won the Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Game Show Host seven times and was nominated 31 times. And Alex got a lifetime achievement Daytime Emmy in 2011. Alex also hosted To Tell The Truth and Classic Concentration and played himself in many TV shows including Cheers, Seinfeld, Beverly Hills, 90210, The Simpsons, How I Met Your Mother, and Hot In Cleveland.

Alex, who became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1998,  is survived by his wife of 30 years, Jean Currivan, and his three children, Nicky, Matthew, and Emily.

Many of us grew up with Alex Trebek. I remember lying on the musty green shag rug in our living room and watching Jeopardy! on our heavy ass TV while thinking I was a true intellectual because I was watching Alex Trebek and laughing at his dry wit. And I still watch Jeopardy! today even though my brain burps up a question mark over most of the answers that are not in the movies, Broadway, music, and Not A Successful Rap Musician categories. Alex WAS Jeopardy! and was a daily part of many people’s lives. The show will never be the same again.

Rest in peace, Alex Trebek.

Pic: ABC

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