KEN Jennings has revealed that he thought Pat Sajak is more entertaining as a host than Alex Trebek.
The Jeopardy! host was a recent guest on Justin Long’s Life is Short podcast.
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Ken, 49, discussed with the Hollywood actor about his hosting duties, his time as a contestant, and Alex Trebek.
At the beginning of their conversation, Justin, 45, asked about the interview segments that typically occur after the first commercial break.
Justin brought up Wheel of Fortune host, Pat Sajak and how “brilliant” he was at interviewing contestants – to which Ken agreed.
The TV personality responded: “Alex was such a genius at hosting Jeopardy! you really cannot do better than that. But as a kid I was like, ‘Pat’s more fun, Pat jokes around with the three people.’
“I think there’s a little bit of that in my PNA. I’m a little more of a Pat Sajak where I’m like if I say one more thing please end it with a joke. Whereas Alex was very much like ‘okay helium balloons alright. How about you?’
“I wanna make it less painful [the interviews] than it was for me as a viewer.”
Alex died in November 2020 after a 20-month battle with stage IV pancreatic cancer. He hosted the popular game show for 37 years.
His last day in the studio was just 10 days before he died.
Ken eventually took over as host of Jeopardy! in 2021.
HONORING ALEX
On November 1, the family of Alex revealed they created a pancreatic cancer fund in the former host’s name.
Alex’s wife Jean Currivan Trebek, daughter Emily Trebek, and Ken spoke on his legacy in a new video launching the Alex Trebek Fund.
Stand Up 2 Cancer has partnered with the late Jeopardy! host’s family for the Alex Trebek Fund, Deadline announced.
The Alex Trebek Fund will help with critical research in treating the deadly disease.
The charity already has over $1 million in contributions, the outlet stated, and it was announced the week of the third anniversary of his death.
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Ken described how Alex made a positive impact on him growing up in a heartfelt clip paired with the launch.
He said: “Jeopardy! was always big for me as a kid, so Alex was a big inspiration for me. He created this place, this space where it was safe to be a smart person.
“He was so good at it, so graceful, so perfect for the role, that we all thought the job was easy – and it’s not. Hosting Jeopardy! is incredibly hard.”
In the following clip, Jean explained: “When Alex was diagnosed, we never thought in a million years it was stage four pancreatic cancer.
“I thought it would be a great idea to set up this fund at Stand Up 2 Cancer and since he was all about the right answer, I think it’s very fitting this fund was established in his name.
Hopefully, it will benefit thousands and thousands of people.”
Then, Emily shared: “I hope that all of the fans and community of Jeopardy! really can lean in and show support for this.
“I think they showed so much support for my dad when he was going through his cancer treatments. I hope that they stand up with his great organization.”
MORE ABOUT KEN
Ken Wayne Jennings III was born on May 23, 1974, in Edmonds, Washington, a suburb of Seattle.
As a kid, he spent a lot of time overseas in South Korea and Singapore as his father was a lawyer who traveled a lot.
Once he returned to the United States, Ken first attended the University of Washington but later transferred to Brigham Young University in 1996 and studied English and computer science.
There, he met his future wife, Mindy Boam.
He is famously known for holding the record for the highest average number of correct responses per game in Jeopardy! history.
During his 75th game in the series, Ken lost but earned nearly $5million in winnings while competing.
Prior to his guest hosting role, Ken returned to the franchise in 2020 and appeared on Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time alongside Brad Rutter and James Holzhauer.
Before starring on the US game show, Ken worked as a software engineer.
Ken is married to Mindy and they have two children, Dylan and Caitlin Jennings.
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