What happens during 'Jeopardy' auditions? Behind the scenes in Detroit

I am holding the holy grail of trivia contests, a slim, solid buzzer just like the one used on "Jeopardy!"

As I push the red button on top repeatedly, it all seems so easy. In my imagination, I'm impressing host Alex Trebek with my command of a board where all six categories relate to television, movies and U.S. history. Wow, I am unstoppable.

In reality, however, I'm just trying out a piece of "Jeopardy!" equipment that's in Detroit this week as part of the search for next season's contestants.

This week, a three-person team from the venerable game show is meeting with about 100 potential competitors. It's an invitation-only opportunity running through Wednesday for those who already passed a 50-clue online test and were chosen to advance to an in-person round.

As someone observing the process, I quickly realize that there's a huge difference between playing along at home and being brave enough to give correct answers in question form in front of a roomful of people.

Did I mention these are people who are virtual walking Wikipedias?

"Jeopardy!" makes nearly a dozen regional visits each year in its quest to find roughly 400 contestants for each season, according to Maggie Speak, who's produced the show for two decades.

Some 80,000 people took the most recent online test. But only 2,500 to 3,000 people move on to the in-person auditions.

It's Monday afternoon and the entertainment media is buzzing about Trebek, who's 78, telling a Fox News Channel show that chances are "50/50 and a little less" that he'll stay with "Jeopardy!" when his contract runs out in 2020.

Don't think about Trebek possibly retiring! Don't think about Trebek possibly retiring! Instead, I must focus on the nearly two dozen people mingling outside a conference room inside a downtown Detroit hotel.

It's difficult to tell these women and men hoping to become the next Ken Jennings from someone attending a corporate meeting. Let "The Price Is Right" have the bright T-shirts with wacky slogans. Would-be "Jeopardy!" contestants prefer business casual.

They're soon to begin an audition process consisting of another 50-clue exam — this time in person — plus a brief mock game and a short interview.

"We want to see what they'd be like on the show," says Speak beforehand, explaining the three steps involved.

Some would-be contestants have taken several online tests in the past and even tried out before in person. "It really is like a lottery win, to make it on the show," says Speak, who always advises people to keep trying. Some of the best contestants, she says, went through several tries before landing on TV.

One of the keys to being a good "Jeopardy!" contestant is being yourself on camera. "We're a very human show" is how Speak puts it.

Detroit, in general, has done very well by "Jeopardy!" in terms of providing talent, according to Speak. But at this session, people have traveled from Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and even New York City for a tryout.

Ask them why they're there and it's clear that their love for "Jeopardy!" started early and has been passed from generation to generation.

"My dad and I watch 'Jeopardy!' pretty much every night, and my sister hates it because we'll say the answers before the questions are even read," says Kathryn Flucht, 22, of Canton.

This is Flucht's fourth in-person audition. "I'm pretty good at pop culture," says the student at Grand Valley State University, who hosts a campus radio show on video game soundtracks. Her overall strategy is breadth of knowledge.

Flucht goes by the dictum that a competitive knowledge base must be a mile wide, but an inch deep. As she says, "You're not getting into 'What is this French thinker's second book (written) in 1783?' "

Caitlin Drinkard of Hamtramck grew up watching "Jeopardy!" with her grandmother. "This is year 10," she says of her tryout journey, which led to a previous in-person audition.

According to Drinkard, who's a singer-songwriter in a country-rock band called the Drinkard Sisters, the show is more than a game. It's a celebration of knowledge, a shared experience, a way of life. "Part of American culture is every day, for half an hour, 'Jeopardy' is on somewhere."

In metro Detroit, that somewhere is 7:30 p.m. weeknights on WDIV-TV (Channel 4). But for Dan Heinlein of Arlington Heights, Illinois, it was always at 3:30 p.m. each day after school, and it still airs then in Chicago.

Heinlein first started watching when he was 5. His strong categories are classical music, geography, sports and history. "If you're interested in weak spots, it's English monarchy. They always ask that and I never learn," he says.

During the auditions, Speak acts as the main emcee and stress reliever. To loosen up would-be contestants, she has them yell together near the beginning of the process, "Suck it, Trebek!" — a nod to fictional Sean Connery's slam at Will Ferrell's Trebek in the classic "Saturday Night Live" parodies.

Inside the conference room, potential contestants sit at two rows of tables lined up before a large screen. A video greeting from Trebek plays on it, followed by another short filmed bit with the show's Clue Crew, who offer tips and rules for taking the 50-clue test (including the fact that spelling doesn't have to be precise).

During her initial greetings, Speak asks those gathered to take an oath not to discuss the test outside the room (and visiting media members make the same promise not to disclose specific questions). There's a camaraderie to the process and, in the best Trebek tradition, a sense of serious fun taking place.

After the written test, it's time for the practice rounds, done with three hopefuls at a time. "Alright everybody, it's time to play the 'Feud!' " jokes Speak. Then she provides a bit of buzzer training by asking everyone to grab their pens and click repeatedly.

Once the hopefuls have absorbed the advice — like just say the category and the dollar amount, not "I'd like to choose blah, blah for $200, Alex" — it's time to hit the buzzers for real. As the trios take their turns playing, Speak offers encouragement.

"That's how you do it, baby, go!" she coaxes at one point, to keep the game's momentum going.

After the practice games, there's an interview portion with each player. Speak draws out their personalities by chatting comfortably about their hobbies, anecdotes and so on. It's a relaxed, sprawling version of Trebek's on-air conversations introducing the players.

Spending a couple of hours at the "Jeopardy!" auditions is almost uplifting. The game is rooted in trivia, technically. But in these perilous times for fact-based information, there's really nothing trivial about spreading the truth.

And with "Jeopardy!" fans, the joy of the game comes first, before any quest for fame or money. It's there when I talk to potential players like Amanda Holm of Livonia, who has taken the online test three times and is here for her first in-person audition.

Holm watched "Jeopardy!" as a kid with her dad. Now she watches it at home with her husband and four children. She's hoping to do well during her practice game, but she already feels like a winner.

"I got a free ("Jeopardy!") pen," she says, "so it's all good."

I second that opinion. Although I realize now that I'm probably not on-air material. (I really should have paid more attention in science classes.) I feel even better about being a "Jeopardy!" fan.  And if there's ever a spin-off competition about Oscar winners, late-night talk shows, 20th Century comedy and Kennedy family history, well, watch out, world.

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WPXI