KING OF THE KNOW-IT-ALLS

BY MICHAEL J. MOONEY ILLUSTRATIONS BY MICHAEL MABRY

He was first introduced to the world as “a software engineer from Salt Lake City.” He wore a modest navy jacket, a wide maroon earned him millions of dollars and a career as the game show guy. As I type this, he’s the guest host of “Jeopardy!,” the first person to stand necktie, and a nervous, unassuming smile. His first name appeared in his at that lectern since the longtime beloved host, Alex Trebek, died in Noown all-caps handwriting at the front of his podium: KEN. When that epi- vember, after a public battle with cancer. Sony, which owns “Jeopardy!” is sode of “Jeopardy!” first aired, on June 2, 2004, nobody could have known expected to name the new permanent host sometime this year. In a field the ride Ken Jennings was about to take America on — or the joy he would that includes former news anchor Katie Couric and actor LeVar Burton, provide factoid lovers. Jennings is the odds-on favorite.

Jennings won that day. He had a slight lead entering the Final Jeopardy Whether or not he’s the new face of “Jeopardy!,” though, Jennings is round, and he knew the name of the first female track and field athlete to already an icon for a certain percentage of the population. Because he’s win medals in five different events at a single Olympics (Marion Jones), not just the greatest game show contestant of all time. Ken Jennings is an so he ended that first episode with $37,201 in win- uncommon inspiration for factoid lovers everywhere. nings. Jennings won the next day, too — knowing things like who won the Pulitzer Prize for poetry in 1987 (Rita Dove) and the name of the New Mexico governor who offered to pardon Billy the Kid (Lew Wallace) — bringing his total winnings to $59,201. He also won the day after that. And the day after that. And the day after that. JENNINGS HAS BECOME MORE THAN A QUIZMASTER. HE HAS BECOME THE Growing up in the ’80s and ’90s, I watched “Jeopardy!” just about every day. I inherited my affinity for game shows from my mom. She’d say she likes the brain

It went on for weeks. Then months. Every week- RAREST KIND OF puzzles because they keep her mind sharp, but the day, for half an hour, millions of people across the CELEBRITY: RICH truth is in our home, intelligence was the highest vircountry tuned in to watch this mild-mannered 30-year-old married father from Utah absolutely obliterate his fellow contestants on America’s most AND FAMOUS FOR JUST, LIKE, KNOWING STUFF. tue. Not necessarily the solving-global-problems type of intelligence. We didn’t spend a ton of time discussing canonical literature or classical music or modern polithallowed game show. Jennings seemed to have a ical theory. No, our family specializes in useless, obbottomless pit of knowledge, and could recall it all scure factoids. I may not have been able to spell the instantaneously. He also had a gently sarcastic air word restaurant until sometime in high school, but as about him, a wry grin that hinted he knew some- far back as I can remember, I savored the chance to thing he couldn’t wait to say. He’d answer questions prove that I knew things like the name of the larg— or, more accurately, because on “Jeopardy!” contestants must answer est glacier in the world (the Lambert-Fischer Glacier in Antarctica) in the form of a question, Jennings questioned the answers — with such or the year the Titanic sunk (1912) or the speed of sound (some 767 speed and ease that it felt like watching performance art. miles per hour).

“What is Halifax?” “Who is Humpty Dumpty?” “What are the Arabian As you might guess, this did not make me the most popular kid in school. Nights?” It didn’t take long to understand that most of society doesn’t care much for

During his streak, and in the years since, ’Jennings has become more the know-it-all type. If you want to make friends and attract a love interest, than a quizmaster. Through his books, his Twitter presence, and his ap- obnoxiously reciting trivial knowledge is not the way to do it. But, in the pearances on subsequent “Jeopardy!” tournaments (and a few other game privacy of a living room, a game show provides the perfect safe space for shows), Jennings has become the rarest kind of celebrity: rich and famous just this type of know-it-all-ism. for just, like, knowing stuff. Not stuff about successful investment strat- On sick days or school holidays, I basically marked the time by the egies. Not stuff about how to cure a crippling disease or engineer a safer game show on TV. No matter how bad I felt, I knew I had “The Price Is vehicle. Just random stuff. His capacity to remember and recall factoids has Right” to look forward to. Then “Hollywood Squares,” “Family Feud,”

“Supermarket Sweep,” “$100,000 Pyramid” — you get the idea. I loved Carpenter became the first person to win $1 million on “Who Wants to Be strategizing how I would approach each clue, spin, puzzle, or final round. I a Millionaire,” coolly using his “phone a friend” to call his dad on the final relished knowing the answer, especially when the contestant didn’t. I even question — just to say he was about to take home the big prize. In 1980, liked seeing how fast people could buzz in — sometimes imagining my own a Navy officer named Thom McKee appeared on 46 straight episodes of hand hovering over one of those big red buttons so many game shows use. “Tic-Tac-Dough,” winning $312,700 worth of prizes, including eight cars,

Sick or not, “Jeopardy!” was always appointment television. It was often three sailboats and 16 vacations. what my mom and I would watch while eating dinner, sometimes paired with But the “Jeopardy!” winning streak that Jennings started in the summer “Wheel of Fortune.” The Rolls Royce of game shows, “Jeopardy!” has long of 2004 is easily the single-greatest achievement in the history of game been a fixture in our culture. Even the theme music is iconic, one of the most shows. Because Ken Jennings transcended the world of traditional game recognizable tunes in television history. It didn’t happen much, but once in show fans. He made arcane knowledge a daily topic of conversation. a while I knew an answer my mom didn’t — and I treasured the chance to In all my years watching game shows, I’d never seen anyone like Ken impress her. One time, I remember, when I was 12 or 13, I somehow named Jennings. He was polite but confident. He was funny, too, in smart, subtle the movie that won the 1990 Oscar for Best Picture (“Driving Miss Daisy”), ways. He once buzzed in on a clue about the Oscar-winning Tom Cruiseand my mom tilted her head and looked at me, genuinely surprised. Dustin Hoffman movie, for example, and answered in the style of the titular

Part of the appeal came down to the show’s host, character: “What is ‘Rain Man’? Definitely. Definitely.” Alex Trebek. Every day, viewers could count on that And day after day he dominated his opponents in warm voice, the gentle way he’d banter with contes- a way that had never been done. He’d sweep through tants, his perfectly placed quips. A lot of game show entire categories of questions like he was playing hosts emit a used-car salesman sleaziness. But that was alone, leaving his fellow contestants — and all of us never Trebek. He always displayed a sweet, respectful at home — absolutely stunned. decency with everyone he encountered, no matter the I HAD NO IDEA Within a week, he won more than $100,000. After score — something we don’t get a lot of in life. WHAT I WANTED 16-straight games, he was over $500,000. The streak The other appeal of “Jeopardy!” is the sheer knowledge base required to compete. Even the worst contestants on the show are among the crème de la crème of TO DO WITH MY LIFE. BUT EVERY AFTERNOON, I COULD WATCH A became something people talked about at work, at school, over dinner. Jennings was a regular topic on sports-talk shows: How long can he go? Can anyone trivia geeks. The best “Jeopardy!” players can buzz in, MAN WHO SEEMED beat him? In his 30th game, he broke the $1 million answer, and pick the next clue faster than most of us TO HAVE ALL mark. In game 59, he went over $2 million. can process the words coming out of the host’s mouth. THE ANSWERS. During his streak, the show’s ratings went up a reThe entire thing can be dizzying, almost hypnotic. ported 22%. Jennings has said the streak made him

At home, answering even two or three questions a “TV folk hero.” Slate magazine dubbed him “the in a row always felt like a grand accomplishment. Michael Jordan of trivia.” He was a guest on “The Each clue requires not just some understanding of Tonight Show” and “The Late Show with David history or science or culture or sports, but also the Letterman” and “Live with Regis and Kelly.” Tom ability to quickly unravel a word puzzle. And “Jeop- Hanks sent him a vintage typewriter. Barbara Walters ardy!” doesn’t reward partially right answers. In the world of “Jeopar- named him one of the 10 most fascinating people of the year. He was getdy!” something is either correct or incorrect. ting recognized on the street, in grocery stores. Excited old ladies would

For years, whether I was with my mom or alone, watching “Jeopardy!” grip his arm so tight they’d leave bruises. was all about those questions, the challenge, the factoids, the mild drama The more we learned about Jennings, the more delightfully geeky he of who would have the most money at the end of any given episode. But seemed. He was born outside Seattle but grew up in South Korea and because they never stayed too long, it was never about the contestants Singapore, watching “Jeopardy!” on the Armed Forces Network every day. themselves. He’d driven with a friend from Salt Lake City to Los Angeles to try out

Then the world met Ken Jennings. for the show. He made flash cards to brush up on world capitals and U.S. presidents. A devout Latter-day Saint, Jennings didn’t drink alcohol but we learned that he prepared for the regular “Jeopardy!” category “Potent Potables” by studying cocktail recipes.

TSee, you didn’t have to be a serious “Jeopardy!” fan to recognize how here have been some truly incredible moments in game-show history. A special Ken Jennings was. And it wasn’t just his insane trivia knowledge. He man named Terry Kniess once memorized the prices of every item on “The was lightning fast on the buzzer, ringing in before either of his two oppoPrice Is Right” and bid the exact right amount in the Showcase Showdown, nents more than 60% of the time. winning $56,437 in prizes. An Ohio man named Michael Larson memo- He also played with a clear, distinct strategy. When Jennings uncovered rized the light patterns on the “Press Your Luck” game board, figured out a Daily Double — rare opportunities when a contestant can wager up to all how to avoid the dreaded “Whammies” and won $110,237. In 1999, John the money he or she has made to that point — he eschewed the traditional,

conservative approach, often betting enough to put his score out of reach of his opponents long before the final question.

Jennings wasn’t always right, but he was right more than 80% of the time. Watching him was almost like watching a superhero show. You knew he’d win in the end, it was just a matter of seeing how.

As Ken Jennings was captivating America with his knowledge, I had just graduated from college with an English degree. I got a soulless job doing research for a law firm — and I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life. Every day felt like a small existential crisis. But every afternoon, from summer through fall and into that winter, I could watch a man who seemed to have all the answers.

His 75th game started like most of his other games. Jennings jumped out to a fast, large lead. By the end of the first round, he had more than double the scores of his two opponents combined. He knew the George W. Bush Cabinet member who lost his 2000 Senate race to a man who died a month before the election (John Ashcroft) and the only state Walter Mondale won in the 1984 presidential election (Minnesota) and the monarch who, in 1936, said, “A few hours ago I discharged my last duty as king” (Edward

VIII).

In the second round, Jennings started to pile on, correctly answering seven of the first 14 questions before hitting a Daily Double — which he got wrong. He didn’t know the town in Belgium that Patton’s forces relieved on Dec. 26, 1944 (Bastogne). Then a few questions later Jennings found another Daily Double — and got that one wrong, too, something that almost never happened. This time he didn’t know the name of the brimless hat popular in the 1920s (a cloche).

Jennings still had a $4,000 lead going into Final Jeopardy. The clue was: “Most of this firm’s 70,000 seasonal white-collar employees work only four months a year.” His opponent, Nancy Zerg, wrote down the correct response: “H&R Block.”

In video of that episode, you can tell that Jennings knows it’s over before anyone else in the room. He’d written down “FedEx.” As his answer was revealed, the audience gasped. Nancy Zerg looked shocked, confused. Jennings turned to shake her hand. In true Ken Jennings form, he’d answered 29 questions correctly to Zerg’s 10, but “Jeopardy!” is “Jeopardy!”

In the 74 games he won, Jennings took home $2.52 million, smashing the record for total game show winnings. At the end of that episode, Trebek took a moment to honor Jennings. The audience gave a standing ovation. Jennings smiled politely.

I still feel a twist in my chest when I see clips from that day.

Jennings didn’t go away. He returned for the show’s Tournament of Champions. Then he came back to battle the IBM supercomputer Watson — which did to Ken Jennings what Ken Jennings had done to so many other people. This, of course, is the future of factoids. You might save time by knowing the first King of Iceland (Haakon IV), but that knowledge is available to anyone, thanks to the supercomputers we hold in our hands. Unless you’re a game show contestant or avid crossword enthusiast, these facts have always been useless, the skill always superfluous. Now though, they’re even more so.

Since Jennings, the show has had a few other memorable champions, many of whom followed and expanded on the strategies Jennings employed during his run. His single-day earnings record was broken, as was his overall earnings record, but nobody has even come close to his 74-straight wins. The next best is 32.

Jennings started writing books. “Brainiac” is part memoir, recounting his journey from anonymous computer programmer to know-it-all icon, and part exploration of trivia itself: the inane factoid’s history and place in our society. Life is full of complicated decisions, he reasons, all of which require the mastery of a lot of facts. Even if anyone can look those facts up, the people with a broad foundation of knowledge have a head start.

In addition to his books and lectures, he’s built a large, dedicated following on Twitter, delivering wry observations and geeky jokes. As Jennings became the temporary replacement for Trebek, his social media history started getting more scrutiny. Before his first show as host aired, Jennings apologized for offensive tweets from his past, including one that disparaged people with disabilities.

“Sometimes I said dumb things in a dumb way and I want to apologize to people who were (rightfully!) offended,” he tweeted. “I screwed up, and I’m truly sorry.”

The first time he took the stage as guest host, he started the show with a tribute to Trebek.

“Sharing this stage with Alex Trebek was one of the greatest honors in my life,” he said. “Like all ‘Jeopardy!’ fans, I miss Alex, very much. And I thank him for everything he did for all of us. Let’s be totally clear, nobody will ever replace the great Alex Trebek, but we can honor him by playing the game he loved.”

Jennings, the man who grew up obsessed with “Jeopardy!” and later became the game’s greatest player, turned out to be a good host of the show, too. He mostly mimics the style and mannerisms of Trebek, someone he had studied up close, from the same stage, for longer than anyone else. Judging by the comments on social media, other fans of “Jeopardy!” like Jennings, too.

I’ve been a full-time journalist for more than a decade now, still trying to impress my mother by attempting to answer questions and recite facts. I don’t get to watch “Jeopardy!” as much as I’d like, but I still tune in whenever I get a chance. I noticed that at the end of every episode, Jennings turns to the camera and says solemnly: “Thank you, Alex.”

Jennings has become more than a trivia king, more than a game show celebrity. Over the last two decades, he’s become an advocate for facts, the face of a part of the universe where something is either right or wrong, correct or incorrect — at a time when that’s not always such a simple thing. As someone who deals with facts for a living, I truly appreciate it.

And one day, Ken Jennings himself will be the answer to a trivia question. Or maybe he’ll be the question: This former software engineer turned his love of trivia into a career and became a hero to factoid lovers everywhere.

BY ERICA EVANS PHOTOGRAPHS BY FREDRIK BRODEN

“ got into music to be a voice for women and hopefully empower young girls,” Tiffany I forward without losing herself or her career. It was an impossible choice. Until she realized that to mix the tracks and give the music life — going over melodies, rewriting lyrics and tweaking

Houghton says, video chatting while lounging she didn’t have to choose. sounds while wearing matching fuzzy unicorn on the bed in her Dallas home — with her high- Motivated by her Latter-day Saint faith, socks from Forever 21. In between sessions, heeled boots perched on the plush cream bed- Houghton left the Los Angeles music scene they chatted about their love lives. The studio ding and her platinum blond hair framed by a behind. She took her talent and drive with her, finally felt like home. “It was a lot more of a pile of blue pillows. “How could I be that voice determined to make music she believes in. “My conducive environment for creativity and to be if I wasn’t in a good place? … I don’t think you faith and the way that I lived protected me in so able to speak my truth,” Houghton says. can touch the hearts of others when you are not many situations throughout the years,” Hough- After years of writing and discarding songs speaking from your own.” ton says. “My faith has been something that that music industry heads said were not good

In 2017, Houghton — a Latter-day Saint has led me my whole life. It’s always something enough, Houghton chose the song lineup for singer-songwriter with a bubbly personality I come back to and find value and worth in, as this album based on her own artistic discretion and a wardrobe that would make Barbie envious well as direction and guidance.” and feedback from fans. Rather than leaving — was seeing more success than ever. She had And it’s faith that gave Houghton the cour- the album artwork up to stylists, she thought completed a tour with former pop duo MKTO age to become a self-managed artist. deeply about how she wanted to visually porduring the rise of its award-nominated hit song, Historically, independent and self-managed tray this music — which she sees as an expres-

“Classic,” and opened for One Direction out- artists haven’t seen the same record-break- sion of herself — and hired a photographer. side the Rose Bowl. She wore designer-every- ing fame that artists signed to big labels have. Next, she’ll work with a distribution compathing — from fur coats to red-bottomed stilet- Managers help shape a musician’s image and ny to get her music onto Spotify, Apple Music, tos. Her original song, “Catch Me if You Can,” career. Record labels control the production, Deezer, Tidal and all the other digital streamhad recently reached the No. 1 spot on Radio distribution and marketing of music. It’s a com- ing platforms or “DSPs.” Her marketing plan,

Disney. It was the kind of success young musi- plex system that’s hard to break out of and still as she puts it, is “by the bootstraps.” Houghton cians dream about. see success. But social media and platforms will personally reach out to her fans and every-

But it wasn’t the fairy tale Houghton, then like Spotify — where artists can share their one she knows in blogs, magazines, radio and 24, thought it would be. After she left her child- own music and reach a wide audience — have music to get her new work into the mainstream. hood home in Texas to move to the big music opened up a new era of opportunities. Mer- In the end, Houghton’s debut album as a cities of LA and Nashville, the industry took chant bank Raine Group projected the inde- self-managed artist is exactly what she wants it hold of every part of her. She felt like more of pendent music market would reach $2 billion to be — not what anyone else told her it had a product than a person. Managers, publicists in 2020, a 32% increase from the year before, to be. It includes already-released songs like and executives tried to dictate her appearance, thanks to the rapid growth of do-it-yourself “Pretty Pretty,” about a woman’s worth beyond diet and dating life. They took advantage of her uploads. Now, independent artists like Chance her physical looks, and “Spectrum,” about the — a New York radio executive demanded she the Rapper are able to achieve massive success diversity of experiences and emotions that come over for a “sleepover” before he would while being able to directly speak to their fans make us human. And her new song “Sleepover” play her song on his station. She refused him, and put out music on their own terms. tells the story of her saying “no” to that demand but the entire experience was enough to break And that’s exactly the creative freedom from the radio executive in New York. the spirit of a woman whose brand was based on Houghton wants. Her new self-titled album is “It took me this long to put out this album her upbeat jams and exuberant energy. “It was a the labor of nearly three years of self-reflection. because I did not want to share,” Houghton really dark time,” she says. “I knew I needed to The songs were inspired by her pile of journals says. “It’s hard for me to talk about all this stuff, get out of the situation.” and composed spending countless hours at the but I am a 360, full human.”

Houghton says she felt like she couldn’t move piano. Houghton worked with producer friends Even though she is temporarily stationed with

shot on location in dallas texas, february 2021

her husband at her childhood home in Dallas due to the pandemic, Houghton is still focusing on music-making. She has her piano in the family workout room and microphone and midi keyboard in her dad’s office. She finally has time to pursue a bachelor’s degree at the Berklee College of Music and is already making music with classmates.

Houghton loves that she can connect with her fans on social media and be authentic, no longer caught up with being a “mysterious” pop star or protecting her image. With her in-yourface enthusiasm for everything from makeup to inspirational quotes, Houghton is anything but elusive. And she’s not afraid of letting her fans in on the ups and downs of life. But that’s what followers find contagious.

It’s a big change from the period of time when Houghton was just as critical of herself as others were. But by stepping away from the conventional path to success, the now 27-yearold has more fans than ever, and in an unexpected way, she has achieved her goal of being a positive voice for young women.

Now, on a typical day in the life of the singer- songwriter, Houghton posts videos of herself bounding into Hobby Lobby with her mom or teaching a virtual voice lesson and sweetly singing “Part of Your World” from “The Little Mermaid” while a little girl on the other end repeats the lines in her best princess voice. Houghton talks to her Instagram followers while eating a quesadilla and tells them where to buy the affordable clothes she’s wearing — a pink velour jumpsuit (from Walmart) and gold hoop earrings (Cartier look-alikes). It may not be the picture of the pop star lifestyle she imagined for herself a decade ago when she graduated high school early and left home at 17. But it’s the one she wants.