What Is Joe's TV List?

#17: Jeopardy!
(Syndicated, 1984-present)

I know Jeopardy! has been around in one form or another since the dawn of time ("Thag kill this with rock." "Uhhh ... deer." "Oh, sorry. You not say what deer"), but I've only seen the Alex Trebek version, so that's what I'm recognizing here in the #17 slot. The high placement is mainly out of awe; I consider myself a fairly intelligent person with way more than my share of useless knowledge, but unless I'm watching, say, the Teen Tournament, I generally can't get more than half the answers (I mean, questions) on any given episode. But just in case your brain feels too broken by the end, this airs right before Wheel of Fortune in many markets, to give your intellect a much-appreciated breather. Seriously, after a long workday, sometimes you need that transition from "What is commedia dell'arte, Alex?" to "T! T! Say T! There are FOUR FREAKING Ts up there, you mouth-breather!" And, let's face it, Alex knows he's hosting a highbrow event ("No, no, no, we were looking for Emperor Vespasian, not Domitian. Vespasian. Hmm. OK, despite that faux pas, you still have control of the board"). I used to watch this (and, yes, Wheel of Fortune, too) almost every night I spent at Nana and Pop Pop's house, and it was fairly obvious to Nana -- especially during the College Championship -- that I was always rooting for the cute girl, and she'd laugh at me. Nana, not the cute girl. Although, had the girl heard my attempts at questioning the high-level answers, she might've had to suppress a few chuckles, too. Oh, shut up, Alex. You try it without cue cards.