'Jeopardy!' announces round of 4 new guest hosts

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Wednesday, February 3, 2021
'Jeopardy!' guest host Ken Jennings pays tribute to Alex Trebek
Guest host Ken Jennings paid an emotional tribute to Alex Trebek during Monday night's episode of "Jeopardy!"

LOS ANGELES -- Dr. Mehmet Oz, Anderson Cooper, Savannah Guthrie and Dr. Sanjay Gupta have all signed on as "Jeopardy!" guest hosts this season.

Producers announced their appearances Tuesday night, saying that "Jeopardy!" will make a donation to a charity chosen by each guest host that equals the cumulative winnings of the contestants competing during their time on the show.

"I used to watch @Jeopardy with my parents and now with my own kids. The thing is: there is just something so beautiful and reassuring about facts, simple straightforward facts," Gupta wrote on Twitter Tuesday. "I cherish that. An honor to be an upcoming guest host, but seriously miss the great Alex Trebek."

The show has turned to a slate of guest hosts since the November 2020 passing of longtime emcee Alex Trebek, whose last episode as host aired in January. A permanent replacement host has not yet been named.

Ken Jennings, who last year was crowned the show's "Greatest of All Time," is currently serving as the show's guest host. "Jeopardy!" executive producer Mike Richards, journalist Katie Couric, Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, journalist Bill Whitaker and actress-neuroscientist Mayim Bialik are also slated for guest-hosting stints later this season.

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers says he will be a guest host on "Jeopardy!" during the offseason. The show is currently using a series of interim hosts to replace Alex Trebek, who died of cancer on Nov. 8.

"We look forward to each guest host bringing their unique abilities to the show and to our contestants winning a lot of money that we can match for charity," Richards said Tuesday in a news release.

Trebek had hosted "Jeopardy!" since it premiered in syndication in 1984, racking up more than 8,200 episodes over the course of almost 37 seasons. He passed away on Nov. 8, 18 months after he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

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