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A Utah choir director competed on ‘Jeopardy!’ — and the final clue stumped all 3 contestants

“Jeopardy!” host Ken Jennings, right, and Jordan Davis, a “Jeopardy!” contestant from Draper, Utah.
“Jeopardy!” host Ken Jennings, right, and Jordan Davis, a “Jeopardy!” contestant from Draper, Utah. | Jeopardy Productions, Inc.

After the first commercial break during a “Jeopardy!” episode, contestants get a brief moment to introduce themselves to the host and audience. The introduction typically involves sharing an interesting fact or anecdote.

For host Ken Jennings — who had an unparalleled 74-game winning streak in 2004 — that format became problematic. He essentially ran out of things to talk about, and has even admitted to making up a peculiar fact about having a love for airline food, the Deseret News reported.

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During Wednesday night’s game, Jordan Davis, a private music teacher and choir director from Draper, Utah, went with something a little more interesting: his passion for Disneyland.

Growing up in Utah, Davis’ love for Disneyland formed as he visited the theme park every couple of years. The fandom has intensified over the years — Davis has a Disney podcast and a couple of Disney-themed tattoos.

When Jennings learned that Davis has a tattoo of the Sleeping Beauty castle and one inspired by Epcot’s Spaceship Earth, the host quipped, “Epcot tattoo, that’s a deep cut.”

Here’s a look at how Davis fared during his “Jeopardy!” debut Wednesday night.

Jeopardy Productions, Inc.
Jeopardy Productions, Inc.

Utah contestant Jordan Davis makes his ‘Jeopardy!’ debut

Davis was up against Iris Masucci, a pharmacist from Maryland, and one-day champion Lisa Sriken, a lawyer from New York.

Davis got on the board with $400 by answering the following clue (all answers are at the bottom of this article):

  • “The Netherlands, meaning low-lying country, is also known as the land of these flowers.”

His music background came in handy as there was an opera category during the game’s opening round. According to “Jeopardy!” archives, Davis correctly answered the following two clues in that category:

  • “In a Gounod opera, Juliet sings to him that she forgives him for killing one of her clan.”

  • “Revenge spurs the queen of night in this Mozart opera as she urges her daughter towards murder in a bloodthirsty aria.”

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At the end of the first round, Davis was in third with $4,000, trailing behind first place by just $2,200. During the game’s second round — which covered categories including science, autocrats and synonyms — Davis didn’t land on any of the Daily Doubles and fell significantly behind the other two contestants.

Going into Final Jeopardy, it was a close game between Sriken and Masucci — a difference of $4,200. If they both made large wagers and missed the Final Jeopardy clue, Davis could potentially win — as long as he played it safe with his own wager.

But all three of them missed it.


The Final Jeopardy question

The Final Jeopardy category was “American Authors.”

The clue: “In a periodical in 1807, he called New York City ‘Gotham, Gotham! Most enlightened of cities.’”

Davis guessed Thomas Paine, and his $5,000 wager brought his total down to $200.

Masucci also guessed incorrectly, and lost $8,200 of her $17,200.

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Sriken, the one-day champion, figured her time on the show had ended and revealed her answer: “Goodbye cruel world.”

Her $4,201 wager brought her down to $17,199 — enough to stay in the running for at least another game.

And the answer to the triple-stumper: Washington Irving.

(Answers to the clues above: 1. Tulips 2. Romeo 3. “The Magic Flute”)