ALEX TREBEK
FAMILY AND FAITH HAVE BECOME TOP PRIORITIES AS THE JEOPARDY! HOST TURNS 80
The beloved Jeopardy! host has a lot to celebrate — and be thankful for — as he turns 80, including a juicy new tell-all!
“To be the inspiration for a lot of people makes me feel good.” — Alex
Wearing his trademark suit and tie, Alex Trebek and his wife, Jean, proudly stood together on July 3 to celebrate the creation of a new facility to provide shelter for Hollywood’s homeless population. The long-married couple donated $100,000 to build the Alex and Jean Trebek Community Room to “help those who are less fortunate,” explains Alex, “because when you do that, you help unify the community, the society.”
Giving back is just one way the longtime Jeopardy! host, who has been fighting stage 4 pancreatic cancer for the past year, is showing gratitude for the good fortune he has known. “I’ve lived a good life, a full life,” says the Emmy-winning star, who is looking forward to his 80th birthday on July 22. One day earlier, his memoir, The Answer Is…: Reflections on My
Life, will be published. “I want people to know a little more about the person they have been cheering on for the past year,” says Alex, who admits that the love he has received from fans helped him survive dark times of physical pain and depression as he underwent chemotherapy. “All of the cards and letters I have received, giving me advice, offering prayers for me, has really touched me,” says Alex, adding that he never realized he “had such an impact on the lives of so many people.”
That’s why it will be hard to walk away from
Jeopardy! Alex has hosted the hit show through bouts of fatigue and painful mouth sores caused by cancer treatment that made it difficult for him to enunciate clearly. “My tongue doesn’t work… as well as it used to,” he acknowledges. “There will come a point where they will no longer be able to say, ‘It’s OK.’” When his presenting skills “diminish” past a certain point, Alex says he will voluntarily retire. “It’ll be a significant moment for me,” he admits.
ANOTHER MILESTONE
The Ontario, Canada–born star and Jean, 55, his wife of 30 years, had talked about taking a trip abroad to mark Alex’s 80th birthday, but now they’ve planned for a more intimate celebration at their home in California. “It’s going to be very small, which is just what he wants. Jean has organized some Zoom chats with the kids and some very close friends,” says a family insider.
The host of Wheel of Fortune, Pat
Sajak, is likely to be among the pals sending birthday greetings to Alex. Over the more than 30 years that both men have been on the air, they have sometimes been painted as rivals, but they actually share a warm bond. “There is no one I know who is stronger or more determined,” Pat said of his friend after Alex revealed his cancer diagnosis. “I would never bet against him.”
Nobody should. Alex survived a mild heart attack in 2012. He underwent brain surgery in 2017 after a fall. Since his diagnosis last year, he has made strides against a form of cancer that is considered incurable and has a median survival rate of three to six months. “Alex says he’s a walking, talking, living miracle. Perseverance has been his biggest life lesson,” says the insider. “It’s hard work sometimes, but if you’re committed, have faith and have something to live for, it can be done.”
A BRILLIANT LEGACY
For the past year, Alex has made spending time with his children, daughter Nicky, 54, whom he adopted during his first marriage, and Matthew, 29, and Emily, 26, from his current union, a priority. “The support and love he gets from his family has been overwhelming,” says the insider.
When the children were growing up, Alex took the family on trips and attended Matthew’s paintball tournaments, but the “perfectionist” tendencies that Emily says she shares with her father might have made him a tough taskmaster at times. “Alex knows he didn’t always do things right in the parenting department, but he’s made amends to his kids and they’ve accepted it,” confides the insider. “He knows he has their unconditional love now.”
Alex also credits a lot of his will to keep going to the love and support he receives from his wife. “I want to uplift him,” says Jean, a professional Reiki healer, who attends services with Alex at the North Hollywood Church of Religious Science. “Alex prays. He does believe in karma to an extent, but it’s mostly about being good to your fellow man,” explains the insider. That’s significant for Alex, whose secret wish is not to just be remembered as a beloved television host, but to earn a legacy as someone who genuinely made the world a better place. “I want to make a difference in the lives of people. And I can do that through charitable donations. I can do that through charitable work,” says Alex, who recently donated $500,000 to Hope of the Valley Rescue Mission to open another California homeless shelter in 2022.
Alex acknowledges that as he turns 80, he wants to make the most of his final chapter. “I am not afraid of dying,” confides the Jeopardy! star. “I’m nearing the end…. I know that. So if it happens, it happens. And why should I be afraid of it?”
“With a positive attitude, anything is possible.”
— Alex