“Jeopardy!” fans don’t always just root for the winner.
Sometimes a contestant appears on the iconic game show who skews a little quirky and makes the most of his 15 minutes of fame.
This week that person was Joel Levinson from Ohio. While many “Jeopardy!” contestants go out of their way to focus on the game task at hand – and secretly hope they don’t become the next terribly wrong answer to go viral – Levinson obviously decided just to have some fun.
Sporting curly locks and a Burt Reynolds-like mustache, Levinson's big happy smile and head-bobbing posing made his introduction unforgettable.
As Yahoo Entertainment noted, Levinson brought that gentle irreverence throughout the game. Like during Final Jeopardy, when he clearly didn’t know the answer, he thought up a fun one instead.
The topic was "Nonfiction" and the question was heavy: “This 1962 classic was dedicated to Albert Schweitzer, who predicted that man ‘will end by destroying the earth.” The answer was "Silent Spring," a 1962 science tome that warned of the dangers of pesticides. But Levinson went with an irreverent answer, the Judy Blume puberty novel "Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret."
As host Ken Jennings held back laughter while reading the wrong answer, Levinson flagrantly looked up and clasped his hands over his head.
At another moment, Levinson invoked a high-pitch voice to answer, “What is lacrosse?” Jennings could only respond, “Never heard that voice before, Joel.” Hey, at least that answer was correct.
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Twitter fans loved Levinson’s shenanigans, as many “Jeopardy!” contestants often take on a serious, determined attitude, so Levinson’s humor was a lovable diversion.
One astute pop cultural Twitter observer noticed a similarity between Levinson and a certain recent goofy comedy fixture: "I’m sorry, Joel, I keep seeing Borat.”
Another noted Levinson’s decision to go for laughs: “Joel bucked the #jeopardy contestants’ goal ‘don’t be a meme’ and what great TV that turned out to be!”
A third simply stated the obvious: "lmao Joel is funny #Jeopardy."
Some hoped Levinson would be back even though he didn't win, as a new fan wrote: "Wish this guy was on #Jeopardy every night!"
Despite losing the game, Levinson shared his enthusiasm for his appearance "Jeopardy!" He tweeted: “Bucket list checked – name checked my beloved @judyblume in final – if you’re not gonna know the answer you might as well call to god for help.”
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