Who is Ray Lalonde? Former ‘Jeopardy!’ champ joins picket line for WGA strike, refuses to return to game show
CULVER CITY, CALIFORNIA: 'Jeopardy!' has recently announced its plans to continue the show while the writers are on strike. While this might be a piece of good news for many fans, the state of the writers of Hollywood has concerned many and made them join the protest.
A 'Jeopardy!' champ, Ray Lalonde, has decided to also step back from joining the Alex Trebek stage until the demands of the writers are heard and a fair negotiation is reached. The show winner, who appeared as a contestant in December and January, has announced through Reddit that he will be joining the writers at the picket line.
Who is Ray Lalonde?
Lalonde was a contestant on the currently running Season 39 of the game show 'Jeopardy!'. He took up the podium on December 15, 2022, and only left the show after a loss on January 3, 2023, after having defended his champ title for 13 days. His total winnings by the end of his fourteenth appearance on the show were $388,400, making him the second-biggest winner from Canada on 'Jeopardy!'.
Lalonde hails from Toronto, Ontario, and has experience working in TV productions. He is a scenic artist, someone responsible for the physical appearance of the backgrounds of theatre or TV sets, from The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees or IATSE. He has worked on sets of popular shows like the Canadian French language TV series, 'Trauma', a medical drama following the journey of a traumatologist.
Ray Lalonde swears to not join 'Jeopardy!' again
The contestant took to Reddit to share his decision and take a step back from 'Jeopardy!'. He was set to appear as one of the contestants of the 'Tournament of Champions' and, as a big winner, was one of the most anticipated players for the game show. However, as a professional who is part of the world of TV and entertainment production himself, he has officially shared that unless the WGA strike is resolved, he won't be a part of 'TOC'.
The former 'Jeopardy!' champ revealed that this was one of the few times when he had chosen to write on a social media platform. "I'd like to break my accustomed social media avoidance and reach out to the broad Jeopardy! community if I may," Lalonde wrote. He addressed the recent announcements of 'Jeopardy!' returning to the screens with previous content written by the writers while the strike is active in full swing. Lalonde continued, "There are now credible reports that the producers are making contingency plans to start filming the next season of the show with old and/or recycled material if the WGA strike remains unresolved."
He further wrote that while getting the opportunity to return to the game show was something that he looked forward to, providing support to the writers was a greater priority for him. "I am a lifelong devoted fan of Jeopardy!. I am and will always be grateful for the experience I had on the show and the opportunity to participate in the TOC is beyond a dream come true for me," Lolande shared. "That being said, I believe that the show's writers are a vital part of the show," he continued, "and they are justified in taking their job action to secure a fair contract for themselves and their fellow WGA members."
Lolande then revealed that he has a family history of being part of a union and is part of one himself as someone who works behind the scenes on TV productions. "As a supporter of the trade union movement, a union member's son and a proud union member myself I have informed the show's producers that if the strike remains unresolved I will not cross a picket line to play in the tournament of champions," said his Reddit post. The purpose of his post was to further show his support for the WGA strike and encourage others to join the picket line as well while making his part of the contribution in affecting the strike's outcomes. "My hope in saying this publicly now is to perhaps influence some future decision to proceed without the writers and to encourage any others in the community who feel the same way to speak out as well. A few small voices may not change any minds but we can try."
'Jeopardy!' is rumored to be recycling previous clues and written content from the writers who are currently on strike, as mentioned by Lalonde in his post. Co-host Mayim Bialik has already stepped down from the show to support WGA while Ken Jennings is expected to do the same soon although nothing is confirmed yet.
