Penn State Professor to Compete on ‘Jeopardy!’

Penn State English professor Hester Blum will compete on “Jeopardy!” tonight (Dec. 6) as the long-running trivia show begins its first-ever Professors Tournament.

Blum, a Bellefonte resident, is one of 15 professors participating in the tournament and competing for a $100,000 grand prize. The tournament begins Monday and will run through Friday, Dec. 17.

After an old elementary school friend told her about the opportunity, Blum, a lifelong fan of the show, decided to apply. As a high school student, she applied to Jeopardy!’s Teen Tournament and received an invite but turned it down.

“I applied and was invited to try out for ‘Jeopardy!’s’ Teen Tournament when I was in high school, but I did not want to miss basketball practice. This was the nerd’s version of a bad teen choice, not to try out for the quiz game,” she said.

In her first audition, Blum filled out an initial 50-question, 15-minute test online. From there, she completed another test via Zoom while a Jeopardy producer monitored it.

After making it through that round, she was invited to a virtual tryout with other applicants, during which the potential contestants were broken into groups of three to compete in an abbreviated mock version of the game.

The Professors Tournament was taped on Oct. 25 and 26 on the Alex Trebek Stage at the Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City, California.

Blum’s “Jeopardy!” appearance on Monday will air locally at 7 p.m. on ABC 23 WATM-TV. Those living outside the area should check local listings for the appropriate time and station.