March 30, 1964: "Jeopardy!" Premieres

The original set. Note that the board is on the viewer's right,

instead of the left like the modern version.

March 30, 1964: Jeopardy! premieres on NBC, a daytime game show created by Merv Griffin. Art Fleming hosts it until it is canceled in 1979. A new version began in syndication in 1984, and was hosted by Alex Trebek until his death in 2020. (Fleming died in 1995, Griffin in 2007.)

Art Fleming

Trebek's version became the most popular game show in TV history. Ken Jennings, the highest money-winner in the show's history, and actress Mayim Bialik have alternately hosted since. (UPDATE: In 2023, Bialik was dropped, and Jennings became the permanent host.)

Alex Trebek

Each game features 3 contestants, competing in 3 rounds: Jeopardy!, Double Jeopardy!, and Final Jeopardy! In each round, contestants can choose among 6 categories, and are presented trivia clues phrased as answers, to which they must respond in the form of a question that correctly identifies whatever the clue is describing.

For example, instead of asking, "Who is the only U.S. President to marry in the White House?" and the answer being "Grover Cleveland," the clue is, "He is the only U.S. President to marry in the White House," and the contestant, should he or she know the answer, would respond by asking, "Who is Grover Cleveland?"

And if the contestant goofs, and does not frame the answer in the form of a question, he or she does not get credit. Which sounds as cheap as punishing a spelling bee contestant for not saying, "Capital" to spell a proper noun, but that's the rule.

The 1984 set, with a noticeably younger Trebek

On the original Jeopardy! series, clue values in the first round ranged from $10 to $50 in the Jeopardy! round, and $20 to $100 in Double Jeopardy! The 1984 series' first round originally ranged from $100 to $500 in Jeopardy! and $200 to $1,000 in Double Jeopardy! These ranges were increased to $200–$1,000 and $400–$2,000, respectively, on November 26, 2001.

Ken Jennings

To put this in perspective: In 2022 dollars, that original 1964 $10 to $100 range would be $94 to $940; while the 1984 $100 to $1,000 would be $281 to $2,810; and the 2001 $200 to $2,000 would be $330 to $3,300.

Before 2003, Jeopardy! contestants were limited to 5 consecutive wins. At the beginning of the show's 20th season in 2003, the rules were changed to allow contestants to remain on the show as long as they continued to win. After this rule change, and until Jennings' run, the record winning streak was set by Tom Walsh, who won $186,900 in 8 games in January 2004.

Jennings' run as champion aired from June 2 to November 30, 2004. He won 74 straight games, before losing the 75th, winning $2,522,700 -- $3,908,326 in 2022 money.

*

March 30, 1964 was a Monday. Baseball was in Spring Training. Football was out of season. The Stanley Cup Playoffs were underway, but no games were set for this day. There was 1 game played in the NBA: What was St. Louis Hawks 121, Los Angeles Lakers 108, at the Kiel Auditorium in St. Louis?