Levar Burton to be the next host of Jeopardy?

[CRM-114]

I wanted to like LeVar Burton as host, but I don't think he's the right person for the job.

He seemed too high-energy for the role. That might be enthusiasm or that might be nerves. If he had more time, he could perhaps settle into the role. Honestly, with his energy, he might be better suited to hosting a kids' version, should they ever desire to do one.

With a show like Jeopardy!, the host needs to be in control without overpowering the contestants. There were moments where it seemed like Burton was trying too hard.

EDIT: As soon as I posted this, I realized what it was that put me off having Burton as host: he was high-energy to the point of being distracting. In a game show, the host should moderate the level of energy during the game, but not overwhelm the contestants. The contestants ultimately bring the energy, and the host should be tempering that energy (making sure it's not too high or too low), not overwhelming it with their own.

 

[cardinal biggles]

EDIT: As soon as I posted this, I realized what it was that put me off having Burton as host: he was high-energy to the point of being distracting. In a game show, the host should moderate the level of energy during the game, but not overwhelm the contestants. The contestants ultimately bring the energy, and the host should be tempering that energy (making sure it's not too high or too low), not overwhelming it with their own.

Maybe LeVar is too high-energy for Jeopardy (though there's nothing wrong with the show evolving past how Alex ran it for almost four decades), but I get what you're saying. Again, it also comes back to the contestants — Matt, for all his dominance of the gameplay, has all the excitement of a Yugo running on one cylinder trying to merge into highway traffic, so yes, LeVar was going to seem jarringly enthusiastic in comparison.

 

[CRM-114]

AV Club updated ranking of guest hosts:
https://www.avclub.com/the-jeopardy-guest-hosts-ranked-worst-to-best-1847049741
1. Ken Jennings: The frontrunner
2. Aaron Rodgers: The comforting choice
3. Mayim Bialik: The joyous choice
4. Buzzy Cohen: The next generation
5. Dr. Sanjay Gupta: The relaxed option
6. Robin Roberts: The fan
7. Levar Burton: The wild card
8. Savannah Guthrie: The smooth talker
9. Bill Whitaker: The professorial choice
10. Anderson Cooper: The safe choice
11. Mike Richards: The insider
12. George Stephanopoulos: The odd man out
13. Katie Couric: The tourist
14. Dr. Oz: The bad choice

This list should be 13; Aaron Rodgers reported to training camp. In that case, LeVar Burton would be solidly in the middle.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

What possessed them to even let Dr Oz host? You’d think the audience who believe Dr Oz gives solid medical advice is a little dumber than the audience who want to watch plain hard trivia. And so many people hate him and know he’s a charlatan.

 

[auntiehill]

This list should be 13; Aaron Rodgers reported to training camp. In that case, LeVar Burton would be solidly in the middle.

I think it's a pretty safe bet that Anderson Cooper will not give up being a reporter and commentator on CNN to host Jeopardy. The man's loaded, so he doesn't need any extra money. He probably just did the guest hosting bit for a lark. I think you can probably say the same for Dr. Sanjay Gupta and George Stephanopoulos. They have substantial accomplishments in their respective fields, so I doubt they'd abandon their careers to host a game show.

 

[hbquikcomjamesl]

In some ways, it was painful watching his week. Not just his excitability; it seems like he was frequently very slow in reacting to contestant responses. I so wanted him to do better than he did.

 

[Jim Klag]

They have substantial accomplishments in their respective fields, so I doubt they'd abandon their careers to host a game show.

You can say the same for Levar - a fine actor who is in every respect unsuited to be Jeopardy! host. Of the people who are not as accomplished in their fields as the aforementioned, I think Buzzy Cohen was the best so far.

 

[Aragorn]

What possessed them to even let Dr Oz host? You’d think the audience who believe Dr Oz gives solid medical advice is a little dumber than the audience who want to watch plain hard trivia. And so many people hate him and know he’s a charlatan.

He was good friends with Trebek.

 

[Timby]

He probably just did the guest hosting bit for a lark.

And to raise money. Each guest host has been allowed to select a charity of their choice, and the Jeopardy producers have matched the contestants' totals and donated money to those charities.

 

[CRM-114]

I think it's a pretty safe bet that Anderson Cooper will not give up being a reporter and commentator on CNN to host Jeopardy. The man's loaded, so he doesn't need any extra money. He probably just did the guest hosting bit for a lark. I think you can probably say the same for Dr. Sanjay Gupta and George Stephanopoulos. They have substantial accomplishments in their respective fields, so I doubt they'd abandon their careers to host a game show.

Apparently, the Jeopardy! producers want whoever is taking the hosting job to treat it as “job one”. Which makes me think LeVar may have a shot, even if he really doesn’t make for the best choice.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Joe Buck? Seriously?

 

[The Nth Doctor]

Joe Buck? Seriously?

Welcome to three months ago when it was first announced and we all vomited.

 

[Jim Klag]

David Faber is a nnatural. They could do a lot worse for a host.

 

[hbquikcomjamesl]

I liked Buzzy as well. And of course Ken Jennings. And looking at Dr. Bialik's Wikipedia article, I rather question her detractors: she may have some questionable opinions, but she's certainly no Dr. Oz (and speaking of Dr. Oz, I wonder how Oprah could stand him).

I'd never heard of Faber. But he (like many of the other guest hosts) does come from a long line of newscasters becoming game show hosts (and vice versa: remember, Hugh Downs hosted the 1960s Concentration). And maybe the fact that I took so little notice of him last night (to be fair, I was fighting to get a turkey-loaf into the oven at the time) is a good thing: Alex, after all, refused to be styled "the star" of Jeopardy, and always said that the contestants, and the game itself, were the stars (contrast that with how Pat Sajak is styled and announced on Wheel of Fortune).

I didn't like Mike Richards much. Maybe a little bit better than Dr. Oz, but I'd say he was on the wrong side of the camera during his two weeks. Neither did I care much for Aaron Rogers. The newscasters have all done well, some better than others.

As to the current champion, well, at first, I found Matt Amodio's laconic and laid-back approach a bit grating, but he's started to grow on me (albeit maybe like mold).

 

[JirinPanthosa]

He was good friends with Trebek.

That’s ironic. Makes me wonder why Trebek would be friends with a snake oil salesman.

 

[hbquikcomjamesl]

He was also a regular on Oprah. And I still can't figure out how she could stand him.

 

[cardinal biggles]

He was also a regular on Oprah. And I still can't figure out how she could stand him.

Between Dr. Oz and Dr. Phil, Oprah's got a lot of shit to answer for if there's an afterlife.

 

[Smiley]

Variety is now saying that Mike Richards (the executive producer) is in talks for the permanent hosting job.

 

[cardinal biggles]

^sauce

Bleargh. No thanks. I mean, he wasn't horrible, but he had a kind of slick, used car salesman feel to him that I thought was off-putting.

 

[The Nth Doctor]

...who?!

I literally never heard of him until this story. Yeah, I only watched LeVar's episodes.

How horribly and boringly safe.

Meh.

And just like that, Jeopardy squandered an opportunity to increase its viewership. Well done.