#Middlebury
Q: When will Alex Trebek’s final episodes of the game show “Jeopardy” air? I want to make sure I don’t miss them. – C.K.
A: Alex Trebek passed away from pancreatic cancer in early November, but he forged ahead during his struggle with the disease and filmed many episodes of the syndicated game show. From Dec. 21-28, “Jeopardy” will air 10 of its most classic episodes. The following week, beginning Jan. 4, 2021, viewers will get to see Trebek’s final new episodes.
Alex Trebek (Sony Pictures Entertainment photo)
Then starting Jan. 11, Ken Jennings, one the show’s greatest champions, will guest host. Other hosts will step in shortly thereafter, but the names have yet to be announced.
According to “TV Guide,” executive producer Mike Richards said that “Alex believed in the importance of ‘Jeopardy!’ and always said that he wanted the show to go on after him.”
Q: Whatever happened to Rachel Griffiths from “Six Feet Under”? I was watching reruns of the series on HBO and realized I haven’t seen her in anything since, which surprises me because she’s a really fantastic actress. – B.M.
A: Australian actress Rachel Griffiths first gained attention in the mid-’90s in the independent film “Muriel’s Wedding” opposite another breakout star from Down Under, Toni Collette. In 2001, she was cast in the critically acclaimed “Six Feet Under,” about a family who runs a funeral home. After its run, Griffiths landed another successful series, “Brothers & Sisters,” opposite Calista Flockhart. Since then she’s been working steadily, just not in series that have lasted more than one season.
Things could be changing though. She’s now starring in “Total Control,” a new series on the SundanceNow streaming service, playing an Australian prime minister who drafts an indigenous woman (played by Deborah Mailman) into the senate. The show has won several AACTA (Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Awards) honors. I know the last thing most people want is to pay for another monthly steaming service, but the good news is that SundanceNow is less than $7 a month.
Q: I was so sad to hear about the death of the actor who played Squiggy on “Laverne & Shirley.” I know “Laverne” passed too, but are “Shirley” and “Lenny” still alive? – T.T.
A: Yes, sadly, David L. Lander, passed away this month at the age of 73 due to complications from his long battle with multiple sclerosis. He played the hilariously bothersome Squiggy on the classic sitcom “Laverne & Shirley” from 1976 to 1983. Penny Marshall (Laverne) passed two years ago at the age of 75 from complications from diabetes.
Cindy Williams (Shirley) and Michael McKean (Lenny) are, thankfully, still with us and are still gainfully employed in Hollywood. McKean and Lander actually had a hand in the creation of Lenny and Squiggy, having invented the greasers while doing improv as students at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh before the sitcom was born. They were hired as writers for the show and recreated the duo for television.
Send me your questions at NewCelebrityExtra@gmail.com, or write me at KFWS, 628 Virginia Drive, Orlando, FL 32803.
© 2020 King Features Synd., Inc.
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