What Were Trebek's Parting Words? 'We're Going To Get There'

CULVER CITY, CA — The first full week of 2021 is sure to be an emotional one for “Jeopardy!” fans as it marks the airing of the final episodes that were hosted by longtime host Alex Trebek before his death at age 80 from pancreatic cancer.

In the first of his final five episodes, which aired Monday, Trebek opened the show with his familiar greeting, “Hello, ladies and gentlemen” before he made a heart-felt plea to his audience regarding the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Trebek said that a month after he asked Americans to show gratitude for the blessings they enjoy each day, he said he wanted to bring a "different message" to viewers.

“This is the season of giving,” Trebek said in the episode. “I know you want to be generous with your family, your friends, your loved ones. But today, I’d like you go one step further. I’d like you go open up your hands and open up your hearts to those who are still suffering because of COVID-19 — people who are suffering through no fault of their own.

“We’re trying to build a kinder, gentler society, and if we all pitch in — just a little bit — we’re going to get there.”

Trebek hosted his final episode of the popular quiz show on Oct. 29, less than two weeks before his death on Nov. 8. Sony Pictures Television has not named a permanent replacement for Trebek, who hosted “Jeopardy!” for 36 seasons, but will begin airing new episodes involving interim hosts next week. Ken Jennings, the show’s all-time leader in wins, will kick things off as the show continues to ponder who will replace Trebek.

Sony said in a statement the episode that will air Friday will include a tribute to the Canadian host, who "captained America's Favorite Quiz Show with skill, sophistication and style."

On Monday, Mike Richards, the show’s executive producer, said in an interview on NBC’s “Today” show that the message Trebek chose to open Monday’s episode with was meaningful at a time when the country is still divided on many fronts.

“In this very special, unbelievable final week, he comes out and gives a talk about the importance of togetherness and sticking together and that the world is struggling but that we have to get through it together,” Richards said in the interview. “We had chills. There are specific moments in ‘Jeopardy!’ when you clap, and then there are moments when you are quiet. There’s not that many people in the studio because of COVID, and we all burst into applause. We were so moved that we had to applaud.”

In the interview, Richards also said Trebek was hospitalized the week before he taped the final shows he would host, which came 18 months after he announced his diagnosis of pancreatic cancer in March 2019. Despite not feeling well during what turned out to be his final shows, Trebek did not show any outward signs that he was suffering, Richards said in the interview. Trebek insisted that the final episodes he was to tape not be canceled even though he had been in the hospital only days before, Richards said.

“He was an absolute warrior,” Richards told “Today.” “And what he was able to do by getting himself back to the set to tape those final episodes … it was Herculean. He was in enormous pain, he was 10 days away from passing away, and you will not sense any of that in these episodes.”

As for a permanent host, Richards said he and Trebek discussed a few possibilities but that Trebek did not want to be involved in the final decision.

“No one is going to replace him, and he knew that,” Richards said Monday. “As humble as he was, he knew that there was no chance of that. It’s someone smart, and credible, that loves the show. That’s what he wanted.”