Jeopardy! recap for Mon., Dec. 9

Here are today's contestants:

- Ann, a program manager from Washington state, is a prankster who throws fake birthday parties;
- Jeff, a health care regulator from Maryland, taught himself Brazilian Portuguese; and
- Jennifer, a wine-tasting consultant from Michigan, as one might expect, helps people enjoy wine. Jennifer is a three-day champ with winnings of $90,300.


Jennifer started very quickly, then Ann doubled up on DD3 and was the beneficiary of a ruling reversal going into FJ, entering the final round with $15,200 vs. $21,700 for Jennifer and $5,200 for Jeff.

DD1, $1,000 - NINE TALES - In a classic tale General Zaroff explains that cape buffalo is not "The Most Dangerous Game" to hunt; this is (Jennifer won $1,500 from her score of $8,200 vs. $3,600 for Ann.)

DD2, $1,600 - HAVE AN ARTSY CHRISTMASTIME - A collaboration of brother composer & sister librettist, this opera version of a brother-&-sister kids' tale is a yuletide tradition (Jennifer won $4,000 from her total of $14,900 vs. $8,400 for Jeff.)

DD3, $2,000 - FROM "C" TO SHINING "C" - Greek for "to cleanse" gives us this word that describes an experience that relieves pent-up emotions (Ann won $5,000 on a true DD vs. $17,300 for Jennifer.)

FJ - VICE PRESIDENTS - George H.W. Bush in 1988 was the first sitting Vice President to be elected to the top job since this man 152 years before

Only Jennifer was correct on FJ, adding $11,300 to win with $33,000 for a four-day total of $123,300. A word to the wise for those who will be appearing on the show: know the years of the terms of U.S. Presidents.

Wagering strategy: The aforementioned ruling reversal brought Ann to within two-thirds of Jennifer's score, and with a bet of no more than $2,200, Ann could have won if Jennifer missed without having to be correct herself.

Strangely, Ann wagered $8,701, the exact amount Jennifer could have bet to beat a possible double-up from Ann by $1. Meanwhile, Jennifer's wager of $11,300 would have created a tiebreaker situation with Jeff if she had missed and Jeff doubled up.

Correct Qs:
DD1 - What is man?
DD2 - What is "Hansel and Gretel"?
DD3 - What is cathartic?
FJ - Who was Martin Van Buren?