‘Jeopardy!’ Notebook: On Day 40, Dayton native ‘very dominant’ in runaway performance

This image provided by Jeopardy Productions, Inc. shows game show champion Amy Schneider on the set of "Jeopardy!" Schneider is the first trans person to qualify for the show's Tournament of Champions. (Jeopardy Productions, Inc. via AP)

Credit: Uncredited

Credit: Uncredited

This image provided by Jeopardy Productions, Inc. shows game show champion Amy Schneider on the set of "Jeopardy!" Schneider is the first trans person to qualify for the show's Tournament of Champions. (Jeopardy Productions, Inc. via AP)

Dayton native Amy Schneider, comfortably in the “Jeopardy!” record books as second all-time champ with the longest streak in over 15 years, added to her winnings Jan. 25 earning a 40-day total of $1,382,800.

“Our champion Amy Schneider got her week off to an incredible start yesterday securing her 39th straight win,” said host Ken Jennings at the outset. “What that means is for the first time since the Greatest of All-Time Tournament, the two ‘Jeopardy!’ champions in the show’s history with the longest streaks are now sharing a stage. And I’ll tell you what – I am relieved that I’m hosting because I would not want to be playing Amy Schneider right now. She has been very dominant.”

In the interview segment, the engineering manager from Oakland, California had the Tournament of Champions on her mind.

“Matt Amodio is waiting in the Tournament of Champions, so I (felt) I should definitely beat his streak to sort of be, like, intimidating,” she said. “But then when it happened, I was like, ‘Have I just put more pressure on myself? Has this backfired? I guess we’ll just find out.”

At the end of Double Jeopardy!, Schneider, in another superb runaway performance, led with a whopping $38,000, a $35,800 advantage over her nearest competitor.

In Final Jeopardy!, the clue in the category of Sea Life: “In 2018, National Geographic reported that half of this was dead, ‘akin to a forest after a devastating fire.’” Schneider correctly answered the Great Barrier Reef. She wagered big with $25,000, increasing her total to $63,000 for the episode.

“Amy Schneider has been making Final Jeopardy! very interesting lately with some big, big wagers whether she’s correct or not,” said Jennings, noting her 40-day total was her second-highest one-day total.

She can be seen on “Jeopardy!” weeknights at 7:30 p.m. on WDTN Channel 2.

About the Author