"Jeopardy!" host Alex Trebek is always a professional. But on Monday night he got a bit vulnerable and teary eyed during the game show after a contestant penned a sweet message on his Final Jeopardy answer. The young man wanted to let the host know they were all thinking about him as he continues to battle cancer.
Alex Trebek getting choked up during Final Jeopardy today messed me all the way up. #Jeopardy #WeLoveYouAlex pic.twitter.com/QJVP4hJpGV
— sabreena (@aneerbas) November 12, 2019
"What is, 'We love you Alex," contestant Dhruv Gaur wrote down during last night's Tournament of Champions, drawing a heart in lieu of the word "love."
"Oh, that's very kind," Trebek said with surprise as he started to choke up. "Thank you."
Trebek, who has hosted "Jeopardy!" since 1984, announced in March that he has stage 4 pancreatic cancer. A few months later he reported a "mind-boggling" update that some of his tumors had shrunk by 50 percent and he was nearing remission. Unfortunately, by the end of the summer it was apparent that he needed a second round of chemotherapy.
After Monday's show aired, Gaur had the opportunity to share a bit more of his and the other contestants' feelings about the 79-year-old host.
"Sorry for west coast spoilers, but I’m really glad I got the opportunity to say to Alex what everybody at the tournament was thinking," Gaur tweeted. "For context, Alex had just shared with us that he was reentering treatment for pancreatic cancer. We were all hurting for him so badly.
"When Final Jeopardy came up, I could’ve tried to puzzle it together, but really, just kept thinking about Alex, and thought he should know. I’m just very grateful I got the opportunity to say what I know everyone was thinking. Sending all the love."
Trebek's courage has been a marvel to watch. In his initial announcement about his diagnosis, he told his fans that he has to beat it "because under the terms of my contract, I have to host 'Jeopardy!' for three more years!"
A Message from Alex Trebek: pic.twitter.com/LbxcIyeTCF
— Jeopardy! (@Jeopardy) March 6, 2019
In his return to chemotherapy, Trebek said he "will keep doing it (the show) as long as my skills do not diminish, and they have started to diminish."