"Wheel"/"Jeopardy!" 12/27

WoF: Apparently, Best of the Best Week's NOT about Pat Sajak's 30th year of hosting this show, but rather about the best trip locations in the world (at least in this program's opinion). The first Toss-Up category's Thing:

_ _ U E

_ _ B B _ N

Audrey gets a $1K BLUE RIBBON for solving this puzzle. Let's greet them now:

Audrey Hamlin (Madison, NC)- A coupon clipper who's the coach of her son Clayton's soccer team & is married to Steve
Lisa Ward (Olive Branch, MS)- A choir leader at Holy Spirit Catholic Church in Hernando who's married to David & has four children; she's also a senior manager at a multinational consulting technology networking company & is also learning to play both the flute & the guitar
George Barsoum (Miami, FL; originally from Nanuet, NY)- A medical student who lived in The Caribbean for two years to attend school there; he's also an aspiring screenwriter w/ his brother

For the second episode in a row, the $2K T-U topic's On the Map:

_ _ _ _ D I _ _ V _ A

Audrey solves SCANDINAVIA and now has $3K.

Tonight's showcased trip is to the Ciragan Palace Kempinski in Istanbul, Turkey worth $12,770 & the Tuesday/Thursday gift tag's courtesy of BerryFactory.com. The NatuRelief Jackpot Round category's Phrase & Audrey's first consonant call is three T's for $1,650, immediately followed by an E, a $600 N, two O's, three I's to clean out the vowels, a $2.5K S, a couple G's for another thousand bucks & the blue 1/2 KIA & a $450 L, then we have...

_ O _ T _ / I T S

_ E I G _ T / I N

G O L _

...this solve's WORTH ITS WEIGHT IN GOLD for her to the tune of another $5,450 in cash & $8,450 total.

PERFECT ROUND
LEFT BEHIND IN JACKPOT: $9,100

(Note: The art department provides the holiday shout-out of the night.)

A Landmark's fittingly part of the Prize Puzzle Round for this match. First, Lisa calls three N's for the Million Dollar Wedge (& the audience does a good reaction when the wheel lands on it) & two L's for the same 1/2 KIA & $1K, purchases six A's but then runs into the Lose a Turn. Second, George gets a $300 T, three O's, a $300 S, an E, the $550 H at the beginning, a $300 W & a $450 R before we take a look at...

H A W A _ _

_ O L _ A N O E S

N A T _ O N A L

_ A R _

...he banks his first $1,400 & the chance to visit the HAWAII VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK during his holiday to the Sheraton Keauhou Bay Resort & Spa worth $6,090, making this a $7,490 round for him; he also starts the next puzzle.

SOLE LaT: Lisa

TONIGHT'S SPIN ID: DT2560508 (Dennis T.)

The identity of the Mystery Round puzzle's a Person. First up for him are five T's for the other 1/2 KIA & $2.5K (this may be the first time everybody's landed on at least one of those plates), an $800 H, trip E's, quadruple O's, quintuple R's for $1.5K extra, a pair of A's & the same number of S's to add $1,800. Here's the board...

_ _ T E R _ O R

_ E _ O R A T O R

T O / T H E / S T A R S

...while he ain't the INTERIOR DECORATOR TO THE STARS, he's the new leader w/ $13,340 in cash & Hawaii.

PERFECT ROUND #2

We're now desiring the Proper Name of someone:

M _ _ _ L

_ _ _ _ E P

Audrey certainly knows MERYL STREEP to also break five-figure territory w/ $11,450 & sweep the T-Us.

It's time to go In the Kitchen for the next round. First are a $500 N but then the Bankrupt next to where the Wild Card formerly was. Lisa secondly calls for a T, but it's a dud. Third, George Free Plays an A but then bobbles the T. Returning to Audrey, she lights a $600 L & the $5K R at the end, buys the remainder of the vowel department (four E's & singletons of I, O & U) & calls a possibly crucial dud of W. After Lisa gets the starting $300 S, a $1,600 duo of F's, a $600 C pairing & a $5K M...

S I N _ L E - C U _

C O F F E E M A _ E R

...she says SINGLE-CUP COFFEEMAKER to finally get off the zero mark w/ $7.5K.

DUDS: $350 T (Lisa) & $500 W (Audrey)
SOLE BANKRUPT OF THE NIGHT: Audrey
SOLE DQ: George (T repeat on a green $300 wedge)

The question What Are You Doing? is asked for the Last Chance Round w/ $1.5K as the consonant value; anybody can now win. After a B call...

_ L _ D _ N G / D _ _ N

T _ _ / B _ N _ _ T _ _

...Audrey's SLIDING DOWN THE BANISTER w/ an extra $3K to Bonusland w/ $14,450! Lisa missed out on doubling her money in this round & George doesn't add $4.5K to his final score, but he still leaves w/ $13,340 in cash & vacation.

$35,290 worth of cash & trip has been sent out the door thus far.

TONIGHT'S BANKRUPT TRASH: $500

Maxwell House Big Money Round #67: Audrey sounds like a player that can break our current endgame losing streak at eight episodes. She spins the A in GAME & hit us w/ some letters on another Phrase:

_ _ E R _ _ E

_ E _ _ _ T

DMHI gives her...

_ _ E R _ _ E

H E I _ H T

...her AVERAGE HEIGHT will go up once Pat shows her she's won $35K, so her final all-cash sum's $49,450; the Rebuilding Together bank's now at $177.5K!

EPISODE RATING: 7

J!: Jason Keller's championship reign wants to be frozen by:

Andrew Robinson (Washington, D.C.)- A graduate student of International Science & Technology Policy who previously met Alex while he was the Grand Marshal of the Cherry Blossom Festival Parade (Andrew was a volunteer at that time)
Bill Moreau (Woodbridge, Ontario)- Elementary school teacher

The categories that Kevin puts up to get the panel going this evening:

MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
TALKING ITALIAN
DECADES OF DISASTER
FOOD PREPARATION
LESSER-KNOWN AMERICANS
TIPS ON NETWORKING (each correct response's a TV network)

Bill's the one in Lock Game Territory at the halftime point tonight w/ $4K; Jason's sitting on $1,400 & Andrew has 1/10 the current leader's total. Immediately after the interviews, Andrew goes Daily Double Hunting on the $800 Lesser-Known American...but Bill grabs it from the end of Decades of Disaster w/ $4,800, double Jason's new score; Andrew's currently on $1,800. He risks $2K of his $2,400 lead on this:

The USS Maine goes down, killing 260.

"What are the 1920s?"...are incorrect. The right decade was actually the 1890s & he finishes at $3,400 to round out the Jeopardy! Round; Andrew's starting the next round of play w/ $2,400 & Jason's in LGT once again at $6,400.

SOLE ATTEMPTED TS: $1K (Talking Italian)
SOLE UNATTEMPTED TS: $800 (Lesser-Known Americans)
TOTAL LACH TRASH: $1,800

Up For Grabs in Double Jeopardy! (after a reverse ruling on Bill's incorrect response on the $400 Talking Italian clue, which was a TS at the time):

COSMOPOLITAN
ELLE
A LURE
"W"
RED BOOK
WAITING FOR THE HAIRDRESSER (this is a beauty-themed board)

$1,600 "W" (DDH Alert #2):

This four-letter term for a ridge on the skin resulting from a blow also begins the name of a boxing weight division.

Bill: "What is a welt?"- YOU BET ($5K)

$400:

It's a man who has lost his wife by death & has NOT been remarried.

Bill: "What is a widower?"- RIGHT ($5,400)

$800:

An exploratory gas or oil well, or a nickname for a student from the University of Arizona.

Andrew: "What is a Wildcat?"- CORRECT ($3,200)

$1,600 Red Book:

This psychologist was Unafreud to confront his own demons in "The Red Book", written between 1914-1930 & published in 2009.

Andrew: "Who is (Carl) Young?"- RIGHT ($4,800)

Middle A Lure Clue:

Rapala lures are made to mimic wounded fish; in 2003, Phillipe Marn used one to land a record 385-pound Yellowfin this.

Jason: "What is Tuna?"- YES ($7,600)

Center "W":

In a Coors Light ad, the guy w/ this "avian" nickname tried to help his amorous buddy "live the dream".

Jason: "What's a wingman?"- YES INDEED ($8,800)

$2K:

High-quality wood's used in this kind of paneling, whose name's German for "wagon".

Jason: "What is Wainscoting?"- RIGHT ($10,800)

First Elle Answer:

Marion Cotillard played Leonardo DiCaprio's dreamy wife Mal in this 2010 film.

Andrew: "What is 'Inception'?"- RIGHT ($5,200)

$2K Cosmopolitan Clue:

DD #1! Andrew's betting the lot on this:

This city in The Crimea is a health resort w/ many sanatoriums, including one suggested by Chekhov in 1899.

"What is...Odessa?"...NO. Correct: "What is Yalta?".

$1,600 (High School Strategy Alert):

The Postal Museum in Vaduz, this principality's capital, is a must-visit for stamp collectors.

Jason: "What is Lichtenstein?"- RIGHT TO GO BACK INTO LGT ($12,400)

$1,200:

India's financial capital, this West Coast city consists of several islands that have become one land mass via reclamation.

Bill: "What is Mumbai?"- YES ($6,600)

$800:

Sudan University of College & Technology, including The Institute of Laser, is in this capital.

Andrew: "What is Kartun?"- CORRECT ($800)

$1,600 A Lure Clue from Sarah Whitcomb:

When you wrap a fish hook w/ feathers & thread, it's called tying one of these lightweight lures that mimic insects.

Andrew: "What is a jig?"- OOPS (-$800)
Jason: "What are flies?"- RIGHT TO GET BACK TO LGT ($14K)

Last Remaining Cosmopolitan Clue For $400:

This Spanish city on The Mediterranean was known in antiquity as Barcino.

Andrew: "What is Barcelona?"- RIGHT (-$400)

Middle Red Book Spot:

This Stendahl novel title was inspired by the colors worn by the Catholic clergy & the French military.

Andrew: "What is 'The Scarlet Pimpernel'?"- WRONG (-$1,600)
Jason: "What is 'The Red and the Black'?"- RIGHT ($15,200)

$400:

The title of this Dr. Seuss work's illustrated on its cover.

Jason: "What is 'One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish'?"- RIGHT ($15,600)

$800:

OTHER DD! To add $3K to his sizable lead:

In "The Veteran", a sequel to this 1895 novel, Henry Fleming tells us Chancellorsville was where he was wounded.

He has the right to be confident in responding w/ "What is 'The Red Badge of Courage'?" to rise to $18,600!

$400 Clue under Waiting For the Hairdresser:

I might ask for "Just a..." this, a simple shortening & tidying up around the edges.

Bill: "What is a trim?"- CORRECT ($7K)

$800:

I'll get my hair straightened w/ the Brazilian this; it's also what happened to my favorite football team, 35-0.

Bill: "What is wax?"- NO WAY ($6,200)

FIRST TS OF THE ROUND: Blowout

$1,200:

I hope things are OK here; I think I see this woman in the back filming for the Bravo show about her "Salon Takeover".

Jason: "Who is Tabatha (Coffey)?"- OF COURSE ($19,800)

$400 A Lure:

Cock-a-doodle-doo! In the 1950s, Howard Worden developed a classic fishing lure called this animal's tail.

Jason: "What's a rooster?"- RIGHT ($20,200)

$800:

The million-dollar lure's made up of three lbs. of gold & platinum & 100 karats of diamonds & these red gems.

Andrew: "What are rubies?"- YES (-$800)(ONE MINUTE ALERT)

$2K:

Mepps makes its special "Killer" lure to catch this large member of the Pike family, NOT Hubert Humphrey's running mate.

Jason: "What is an Estes Pike?"- NO ($18,200)

TS #2: Muskie

$2K Elle Monitor:

She starred w/ Ethan Hawke in "Before Sunrise"; she & Ethan Hawke not only starred in the sequel, but also co-wrote it.

Andrew: "Who is Julie Delpy?"- RIGHT ($1,200)

$2K Red Book Answer:

Made into a '98 film, this James Jones novel fictionalizes the "narrow"ly won battle for Guadalcanal.

Andrew: "What is 'The Thin Red Line'?"- RIGHT ($3,200)

TIME EXPIRES

DJ! LACH TRASH (all attempted): $2,800

Totals After DJ!:

Jason: $18,200 (LG!!!)
Bill: $6,200
Andrew: $3,200

CORYAT SCORES:

Jason: $16K
Bill: $8,200
Andrew: $8,400

FINAL JEOPARDY! TOPIC: Presidential Inaugurations.

His second inauguration marked the first time that women officially participated in the inaugural parade.

ANDREW:
Response: "Who is Calvin Coolidge?"
Wager: $3,198
Final score: $2

BILL:
Response: "Who is F.D.R.?"
Wager: $6,199
Final score: BUCK (he leaves w/ $1K)

JASON:
Response: "Who was (Woodrow) Wilson?"
Wager: NOTHING

JASON'S THE BIGGEST NON-TOURNAMENT WINNER OF THE SEASON TO DATE W/ EIGHT WINS & $202,100!!!!!!

EPISODE RATING: 9