Alex Trebek’s Memoir ‘The Answer Is…’ To Be Published In July

Published on April 15, 2020.

After more than 30-years of hosting Jeopardy!, host Alex Trebek is writing a memoir.

Simon & Schuster will publish Trebek’s memoir The Answer Is…: Reflections on My Life on July 21, one day before the longtime Jeopardy! host’s 80th birthday. The memoir will include personal anecdotes, as well as his reflections on topics like marriage, spirituality, and philanthropy. The book will also focus on addressing frequently asked questions from Jeopardy! fans, like what prompted him to shave his famous mustache, insights on famous players like Ken Jennings and James Holzhauer, and his thoughts on Will Ferrell’s Trebek impersonation on Saturday Night Live‘s Celebrity Jeopardy! comedy sketch.

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For the longest time, Trebek has hesitated to write a book about his life, but was finally inspired to jump on the opportunity after announcing his pancreatic cancer diagnosis last year, according to a press release.

“I want people to know a little more about the person they have been cheering on for the past year, he wrote in his new memoir.

“Today, when there is so much uncertainty and turmoil in the world, Alex Trebek is a beacon of stability and positivity,” Simon & Schuster executive editor Sean Manning said in a statement. “This wise, charming, and inspiring book is further evidence why he has long been considered one most beloved and respected figures in entertainment.”

Last month marked a year since Trebek’s cancer diagnosis – the survival rate for stage 4 pancreatic cancer patients is just 18 percent. “I’d be lying if I said the journey had been an easy one,” he admitted. “There were some good days but a lot of not-so-good days.”

Trebek continued, “There were moments of great pain, days when certain bodily functions no longer functioned, and sudden, massive attacks of great depression that made me wonder if it was really worth fighting on.”

“But I brushed that aside quickly, because that would’ve been a massive betrayal — a betrayal of my wife and soulmate, Jean, who has given her all to help me survive. It would’ve been a betrayal of other cancer patients who have looked to me as an inspiration, and a cheerleader of sorts, of the value of living and hope,” he concluded.