Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek dies with cancer aged 80

Alex Trebek, the long-time host of American television quiz show Jeopardy!, has passed away from pancreatic cancer. He was 80.

The Jeopardy! Twitter account shared on Sunday, Nov 8, he had "passed away peacefully at home" surrounded by family and friends. Mr. Trebek had announced his stage-four pancreatic cancer diagnosis in March 2019.

The veteran show host had been with Jeopardy! since 1984 and has received numerous awards and honors for his work including seven Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Game Show Host. His contract with the show had been until 2022.

Producer of Jeopardy!, Sony Pictures also wrote in a statement, “For 37 amazing years, Alex Trebek was that comforting voice, that moment of escape and entertainment at the end of a long, hard day for millions of people around the world."

In his 38 years with the show, Alex Trebek has hosted 8,200 episodes of the popular quiz show, making him one of the most well-known people on television in the US and Canada. The Canadian-American presenter had set a Guinness World Record for "most game show episodes hosted by the same presenter" in 2014.

Mr. Trebek had vowed to continue presenting Jeopardy! while undergoing chemotherapy, saying in a light-hearted tone video statement that he had no choice but to beat cancer because of his contractual obligations. 

"I am optimistic about my current plan, and thank them for their concerns," he had said in July.

Mr. Trebek is survived by his second wife, Jean Currivan, and his children Matthew, Emily, and Nicky. (his first wife’s daughter whom he had adopted).

Short Bio

Alex Trebek’s birth took place on July 22, 1940, in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. He was born George Alexander Trebek to his father George Edward Trebek, a Ukrainian chef, and mother Lucille Lagacé of Franco-Ontarian roots...Full Bio

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