- It was Trebek's idea to include separate competitions for teenagers, seniors, and celebrities on Jeopardy! (1984).
- Became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1998.
- In 2001, Trebek shaved his mustache during the first few weeks of the 18th season of Jeopardy! (1984). He had the mustache for over 30 years.
- Broke his leg on July 27, 2011 as he was chasing a female burglar who had broken into his San Francisco hotel room. Suspect was later apprehended by police.
- When he married Jean Trebek (Jean Currivan), at the ceremony he gave his wedding vow as a joke on the Jeopardy! (1984) rule of phrasing an answer as a question by saying, "The answer is ... yes".
- He framed a bounced check for $49,000, which he received from a game show he worked at in the 1980s that failed.
- When young, Trebek thought about becoming a priest, but changed his mind after spending a summer at a Trappist monastery. He said in an interview for the New York Sunday News, "I took a vow not only of poverty but of silence. And I'm not one to keep my big mouth shut. I enjoy talking." [February 24, 1974].
- Every day, he read the movie book by Roger Ebert.
- Trebek's association with Merv Griffin Enterprises began ironically with Wheel of Fortune (1975). A few years before Jeopardy! (1984), Trebek was hosting another show on NBC and received a call from Wheel of Fortune's producer Nancy Jones asking if he would substitute for Chuck Woolery who had suddenly become sick. Trebek taped a week of wheel shows in 1980.
- The American Federation for the Blind awarded Trebek with one of six Access Awards for his role in accommodating notable Jeopardy! (1984) champion Eddie Timanus. (2001)
- Was an avid ice skater.
- Father, with wife Jean Trebek, of two children: daughter Emily Trebek and son Matthew Trebek. Adopted father, with ex-wife Elaine Kares Trebek, of an adopted daughter Nicky Trebek.
- Hosted Jeopardy! (1984) from its debut in 1984 until his death in 2020 without a substitute host, except on April Fool's Day 1997 (when he and Pat Sajak of Wheel of Fortune (1983) switched shows for a day) and for two episodes when Jean Trebek was giving birth to their son, Matthew, in 1991. His last day of taping episodes of "Jeopardy" was October 29, 2020. He died 11 days later on November 8, 2020.
- Hospitalized after suffering a minor heart attack at his home on December 10, 2007.
- His mother, Lucille (Lagacé) Trebek, celebrated her 90th birthday on April 14, 2011.
- His favorite author was Mark Twain.
- His father, George Edward, was an alcoholic.
- Resided next door to Ed Begley Jr..
- Friends with: Bob Barker, Bob Goen, Richard Dawson, Bob Eubanks, Betty White, Geoff Edwards, Wink Martindale, Bill Cullen, Jim Perry, Pat Sajak, Pat Finn, Jim Lange, Chuck Woolery, Dick Clark, Merv Griffin, Mark Goodson, Mary Hart, Tom Kennedy, Roger Ebert, Regis Philbin, Vicki Lawrence, Alan Thicke and Meredith MacRae.
- Enjoyed collecting and drinking wine, training and bred thoroughbred racing, golfing, and hosting quiz shows.
- Was a spokesman for World Vision.
- Suffered a mild heart attack on June 23, 2012 and was admitted to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center for observation.
- His parents were Lucille (Lagacé) and George Edward Trebek. His father was a Ukrainian immigrant. His mother was of French-Canadian, and approximately one eighth British Isles, including Irish, ancestry.
- Owned a Creston, California vineyard: Creston Vineyards.
- His friend Wayne Brady appeared on Jeopardy! (1984), a year after Trebek appeared on Brady's own talk show, just before both were nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award. Brady has won more Emmy Awards than Trebek, for Outstanding Daytime Talk Show Host. Trebek was nominated for Audience Participation in a Game Show and Outstanding Game Show Host.
- Before he was a successful game show host, he was a newscaster for the Canadian Broadcasting Network.
- Appeared on the final week of Family Feud (1976), which was hosted by Richard Dawson.
- Trebek was one of four game show hosts to have emceed a game show in the United States and another in Canada; the other three were Howie Mandel, Geoff Edwards and Jim Perry.
- Received a phone call from Regis Philbin for his final answer on Philbin's talk show and Trebek said he refused to be tested for his "brains" on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (1999).
- Hosted two game shows that made it big in his 35+ year run, all three behind Bob Barker, Wink Martindale and Bob Eubanks, making him one of the youngest game show hosts in history. He was still hosting Jeopardy! (1984), which has been a ratings bonanza in syndication, when he passed away. The other show was Classic Concentration (1987) for NBC, which he hosted for five years.
- He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Television at 6501 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on May 17, 1999.
- On Wednesday, March 6, 2019, Trebek announced on social media video posts from the Facebook, Twitter and YouTube sites that he was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer.
- Proposed to wife Jean Trebek (Jean Currivan) on her birthday, 12 September.
- Owned a 700-acre Thoroughbred horse farm: Creston Farms.
- His first game show, The Wizard of Odds (1973), was produced by Alan Thicke.
- Attended and graduated from Malvern Collegiate Institute in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
- Ranked #3 as GSN's Top 10 Game Show Hosts of All Time.
- On Sunday, December 20, 2015, he underwent a successful knee surgery.
- Though he was good at pronouncing words in many different languages, he had difficulty with Welsh and Hawaiian.
- Hosted the National Geography Bee in the United States and Canada.
- Won the Bob Hope Entertainment Award for his work with the USO. (1998).
- Before he was a successful game show host, as a teenager, he was a garbage man in Cincinnati, but moved back to his native Canada in 1961, to finish college and to become a news anchor.
- On Friday, January 30, 2004, while driving alone on a country road near Templeton, California, where he owned a horse farm, he lost consciousness at the wheel which led him to his car crash.
- His mother, Lucille (Lagace) Trebek, had Alex, when she was 19 years old.
- Received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from the University of Ottawa in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada (1961). He later received an honorary degree (Doctor of the University) from the university (1997). As a university student, he was a member of the English Debating Society.
- Was Merv Griffin's and Bob Murphy's first choice as host of Jeopardy! (1984), who eventually hired Trebek on the spot, after subbing for an ailing Chuck Woolery on Wheel of Fortune (1975).
- Ranks fourth behind Bill Cullen, Tom Kennedy and Wink Martindale, in the number of game shows hosted at 12, with Bob Eubanks and Geoff Edwards both trailing that record, by 4, at 8.
- Was a huge fan of Julie London's music.
- Has held a Guinness World Record for "the most game show episodes hosted by the same presenter (same program)" for having hosted 6,829 episodes of Jeopardy! (1984), overtaking previous record holder Bob Barker. [13 June 2014].
- Owned a pair of different homes: one in Beverly Hills and the other in the San Fernando Valley.
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