Fans of “Jeopardy!” are hoping the hosting baton is passed from the hands of one legendary television personality to another, according to a petition circulating online.
A little over a week after Alex Trebek’s passing at the age of 80 from pancreatic cancer, those who hold the riveting trivia show in high regard have called for LeVar Burton to fill Trebek’s shoes. Trebek passed away Nov. 8. Hundreds have expressed grief over the passing of the singular host of the show, which has run in its revived form since 1984. Trebek was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer in March 2019.
Because Trebek hosted the show since 1984, fans who concocted a Change.org petition “Make Levar Burton the next host of Jeopardy!” say it’s imperative that the choice for the next host is stellar. Burton, who is known for hosting “Reading Rainbow” for 21 seasons, would be such a choice, the petition states.
“Between hosting 21 seasons of the educational Reading Rainbow, playing the brainiac engineer Geordi La Forge on Star Trek: the Next Generation, and filling the [role] of Kunta Kinte in the ever important mini-series Roots, LeVar Burton has inspired and shaped the minds of several generations of trivia-loving nerds,” the Change.org petition reads. “This petition is to show Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. and producers Mike Richards and Harry Friedman just how much love the public has for Burton, and how much we’d all love to see him as the next host of Jeopardy!”
The Change.org petition has gathered more than 87,000 votes as of Monday, and it seeks to secure 150,000. Burton responded to the petition late last week.
"Even if nothing comes from it, I can’t tell how much how I appreciate all y’alls love and support!
“Of course while I’m very flattered by the petition, my thoughts are definitely with Alex Trebeck’s [sic] family and his millions of fans and the devastating loss of this irreplaceable legend. #LongLiveAlex,” he added in a follow-up tweet.
Before his death, Trebek joked about Betty White replacing him, but he also said he would leave it up to the showrunners to make that tough decision. He told “Good Morning America” what he envisioned his last days would be like.
“And I will say my goodbyes and I will tell people: ‘Don’t ask me who’s going to replace me because I have no say whatsoever. But I’m sure that if you give them the same love and attention and respect that you have shown me … then they will be a success and the show will continue being a success.’”
New episodes of the game show featuring Trebek will continue to air through Dec. 25. His final day in the studio was Oct. 29.
About the Author
