'Jeopardy!' wild moments: A look at some of the most controversial NSFW moments of the quiz show
'Jeopardy!' contestants often practice for years before appearing on the quiz show, but they sometimes still find themselves in the middle of wild and controversial exchanges, from Ken's 'What's a Hoe?' to major misspellings to Alex's raps.
'Jeopardy!', which is currently hosted by Mayim Bialik, 46, and Ken Jennings, 47, has seen lots of questionable moments over the years. Let us take a look back at some of its craziest and most controversial moments in history.
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What's a Hoe?
One of the most infamous mistakes was made by Ken Jennings himself during his initial campaign in 2004 when he was responding to a question in the 'Tool Time' category. Late host Alex Trebek read, “This term for a long-handled gardening tool can also mean an immoral pleasure seeker.” Jennings, who had a commanding lead at the time, rang in with the response, “What’s a hoe?” As the audience began to laugh, Trebek quipped, “Whoa, whoa, whoa! They teach you that in school in Utah, huh?” After Jennings' mishap, another contestant rang in with the correct answer, "What is a rake?"
A Major Misspelling
'Kids Jeopardy!' contestant Thomas Hurley III claimed he was cheated in 2013 after the judges did not accept his misspelling of 'Emancipation Proclamation' as a correct answer. After the show, he said, "It's just upsetting to have lost that way. I don't know why it would have counted as the wrong answer.” However, even if the judges had accepted Hurley's response, he would not have won because another competitor properly spelled it and bet more money.
The Solo Final Jeopardy
After her two opponents lost on Double Jeopardy in 2015, reigning champion Kristin Sausville was forced to play Final Jeopardy alone. Even though she answered the question incorrectly, she still managed to win, starting a five-game winning streak.
Cursing Contestant
Another recent 'Jeopardy!' episode had a contestant called Gregory and things appeared to become a little tense. After failing to correctly respond to a chosen hint, he seemed to be losing patience. He was instructed to ‘select again,’ and he landed on a Daily Double. Fans observed Gregory appeared to be angry rather than thrilled about it and seemed to angrily say 'f**k.' He then covered his mouth before starting to scratch his beard as he thought about how much to wager.
The Age of Consent
Tom Imler, a contestant, gave the following inaccurate response when he called in, which went viral in 2015: "In common law, the age of this, signaling adulthood, is presumed to be 14 in boys and 12 in girls." Imler incorrectly answered "the age of consent," and social media fans immediately hailed his response as one of the most embarrassing 'Jeopardy!' moments ever. The appropriate response was 'puberty.' Imler later admitted that the mistake had left him ‘a little embarrassed,’ but he wasn't pleased that some viewers had taken the error to mean that he was ‘creepy.’
Alex Raps
Late host Alex Trebek started to show off his flow in 2014, especially in a 'Jeopardy! Let's Rap, Kids!' episode. Fans went wild when he started spitting lines from some of the most well-known rap songs, including 'Started From the Bottom,' 'M.A.A.D. City,' '6 Foot 7 Foot,' and 'Panda.' After rapping ‘Famous’ by Kanye West, Alex said, "I hope I don’t get an email from him."