‘Jeopardy!’ champions say they won’t cross writers strike picket line

nypost.com:

“Jeopardy!” champion Ray Lalonde announced last week that he would not cross the picket line to participate in this season’s “Tournament of Champions” if the ongoing Hollywood writers’ strike continues into the fall. “As a supporter of the trade union movement, a union member’s son and a proud union member myself I have informed the show’s producers that if the strike remains unresolved I will not cross a picket line to play in the tournament of champions,” Lalonde wrote in a Reddit post in the r/Jeopardy forum.The Toronto contender explained more about his decision to The Post on Monday, describing that he had heard rumblings about the show’s taping plans from “industry insiders” on Facebook.

He also saw that The Hollywood Reporter had reported that the syndicated series would use previously written material from the past four decades, and he noted that the show’s website listed taping dates for August. “My immediate thought was ‘Damn, if they do that I can’t play,’ followed by the thought that if they tape tournaments starting in August they’ll be calling me soon with airline and hotel reservations, so I have to warn them soon,” Lalonde told The Post in a statement.

Lalonde wrote that he “wrestled with this for a couple of days,” claiming that he sent an e-mail about his decision to the team behind the show.

He also posted in “Jeopardy!” groups across various social media platforms, including a private Facebook group for the show’s former players, in an effort to “reach as much of the ‘Jeopardy!’ community” as he could.