Alex Trebek.

George Alexander Trebek

Born 22 Jul 1940 Sudbury, Canada

Died 8 Nov 2020 Los Angeles, USA

Citizenship Canada

Would Be 86 yr If Living

15 min read

Reading time

2,878

Words

Oct 14, 2026

Published

Awards

TL;DR

Alex Trebek hosted Jeopardy! for 36 years from 1984 to 2020, setting a Guinness World Record for most game show episodes hosted at 6,829. Born in Sudbury, Ontario, he started as a CBC newscaster and moved to the US to host game shows. Trebek died of pancreatic cancer on November 8, 2020, at age 80.

Identity & family.

KIN · 2

Names, aliases, and relatives of Alex Trebek — birth name, kin, and personal ties.

Birth Name George Alexander Trebek

Aliases Alex, Alex Trebeck

Spouses: Jean Trebek Elaine Kares Trebek

At a glance.

STATS

Alex Trebek by the numbers — life, work, and family.

80 Years lived

7 Awards

2 Marriages

Who was Alex Trebek?

BIOGRAPHY

Alex Trebek — early life, career, personal life, and legacy.

Early life

Growing up in Sudbury, Ontario, Alex Trebek was the son of Lucille Lagacé and Ukrainian immigrant George Edward Trebek. He was born on July 22, 1940. He attended Sudbury Secondary School and Malvern Collegiate Institute before earning a philosophy degree from the University of Ottawa in 1961. He also attended the Royal Military College of Canada. As a teenager, a summer at a Trappist monastery nearly turned him toward the priesthood, but he decided against it because he enjoyed talking too much.

Career

In 1961, Trebek joined the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation as a newscaster, covering national news and special events. His first game show gig came in 1966 when he hosted Reach for the Top 1965. He moved to the United States in 1973 to host The Wizard of Odds 1973 on NBC, produced by Alan Thicke. In 1984, he became the host of the syndicated revival of Jeopardy! 1984, a role he held until his death. He also hosted Classic Concentration 1987 from 1987 to 1991. He won seven Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Game Show Host. In 1999, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 2014, he set a Guinness World Record for most episodes hosted of the same program.

Personal life

Trebek married Elaine Kares in 1974; they divorced in 1982. He then married Jean Currivan on April 30, 1990, proposing on her birthday, September 12. They had two children: daughter Emily and son Matthew. He also adopted a daughter, Nicky, from his first marriage. In 2007 and 2012, he suffered minor heart attacks, and in 2011 he broke his leg chasing a burglar in his San Francisco hotel room. He resided next door to actor Ed Begley Jr. and owned a vineyard and horse farm in California.

Legacy

Trebek set the Guinness World Record for most game show episodes hosted by the same presenter, with 6,829 episodes of Jeopardy!. He won seven Daytime Emmy Awards and was honored with Canada’s Walk of Fame and the Order of Canada. The American Federation for the Blind awarded him an Access Award for accommodating blind contestant Eddie Timanus. He hosted the National Geography Bee and received the Royal Canadian Geographical Society’s Gold Medal. He is remembered as the face of Jeopardy!, a host who combined intelligence, wit, and kindness for over three decades.

Awards & honors.

AWARDS · 7

Every award, honor, and recognition received by Alex Trebek — Grammys, hall-of-fame inductions, civic honors, lifetime achievements.

Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Game Show Host
Honorary doctor of the University of Ottawa
Canada's Walk of Fame
honorary doctor of Fordham University
Lifetime Achievement Emmy
Officer of the Order of Canada
star on Hollywood Walk of Fame

Notable quotes.

QUOTES · 6

A wall of memorable lines from Alex Trebek — lyrics, interviews, and off-the-cuff remarks captured over a lifetime.

I Have Learned Quite a Bit, but It’s Not Like You Know Enough About the Topics to Lead a Discussion at a Cocktail Party. – on the Question If Hosting the Show Has Expanded His Knowledge.
We’re Trying to Build a Gentler, Kinder Society and If We All Pitch in Just a Little Bit, We’ll Get There.
Don’t Tell Me What You Believe In. I’ll Observe How You Behave and I Will Make My Own Determination.
I Was Just Reading Something by Immanuel Kant About Perpetual Peace, and I’m Looking at That, and It’s a Great Idea. but I’ve Got to Read It About Three or Four Times in Order to Figure Out Exactly the Point He’s Trying to Make.
I Realize That There Is an End in Sight for Me, Just as There Is for Everyone Else. One Line That I Have Used with Our Staff in Recent Weeks and Months Is, That When I Do Pass On, One Thing They Will Not Say at My Funeral Is, ‘Oh, He Was Taken from Us Too Soon.’
I Was Doing so Well and My Numbers Went Down to the Equivalent of a Normal Human Being Who Does Not Have Pancreatic Cancer so We Were All Very Optimistic. and They Said Good, We’re Going to Stop Chemo, We’ll Start You on Immunotherapy.

Did you know?

FACTS · 50

Little-known facts about Alex Trebek — origins, oddities, and behind-the-scenes details from a public life.

It was Trebek’s idea to include separate competitions for teenagers, seniors, and celebrities on Jeopardy! 1984.
Became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1998.
In 2001, Trebek shaved his mustache during the first few weeks of the 18th season of Jeopardy! 1984, after having it for over 30 years.
Broke his leg on July 27, 2011 while chasing a female burglar who had broken into his San Francisco hotel room; the suspect was later apprehended by police.
When he married Jean Trebek Jean Currivan, he gave his wedding vow as a joke by phrasing it as a question, saying, The answer is … yes in the Jeopardy! rule of answering in question form.
He framed a bounced check for $49,000 received from a game show he worked on in the 1980s that failed.
Every day, he read the movie book by Roger Ebert.
He was an avid ice skater.
When young, Trebek thought about becoming a priest but changed his mind after spending a summer at a Trappist monastery; he told the New York Sunday News, I took a vow not only of poverty but of silence. And I’m not one to keep my big mouth shut. I enjoy talking. February 24, 1974.
Trebek’s association with Merv Griffin Enterprises began with Wheel of Fortune 1975; a few years before Jeopardy! 1984, he subbed for an ailing Chuck Woolery in 1980.
Hosted Jeopardy! 1984 from its debut in 1984 until his death in 2020 without a substitute host, except on April Fool’s Day 1997 when he swapped with Pat Sajak of Wheel of Fortune and for two episodes when his wife was giving birth to their son Matthew in 1991. His last day of taping was October 29, 2020; he died 11 days later.
With wife Jean Trebek, he had two children: daughter Emily and son Matthew. He also adopted daughter Nicky with ex-wife Elaine Kares Trebek.
The American Federation for the Blind awarded Trebek with an Access Award for his role in accommodating Jeopardy! champion Eddie Timanus.
Hospitalized after suffering a minor heart attack at his home on December 10, 2007.
His mother, Lucille Lagacé Trebek, celebrated her 90th birthday on April 14, 2011.
His favorite author was Mark Twain.
His father, George Edward, was an alcoholic.
Resided next door to Ed Begley Jr.
Suffered a mild heart attack on June 23, 2012 and was admitted to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center for observation.
Friends with: Bob Barker, Bob Goen, Richard Dawson, Bob Eubanks, Betty White, Geoff Edwards, Wink Martindale, Bill Cullen, Jim Perry, Pat Sajak, Pat Finn, Jim Lange, Chuck Woolery, Dick Clark, Merv Griffin, Mark Goodson, Mary Hart, Tom Kennedy, Roger Ebert, Regis Philbin, Vicki Lawrence, Alan Thicke and Meredith MacRae.
Was a spokesman for World Vision.
Enjoyed collecting and drinking wine, training and breeding thoroughbred racing, golfing, and hosting quiz shows.
His parents were Lucille Lagacé and George Edward Trebek. His father was a Ukrainian immigrant. His mother was of French-Canadian, and approximately one eighth British Isles, including Irish, ancestry.
Owned a Creston, California vineyard: Creston Vineyards.
Hosted two game shows that became big hits in his 35+ year run, making him one of the youngest game show hosts in history: Classic Concentration 1987 for NBC which he hosted for five years, and Jeopardy! 1984.
Appeared on the final week of Family Feud 1976, hosted by Richard Dawson.
Trebek was one of four game show hosts to have emceed a game show in the United States and another in Canada; the other three were Howie Mandel, Geoff Edwards and Jim Perry.
His friend Wayne Brady appeared on Jeopardy! 1984 a year after Trebek appeared on Brady’s talk show; both were nominated for Daytime Emmys.
He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Television at 6501 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on May 17, 1999.
On Wednesday, March 6, 2019, Trebek announced via social media that he was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer.
Received a phone call from Regis Philbin for his final answer on Philbin’s talk show and refused to be tested for his brain on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire 1999.
Proposed to wife Jean Trebek Jean Currivan on her birthday, September 12.
Attended and graduated from Malvern Collegiate Institute in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Ranked #3 on GSN’s Top 10 Game Show Hosts of All Time.
His first game show, The Wizard of Odds 1973, was produced by Alan Thicke.
Owned a 700-acre Thoroughbred horse farm: Creston Farms.
Hosted the National Geography Bee in the United States and Canada.
Won the Bob Hope Entertainment Award for his work with the USO in 1998.
Though good at pronouncing words in many languages, he had difficulty with Welsh and Hawaiian.
As a teenager, he worked as a garbage man in Cincinnati before returning to Canada in 1961 to finish college and become a news anchor.
Received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from the University of Ottawa in 1961; later received an honorary doctorate from the same university in 1997. In university, he was a member of the English Debating Society.
Was Merv Griffin’s and Bob Murphy’s first choice as host of Jeopardy! 1984; they hired him on the spot after he subbed for an ailing Chuck Woolery on Wheel of Fortune 1975.
Ranks fourth behind Bill Cullen, Tom Kennedy and Wink Martindale in number of game shows hosted at 12.
Set a Guinness World Record for the most game show episodes hosted by the same presenter same program with 6,829 episodes of Jeopardy! 1984 on June 13, 2014.
Like Bob Eubanks, Jim Perry, Chuck Woolery, Dick Clark, Pat Sajak and Bert Convy, Trebek hosted a game show both in daytime and nighttime.
Received the Royal Canadian Geographical Society’s Gold Medal for his contribution to geographic education on November 4, 2010.
Before becoming a game show host, he was a newscaster for the Canadian Broadcasting Network.
Once joked during a category of movie titles: In this film, a couple are killed by poisonous spiders while watching Wheel of Fortune. Serves them right!
His mother Lucille Lagace Trebek had Alex when she was 19 years old.
On January 30, 2004, while driving alone near Templeton, California, he lost consciousness and crashed his car.

You wanted to know.

FAQ · 46

Quick answers to the questions readers ask most about Alex Trebek.

When was Alex Trebek born?

Alex Trebek was born on July 22, 1940. He was born in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada.
Where was Alex Trebek born?

Alex Trebek was born in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. This city is located in the province of Ontario.
When did Alex Trebek die?

Alex Trebek died on November 8, 2020. He passed away at age 80 after a battle with pancreatic cancer.
How old was Alex Trebek when he died?

Alex Trebek was 80 years old at the time of his death. He died on November 8, 2020.
Where did Alex Trebek die?

Alex Trebek died in Los Angeles, California, USA. He had been undergoing treatment for pancreatic cancer.
How did Alex Trebek die?

Alex Trebek died of pancreatic cancer. He publicly announced his stage 4 diagnosis in March 2019.
What was Alex Trebek's real name?

Alex Trebek’s birth name was George Alexander Trebek. He was known as Alex throughout his career.
What did Alex Trebek do for a living?

Alex Trebek was a television host and producer. He is best known for hosting the quiz show Jeopardy!
What nationality was Alex Trebek?

Alex Trebek was Canadian by birth. He became a naturalized United States citizen in 1998.
What language did Alex Trebek speak?

Alex Trebek spoke English as his native language. He was also known for pronouncing words in many languages.
Who was Alex Trebek married to?

Alex Trebek was married twice: first to Elaine Kares Trebek from 1974 to 1982, and then to Jean Currivan Trebek from 1990 until his death.
Where did Alex Trebek go to school?

Alex Trebek attended the University of Ottawa, the Royal Military College of Canada, and Sudbury Secondary School. He also attended Malvern Collegiate Institute for a time.
What awards did Alex Trebek win?

Alex Trebek won seven Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Game Show Host, a Lifetime Achievement Emmy, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He was also made an Officer of the Order of Canada.
How many awards did Alex Trebek win?

Alex Trebek won multiple major awards, including seven Daytime Emmys and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He received over 50 nominations.
What was Alex Trebek best known for?

Alex Trebek was best known for hosting the television quiz show Jeopardy! from 1984 until his death. He also appeared on shows like The Simpsons and Family Guy.
How tall was Alex Trebek?

Alex Trebek was 5 feet 11 inches tall, or about 1.79 meters. His height was often noted as he hosted standing behind the Jeopardy! podium.
What other names did Alex Trebek go by?

Alex Trebek was sometimes credited as Alex Trebeck. His full birth name was George Alexander Trebek.
Did Alex Trebek have children?

Yes, Alex Trebek had two children with wife Jean: daughter Emily and son Matthew. He also adopted a daughter, Nicky, from his first marriage.
Who were Alex Trebek's parents?

Alex Trebek’s parents were Lucille Lagacé and George Edward Trebek. His father was a Ukrainian immigrant and his mother had French-Canadian ancestry.
What was Alex Trebek's favorite author?

Alex Trebek’s favorite author was Mark Twain. He often cited Twain as an influence.
Did Alex Trebek have any hobbies?

Alex Trebek enjoyed collecting and drinking wine, breeding thoroughbred horses, golfing, and hosting quiz shows. He owned a vineyard and a horse farm in California.
What was Alex Trebek's first game show?

Alex Trebek’s first game show was The Wizard of Odds 1973 on NBC. It was produced by Alan Thicke.
Did Alex Trebek ever miss hosting Jeopardy!?

Alex Trebek rarely missed hosting. He took off only for the birth of his son in 1991 and for an April Fools’ Day swap with Pat Sajak in 1997.
How many Emmy Awards did Alex Trebek win?

Alex Trebek won seven Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Game Show Host. He also received a Lifetime Achievement Emmy.
What Guinness World Record did Alex Trebek hold?

Alex Trebek held the Guinness World Record for the most game show episodes hosted by the same presenter, with 6,829 episodes of Jeopardy! as of June 13, 2014.
Did Alex Trebek serve in the military?

Alex Trebek attended the Royal Military College of Canada, but he did not serve in the military. He pursued a career in broadcasting.
What was Alex Trebek's educational background?

Alex Trebek earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from the University of Ottawa in 1961. He later received an honorary doctorate from the same university in 1997.
Was Alex Trebek a naturalized US citizen?

Yes, Alex Trebek became a naturalized United States citizen in 1998. He retained his Canadian citizenship as well.
Did Alex Trebek have a mustache?

Alex Trebek had a mustache for over 30 years. He shaved it off in 2001 during the 18th season of Jeopardy!
What was Alex Trebek's cause of death?

Alex Trebek died of pancreatic cancer. He had been diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer in March 2019.
Did Alex Trebek ever host other game shows?

Yes, besides Jeopardy!, Alex Trebek hosted Classic Concentration 1987 and The Wizard of Odds 1973. He also subbed for Chuck Woolery on Wheel of Fortune in 1980.
What was Alex Trebek's relationship with Bob Barker?

Alex Trebek and Bob Barker were friends and fellow game show hosts. Trebek broke Barker’s record for most episodes hosted.
What did Alex Trebek think of becoming a priest?

As a young man, Alex Trebek considered becoming a priest. He spent a summer at a Trappist monastery but decided it was not for him because he enjoyed talking too much.
Did Alex Trebek have any health issues?

Yes, Alex Trebek suffered minor heart attacks in 2007 and 2012. He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2019.
How did Alex Trebek propose to his wife?

Alex Trebek proposed to Jean Currivan on her birthday, September 12. He gave his wedding vow as a question: The answer is … yes.
Did Alex Trebek own a horse farm?

Yes, Alex Trebek owned a 700-acre thoroughbred horse farm in California called Creston Farms. He also owned a vineyard.
What was Alex Trebek's favorite food or drink?

Alex Trebek enjoyed collecting and drinking wine. He owned a vineyard in Creston, California.
Did Alex Trebek appear on any TV shows?

Alex Trebek appeared as himself or provided voice roles on shows like The Simpsons, Family Guy, Seinfeld, and How I Met Your Mother.
What was the name of Alex Trebek's first game show?

Alex Trebek’s first game show was The Wizard of Odds, which premiered in 1973 on NBC.
How long did Alex Trebek host Jeopardy!?

Alex Trebek hosted Jeopardy! for 36 years, from its syndicated debut in 1984 until his death in 2020.
Did Alex Trebek have any siblings?

The source does not mention any siblings for Alex Trebek. He is described as the son of Lucille and George Trebek.
What was Alex Trebek's first job?

As a teenager, Alex Trebek worked as a garbage man in Cincinnati. He then became a newscaster for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in 1961.
What academic degree did Alex Trebek earn?

Alex Trebek earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from the University of Ottawa in 1961.
Was Alex Trebek ever involved in charity?

Yes, Alex Trebek was a spokesman for World Vision. He also won the Bob Hope Entertainment Award for his work with the USO in 1998.
What was the name of Alex Trebek's adopted daughter?

Alex Trebek and his first wife Elaine adopted a daughter named Nicky Trebek.
Did Alex Trebek host the National Geography Bee?

Yes, Alex Trebek hosted the National Geography Bee in both the United States and Canada.

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Audited & updated by

If something's wrong in a profile, Daniel will find it. With 7 years of research experience, he's developed an almost unreasonable eye for inaccurate career timelines, misattributed credits, and dates that don't quite add up. He doesn't publish anything he can't verify. The profiles on Famousy are as accurate as they are largely because of work you'll never see his name on.

Published on October 14, 2026

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