Every show has certain rules everyone must abide by. Some rules ensure everyone is treated with respect. Others keep the game balanced But some game shows also have rules everyone just…accepts. They go without saying. They cover things people just don’t do. But one Jeopardy! contestant trod right over an unwritten rule and surprised everyone.
Jeopardy! has a long history of certain traditions. We all know the theme, the host, and question formatting. The episode that aired on Monday shook things up a bit, though. Contestant Sarah Jett Rayburn crossed a line into previously unexplored territory.
It’s an unwritten rule of ‘Jeopardy!’ to not interrupt Alex Trebek
Something happened during Final Jeopardy! that has never happened before. pic.twitter.com/RfCLdOs4al
— Jeopardy! (@Jeopardy) April 28, 2020
Sarah Jett Rayburn has a history of victory on Jeopardy!. PennLive writes that she is a defending champion of the show. On Monday, viewers got to see her make history in a slightly different way by breaking an unwritten rule of the game.
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The prompt read, “Before they were photographed together in 1862, Lincoln wryly noted this General “should have no problem” sitting still for it. Since this occurred during Final Jeopardy!, usually Trebek gets that time for himself while contestants write in silence. Then he and he alone speaks and reads out answers and wagers. But Rayburn, after incorrectly guessing Grant, cut in before Trebek could finish reading. She jumped in with the correct answer, nailing history and making it in the process. No one has interrupted the man during this time.
“You have just witnessed something that never happens on our program”
Rayburn lost $6000 for not getting the answer right in the first place. But she earned Trebek’s amused attention. The host took the unprecedented act well. Not only did Rayburn blurt out what she realized was actually correct, she went on, “I wasn’t sure. I second guess myself on that one a lot. Sorry, I shouldn’t be talking now.”
The audience laughed and Trebek went right along with the first. “Ladies and gentlemen,” he began. “You have just witnessed something that never happens on our program. An explanation of why a contestant wrote down what they did!” Not only did she enact all these firsts in the history of Jeopardy! unwritten rules, she also came in first place for that whole game! The video is a wild ride, to say the least. Oh, I’ll quiet down while watching – I shouldn’t be talking now!