Part 1 Tryouts

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March, 1989:    A Challenge

[top] A Test Mock Game An Interview? [bottom]

"Since you're so good, maybe you should try out for the show!"

I had been watching "Jeopardy!" with some friends, and out of habit, I was responding aloud to the clues (somewhat to the irritation of the others). I took the suggestion seriously and wrote down the address given during the last break of the program.

The response to the post-card I sent was a letter full of caveats: It was very difficult to qualify for the show. And if you qualified, there was a good chance you wouldn't be called to tape a show. Even if they called you down to tape a show, there was still a chance you wouldn't be picked to appear. If you or any of your immediate family worked for the production company or any of the major networks, you were not eligible. All in all, since it was so unlikely you would make it, they recommended strongly that one not make a trip to Hollywood just to try out for the show... but if one were going to be in the area anyway, call them and make an appointment to audition.

So I called... and learned that there weren't any tryouts scheduled for the next three months: call again in May. I did and was told there was an audition scheduled for June 15, would I like to register. I said, "Yes," and was told to be at the guard gate of the studio lot at 2 pm.

Thursday morning, June 15, I flew down to LAX and rented a car for the day. I had lots of time to kill, so I drove up to Griffith Park and strolled through the zoo until about 12:30.

I drove back to Hollywood and found the parking lot I'd been told about, parked, and walked over to the studio lot. There were already four people waiting at the guard house. We conversed and waited, and more people arrived. By 2:00, there were about 120 people lined up the sidewalk to the corner and around it. A little after two, Ingrid Woodson and Glenn Kagan, the "contestant coordinators," walked up to the crowd and told us to follow them. They led us to the studio, where we sat in the audience area.

We were handed a bunch of forms- releases, applications, personal information- and asked to fill them out. The last one was just fifty numbered lines and a space for a name at the top. This was the test sheet. It was explained that we would be shown a tape of fifty clues, with Alex Trebek's voice reading them. We had ten seconds to write down a response. Spelling didn't count and the responses didn't have to be in the form of questions.

The test was very difficult. There were a few easy ones, but most were the $1000 and Final Jeopardy! level. About twenty minutes later our packets of papers were collected. Everyone exclaimed over how tough it was and wondered what score was needed to qualify.

As they walked out of the studio with our papers, Ingrid and Glenn set up another tape for us to watch, telling us they would entertain us with our favorite TV show. You've never seen Jeopardy! properly until you've shared it with 120 (other) Jeopardy! fanatics! Like me, they all had the habit of answering aloud. And if there was silence in the room for a clue, I had to speak up...

Just before the Final Jeopardy! answer, Ingrid and Glenn returned with our tests.

Glenn said, "Before we give you the results, we want to tell you not to be too disappointed if your name isn't called. The test was very difficult, and you're welcome to come back in three months and try again." He began calling out names. I was so convinced that I hadn't done well, that when he got to the tenth name, my reaction was, "Gee, is there another Bill Nyden in the group." Then it dawned on me that I'd passed the first hurdle, and I joined the others who had been called down on stage. Three more names were called and the rest of the group was sent away.

We were brought down to a small bleachers in the middle of the audience section of the studio and told what was coming next: We would be playing a mock version of Jeopardy! to determine whether we could project enough excitement to be good for the show. It takes a lot of energy to seem more than a lump on television-- much like being on stage.

Rather than fire up all the equipment and computers, etc., they had a stack of cardboard category and clue cards for us to work from, and we were given hotel call bells to ring when we had a response. We went up, three at time, and played the game. When it was my turn, I rang in on the first question.

And so it went until we all had had turns. When we were done, Ingrid told us to sit tight while they talked things over. About five minutes later, they returned and gave us the same "You're welcome to come back and try again in three months if your name isn't called" speech. This time I wasn't as surprised when my name was read. Seven of us remained when the disappointed others left.

Ingrid and Glenn handed out more papers. We were told to write down five interesting things about ourselves: what we do for a living, what we do for fun, our most embarrassing moments, or whatever. We weren't told, but figured out later that these papers were transcribed to the pink file cards Alex Trebek would use to interview us on the show. I wrote down (1) I was a computer system administrator for an aerospace subsidiary of a major automobile manufacturer, helping to design communications satellites; (2) I volunteered as a guide at the Monterey Bay Aquarium; (3) I was an assistant SCUBA instructor; (4) I had been a competitive fencer in college and for some years after; and (5) I had put my foot in my mouth once at the Aquarium (see below).

At this point the papers were collected and Glenn said, "Now you get to talk about yourselves. It can be one of the things you wrote about, or something different; but we want about a minute and a half."

So we got up and talked. I can't remember everyone, but we had a postal employe from Petaluma, and a woman doctor who had worked as an epidemiologist in South America. When it was my turn, I quickly mentioned I was a guide at the Monterey Bay Aquarium and that occasioned one of my most embarrassing moments:

"It is possible," I said, "to rent the Monterey Bay Aquarium, or part of it, for an hour or an evening or something in between; and you can get a catered dinner or snacks. And you can arrange for some of the residents to be fed, too; that is, have a diver enter the Kelp Forest exhibit and feed the fish, while a guide outside the exhibit narrates the proceedings.

"One evening I had the opportunity to narrate such a feeding show for a large, fancy party.

"The narration isn't a script that is read verbatim, but, rather a collection of ideas, some of which are included or omitted as the whimsy strikes the narrator. Being in an engineering career and impressed by big numbers, myself, I like to talk about the size of the exhibit: the depth of the water (28'), the size and thickness of the large windows (15' high by 8' wide by 7-1/4" thick) and the third of a million gallons of water it contains.

"This particular evening I also mentioned the large pumps with which the water is drawn into the aquarium at about 2000 gallons per minute: 'Being on a clean body of water, we can use the water from the bay directly, without treatment. However, in the case of an ecological catastrophe,' I said, 'we can close off the pumps and exist on the water already in the aquarium for up to eleven days...' At which point I remembered who my audience was: upper management of a large petroleum company."

When we were all done, Ingrid and Glenn sat down together and whispered, discussing our potential as game show contestants. A few moments later, they stood up and told us, "Congratulations. You've all been selected for our contestant list. Sometime between now and next March, you should be hearing from us. But, if you don't, you're welcome to come back next year to try again."

We filed out of the studio and headed back to the parking lot. The woman doctor suggested we stop and have a drink to relax, but I demurred, having plans already. I phoned my friend Karen and asked her if she wanted to celebrate with me, this by way of letting her know I had been successful! We met at Marina del Rey and had dinner at a restaurant overlooking the water, while I recounted my experience. After dinner, I drove back to the airport. Feeling celebratory, I purchased drinks for the five rows of passengers surrounding me on the plane. I have wondered whether any of them later saw my shows.