Jeopardy! recap for Tue., Nov. 26

 Here are today's contestants:

- Samantha Altschuler, an academic dean from Brooklyn, New York;

- Ryan Smith, a writer originally from South Pasadena, California; and

- Kevin Laskowski, an Episcopal priest from Falls Church, Virginia. Kevin is a one-day champ with winnings of $15,200.

Jeopardy! 

QUEEN VICTORIA // IN THE NAVY // IT'S A FAKE! // PIGEON FACTS & LORE // MOVIE AMUSEMENTS // NOT IF I "CU" FIRST

DD1 - $600 - QUEEN VICTORIA - In 1857 the Queen awarded the first Victoria Crosses for acts of valor during this recently ended war (Samantha lost $1,500.)

Scores at first break: Kevin $1,400, Ryan $4,600, Samantha $2,200.

Scores entering DJ: Kevin $5,000, Ryan $6,600, Samantha $2,300.

Double Jeopardy! 

U.S. CITIES // POETRY // IT'S PHYSICS! // THEY WON EMMYS FOR... // THAT'S A FACT // IN TOLERABLE

DD2 - $800 - POETRY - This 1915 work was the poet's joke about a pal's frequent regret about the path they took on walks together (Ryan lost $2,500 from his score of $8,600 vs. $10,300 for Samantha.)

DD3 - $1,600 - U.S. CITIES - The name of this Iowa city across the river from Omaha honors the site where Lewis & Clark met with tribesmen (From third place, Ryan dropped by $2,200 to $5,100.)

Ryan missed both DDs in DJ and wound up in third, while Kevin scored on the final two clues of the round to gain the lead into FJ at $12,200 vs. $10,300 for Samantha and $5,100 for Ryan.

Final Jeopardy!

SUPREME COURT JUSTICES - Born to immigrant parents, in 1916 he was the first Supreme Court nominee to undergo Senate confirmation hearings

Only Kevin was correct on FJ, adding $12,000 to win with $24,200 for a two-day total of $39,400.

Final scores: Kevin $24,200, Ryan $5,100, Samantha $10,300.

Triple Stumper of the day: In IN TOLERABLE, no one figured out the common location for piercing that fits the category is earlobe.

Clue selection strategy: Round one was played entirely top-down, even when the DD was still on the board in the last untouched category. Also, late in DJ with only two categories left in play, Ryan selected twice from the category where DD2 was already uncovered before switching over to find DD3.

Correct Qs: DD1 - What is the Crimean War? DD2 - What is "The Road Not Taken"? DD3 - What is Council Bluffs? FJ - Who was Brandeis?