With , one should temper their expectations. Compared to the mainline , the clues are easier and more accessible to appeal to a broader audience to . This is by no means to diminish the intelligence of the contestants of the yearly special primetime edition of the long-running game show, as many pop culture figures have made quite a name for themselves on 's stage.

Celebrity Jeopardy! can be an illustrious showcase for stars to unveil their wealth of knowledge, as was the case for , , and , who shined strong enough to be able to participate in the main series' Tournament of Champions in 2024. On the flip side, journalist and broadcaster .

Jeopardy! is more than just a glorified IQ test measuring one's intellectual capacity relating to questions about history, science, geography, literature, film, etc. To succeed on Jeopardy!,CNN reporter and anchor Wolf Blitzer has plenty of experience on camera broadcasting to millions of viewers about pressing topics and issues like national emergencies and Presidential elections, but Jeopardy! is a different animal. Without the innate skills required to excel on the podium, Blitzer's knowledge of the media and politics would go out the window. Based on his Celebrity Jeopardy! performance in 2009, you might suspect that his brain had an untimely malfunction, as he finished his match with an abysmal -$4,600.

In September 2009, Blitzer faced off against of fame and comedian and 's favorite sidekick, , who put on a clinic during the Celebrity Jeopardy! quarterfinal, as Alex Trebek could only watch Blitzer with pity. At the end of the Jeopardy! Round, Blitzer was in the green at $1,400, but during Double Jeopardy!, everything came crashing down. , and to add insult to injury, he struggled in his namesake category "Wolf it Down." For the "'E' Times 3" category, each correct response contained the letter "E" three times, but Blitzer must have dozed off while Alex Trebek outlined the category's rules, as his responses of "Jerusalem," "defendant," and "annodated," (a nonexistent word that he failed to pair with his phrasing) were all short on "E"s.

Most of Blitzer's incorrect responses were inexplicable gaffes, such as when he responded, "What is a Crash?" to an answer with the word "crash," already in the clue. Even when he was so close to a correct response, he would stumble at the very last syllable, like when he added an "S" to 's name. You don't need to be an expert in Italian cuisine to know that mostaccioli, a variation of penne, is nothing like fettuccine, but Blitzer proved to be pasta blind at that moment. upon conclusion of Double Jeopardy! In fairness to Blitzer, anyone would have been outmatched by the buzzsaw in Andy Richter, who finished at $68,000 after Final Jeopardy! In the ultimate gesture of pity, Blitzer's score was wiped away and loaned $1,000, as it is customary for all contestants on Celebrity Jeopardy!, who are competing for a charitable cause, to have a shot at the final round.

Wolf Blitzer, who showed he could be a versatile on-screen presence with his clever cameo in , couldn't hold his own on the Jeopardy! stage. Blitzer's inept performance was not a matter of inexperience, as his appearance in September 2009 was not his first rodeo. In 1997, against author and Huffington Post founder and Platoon and JFK director Oliver Stone. Blitzer's Jeopardy! debut was a much better outing, finishing in second place behind Stone. This goes to show that even someone capable of answering trivia questions and mastering the buzzer will look foolish when handed a batch of categories ill-suited to their strengths. When a celebrity fails, particularly one in the world of politics and world affairs like Wolf Blitzer, the public ridicule only becomes more pronounced.

Jeopardy! is available to watch on YouTube TV in the U.S.

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