“Who is Tom Hanks?”
That’s the sentence that “Jeopardy!” viewers expected contestants to say during Monday night’s edition of the iconic game show, in response to what was seemingly a slam-dunk question.
“In ‘A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood’, beloved children’s TV show host Mr. Rogers is played by this beloved actor,” intoned host Alex Trebek, immediately after a clip from the new biopic was shown.
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All three contestants were apparently stumped, staring ahead in stunned silence until one of them finally buzzed in — but just a bit too late. “That’s Tom Hanks,” Trebek told the contestant, his face registering wonderment. “Not quickly enough, Beverly, sorry.”
Anyone who thought this epic “Jeopardy!” fail would go unnoticed on Twitter clearly has no knowledge of Twitter, and the responses were hilariously brutal.
However, a “Jeopardy!” fan site offers evidence suggesting the contestants aren’t as clueless as viewers are assuming, pointing out that an audience member at the taping claimed a technical glitch was the issue.
“Before anyone accuses the three players of not knowing Tom Hanks (the BIOPICS $200 clue), it has been reported by audience members from this game that the lights on the signaling system malfunctioned (failed to activate properly) and the contestants were unable to buzz in,” the site reported. “Since the judges determined that no one player was advantaged or disadvantaged, it was ruled as ‘no harm, no foul,’ and the game would continue without a clue replacement.”
