Tonight America found out that Ken Jennings is indeed human. After a stunning 74 consecutive victories on Jeopardy, Ken Jennings finally met his match. And his match came in the form of an actress turned real estate agent named Nancy Zerg. Zerg trailed going into Final Jeopardy, but unlike almost all of Jennings' previous challengers, Zerg was in mathmatical range of victory when the final clue was posted. Jennings needed to answer Final Jeopardy correctly in order to assure victory. The final clue was: Most of this firm's 70,000 seasonal white-collar employees work only four months a year.
Zerg's reply was posted first. Zerg correctly wrote, "What is H&R block?" Then Jennings' answer was posted. He incorrectly answered, "What is Fed Ex?" An audible gasp went up from the audience and from Ms. Zerg herself. It was a stunning moment.
So, tomorrow will start the beginning of the Zerg era on Jeopardy. No doubt it will be a lot shorter that Mr. Jennings' reign. Jennings' run of 74 straight wins was a game show record as was his $2.5 million dollars in winnings.
