After A Public Battle With Cancer, Alex Trebek, 80, Passes Peacefully In His Home

Today we feel the tremendous loss of a great man. Alex Trebek, 80, died peacefully in his home this morning, surrounded by family and friends, after a tough battle with pancreatic cancer. In March of 2019, the beloved Jeopardy! host announced his pancreatic cancer diagnosis and explained that the cancer had spread beyond his pancreas and throughout his body. He started treatment immediately and said,

“I’m gonna fight this, and I’m gonna keep working. And with the love and support of my family and friends, and with the help of your prayers also, I plan to beat the low survival rate statistics for this disease.”

And he did indeed fight through several rounds of chemo therapy, despite what he called

“massive attacks of great depression that made me wonder if it was really worth fighting on.”

A one-year update from Alex: pic.twitter.com/W9101suZeZ

— Jeopardy! (@Jeopardy) March 4, 2020

He surpassed the 1 year survival rate of 18% for stage-four-pancreatic cancer, and although he had hoped to attain full remission, in September he announced that he would be receiving additional treatment for his cancer.

.@Jeopardy host #AlexTrebek to @RobinRoberts after being asked how he is doing: “My oncologist says I’m doing well even though I don’t always feel it.” https://t.co/YUdvo8InwJ pic.twitter.com/T1toOLcmUm

— Good Morning America (@GMA) May 1, 2019

Alex Trebek is perhaps one of the most iconic television figures. He won 7 Emmy Awared for outstanding game show host and in June of 2014, he set a Guinness World Record for the most game show episodes hosted (6,829). In fact, Trebek has been a gameshow host for more than 50 years and has hosted Jeopardy! for 36 years, which amounted to more than 8,200 episodes. The wildly popular quiz show typically averaged more than 10 million viewers each night and Trebek reportedly earned about $10 million per year.

His autobiography, “The Answer Is…,” was recently released and contains what he calls “Reflections on My Life.” In an interview, Trebek described himself as “the avuncular host of a popular quiz show who has been around, it seems, forever.” Of course, the rest of us will remember his familiar gentle voice, his kind and positive demeanor, and the many evening hours he spent with millions of families across the nation.

One of Alex Trebek’s last moments on Jeopardy.

RIP
pic.twitter.com/xf3DSzL4nl

— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) November 8, 2020

I recollect fondly the many hours I spent sitting with my own grandmother listening to Alex Trebek tell us all the answers, seeming to me to be the smartest man in the world. Alex Trebek has left a wonderful mark on generations, and as my grandmother aptly said, “It’s the passing of an era.”