History of Ken Jennings in Timeline
Ken Jennings is an American game show host, author, and former record-breaking Jeopardy! contestant. Born in Edmonds, Washington, and raised partly abroad, he worked as a software engineer before auditioning for Jeopardy! in 2004. His initial run saw him win 74 consecutive games, becoming the highest-earning American game show contestant and greatly boosting the show's popularity. He is currently a host of Jeopardy!.
May 23, 1974: Kenneth Wayne Jennings III Born
On May 23, 1974, Kenneth Wayne Jennings III was born in Edmonds, Washington.
1996: Transferred to Brigham Young University
In 1996, Ken Jennings transferred to Brigham Young University (BYU).
2000: Graduated from Brigham Young University
In 2000, Ken Jennings graduated from Brigham Young University with a double major in English and computer science.
2000: Marriage to Mindy Boam
In 2000, Ken Jennings married Mindy Boam after meeting her while studying at Brigham Young University.
2003: Jeopardy! Ratings Increased
In 2003, Jeopardy!'s ratings were 22% higher during Ken Jennings's run than during the same period.
2003: Took Jeopardy! Contestant Exam
In 2003, Ken Jennings took the contestant exam for Jeopardy!
January 2004: Tom Walsh's Jeopardy! Winning Streak
In January 2004, Tom Walsh held the Jeopardy! record with an 8-game winning streak before Ken Jennings's appearance.
June 2, 2004: First Jeopardy! Episode Aired
On June 2, 2004, Ken Jennings's first Jeopardy! episode aired, marking the beginning of his historic winning streak.
November 30, 2004: Lost 75th Jeopardy! Game
On November 30, 2004, Ken Jennings lost his 75th Jeopardy! game to Nancy Zerg, ending his winning streak; he incorrectly answered the Final Jeopardy! clue about H&R Block.
2004: Auditioned for Jeopardy!
In 2004, Ken Jennings auditioned for Jeopardy! after working as a software engineer.
2004: Media Attention and TV Appearances
In 2004, Ken Jennings' life changed due to increased media attention. He appeared on shows like The Tonight Show, Nightline, Live with Regis and Kelly, Sesame Street, and Late Show with David Letterman.
2004: Interruptions to Jennings' Jeopardy! Run
In 2004, Ken Jennings's Jeopardy! run was interrupted by the off-season break, Kids' Week, the Tournament of Champions, the United States presidential election, and the College Championship.
November 2005: "Six Degrees of Ken Jennings" Column Debut
In November 2005, Ken Jennings's column "Six Degrees of Ken Jennings" debuted in Mental Floss magazine, where readers connected two wildly different things in six steps.
2005: Endorsements Begin
In 2005, Ken Jennings engaged in several endorsements, including a deal with Microsoft to promote its Encarta encyclopedia software.
2005: Jeopardy! Ultimate Tournament of Champions
In 2005, Ken Jennings participated in the Jeopardy! Ultimate Tournament of Champions, finishing in second place and winning $500,000.
2005: Comedy Central Game Show Project
In 2005, Ken Jennings was slated to host a new game show for Comedy Central, but the project stalled in development.
2005: Jeopardy!: An Inside Look at America's Favorite Quiz Show DVD Release
Ken Jennings's losing Jeopardy! episode was featured on the 2005 DVD release of Jeopardy!: An Inside Look at America's Favorite Quiz Show.
July 4, 2006: Trivia Tuesday Newsletter Launch
On July 4, 2006, Ken Jennings launched his trivia newsletter, "Trivia Tuesday," sending out an email containing seven questions every Tuesday.
2006: Shopping Game Show
As of mid-2006, Ken Jennings was still shopping a potential game show titled Ken Jennings vs. the Rest of the World.
2006: Endorsement Deals
In 2006, Ken Jennings continued with endorsement deals including one with Cingular Wireless (now AT&T), and also a board game titled Can You Beat Ken? produced by University Games.
2006: NAQT Moderator
In 2006, Ken Jennings moderated at the National Academic Quiz Tournaments (NAQT) High School National Championship Tournament in Chicago.
2006: Brainiac Book Release
In 2006, Ken Jennings released "Brainiac: Adventures in the Curious, Competitive, Compulsive World of Trivia Buffs", detailing his Jeopardy! experiences and trivia culture research.
2006: Game Show Appearances
In 2006, Ken Jennings taped a pilot for a CBS revival of Pyramid titled Million Dollar Pyramid and was a contestant on Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! and 1 vs. 100.
2006: American Crossword Puzzle Tournament win
In 2006, Ken Jennings won the rookie division of the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament.
2007: Jeopardy! uses recycled material
During the 2007-2008 strike, Jeopardy! used a mix of recycled material and clues written before the strike.
2007: Grand Slam Appearance
In 2007, Ken Jennings appeared on the game show Grand Slam.
2007: Marion Jones Stripped of Medals
In 2007, Marion Jones was stripped of her medals; Jennings had answered with only her last name in his first Jeopardy! game.
2008: Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? Appearance
In 2008, Ken Jennings appeared on 'Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?', adding to his game show winnings, though Brad Rutter still held the record for highest Jeopardy! winnings.
2008: Stump the Master Appearance
In 2008, Ken Jennings appeared on Stump the Master.
2009: NAQT Moderator
In 2009, Ken Jennings moderated at the National Academic Quiz Tournaments (NAQT) High School National Championship Tournament in Chicago.
October 2010: "Six Degrees of Ken Jennings" Column End
The September-October 2010 issue marked the end of Ken Jennings's column "Six Degrees of Ken Jennings" in Mental Floss magazine.
2011: Asked to Run for Senate
In 2011, Democratic politicians Chuck Schumer and Harry Reid asked Ken Jennings to run for the United States Senate from Utah.
2011: "IBM Challenge" Jeopardy!
In 2011, Ken Jennings participated in the "IBM Challenge" on Jeopardy!, competing against IBM's Watson and Brad Rutter, finishing second and winning $300,000, half of which he donated to charity.
2011: Jeopardy!'s IBM Challenge
In 2011, Ken Jennings won a $300,000 second-place prize in Jeopardy!'s IBM Challenge.
2012: Monica Thieu College Champion
In 2012, Monica Thieu was Jeopardy! College Champion; she later eliminated Ken Jennings on 500 Questions in 2016 and was chosen by Jennings for the All-Star Games team.
November 17, 2014: Won $100,000
On November 17, 2014, Ken Jennings won $100,000 on an unspecified game show.
2014: Jeopardy! Battle of the Decades
In 2014, Brad Rutter won the Jeopardy! Battle of the Decades tournament, surpassing Ken Jennings' total game show winnings again.
2014: Millionaire Appearance
In 2014, Ken Jennings appeared on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire during Guinness World Records Edition themed week, winning $100,000.
2014: Controversial Tweet About Wheelchair User
In 2014, Ken Jennings posted a tweet that said, "Nothing sadder than a hot person in a wheelchair," sparking controversy and criticism.
March 2015: Parade Removes Kennections Quiz
In March 2015, Parade magazine ceased the Kennections quiz and removed links to archived quizzes.
December 2015: Release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens
In December 2015, Star Wars: The Force Awakens was released in theaters, which was shortly after Daniel Fleetwood, a Star Wars fan, passed away after being granted his dying wish to see it early. Ken Jennings tweeted a joke about it and faced backlash.
2015: Matt Jackson Runner-up in Tournament of Champions
In 2015, Matt Jackson, who would later be chosen by Ken Jennings for Jeopardy! All-Star Games, was runner-up in the Tournament of Champions.
2016: 500 Questions Appearance
In 2016, Ken Jennings appeared on 500 Questions.
2016: Eliminated on 500 Questions
In 2016, Ken Jennings was eliminated by Monica Thieu on an episode of 500 Questions.
May 31, 2017: Tweet About Barron Trump
On May 31, 2017, Ken Jennings tweeted a joke about Barron Trump, U.S. President Donald Trump's son, which drew controversy.
September 7, 2017: Omnibus Podcast Launch
On September 7, 2017, HowStuffWorks unveiled Omnibus, a new podcast co-hosted by Ken Jennings and John Roderick.
2017: Hosted Omnibus Podcast
In 2017, Ken Jennings started hosting the Omnibus podcast.
March 2018: FleetWit Participation
As of March 2018, Ken Jennings actively participated in the live trivia races on the trivia app FleetWit, answering 89% of questions correctly on average.
August 2018: Tweet About Elderly Woman and ALF
In August 2018, Ken Jennings was criticized for his description of an elderly woman tweeting about her deceased son's love of the television character ALF.
2018: Planet Funny Book Release
In 2018, Ken Jennings published "Planet Funny: How Comedy Took Over Our Culture", analyzing comedy's influence on pop culture and everyday life.
August 9, 2019: Omnibus Podcast Shift
On August 9, 2019, Ken Jennings and John Roderick announced their separation from iHeartRadio and shifted Omnibus podcast to a Patreon-funded model.
2019: Jeopardy! All-Star Games
In 2019, Ken Jennings participated as a captain in the Jeopardy! All-Star Games, with his team finishing second.
2019: Best Ever Trivia Show Appearance
In 2019, Ken Jennings was one of eight recurring "Trivia Experts" for Best Ever Trivia Show.
January 2020: Won Jeopardy! Greatest of All Time
In January 2020, Ken Jennings won the Jeopardy! Greatest of All Time tournament, earning the title and a $1,000,000 prize.
March 3, 2020: Washington State Legislature Congratulates Jennings
On March 3, 2020, the Washington State Legislature approved Senate Resolution 8704, congratulating Ken Jennings for his achievements on game shows.
May 2020: LearnedLeague Season
In May 2020, Ken Jennings' last active season was LL85, where he played in the A Rundle of the Laguna league and finished the season in 5th place.
September 2020: Consulting Producer for Jeopardy!
In September 2020, Ken Jennings signed on as a consulting producer for Jeopardy!'s 37th season, which included reading on-air categories.
October 29, 2020: Alex Trebek tapes his final Jeopardy! episode
On October 29, 2020, Alex Trebek taped his final episode of Jeopardy! after being diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer the previous year.
November 2020: The Chase Chaser
In November 2020, Ken Jennings was announced as one of the chasers on the ABC revival of The Chase.
November 2020: Guest Host Announcement
In November 2020, Ken Jennings was announced as the first in a series of guest hosts for Jeopardy! following Alex Trebek's passing.
December 2020: Apology for Past Tweets
In December 2020, Ken Jennings apologized on Twitter for some of his past tweets and subsequently deleted them.
2020: Returned to Jeopardy! as a Producer and Guest Host
In 2020, Ken Jennings returned to Jeopardy! as a producer and later guest-hosted the program after Alex Trebek's death.
2020: Master Minds Appearance
In 2020, Ken Jennings was one of the six trivia experts on Best Ever's successor, Master Minds.
2020: Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time
In 2020, Ken Jennings won a $1,000,000 first-place prize in Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time.
2020: Criticism from Disability Rights Activists
In 2020, Ken Jennings' 2014 tweet about a person in a wheelchair continued to draw controversy and condemnation from disability rights activists such as Rebecca Cokley.
February 19, 2021: Ken Jennings' Final Guest Hosting Episode
February 19, 2021 marked the airing of Ken Jennings' final episode as a guest host on Jeopardy! during his first stint.
November 16, 2021: Trivia Tuesday Newsletter Discontinued
On November 16, 2021, Ken Jennings discontinued his "Trivia Tuesday" newsletter after 800 quizzes due to increasing commitments.
2021: Split Hosting Duties on Jeopardy!
From 2021, Ken Jennings shared full-time hosting duties on Jeopardy! with Mayim Bialik.
2021: Guest Hosting and Permanent Role
In 2021, Ken Jennings guest-hosted Jeopardy! and later resumed hosting the daily syndicated program alongside Mayim Bialik after Mike Richards' dismissal.
2022: Residence and Jeopardy! Hosting
As of 2022, Ken Jennings resides primarily in Seattle, splitting his time between writing and hosting Jeopardy!, and flying to Los Angeles for tapings twice a month.
January 1, 2023: Omnibus Podcast Schedule Change
On January 1, 2023, the Omnibus podcast decreased from twice to once a week, citing the time required for Jennings's work as Jeopardy! host.
May 8, 2023: Jeopardy! Masters Premieres
On May 8, 2023, Jeopardy! Masters, a primetime tournament hosted by Ken Jennings, premiered on ABC, featuring notable Jeopardy! champions.
May 11, 2023: Bialik withdraws from Jeopardy!
On May 11, 2023, Mayim Bialik withdrew from Jeopardy! due to the 2023 Hollywood labor disputes, leading to Jennings hosting the final 20 episodes of season 39.
May 2023: Celebrity Wheel of Fortune Win
In May 2023, Ken Jennings competed on Celebrity Wheel of Fortune, winning $72,800 for the Equal Justice Initiative.
May 2023: Writers Guild of America Strike Impacts Jeopardy!
In May 2023, the Writers Guild of America strike led to Mayim Bialik's refusal to participate in the final week of Jeopardy! taping, with Jennings stepping in as host.
2023: Became Sole Host of Jeopardy!
In 2023, Ken Jennings became the sole host of Jeopardy!
2023: Entire Jeopardy! Run Available on Pluto TV
In 2023, Ken Jennings' entire Jeopardy! run became available for streaming on Pluto TV.
March 25, 2025: Record Broken on Deal or No Deal Island
On March 25, 2025, David Genat broke Ken Jennings' record for highest-earning American game show contestant by winning $5,800,000 on Deal or No Deal Island.
July 30, 2025: Won $1,000,000 on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire
On July 30, 2025, Ken Jennings and Matt Damon won the $1,000,000 top prize for their charity, Water.org, on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.
September 30, 2025: Jennings to Leave Omnibus Podcast as Regular Host
On September 30, 2025, it was announced that Ken Jennings would leave the Omnibus podcast as a regular co-host due to his Jeopardy! commitments, but remain as executive producer and occasional guest host.
2025: Millionaire appearance with Matt Damon
In 2025, Ken Jennings returned to Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, paired with Matt Damon, and they won $1,000,000 for Water.org.
2025: Release of The Complete Kennections
In 2025, The Complete Kennections, a book compiling 1,000 of Ken Jennings' puzzles, was published.
2025: Omnibus Podcast End Date
The Omnibus podcast that Ken Jennings hosted came to an end in 2025.
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