What Is...? A Jeopardy! Podcast

It's a delightful week on Jeopardy! as we meet one of the most likeable contestants in recent memory and surefire Second Chancer Drew Goins. And this is not to mention a very sharp 3-game run from surefire Champions Wildcarder (or maybe direct-berth TOCer) David Erb, who also reveals he's led a very interesting life from being an astrophysicist and making key discoveries to his wife being the author of the revered "Lessons in Chemistry". Plus, Jeopardy! fans point out a "rare occurrence" that actually isn't rare at all in JFAF, John turns even more Canadian, and we dive deep on the life and times of Mae West.

SOURCE: Criterion Collection: "The Self-Created Immortality of Mae West" by Farran Smith Nehme.

Special thanks as always to The Jeopardy! Fan and J-Archive.

This episode is produced by Producer Dan. Art by Max Wittert. Music by Nate Heller.

It is a cool and awesome week on the show as we rue the fact that we got two candidates for Anecdote of the Year last week and then a whole lotta duds this week. But that's ok! We have a ton of fun with Aiden's three appearances on the show, we beg for a Second Chance for Will, and Jeopardy! gets its own "Hot Priest". Plus, we continue our investigation into Jeopardy's increasing horniness, we go deep on Fantasia, and Emily claims the ultimate triumph: a successful Blind Final Jeopardy guess at home.

Please follow the show on Instagram at @whatisajeopardypodcast and on Twitter at @jeopardypodcast for more news and updates about the show.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times: "Fantastic 'Fantasia': Disney Channel Takes a Look at Walt's Great Experiment in Animation" by Charles Solomon.

Special thank you to The Jeopardy! Fan and J-Archive.

This episode was produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert.

We're back, baby! It's Season 41 of Jeopardy! and Season 2 of our little show about the smartest show on television. Of course, all your favorite segments are here and as good as ever. It's a wild week that accurately mimics the start of a new season, with some nervous energy from a lot of contestants, some weird buzzer form, and two anecdotes that will almost surely be in contention for Anecdote of the Year in the 2025 Jeoppys. Plus, J! fans (and us) are rightfully upset about a particular figure showing up as a J! clue, we go deep on Ringo Starr, and Tawny Newsome joins us to give us her insight into being a Jeopardy! clue for the first time.

Please follow the show on Instagram at @whatisajeopardypodcast and on Twitter at @jeopardypodcast.

SOURCE: Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: "Ringo Starr: The Hall of Fame Essay" by Parke Puterbaugh.

Special thank you to the J-Archive and The Jeopardy! Fan.

This episode was produced by Producer Dan. Art by Max Wittert. Music by Nate Heller.

It's time to celebrate! Season 40 of Jeopardy! and Season 1 of our podcast is in the books, and while it was a strange season full of tournaments and this podcast didn't start until halfway through it, we are still giving out awards! It's a look back at the wildest anecdotes, responses, and headlines of the year as we crown our first-ever Jeoppy award winners. And yes, we are going to make physical trophies and give them out to the winners.

Follow us on Instagram at @whatisajeopardypodcast and on Twitter at @jeopardypodcast.

Produced by Producer Dan. Art by Max Wittert. Music by Nate Heller.

Jeopardy! is off for the summer, but we aren't! At least not yet, as we crown our first-ever Player of the Year, Isaac Hirsch, and sit down for a lengthy chat with the 9-game champion. We ask about everything you've been dying to know, including his Tournament of Champions preparation, his bad math that cost him his 10th win, and how it felt when Ken said he had sex appeal. Plus, we commiserate about our comedy careers and IBS, discuss some of Isaac's more memorable anecdotes, and finally get the answer to the question everyone has been dying to know: how did it feel to become a gay icon? And lastly, everyone's favorite WIAJP game returns: do you remember the questions you got wrong on Jeopardy!?

We will be back at some point in the next few weeks with our Season 40 Awards, and then the show won't return until regular play resumes in the fall. So stay tuned for that and in the meantime, follow the damn show! We are on Instagram at @whatisajeopardypodcast and on Twitter at @jeopardypodcast.

It's the final week of Season 40 and everyone has Senioritis, including your hosts! It's a strange week of games that sees a couple runs end just when they looked like they were heating up, some weird clues have us a bit confounded, and Ken gets just a little bit horny. It is brat summer, after all. Plus, we discuss WikiFeet, Jeopardy! fans are upset about a Carol Burnett Show Triple Stumper, and we go deep (no pun intended) on the life and times of the Unsinkable One, Molly Brown.

Please follow the show on Instagram at @whatisajeopardypodcast and on Twitter at @jeopardypodcast.

SOURCE: Molly Brown House Museum: "The Many Myths of Molly Brown" by Heather Pressman, National Endowment for the Humanities: "Beyond Unsinkable" by Laura Harbold, and Kansas City Times: "Deeds of Heroism Seemed the Natural Action of 'The Unsinkable Mrs. Brown'" by Gene Fowler.

Special thank you to the J-Archive and The Jeopardy! Fan.

This episode was produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert.

We don't have too many good ideas on this show, but we may have stumbled upon one this time around, as we demand the J! producers bring back all the contestants we think are the nicest and gentlest to play their own, quiet version of the game without being pestered by all the brash trivia mavens that grace the Alex Trebek Stage. Make it happen, Davies! Plus, Micah Had F, we say goodbye to Isaac Hirsch, J! fans are upset about math, and we dive deep–like way deep, man–on the life and times of Timothy Leary.

Please follow the show on Instagram at @whatisajeopardypodcast and on Twitter at @jeopardypodcast.

SOURCE: Vice: "Timothy Leary Turns 100: America's LSD Messiah, Remembered by Those Who Knew Him" by Ed Prideaux, and Wired: "Timothy Leary's Transformation From Scientist to Psychedelic Celebrity" by Greg Miller.

Special thank you to The Jeopardy! Fan and J-Archive.

This episode is produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert.

Which kind of Josh are you? It's the question on everyone's mind this week as John records in a foreign land (his parents' basement) and we see another man added to the Tournament of Champions invite list as Isaac Hirsch punches his ticket with another delightful week of play. Isaac also continues his great run of anecdotes and we get a surprise contender for "Anecdote of the Season" when Stephanie describes her unfortunate run-in with glow sticks. Plus, Emily has a unique week ahead at work due to being close to an adult toy trade show, we dive deep on the tales of Sinbad the Sailor, and Jeopardy! has a major scoring correction moment that leaves John and Emily dizzy with excitement.

Please follow the show on Instagram at @whatisajeopardypodcast and on Twitter at @jeopardypodcast.

SOURCE: Britannica: "Sindbad the Sailor", and Library of Congress: "The Seven Voyages of Sindbad the Sailor" by Anchi Hoh.

Special thank you to J-Archive and The Jeopardy! Fan.

This episode is produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert.

Isaac Hirsch tempted fate with a Wednesday anecdote about his Jeopardy!-losing father, but it mattered not, as he rattled off three straight wins and has the look of a potential ToC entrant, leisure suit and all. It was a fun week on the show as Emily wonders if Canada Day is real and John is furious when the contestants treat a Canadian category like it isn't. We also get one of the responses of the year in a French slang category, Parade Magazine enters the fray in the J! Fans Are Fuming segment, and we dive deep on the "Most Beautiful Woman Slayer", Beulah Annan.

Please follow the show on Instagram at @whatisajeopardypodcast and on Twitter at @jeopardypodcast.

SOURCE: Chicago History Museum: "True Crime in the '20s: The Beulah Annan Story" by Jojo Galvin, and Chicago History Magazine: "Jailhouse Makeovers" by Douglas Perry.

Special thank you to The Jeopardy! Fan and J-Archive.

This episode is produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert. Additional content by Chris Thayer.

It's a full week of Drew Basile on the podcast, as he wins his way into the Tournament of Champions, finds himself exhausted on Friday and his streak ends at 7 days. But what a week it was, and we run it all down here, from Jeopardy! clue writers picking a hilarious category name to John learning that Duncan Hines was a guy who did some other stuff also. Plus, J! fans are upset and just a little bit pedantic about a clue, we hear a perfect Jeopardy! anecdote, and we dive deep on the legend of Colonel Harland Sanders.

Please follow the show on Instagram at @whatisajeopardypodcast and on Twitter at @jeopardypodcast. And if you like the show...tell a friend!

SOURCE: The New Yorker: "Kentucky-Fried" by William Whitworth.

Special thank you to the J-Archive and The Jeopardy! Fan.

This episode is produced by Producer Dan. Music by Nate Heller. Art by Max Wittert.