Sun staff
The dreams of one Miami Township man were realized when he recently appeared on the game show Jeopardy!
Ken Hirsh is the director of the law library and professor of practice at the University of Cincinnati College of Law.
He started watching Jeopardy! in the late 1960s, when he was in junior high; he’s been a fan ever since.
“Being on the show was the culmination of a lifelong dream,” Hirsh said.
He started his pursuit to be on the show while he was in high school by submitting contestant applications yearly.
In the summer of 1970, Hirsh was called for an audition, but for unknown reasons, the show canceled the interview.
In May 2006, he was invited to an audition in Orlando. Hirsh met with the show’s test coordinators and participated in a mock game, and he was even briefed on how to effectively use the signaling device, otherwise known the buzzer.
Show representatives told him he would be in the contestant pool for the next 18 months, but he never got a call to appear on Jeopardy!
Then in late April 2015, he was invited to another audition, this time in Atlanta. In June 2015, he once again met with the show’s test coordinators, participated in a mock game and show representatives told him he would be in the contest pool for the next 18 months.
Then on July 5, he “got the call.”
“I was on the bus in the afternoon when my cell phone rang,” Hirsh said. “I saw that the call was from Sony Pictures Studios, where the show tapes, and I thought to myself, this could be it, and it was.”
He added, “When the call was done, I was so excited that I turned to the person next to me and told them, ‘I’m going to be on Jeopardy!’”
Hirsh traveled to the Aug. 15 taping in Culver City with his wife, Lisa, and his brother, who drove from Sacramento to join them.
Hirsh, who had prepared for his appearance on the show by playing along with the game at home and reading the latest copy of “The World Almanac and Book of Facts,” said he wasn’t nervous when he walked onto the stage.
“It’s a very fun set,” he said. “I got a chance to meet the other contestants and even though you’re all competing against each other, there’s a comradery because you understand what each other is trying to do.”
The show tapes five episodes a day, two days a week, with a 15-minute break between each show, Hirsch explained.
“The episodes are pretty much what you see on television,” he added.
To his surprise, Hirsh went on to win his first game; he was awarded $16,001.
“Getting on was the show was a dream come true; being a champ was the icing on the cake,” he said.
On his second appearance, Hirsh came in second place and won $2,000, though his loss was softened by the fact that none of the constantans answered the Final Jeopardy! clue correctly.
“No one ever defeated me on a Final Jeopardy! clue and I never finished worse than second place,” he noted.
While Hirsh and his wife were excited to share the news of his experience with friends and family, the two were contractually obligated to keep quiet about it until the episodes aired on Oct. 27 and 28.
“We had to keep a secret for 10 and a half weeks,” he said.
Hirsh, who said he’ll use his winnings to payoff travel his expenses – every Jeopardy! contestant must pay their own way to auditions and show tapings – and on a ‘couple of splurges,’ advises anyone interested in being on Jeopardy! to continue their pursuit.
“Keep at it; don’t give up,” he said. “Take that test every year.”
To read more about Hirsh’s journey to become a Jeopardy! contestant, visit his website at www.jeopardyquest.kenhirshonline.com.