Jeopardy! Poindexters Blank On James Earl Jones Clue, But Could You Have Done Any Better?

Is there anything that makes you feel like more of a genius than when a full roster of egg-headed Jeopardy! Contestants all miss a question (answer?) that you knew?

I think the answer is, "What is ‘No,’ Ken?"

When they all whiffed on what team Leon Draisaitl played for, I felt like such a genius that I almost went back to school for my master's degree.

Almost.

But sometimes people try to dunk on Jeopardy! for missing a question that is way harder than it seems.

This week, I heard about a case in which all three contestants failed to identify the late actor James Earl Jones. That sounds wild. He's one of the greatest Darth Vader-voicing actors of all-time.

But then I saw the clue, and I think this is a forgivable error.

The clue in question was presented by everyone's favorite trashcan-dwelling muppet, Oscar the Grouch, and was about Sesame Street's first celebrity guest, and they showed a picture of him.

Now, since I know that was a picture of James Earl Jones, I can definitely see that it was him.

Had I not known that… well, I would've been standing there not buzzer-ing in like everyone else.

I had to think about it, but as a fella born in the 1990s, I don't think I really knew what Jones looked like pre-Sandlot. I knew what he sounded like because he was the voice of Vader, CNN, and had great guest spots in The Simpsons' "Treehouse of Horror" and "Treehouse of Horror V," in the latter of which he delivered one of Maggie Simpson's few spoken lines.

But would I be able to pick him out of a 50-year-old photo Oscar the Grouch shoved in my face?

Nope.

So while it's always fun to pounce on some Jeopardy! Poindexters, I don't think too many of us would've answered that question correctly.

…Or questioned that answer; whatever…