Jeez.
Jeopardy! strikes again!
The Final Jeopardy round for S36 E33 for October 23, 2019 brought Hammett back into the mix yet again. Man, those clew-meisters are relentless, and I have to think they must like Hammett as much as I do.
Category: 1930s Novel Characters.
Statement: Prior to a murder in a 1934 book, he says he hasn’t been a detective since 1927 & that his wife inherited a lumber mill.
The lowest scoring contestant asks: Who is Dick Tracy?
Next contestant — getting closer — then asks: Who is Sam Spade?
Finally we get: Who is ?
Yep, they all bombed out.
Alex Trebek said, that touch of regret in his voice, “No, it’s Nick Charles. Nick and Nora Charles. The Thin Man series.”
Of course specifically he meant Hammett’s 1934 release from Alfred A. Knopf, The Thin Man, which led into the series of movies, radio shows, and a notch in Pop Culture.
Hammett’s daughter, Jo Marshall, has long said that Hammett will never be forgotten as long as there are Crossword Puzzles, and the need for Nick, Nora, Charles and Asta to fill in the blanks.
I’m starting to think we’ll have to include Jeopardy! in that equation. . . .
