CONTESTANTS
Eric Westra, a middle school humanities teacher from Omaha, Nebraska
Dara Gocheski, a librarian from Denver, Colorado
Elliot Yates, an opera producer from New York, New York (whose 1-day cash winnings total $18,201)
OPENING REMARKS
Alex: Thank you, Johnny, ladies and gentlemen. And welcome to our show. Well, we're into the new year. We're done with the holidays, so we can all relax now and not experience the tension, except for these three--Elliot, Dara, and Eric. There's a certain degree of tension involved in playing the game. But good luck to you. Here you go into the Jeopardy! Round, and here are the categories you're going to deal with...
JEOPARDY! ROUND CATEGORIES
FACES IN HISTORY (5/5)
'80s HAIR BANDS (4/5)
COUNTRY NAME ORIGINS (0/4, including 1 missed Daily Double)
KNOW YOUR A‑B‑Cs (3/5) (Alex: You need to [*] because, in this category, each correct response will begin with the letter "A", a "B" will come later, and then a "C".)
STARS OF BUSINESS (2/3)
STRIKE THAT! (4/5) (Alex: You have to replace the crossed-out word or words in each of our clues.)
THE RIGHTS & THE WRONGS
Dara
: 10 R, 4 WEric: 3 R, 2 W
Elliot: 5 R, 5 W (including 1 DD)
Clues revealed: 27
Triple Stumpers: 8
Jeopardy! Round Potential Lach Trash: $5,000
SCORES AT THE FIRST BREAK
Dara
: $2,000Eric: $800
Elliot: $200
CONTESTANT INTERVIEWS
Alex: Eric Westra is a middle school humanities teacher who, when he was a student in high school, got in trouble with the nuns. What did you do? I remember what I did to get in trouble with the nuns.
Eric: It was one time. I was guilty of forgery. I forged some service hours.
Alex: What?
Eric: I was stupid. I would never do it again. But the nuns caught me. I have no idea how, but they caught me. They always catch you, Alex.
Alex: They do. See, we didn't have to do community service when I was going to school.
Eric: And you turned out okay.
[Laughter]
Alex: Well, they--they caught me doing other things. Okay.
Eric: Okay.
Alex: Dara Gocheski from Denver, Colorado. It says here that you have walked around one of the tallest buildings in the world. Are we talking about at ground level or at the top of the building?
Dara: Up top, about 116 stories high.
Alex: Whoa.
Dara: Yes, "whoa". 5 foot is the width of the sidewalk, but I was harnessed in. And I hate roller coasters, but I didn't want to come back in after doing this.
Alex: And where was this?
Dara: The CN Tower.
Alex: Oh, in Toronto.
Dara: Absolutely. Yes.
Alex: Wow. Okay. Good for you. Well done.
Alex: Elliot Yates is an opera producer who is our champion right now, and he is producing, or working on, an opera about someone that we wouldn't associate with opera immediately--Truman Capote.
Elliot: Truman Capote, yeah. I just realized one day, about a year ago, that his life lends itself to being an opera so easily, and, also, if you ever heard Truman Capote speak--
Alex: I was just about to say.
Elliot: --his voice is very high-pitched, and so we're writing this for a countertenor, which many operas aren't written today, but I think that's something that will make our opera special.
Alex: It's too bad Alfred Deller is not still alive.
Elliot: I know, there's a few good ones out there, though.
Alex: Really? There are?
Elliot: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Alex: Okay. Well, good luck with that.
JEOPARDY! ROUND DAILY DOUBLE
Elliot found the Daily Double on the 24th clue. Elliot had $1,600, Dara
had $2,600, and Eric was at $1,000. Elliot made it a True Daily Double, wagering $1,600.COUNTRY NAME ORIGINS $800: A national pair in the Caribbean:
"Ancient & Bearded"
(Alex: We have about a minute to go, and you have enough money to take the lead away from Dara.)
...
(Elliot: What is Trinidad and Tobago?)
TRIPLE STUMPERS IN THE JEOPARDY! ROUND
KNOW YOUR A‑B‑Cs $400: To illegally seize & take away
(Dara: What is abscond?)
COUNTRY NAME ORIGINS $200: Just south of Guadeloupe: "Sunday"
(Dara: What is... Dominican Republic?)
(Eric: What is, uh... Santo Domingo?)
KNOW YOUR A‑B‑Cs $1000: A deviation from the normal type, way or course
COUNTRY NAME ORIGINS $400: South of Morocco:
"Land of the Moors"
(Elliot: What is Algeria?)
(Dara: What is... the Ivory Coast?)
'80s HAIR BANDS $800: Let's talk about Sixx--Nikki Sixx--who literally set himself afire playing bass for this band
STRIKE THAT! $600: The west coast of South America is mostly occupied by 2 countries, Chile & Panem
(Elliot: What is Ecuador?)
(Eric: What is Argentina?)
(Dara: What is Colombia?)
COUNTRY NAME ORIGINS $600: Shiite central:
"Land of the Aryans"
(Elliot: What is Saudi Arabia?)
STARS OF BUSINESS $1000: In 1909 this company began using a logo with a green "T" superimposed on a red star
(Elliot: What is Target?)
SCORES AT THE END OF THE JEOPARDY! ROUND
Dara
: $3,400Eric: $1,000
Elliot: -$800
I first considered Helsinki, but I thought that Helsinki was the 1920 Games, and I reminded myself that the Soviet Union didn't participate until a few decades after its founding, after WWII. I also thought Helsinki might have been a Winter Games. Strange thing is, I looked for other places that could have qualified after dismissing my first guess (Helsinki) and one of them was Antwerp. But I dismissed it because I thought it was the 1920 Games and I reminded myself that the Soviet Union didn't participate until a few decades after its founding, after WWII. Yes, the exact same excuse I gave Helsinki. 
