‘Jeopardy!’ Fans Honor Player Who Died Before Episode Aired
Fans notice a clip Jeopardy! shared on social media and took the time to pay tribute to someone who was in it. The clip was supposed to honor announcer Johnny Gilbert’s birthday. However, the clip also had contestant Cindy Stowell in the clip, and that is who fans noticed above all.
Here is what you need to know about Cindy Stowell from Jeopardy!
Cindy Stowell Died After Recording Her Jeopardy! Episode
The Jeopardy! clip that played had Alex Trebek as host and Johnny, 98, reading the clues. The clip showed a woman who had been playing the game from that moment on, and this was Cindy Stowell.
Cindy appeared on Jeopardy! in 2016 during her battle with cancer. She had a dream to appear on a game show in her life, and she got the chance with Jeopardy! She even donated her winnings to cancer-related organizations (via CBS). She made the dream come true before she died.
Cindy was a science content developer from Austin, Texas, and she was invited to an in-person audition in Oklahoma City. She wrote a heartbreaking note about her cancer diagnosis in her application. She did this because she wanted to make sure of the timing since she only had about six months left to live.
“If there is the chance that I’d be able to still tape episodes of ‘Jeopardy!’ if I were selected, I’d like to do that and donate any winnings to … charities involved in cancer research,” she wrote. “If it is unlikely that the turnaround time would be that quick, then I’d like to give up my tryout spot to someone else.”
When she passed the audition, she was sped to the top of the line. She taped her show on August 31. Her episode aired on December 13, 2016. Sadly, she died on December 5, and she never had a chance to see it when it aired on TV.
As for Alex Trebek, he passed away three years later in 2020, also after a battle with cancer.
Fans Pay Tribute To Cindy Stowell From Jeopardy!
Many fans in the comments saw the video and paid tribute to Johnny Gilbert, wishing him a happy birthday. However, soon, other Jeopardy! fans realized who Cindy was and saw a connection with Alex Trebeck in the video.
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It started with one fan commenting that both Alex and Cindy are both gone. That led to the tributes flowing in:
- “Happy Birthday Johnny plus RIP Cindy & Alex as well”
- “Cindy was special”
- “Cindy Stowell. Who knows how many games you could have won.”
Did you recognize Cindy Stowell from the Jeopardy! tribute video? Do you even remember her from the show? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
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