This page contains a timeline for the network version of Jeopardy! hosted by Art Fleming. The timeline will never be completed, due to NBC's practices of destroying or recycling older tapes. Furthermore, Game Show Network has only aired two episodes (the 2,000th episode, and the 1979 finale). As a result, this timeline will be much less detailed than the syndicated timeline.
1964[]
- March 5, 1964: The first test pilot for Jeopardy! was taped on March 5, 1964. The contestants were Grace Miller, Jesse Bigelow, and Dolores Green. Art Fleming was host, Don Pardo was announcer. The pilot features a few aspects of set design and gameplay completely unique to it, as well as some only featured in the early games of the show. Contestants’ buzzers made a sharp buzzing sound when activated. The board featured category titles both on the top and bottom of the board and contestants desks featured the buzz in light on top of the desk and the score panel in the middle. The Daily Double worked as an additional hidden answer behind an ordinary buzz in answer, meaning the pilot had 64 answers. The rule where a contestant is allowed to wager the highest value in the round on a Daily Double may not have been developed by this point. The highest scorer at the end of Jeopardy! started Double Jeopardy! Contestants were not only required to give the correct information for a question but also the exact grammar that would prompt the answer on the board. Grace Miller wins the pilot episode with an $800 score. This episode was released on YouTube for Jeopardy!’s 58th anniversary in 2022 and is now archived online.
- March 30, 1964: Jeopardy! made its debut on NBC Daytime. It aired weekday mornings on NBC at 11:30 AM. Art Fleming and Don Pardo remained as host and announcer when the series was picked up. Minor changes were made when the series was picked up. The lowest scorer at the end of Jeopardy! started Double Jeopardy! The contestants buzzers now made a dinging sound when activated and the Daily Double became an answer simply hidden behind a dollar value. The inaugural game was Kathy/Homer/Mary. Mary Eubanks ended up winning the game with $345 and became the very first champion. She lost the next day to a taxi driver. The episode is known to exist in audio form and parts are on YouTube.
- September 28-October 2, 1964: The first Tournament of Champions is held (#131-#135; taped September 18 and 24). The information found on microfilm suggests a week-long tournament with three semifinals and two finals. According to the same source, the winner of the tournament was Terry (Armstrong) Thompson, with $3,510 in her pocket.
- Although specifically unknown who, there were seven total champions and two high scorers who participated: Helen Beck, John Murphy, Rosemary Taubert, Phyllis Gallo, Pat McDermott, Madeline Von Koch, Terry (Armstrong) Thompson, Sid Kramer, and Ruth Lind.
- Sometime between 1964 & 1966: Contestants are no longer required to give exact phrasing for their questions. Now being allowed to give any grammar of question with the correct information.
1965[]
- Unknown 1965: At some point during this year, Merrill Sindler made various changes to Tom Trimble’s original design for the set. The category titles were now only featured on top of the board. Contestants desks now had the score panel at the top of the desk and the buzz in light in the middle. Various other aspects of the set’s design were also altered.
- September 27, 1965: Jeopardy! moved from weekday mornings to weekday afternoons. It aired at 12:00 PM on NBC as part of NBC Daytime where it remained up until 1974.
- October 18-22, 1965: The second Tournament of Champions is held (#406-#409; taped October 5-6). According to a microfilm source, all players were undefeated champions, and the winner was Babs McClellan with $3,970.
- The players who participated are Lou Ehrlich, Pat Day, Bob Wilder, Doris Sullivan, Jim Cahill, Babs McClellan, Bob Law, Carolyn Benson, and Earle Codrington.
- December 13-17, 1965: Burns Cameron becomes an undefeated five-day champion. His run was taped on November 29-30 and December 6 (#446-450).
- December 20, 1965: Episode #451 (Lynn/Bernie/Billie) is taped on December 6.
1966[]
- March 30, 1966: A game was played between Hugh Downs, Don Morrow, and Monty Hall to celebrate Jeopardy!'s second anniversary.
- September 7, 1966: Episode #638 (Libby/Joy/Irene) is taped on August 25.
- October 17-21, 1966: The third Tournament of Champions is held (#666-#670; taped October 6-7). The microfilm records for this week are missing Thursday and Friday's results, but the winner is believed to have been Burns Cameron.
- The players who participated are Leona Huerbach, Tye Heckman, Sarah Moore, Pat Rohan, Phyllis Grant, John Schenck, Bob Bovard, Fran Winnick, and Burns Cameron.
1967[]
- April 17, 1967: This episode features NBC staff announcer Wayne Howell filling in for the regular announcer, Don Pardo. To my knowledge, this is the only time that Howell ever appeared on Jeopardy!, and I'd love to know why Pardo wasn't able to announce that day.
- circa May 15-19, 1967: The show holds a National College Scholarship contest. Three episodes from this contest (#816, #818, and #819) were exclusively held by the UCLA Film & Television Archive until their resurfacing with episode #820 in February 2025. In the last episode of this contest, contestant Josh Ard wins a $4,800 scholarship.
- October 13, 1967: Episode #925 is taped on October 3, where the one-millionth dollar is awarded; the winner receives a 1968 American Motors Javelin SST sports hardtop. The available records do not indicate which player (Eric Hanson, Zelda Pullium, or Gail Menkman) won.
- October 16-20, 1967: The fourth Tournament of Champions is held (#926-#930; taped October 12-13). The available microfilm records do not provide the winner, but it is known that finalist Eleanor Endsley did not win.
- The players who participated are Eleanor Endsley, Frank Gray, Sheila Gabriel, Rosemary Marnell, Harry Murtha, Libby Dyer, Gail Berry, Howard August, and Anne Fried.
1968[]
- February 9, 1968: William "Bill" Martin becomes the 43rd undefeated champion.
- May 6, 1968: An audio tape of this episode (Jean/Bill/Joan), as aired over WMAQ-TV, was uploaded by the Museum of Classic Chicago Television's YouTube channel. During the closing credits, there appears to be a minor technical problem where the theme song is not cued properly.
- May 31, 1968: An audio tape of this episode (Marge/David/Miriam) exists. David Canary appears to promote his show Bonanza.
- August 6, 1968: An audio tape of this episode is held by the Archival Television Audio, Inc.
- August 19-23, 1968: Dr. Burt Sherman becomes the 48th undefeated champion, with $3,430 in his pocket. All five episodes were found from audio recordings.
- October 18, 1968: Episode #1185 airs. Art Fleming notes that the show had to "find" undefeated champion Hutton Gibson to invite him to the upcoming Tournament of Champions; Gibson had re-located to Ireland following his original run.
- October 28-November 1, 1968: The fifth Tournament of Champions is held (#1192-#1196; taped October 17-18). The microfilm records are missing the winner's details, but it is believed to be Red Gibson.
- The players who participated are Red Gibson, Fran Fisk, Bill Martin, Penny Costigen, John Miller, Marcia Bikalis, Judy Gex, Allan Shepherd, and Sally Hickman.
1969[]
- October 27-November 7, 1969: The sixth Tournament of Champions is held. This year's tournament is two weeks, with six quarterfinals, two semifinals, and two finals. The microfilm records do not provide a winner, but future game show producer Jay Wolpert is credited with doing so.
- The players are Larry Schiller, Joan Nephew, Jay Wolpert, John Gridley, Judy Rubin, Nick Rorick, Grant Willis, Jane Gschwend, Jack Gurner, Mendy Snyder, Ann Baker, Burt Sherman, Elliot Baritz, Pat Dougiallo, Jay Hayes, Judy Reimer, Elliot Shteir, and Joan Lawrence.
- The October 30, 1969 episode (Mendy/Ann/Burt) is #1435, taped October 21, and exists as a homemade audio recording.
1970[]
- November 4, 1970: Episode #1696 airs (taped October 10 in Studio 6A), where contestant Mary LoSardo wins $60 and an encyclopedia. She later appears on Season 22 of the syndicated version and recalls her original appearance.
- November 9-13, 1970: The seventh Tournament of Champions is held (#1708-#1712; taped November 5-6). The available records seem to suggest an odd two-day finals, and according to TV Game Shows!, Gene Cheatham won the tournament.
- The contestants who participated are Mary Lee Fox, Russ Poylo, Helen Mabry, Hunter Farnum, Barbara Franco, Steve Haufman, Dolores Henderson, Gene Cheatham, and Mary McNeil.
- November 16, 1970: Episode #1699 is taped one month prior, on October 16.
1971[]
- The March 8, 16, and 24, 1971 episodes are held by the UCLA Film & Television Archive.
- The April 1 and 9, 1971 episodes are held by the UCLA Film & Television Archive.
- November 15-19, 1971: The eighth Tournament of Champions is held (#1958-#1962; taped November 10-11). According to TV Game Shows!, Rock Johnson wins the Tournament.
- The players who participated are Peggy Rathert, Don Marms, Jan Churchwell, Karolyn Battle, Jim Shannon, Riza Gross, Michael Aronson, Rock Johnson, and Joel Tuber.
1972[]
- February 21, 1972: The 2,000th episode of the daytime version of Jeopardy! aired on NBC during NBC Daytime. On this episode:
- On the 2,000th episode of Jeopardy!, the three highest-scoring five-day champions returned to play for charity. They were Burns Cameron, Jane Gschwend, and Elliott Shteir.
- The 2,000th episode of Jeopardy! was certainly a memorable one. Not only were three of the show's highest-scoring champions back to compete for charity, but we also got to see a special appearance by Mel Brooks! Mel played his iconic character The 2,000-Year-Old Man, who chatted with host Art Fleming and the contestants before the game began. It was such a treat to see these two entertainment legends on the same stage, and it made for a really fun and unique start to the episode.
- The show used the Double Jeopardy! logo and values, picture and video clues, and each category had a Daily Double.
- This was the 2,000th episode of Jeopardy!, and the occasion was marked in style. After the Final Jeopardy! round, Art Fleming introduced Clair Simpson, the vice president of NBC Daytime programming. Fleming presented Simpson with a plaque commemorating the milestone. The plaque read: “Congratulations Art Fleming and Jeopardy! on the occasion of its 2,000th show on the NBC Television Network 1964-1972.”
- March 1972: Sometime during this month, Rosemary Travis became the 91st undefeated champion.
- March 30, 1972: A special game is held between Bill Cullen, Peter Marshall, and Art James to celebrate the show's 8th anniversary.
- September 8, 1972: An episode that aired around this time is Rachel/George/Caroll.
- September 27-October 3, 1972: Reid Williamson became the 97th undefeated champion, with $4,560 in his pocket. All five episodes exist and are held by the Paley Center for media.
- November 13-17, 1972: The ninth Tournament of Champions is held (#2214-#2218; taped November 9-10). According to TV Game Shows!, Anne Marie Sutton wins the tournament.
- The contestants are Susan Smith, Paul Wilson, Lorraine Gorman, Donna Angle, Anne Marie Sutton, Luanne Keller, Sheila November, Jay Delehanty, and Robin Phillips.
1973[]
- Laura Mogul plays on two or three episodes sometime this month, winning $1,160, the Encyclopedia Americana, and a copy of the show's home game. Mogul later competed again on the syndicated version (March 31, 2016; #7269), recounting her original appearance and revealing that her mother eventually threw away the encyclopedia.
- Sometime this year, the episode Judy/Diane/Jim aired.
- March 12, 20, and 28, 1973: The episodes are held by the UCLA Film & Television Archive.
- April 5 and 13, 1973: The episodes are held by the UCLA Film & Television Archive.
- November 12-16, 1973: The tenth Tournament of Champions is held (#2476-#2480; Taped November 8-9). According to TV Game Shows!, Paula Ogren wins the tournament.
- The contestants are Carol Reeve, Reid Williamson, Adeline Shulman, Connie Christensen, Phil Price, Paula Ogren, Louise Windgrad, Dan Donohue, and Rosemary Travis.
1974[]
- January 7, 1974: Jeopardy! moves back to weekday mornings, this time at 10:30 AM on NBC. Intended to kill the show, Jeopardy! still ended up doing relatively well in ratings.
- March 7, 1974: Alex Trebek appeared on Jeopardy! in 1974 to promote his other NBC game show, The Wizard of Odds.
- April 1-5, 1974: Alex Trebek, Bill Hayes, and Bill Bixby played on an episode during this week.
- April 24, 1974: Episode #2574 (Ann/Larry/Norma) is taped April 2.
- For a brief period around this time (known to be present on April 24), the show uses a "Run-the-Category Bonus" where anyone who gives all five correct questions in a single category receives a bonus starting at $500 in addition to their end-of-game winnings, increasing by $500 every game until it is won.
- June 27, 1974: This episode is Karen/Kent/Kim.
- July 1, 1974: Jeopardy! moves back to weekday afternoons. this time at 1:30 PM on NBC as part of NBC Daytime, replacing Three on a Match. This inevitably led to the show’s end, as the college students and working folks who had made up the bulk of Jeopardy!’s devoted audience were no longer able to watch. Those left were middle-aged housewives and elderly people. Both demographics advertisers viewed as immovable.
- October 16, 1974: An audio tape of this episode is held by Archival Television Audio, Inc.
- November 1974: Sometime this month, the original daytime version is issued a cancellation notice.
- November 18, 1974: Episode #2721 is taped October 31.
- November 19-22, 1974: The eleventh Tournament of Champions is held (#2735-#2737; taped November 13-14). According to TV Game Shows!, Denny Golden wins the tournament.
- It is believed that nine champions participate (including Pete Staley, Kathleen Lang, Art Newell, Dave Hilliard, Andy Miller, Faye Ringel, and Denny Golden) over a one-week period, but the available records are too sparse to accurately determine this.
- November 23, 1974: A black-and-white video tape recording of this episode is available on YouTube.
1975[]
- January 3, 1975: The final episode of the daytime version of Jeopardy! aired on NBC as part of NBC Daytime. The contestants were John, Robin, and Debbie. On this episode:
- The final episode of Jeopardy!'s daytime run opened with a special greeting from announcer Don Pardo. He introduced host Art Fleming and welcomed the studio audience. Pardo's warm introduction helped to make the last show of this era of Jeopardy! feel more like a celebration than a conclusion.
- After the Double Jeopardy! round, Fleming showed clips of some of the show's greatest moments, including the 2,000th episode in 1972. Another highlight was the final game of the National College Scholarship contest, which was played by three students who had each won previous games. One of those students won a $4,800 scholarship!
- Art Fleming's heartfelt goodbye to Jeopardy!'s daytime audience was the perfect way to end an era. After the Final Jeopardy! round, Fleming thanked the contestants, the staff, and the audience for making Jeopardy! such a special show. Fleming's message was both emotional and inspiring, and it left no doubt that he would be missed.
- After Fleming's sign-off, the credits rolled over an empty, darkened Jeopardy! set. "Smile," by Frank Chacksfield and His Orchestra played. This was the end of an era for Jeopardy!
1976[]
According to a Sony-affiliated poster at the official Sony forums, a pilot was taped in 1976 with Bob Hilton as host. This mention was edited out a few hours later, with the entire thread disappearing when the forum was shut down due to a well-known hacking incident.
1977[]
- March 6, 1977: A pilot (Joan/Stan/Debbie) is taped for CBS at Television City, which is held by UCLA. There are several differences from the eventual revival:
- Charlie O'Donnell announces.
- Round 1 begins with each contestant getting 30 seconds to pick off as many clues as he/she wishes, with no penalty for an incorrect response.
- At the start of Round 2, the game board turns around.
- Super Jeopardy! uses a 90-second time limit, rather than playing until getting three strikes.
1978[]
- October 2, 1978: Jeopardy! returns at 10:30 AM EST/9:30 AM CST/PST/MST. On this episode (Emily/Richard/Jim):
- Announcer John Harlan says "And now, entering the studio for the 2,754th time is the host of Jeopardy!, Art Fleming!".
- Strangely, a shot of the audience after Fleming's entrance shows Richard, despite being onstage.
- October 3, 1978: The episode (Richard/Harriet/Todd) shows the Strikes on the Super Jeopardy! board still have a red background.
- November 13, 1978: The episode (#31) is Karen/Brian/Vi.
1979[]
- January 1, 1979: The episode (Beth/Dave/Mike), and likely for the entire week, Art Fleming plugs the upcoming time slot change.
- January 8, 1979: Jeopardy! moves to 12:00 PM EST/11:00 AM CST/PST/MST.
- January 16, 1979: The episode (Clarence/Nina/Bill) is taped in November 1978.
- Likely during this month, and certainly by the week of 2/12-16/1979, a Tournament of Champions is held. It is known that the final game (taped in December 1978) is Stuart/Todd/Philip, with Todd having previously played during at least the first week of this version.
- By the end of the above tournament, the Strikes on the Super Jeopardy! board are changed to a larger (and more curved) "STRIKE" on a black background.
- February 21, 1979: The episode had Brian Aronson, who won at least one game on the November 13, 1978 episode in his original run, return to the show due to a technical problem where he won another $575.
- March 2, 1979: This episode (Charlie/Susan/Doug) is where the Jeopardy! revival ends after 108 episodes. This is only one of two Fleming episodes aired by Game Show Network. In this case, it aired on December 31, 1999 during a "Y2Play" marathon of game show finales.