‘Jeopardy!’ contestant speaks out about ‘odd choice’ of ‘problematic’ clue

A “Jeopardy!” contestant has given her take on the “uncomfortable” answer to a “problematic” clue that had host Ken Jennings apologizing to her during the episode.

Heather Ryan, a health program director from Binghamton, New York, was competing on the Oct. 28 episode when she selected the $400 clue in the category “Complete the Rhyming Phrase.”

The clue was, “Men seldom make passes at …” The answer was “girls who wear glasses.” Ryan, who wears glasses, stood there as the defending champion at the time, Will Wallace, gave the correct answer.

“Yeah, a little problematic,” Jennings said after Wallace answered.

“Very,” Wallace said.

Ryan spoke to the Binghamton University student newspaper Pipe Dream about the questionable clue.

“It is definitely an odd choice,” Ryan said. “I think it made everybody in the audience and on stage, and Ken Jennings too, a little uncomfortable. It was like, ‘Oh, that was unexpected.’ Maybe we choose better rhyming phrases in 2024.

“Unfortunately, there are still girls who are (in) middle school and they don’t want to wear their glasses and they’re losing out on their education,” she continued. “So, I think it’s much better to be able to see than anything else.”

Jennings apologized to Ryan during the show about the quote, which is attributed to poet Dorothy Parker.

The third contestant, Ian Taylor, ended up winning the game by $1 over Ryan in Final Jeopardy.

Despite the awkward moment, Ryan enjoyed her time on the iconic game show.

“It’s just a very special thing to play a small role in this big part,” she said. “It’s been running for 40 years, and so I got to play my part in it.”