Wednesday, December 17, 2014 Game Recap & Discussion [SPOILERS]

[SavoyGirl]

The movie that was being referred to in FJ was an instaget but I always mentally trip over the title because I saw the reversed sex remake (IT HAPPENED ONE CHRISTMAS) before I ever saw the original and the other day I happened on the musical remake of IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT (called YOU CAN'T RUN AWAY FROM IT) so all those titles got tangled in my brain. I was able to sort it out within a few seconds and definitely would have had time to write it down, but if I'd had to ring in and blurt out the answer...

[thenextofken]

Fun game to watch but... a TS for Final Jeopardy? For real? What other 1946 movie could have such a connection to a story like that?

I have to agree. This was almost an instaget for me and I expected it would be for the three players.

[seaborgium]

My tape reached the end during the pre-FJ commercial, so I cued up a different FJ's music, read the clue here, and pressed play so I'd have feedback on how long I was taking. I got it eventually (with plenty of time to write it), possibly in large part due to tonight's pub quiz (hosted by Jerome) having a question (two, actually!) about the movie.

[Sage on the Hudson]

Hold up. Wasn't the story "The Greatest Gift"?

Yes, but after the roughly 4000-word story had been published in 1944, it was in 1945 re-published by Good Housekeeping magazine, whose editors decided to change the title; subsequent editions of the story retain author Philip van Doren Stern's original title.

It's odd that the Jeopardy! writers should have latched onto this temporary and somewhat unofficial title. Since the category was "AFI's Hundred Greatest Films," had they actually looked up "It's a Wonderful Life" in the AFI Catalog they'd have read that it was adapted from Stern's "The Greatest Gift."

Weird.

In Xanadu did Kubla Khan build a stately palace" (Samuel Taylor Coleridge; Citizen Kane lived in a house called Xanadu also, perhaps this was intended negbait for the FJ?!)

Not quite: "In Xanadu did Kublai Khan a stately pleasure dome decree..."

My tape reached the end during the pre-FJ commercial, so I cued up a different FJ's music, read the clue here, and pressed play so I'd have feedback on how long I was taking. I got it eventually (with plenty of time to write it), possibly in large part due to tonight's pub quiz (hosted by Jerome) having a question (two, actually!) about the movie.

Tape? What's tape?

[silverscreentest]

Yes, but after the roughly 4000-word story had been published in 1944, it was in 1945 re-published by Good Housekeeping magazine, whose editors decided to change the title; subsequent editions of the story retain author Philip van Doren Stern's original title.

It's odd that the Jeopardy! writers should have latched onto this temporary and somewhat unofficial title. Since the category was "AFI's Hundred Greatest Films," had they actually looked up "It's a Wonderful Life" in the AFI Catalog they'd have read that it was adapted from Stern's "The Greatest Gift."

Weird.

"The Man Who Was Never Born" is a better hint to the plot of the movie than "The Greatest Gift".

[Sage on the Hudson]

"The Man Who was Never Born" is kind of a clunky title, though there was a terrific, moody and moving episode of the original 1960's "The Outer Limits" by that name, featuring a wonderful performance by future Oscar-winner Martin Landau.

Now, what you've said brings up an interesting point about titles: "The Man Who Was Never Born" is kind of a set-up, describing the mechanism by which the story establishes the first half of its basic premise, whereas "The Greatest Gift," admittedly a bit more oblique, describes the second half of that premise, namely how events that, in the movie, unfold in Bedford Falls/Pottersville, change the man (who would be George Bailey in the film) for the better, even as he seems to endure the tribulations of Job.

It's kind of like the desparate terms in English for that thing in the front of a piston-driven airplane. The British call it an airscrew. That describes how it works. Americans call it a propellor, which describes what it's for. Since it's a utilitarian object, I would suggest that the latter word's the better choice.

It is, ultimately, where dramatic events take a character that are important, so I think van Doren Stern's original title speaks to the point of his story much better than what Good Housekeeping's hack editors came up with.

[StevenH]

I think that the fact that this FJ came up close to Christmas time helped me get it. I was clueless for about the first 15 seconds, then I focused in on the year and tried to come up with a film that came out in 1946. It's a Wonderful Life was the only thing that came to me, but I thought that it was 1947. I had nothing else to guess, and was surprised that it was right.

[Bamaman]

In the opening scene, the head angel tells Clarence a man needs help because he is about to throw away God's greatest gift......life. That is where the original title came from.

[Spaceman Spiff]

Hold up. Wasn't the story "The Greatest Gift"?

That's what I'd always had heard. But I had nothing better, it fit the story line, and the year was right, so I put it down having nothing better to offer.

(Besides, when I hear "The Man Who Was Never Born" as a story, I think of Martin Landau in The Outer Limits.)

I think that the fact that this FJ came up close to Christmas time helped me get it.

Here's where I repeat a simple piece of advice to all J! contestants prior to taping -- be aware of when your show's airdate will be. Given that this was taped a few months ago, that "close to Christmas" clue likely would have been useless to them otherwise.

[Winchell Factor]

Here's where I repeat a simple piece of advice to all J! contestants prior to taping -- be aware of when your show's airdate will be. Given that this was taped a few months ago, that "close to Christmas" clue likely would have been useless to them otherwise.

And this isn't really all that hard to do, since in the studio Johnny Gilbert slates each show--identifying it by its episode number, its recording date and its air date--before they cue the intro music.

[BobF]

I have to wonder if this was truly easy because we saw the clue in December (and the contestants probably saw it months ago, in a less-Christmasy month) or if the contestants just missed the obvious.

I got it within 5 seconds and haven't watched the movie in years. My thought process was, oh that Jimmy Stewart movie with Clarence the angel that I first saw in that film class I took in college, what's it called - then the correct answer.)

[BobF]

Easy final jeopardy. What about yesterday, no one knowing who Tip O'Neil was. Rooks, "I wasn't born yet". DA

What is she 25? I think she was born.

[davey]

In the opening scene, the head angel tells Clarence a man needs help because he is about to throw away God's greatest gift......life. That is where the original title came from.

Knowing that title is trivia. Sussing out the movie from the bit of plot in the clue is a Jeopardy! final.

[Silverfox]

The first round had me wondering "What's going on here". I went 5/5 in Weather, First letter, TV, and Autos. And 26 correct in total. I was walking on air. Then DJ, and only 15 correct! Oh well!
Spanish words- only 1 correct. Not enough time to work it out.
Anyway, I was very happy with the overall result.
FJ-instaget. I have watched the movie many times. Movie are one of my strong areas, as well as autos.

BTW Warehouse 13 has been canceled by Syfy. I watched it for a long time.

[fritzk3]

Here's where I repeat a simple piece of advice to all J! contestants prior to taping -- be aware of when your show's airdate will be. Given that this was taped a few months ago, that "close to Christmas" clue likely would have been useless to them otherwise.

And this isn't really all that hard to do, since in the studio Johnny Gilbert slates each show--identifying it by its episode number, its recording date and its air date--before they cue the intro music.

I was aware of the episode's air date... but all of the FJs in the prior 7 games had nothing to do with the holiday season; they were just random questions - South America, literature, politics, etc. I guess that's why my brain was tuned to something more generic. I was expecting holiday-themed categories in the SJ/DJ rounds, not necessarily FJ. Guess something about getting within a week of Christmas Eve was enough to bring out the holiday clues.

[Winchell Factor]

For the record, Fritz, I didn't intend anything in my post there to be critical of you. No offense intended, and I hope none was taken.

Congratulations on your win!

[silverscreentest]

I've never seen Warehouse 13, but The Librarians on TNT is supposedly a reasonable substitute. It's very silly. I would describe it as Indiana Jones but the heroes are watchers from the Buffy universe.

[John Boy]

Fun game to watch but... a TS for Final Jeopardy? For real? What other 1946 movie could have such a connection to a story like that?

There aren't many movies---even extremely well-known ones---that I know by year. (True for others as well?)

In retrospect this is a no-brainer. Even Before Alex named the movie, when he named the short story it was based on, I got it instantly. In the 30 seconds of think music I completely wagged "The Invisible Man."

[econgator]

I've never seen Warehouse 13, but The Librarians on TNT is supposedly a reasonable substitute. It's very silly. I would describe it as Indiana Jones but the heroes are watchers from the Buffy universe.

Closest thing, yeah. I like the Librarian films (and the TV show). They're mindless fun.

[John Boy]

Also, Rooks could have held on to the champion's podium if Kurt had not bet conservative. Too bad.

Kurt's wager was the one thing in this game I hoped for more than anything else, and expected less than anything else. He didn't make the oh-so-common mistake by trailing players, to bet all-in or nearly so, which is a fool's wager. Instead he recognized that his only hope was for Anne to miss FJ, and he wagered accordingly. He even took a very calculated risk NOT to cover Anne in the event she wagered $0, which I never would have done but who knows she might have. He took that risk so that he would stay ahead of Rooks even if Rooks went all-in and got it right.

All in all I think Kurt's wager was one of the best we've seen all season. I'm delighted it worked for him and hope he does well in future game(s).


P.S. Anyone else think Anne looked kind of like a slenderer version of Amy Farrah Fowler from Big Bang Theory??