As of 2020, Ken Jennings is the highest-earning American game show contestant of all time – an impressive accolade. He’s made a name for himself as an absolute brainbox and is legendary for his winning streak on game show ‘Jeopardy!’, but how much did he win on the show?
Ken Jennings began ‘Jeopardy!’s 20th season, which aired on June 2, 2004, and reigned as ‘Jeopardy!’ champion until November 30th of the same year, with 74 wins. He won $2,520,700 over his 74 wins but his total ‘Jeopardy!’ winnings, including tournaments, are $5,522,700.
Read on to learn more about Ken’s ‘Jeopardy!’ streak and his other game show appearances.
‘Jeopardy!’ Streak
Originally a computer software engineer from Washington, Jennings played for his college Quiz Bowl Team and was a massive fan of ‘Jeopardy!’.
Speaking with Interview Magazine about his success, Jennings said “It’s really just been the most delightful part of the whole thing—and has been from the beginning—just that it was always legitimately my favorite show. Just to win once was good enough, you know?”.
The former contestant began his ‘Jeopardy!’ streak on June 2, 2004 and went an entire five months without a loss, breaking the record for the longest streak on the show. His final total for the run was a staggering $2,520,700, the highest winnings on the show in regular-season play.
His streak is almost mythical and significantly boosted viewing ratings, whilst viewers tuned in religiously to follow Ken’s journey. Jennings reflected on this phenomenon:
“To this day I’ll hear from so many people who were little kids then and would watch it with their grandpa every night, or their whole dorm would shut down so they could watch Jeopardy!. It’s really sweet that people have such fond memories.”
Genuinely humbled by the nation’s appreciation of the game show and his small part in it, Jennings has said, “nobody has a bad word to say about Jeopardy! There’s an enormous amount of good will in the American culture for Jeopardy! just because we have so few institutions like that left. It’s a real honor to syphon off some of that good will for me.”
You can watch the intro to Ken’s very first ‘Jeopardy!’ show in the YouTube video below.
‘Jeopardy!’ Tournaments
Beyond his winning streak, Ken has played (and won) numerous ‘Jeopardy!’ tournaments alongside other show champions, including Brad Rutter and James Holzhauer, arguably his greatest opponents.
Ken’s winnings outside of his streak are a whopping $3,002,000, meaning he’s amassed $5,522,700 in winnings from the show in total. As Jennings told USA Today, it’s not about the money anymore, it’s “all about the bragging rights, the thing that can’t be bought”.
Other Game Show Appearances
Jennings’s status as a complete know-it-all is no secret and alongside ‘Jeopardy!’, he’s been recruited into participating in other TV game shows, though not always as a contestant.
In addition to competing on ‘Grand Slam’ and ‘Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader’, he’s starred in ‘Master Minds’ and ‘Who Wants to be a Millionaire’.
On his penchant for competitions, Jennings has said, “The competitive thing is important to me honestly” continuing, “I’ve always been pretty competitive by nature, and you dial it down socially, but it is nice to have a place where you can cut loose”.
Book Author
Funny and engaging as well as a self-confessed “trivia geek”, Jennings has channeled his talent for storing huge amounts of information into book writing.
He’s written several books on trivia and beyond, and has even written a series of children’s books called the ‘Junior Genius Guides’ which impart interesting knowledge to kids. Jennings says his love of trivia began at an early age, so it’s only fitting that he’d now be encouraging the next generation of whizz-kids!