Jeopardy! Seniors Tournament

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The Jeopardy! Seniors Tournament was one of the traditional tournaments held each season on the game show Jeopardy! Eligible contestants consisted of people aged 50 and over.

Contents

[edit] Format

The format was similar to that of the Tournament of Champions, with a field of fifteen people appearing three at a time in each of five quarterfinal matches. The winners of those matches automatically advanced, and four wildcard spots were given to the high scorers among the nonwinners. The nine semifinalists then played three elimination matches to determine the three players who would advance to a two-game, total-point match for a top prize of at least $25,000 and a spot in the Tournament of Champions.

[edit] Prizes

  • Quarterfinalists: $1,000
  • Semifinalists: $5,000
  • 2nd runner-up: $7,500 (or the player's 2-game total, whichever was greater)
  • 1st runner-up: $10,000 (or the player's 2-game total, whichever was greater)
  • Winner: $25,000 (or the player's 2-game total, whichever was greater), and a spot in the Tournament of Champions

[edit] List of participants

The following is a list of contestants and where they placed in the tournament. Winners and runners-up who earned more than the minimum guarantees are as indicated in parenthesis.

Finalists Semifinalists Quarterfinalists
Alex Trebek Era (1984-present)
Season 3 (May 4, 1987 - May 15, 1987)
Winner: Zeke Sevilla, Jr.
1st runner-up: Lee Saunders
2nd runner-up: Irene Grzywacz
Frank Dillon
Ruth Henoch
Dorothy McClellan
Joe McKenna
Phil Stehle
Bill Ward
Barbara Coffey
Joe Dobkins
Madeline Hayes
Jim Murk
Jane Weaver
Dan Zamos
Season 4 (May 9, 1988 - May 20, 1988)
Winner: Peggy Kennedy
1st runner-up: Louise Reyburn Dice ($22,000)
2nd runner-up: Joan Erickson ($10,000)
Charmion Burns
Ross Cameron
Ed Cohen
Fran Kirchhof
Tom Wickham
Don Maynard
Katie O'Callaghan
Joan Smith
Bob Winthrop
Season 5 (July 10, 1989 - July 21, 1989)
Winner: Ouida Rellstab
Season 6 (July 9, 1990 - July 20, 1990)
Winner: George Soule
1st runner-up: Bernard Kiernan ($18,100)
2nd runner-up: Hank D'Angelo ($10,000)
Margot Cameron
Bob Carman
Judy Colby
Anne Laird
Cecelia Moore
Arnold Yellin
Cole Anderson
Pat Ashton
Louise Clemens
Vonetta Lapidow
Marge Mayer
Theron Stimmel
Season 7 (July 8, 1991 - July 19, 1991)
Winner: Lou Pryor ($26,601)
1st runner-up: Bob Olsen ($26,600)
2nd runner-up: Mary Webster ($10,800)
Babs McClellan
Kay Paul
Nancy Pearson
Malcolm Post
Val Sullivan
Henry Wold
Florence Cannizzo
Dow Huskey
Bill Lyons
Patricia Miller
Jack Pejza
Pat Van Mella
Season 8 (July 6, 1992 - July 17, 1992)
Winner: Leonard Schmidt
1st runner-up: Hansford Epes ($11,100)
2nd runner-up: Carolyn Meek ($9500)
Jim Baehler
Pat Fine
Hugh Mulvaney
Lois Rosenfeld
Lucy Schilling
Martha Thompson
Mag Birge
Morty Goldman
Pete Goodman
Paula Reach
Burt Schildkraut
Richard Worth
Season 9 (July 12, 1993 - July 23, 1993)
Winner: Marilyn Kneeland
1st runner-up: Hugh Murphy
2nd runner-up: Will Herrera
Barbara Broerman
Lee Gelber
Noel Higgins
Leon Jackson
Mack Owen
Marty Wiley
Julia Buonocore
David Chasman
Helen Druva
Sandi Engquist
Don Hensley
Bob McClary
Season 10 (July 11, 1994 - July 22, 1994)
Winner: Bart Thomas
1st runner-up: Jim Brachman
2nd runner-up: Joe Clonick
Alec MacKenzie
Darrell Noe
Liz Suzie
Frances Taliaferro
Carol Terry
Madeline Willhoft
Dodge Crockett
Diane Dowden
Penny Evans
Ann McGahran
Bob McGrath
George O'Neal
Season 11 (July 10, 1995 - July 21, 1995)
Winner: Aaron Klein
1st runner-up: Elliot Shteir
2nd runner-up: Susan Schubert ($9400)
Caroline Brown
Anne Farrell
Diane Graham
Steve Paquette
Jan Van Fassen
Al Vedro
Larry Bowman
Dotty Carew
Barbara Eschrich
Marty Eshkov
Pete Herborn
Fran Rothman
Season 12 (December 18, 1995 - December 29, 1995)
Winner: David Cuneo ($28,000)
1st runner-up: Jerry Platzman ($14,000)
2nd runner-up: Phyllis Clark ($10,300)
Darryl Adams
Graham Beard
Ange Cardinali
Parma Holt
Dave Tucker
Nola Wegman
Grace Amador
Sharon Croissant
Kay Hoey
Diane Lilly
Tish Thomas
Mark Weissman

[edit] Retirement

The Seniors Tournament was the first (and so far the only) of the traditional tournaments to be retired. Since the last Seniors Tournament in December 1995, constants older than 50 years regularly appear on the program in the regular play games.

[edit] Trivia

  • Only one time during a tournament has there been a time where there was no winner, and it happened in the second quarterfinal of the 1991 Seniors Tournament. To make room for nine semifinalists (because it happened in the quarterfinals), a fifth wild card was added to the mix.
  • Two of the Seniors Tournament winners would eventually make it to the finals of the Tournament of Champions: Lou Pryor in 1991 and Marilyn Kneeland in 1993. They both finished third.
  • Babs McClellan, a semifinalist in the 1991 tournament, was the winner of the 1965 Tournament of Champions.
  • Eliot Schteir, the first runner-up in the summer 1995 tournament, was a finalist in the 1969 Tournament of Champions, losing to Jay Wolpert.

[edit] External links