Macon Jeopardy champion remembers late host Alex Trebek

If the question actually is the answer – as it is on “Jeopardy!” – and the answer must be posed in the form of a question, then Mary Katz is forever ready with her hand on the button.

A personal, life-changing event from when you were 50 years old.

What is getting to meet game show host Alex Trebek?

There are times when she turns back the calendar to the spring of 1999, and the memories of being a two-time “Jeopardy!” champion have a dream-like quality.

Her proverbial 15 minutes of fame has stretched across 21 years.

“It has given me a lifetime of stories, that’s for sure,’’ she said.

Of course, she was saddened by the news that the legendary Trebek, the host of the game show for the past 37 years, had died on Nov. 8 after a long battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 80.

A pre-recorded message he made in honor of World Pancreatic Cancer Day aired on “Jeopardy!” this past Thursday.

Although his months-long battle with the disease was well-documented, and he hosted the show right up until the end, it still is hard to believe he is gone. His final appearance as the show’s host will be aired on Christmas Day.

“He seemed to be able to go on forever,’’ Mary said.

In many ways, Trebek was a larger-than-life figure. Mary’s impression of the sharply dressed, silver-haired host can be summed up by the time-honored phrase, “what you see is what you get.’’

“He was 100% what you saw on TV,’’ she said. “He was a consummate professional. This guy had it down. He was easy going. At the end of the show we talked, and he was very pleasant to be around.’’

She remembers how he teased her and the other contestants after all three missed the “Final Jeopardy!” question about the San Andreas Fault.

“He thought that was pretty hilarious,’’ Mary said. “I can’t remember whether it was me or someone else told him, ‘But we’re not from California!’ ‘’

She had several memorable conversations with Trebek, and she had her photograph taken with the popular host. But Mary said she and the other contestants had very little contact with him beyond that.

It was social distancing before there was social distancing.

“They were scrupulous about keeping us separated from him so there wouldn’t be any allegations of a fix,’’ she said. “Our contact was with the staff and crew, except when we were on the set. We were able to talk with him a little.’’

How Mary even made her Trebek trek to California practically was a fairy tale in itself. Her credentials? She was a Macon attorney and a 50-year-old mother of three. She was an avid reader and long-distance runner.

She and her husband, Ricky, were huge “Jeopardy!” fans. They watched it almost every night.

A friend, Norman Abramson, would routinely call them after the show to see if they had correctly answered the “Final Jeopardy!” question. When Norman and Ricky learned the game show was holding local tryouts at Macon State College (now Middle Georgia State University), Mary decided to tag along.

She advanced to the regional in Atlanta by taking a written exam. After the regional, she was convinced she had done so poorly it probably was the end of the line.

So, she was surprised when the show’s producers contacted her 18 months later, notifying her she had earned a spot on the show in Los Angeles. She thought it was a practical joke.

I’ll take Unbelievable Phone Calls for $300, Alex.

Although she only had three weeks to prepare, she had been educating herself her entire life.

“I went to the library at Sonny Carter (Elementary) and checked out books on the Presidents and things like the geography of South America,’’ she said. “They all were written on a fifth-grade level, so I could go through them fast. I didn’t have much time. I had to work quickly.’’

She studied the Readers Digest Book of Facts and a movie guide from Blockbuster. For practice, she played a “Jeopardy!” video game on her computer.

Her prep work paid off in front of a national television audience. She won the competition the first and second nights, leaving her competitors – Kevin, Dan, Nancy and Chris – in a trail of out-smarts.

Her greatest fear never came true … that she would embarrass herself. She was afraid she might fail so miserably she wouldn’t have enough money to qualify for the “Final Jeopardy” round. She was terrified the show would come back from a commercial break and she already would be off the set on the sidelines.

Mary came away with $16,100 in earnings (before taxes) and several nice prizes. She finished last among the three contestants on the third night. Among the consolation gifts was a giant box of Certs. Ricky still has a roll he keeps as a souvenir and jokes that they handed his wife the breath candy … along with a 1099 tax form to report her earnings.

When she returned to Macon, and her appearances began airing on WMAZ-TV every night, she was the toast of the town for a week. The Sigma Nu fraternity at Mercer invited her to be their special guest at their toga party.

Since the show was filmed several months in advance, she had to take a vow of silence to honor her contract. The results were top secret.

She did hear from Trebek again when he sent her son, Ben, an autographed picture. Ben, now a business litigation attorney in Nashville, was in the sixth grade at Sonny Carter.

“Good luck on the quiz bowl team, Ben,’’ Trebek wrote.

Her game-show notoriety and opportunity to brush elbows with Trebek still comes up from time to time. And it makes for great dinner party conversation.

“It has been 20 years, and it’s amazing how little the show has changed,’’ she said. “It’s pretty much the same as when I was there, with a few minor cosmetic differences.’’

Not watching Trebek on “Jeopardy!” is going to be a big difference, though.

He was the face of one of the most popular game shows in history, and Mary got closer to that face than most of us.

Ed Grisamore teaches journalism at Stratford Academy in Macon. His column appears on Sundays in The Telegraph.