Final Jeopardy! Clues

[mas3cf]

PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES

Two different Democratic nominees born in this state lost consecutive presidential elections in the second half of the 20th century.

Spoiler

What is South Dakota? (Humphrey/McGovern)

[Foretopman]

PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES

Two different Democratic nominees born in this state lost consecutive presidential elections in the second half of the 20th century.

I like it. But, dang, while I had the right two candidates, I went with the wrong state. (Instead of one moving east I guessed the other moved west )

[MinnesotaMyron]

PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES

Two different Democratic nominees born in this state lost consecutive presidential elections in the second half of the 20th century.

Spoiler

What is South Dakota? (Humphrey/McGovern)

I got this because they had a "Famous South Dakotans" picture round at pub quiz last year, and we guessed McGovern for Humphrey. Nice fact.

[mas3cf]

MOVIE DIRECTORS

First name shared by the winners of 7 of the first 12 Best Director Oscars

Spoiler

What is Frank? (Borzage, Lloyd, Capra)

[mas3cf]

FEDERAL HOLIDAYS

The Tammany Society of New York is the first group known to have celebrated this holiday, in 1792.

Spoiler

What is Columbus Day?

[mas3cf]

U.S. STATE CAPITALS

Name shared by a state capital and characters from two Shakespearean comedies.

Spoiler

What is Helena? (Montana, All's Well, Midsummer)

[mas3cf]

FORTUNE 500 COMPANIES

The name of this company is a portmanteau of the names of two of the constituent elements of the active ingredient in its original product.

Spoiler

What is Clorox? (bleach = sodium hypochlorite, NaOCl)

[gameshowfandanny]

Since the OP said you could also post clues from the actual show, I will do three famous ones.
1. MOST OF THIS FIRM'S 70,000 SEASONAL WHITE-COLLAR EMPLOYEES WORK ONLY 4 MONTHS A YEAR (Category: Business & Industry)

Spoiler

What is H&R Block?

2. THE LINE "A GREAT RECKONING IN A LITTLE ROOM" IN "AS YOU LIKE IT" IS USUALLY TAKEN TO REFER TO THIS AUTHOR'S PREMATURE DEATH (Category: Shakespeare's Time)

Spoiler

Who is Christopher Marlowe?

3. HE HAS 272 SPEECHES, THE MOST OF ANY NON-TITLE CHARACTER IN A SHAKESPEARE TRAGEDY (Category: Shakespeare's Tragedies)

Spoiler

Who is Iago?

[John Boy]

U.S. PRESIDENTS

The first president inaugurated in an even-numbered year.

Spoiler

Who was Gerald Ford?

Spoiler

Not Millard Fillmore? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inaugurat ... d_Fillmore

Interesting. I thought only about presidents who died in office and came up with 1850 and a blank.

How easy to forget Tricky Dick.

Nice question.

[heppm01]

FORTUNE 500 COMPANIES

The name of this company is a portmanteau of the names of two of the constituent elements of the active ingredient in its original product.

Spoiler

What is Clorox? (bleach = sodium hypochlorite, NaOCl)

Not quite a portmanteau, but this might be close enough to warrant narrowing the clue down somewhat:

Spoiler

Coca-Cola
From Wikipedia: "Robinson chose the name Coca-Cola because of its two main ingredients (coca leaves and kola nuts)"

[mas3cf]

FORTUNE 500 COMPANIES

The name of this company is a portmanteau of the names of two of the constituent elements of the active ingredient in its original product.

Spoiler

What is Clorox? (bleach = sodium hypochlorite, NaOCl)

Not quite a portmanteau, but this might be close enough to warrant narrowing the clue down somewhat:

Spoiler

Coca-Cola
From Wikipedia: "Robinson chose the name Coca-Cola because of its two main ingredients (coca leaves and kola nuts)"

Except that cocaine and kola nuts aren't elements....

[heppm01]

FORTUNE 500 COMPANIES

The name of this company is a portmanteau of the names of two of the constituent elements of the active ingredient in its original product.

Spoiler

What is Clorox? (bleach = sodium hypochlorite, NaOCl)

Not quite a portmanteau, but this might be close enough to warrant narrowing the clue down somewhat:

Spoiler

Coca-Cola
From Wikipedia: "Robinson chose the name Coca-Cola because of its two main ingredients (coca leaves and kola nuts)"

Except that cocaine and kola nuts aren't elements....

Sure, but "elements" also has a non-chemical meaning.

[seaborgium]

FORTUNE 500 COMPANIES

The name of this company is a portmanteau of the names of two of the constituent elements of the active ingredient in its original product.

Spoiler

What is Clorox? (bleach = sodium hypochlorite, NaOCl)

Not quite a portmanteau, but this might be close enough to warrant narrowing the clue down somewhat:

Spoiler

Coca-Cola
From Wikipedia: "Robinson chose the name Coca-Cola because of its two main ingredients (coca leaves and kola nuts)"

"Palmolive" also came to my mind, also not quite a portmanteau.

[talkingaway]

ETYMOLOGY

This word coined in 1906 by Gelett Burgess in a short book is used to refer to sedate, boring expressions such as "Why, I know you better than you know yourself!", and is derived from a chemical element that was once used as an anticonvulsant medication.

Spoiler

What is a bromide?

[heppm01]

ETYMOLOGY

This word coined in 1906 by Gelett Burgess in a short book is used to refer to sedate, boring expressions such as "Why, I know you better than you know yourself!", and is derived from a chemical element that was once used as an anticonvulsant medication.

Spoiler

What is a bromide?

My guess was

Spoiler

platitude (from platinum).

and I was so sure of it I didn't consider other options. Imagine my surprise!

[talkingaway]

ETYMOLOGY

This word coined in 1906 by Gelett Burgess in a short book is used to refer to sedate, boring expressions such as "Why, I know you better than you know yourself!", and is derived from a chemical element that was once used as an anticonvulsant medication.

Spoiler

What is a bromide?

My guess was

Spoiler

platitude (from platinum).

and I was so sure of it I didn't consider other options. Imagine my surprise!

Spoiler

Good guess, since platinum is indeed used in medicine, but it's a current antineoplastic, not an old-timey anticonvulsant. And, just so I'd learn something today, platitude's etymology is "plat", which is French for flat, while platinum comes from Spanish "plata", silver.

I considered giving out "halogen", but that would pretty much reduce the options to four or five, with one or two extras being WAY off the board. Granted, it's probably the last of the four common halogens you'd name. Giving the halogen hint would probably make it a bit more of a gettable clue, and would make it a wordplay DD. Oddly enough, "bromide" hasn't popped up much as a vocab word - just twice, and both with the chemistry connection as well, once even spotting (hydro)bromic in the clue.

[MarkBarrett]

The writers could have endless paths to do this to us next season.

CORONOAVIRUS CURRENT EVENTS

Mayor Dieter Reiter, per a translated tweet, posted this "2020 must be canceled"

Spoiler

Oktoberfest

or

Affecting 8th graders and Jacques Bailly, this event was "cancelled" in 2020 for the first time since 1945

Spoiler

Scripps National Spelling Bee

[econgator]

The writers could have endless paths to do this to us next season.

CORONOAVIRUS CURRENT EVENTS

Mayor Dieter Reiter, per a translated tweet, posted this "2020 must be canceled"

This clue doesn't read right. Maybe as a fill-in-the-blank? I realize there's no colon there, but it reads as if he just said "2020 must be canceled".

[jeff6286]

The writers could have endless paths to do this to us next season.

CORONOAVIRUS CURRENT EVENTS

Mayor Dieter Reiter, per a translated tweet, posted this "2020 must be canceled"

This clue doesn't read right. Maybe as a fill-in-the-blank? I realize there's no colon there, but it reads as if he just said "2020 must be canceled".

Yeah I would go something along the lines of:

Mayor Dieter Reiter, per a translated tweet about this event, posted "2020 must be canceled"

[MarkBarrett]

The writers could have endless paths to do this to us next season.

CORONOAVIRUS CURRENT EVENTS

Mayor Dieter Reiter, per a translated tweet, posted this "2020 must be canceled"

This clue doesn't read right. Maybe as a fill-in-the-blank? I realize there's no colon there, but it reads as if he just said "2020 must be canceled".

Yeah I would go something along the lines of:

Mayor Dieter Reiter, per a translated tweet about this event, posted "2020 must be canceled"

Works for me, thanks.