Friday’s game of “Jeopardy!” was fairly competitive, with a four-game champ seeking a fifth victory and two first-time contestants trying to end that winning streak.
Knowing a little history about missionaries for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints provided a slight edge.
Can you answer this ‘Jeopardy!’ clue about Latter-day Saint missionaries?
In the first round of Friday’s game, the three contestants faced the category “two-word U.S. cities,” per “Jeopardy!” archives.
The highest value clue in the category, for $1,000, highlighted a piece of history in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: “A popular tourist destination drawing millions each year, this seat of Clark County was settled by Mormon missionaries in 1855.”
Contestant Mike Dawson, a technology manager from Portland, Oregon, buzzed in with the correct response: Las Vegas.
“The missionaries would be surprised today,” “Jeopardy!” host Ken Jennings joked.
Over several decades, the Old Las Vegas Mormon Fort State Historic Park has worked to preserve this history.
“The visual history of this city’s origins — and the role played by Latter-day Saints — has been incrementally restored … and is now protected within the quiet walls of a state historic park,“ the Deseret News previously reported. “The Old Mormon Fort has endured the churning change of a dynamic city and is representative of the Latter-day Saint presence in a valley home to approximately 100,000 members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.”
Although Dawson got the clue correct, the victory ended up going to Bryce Wargin, marking his fifth win and putting him in a good position to earn a spot in the next Tournament of Champions, per “Jeopardy!” archives.
‘Jeopardy!’ has a history with Latter-day Saint clues
The quiz show has featured a number of clues connected to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints over the years.
Last year, a game featured an entire category dedicated to celebrities with ties to the church.
In 2023, the following clue that highlighted the full name of the church stumped all three contestants: “In 2018, the Mormon or LDS Church announced a course correction to stress the full name that mentions the Savior.”
Jennings, who is a member of the church, provided the correct response. He later told the Deseret News he did not bring that clue to the table.
“No, that was not me. I would not be injecting my own identity politics into the game,” he told the Deseret News during an interview about his latest book.
As a lifelong “Jeopardy!” fan, Jennings — who holds the all-time record for most “Jeopardy!” wins with a staggering 74 — said he’s seen several references to the Church of Jesus Christ over the years.
“When I was a contestant on the show, I wagered $3,800 one time on a Daily Double where the response turned out to be ‘Who is Brigham Young?‘” he told the Deseret News in 2013. “I remember wishing I’d wagered a lot more.”
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