Pub where Matt Amodio played trivia shares ‘Jeopardy!’ glory

HAMDEN — The Playwright, an unassuming Irish pub nestled on the corner of Whitney and Putnam avenues in Hamden, has a secret. At least, it had a secret. Every Wednesday for nine years, the bar has held what many attendees say is the best trivia night in the area. But since former regular Matt Amodio caught the nation’s eye as the latest “Jeopardy!” savant, Whitneyville’s hidden gem has gotten to share in a bit of the glory.

“A ton of the customers have mentioned (Amodio),” said Playwright owner Eamonn “Sonny” Ryan. “People are noticing.”

Recently, while out shopping at Lucibello’s Italian Pastry Shop in New Haven, Ryan was asked, “‘Oh, you got Matt, he did good again last night,’” Ryan said.

Though Amodio’s 38-day win streak ended Monday, trivia was still at the table two days later at his old Hamden haunt, which bustled with competitors.

Some were regulars who could say they previously had beaten Amodio’s team or played alongside him.

Others were newcomers who had heard about the pub’s connection to the champion.

Marcus LaFlamme and Sophie Clark drove all the way from Stamford, braving rush hour on the Merritt Parkway, because they hoped to catch a glimpse of Amodio.

It wasn’t just his genius that made them fans, but his demeanor. “He seems very sweet,” said Clark.

“I feel like he’s genuine guy,” LaFlamme chimed in.

They were disappointed Amodio was not there. He hasn’t been since before COVID-19 hit, according to Anthony Apuzzo, who runs the event.

But if they had met him, LaFlamme said, he would have asked Amodio, “What are you doing here? Why aren’t you still on ‘Jeopardy?’”

“You deserve to be,” he said matter-of-factly.

Amodio, a doctoral student in computer science at Yale University, had played on a formidable team known as the Rogue Scholars.

Huddled around wood-top tables in the unassuming Irish pub, regular trivia-goers reminisced about nights spent competing against Amodio.

His was the team to beat, they said.

“They were our rivals in the same way a gazelle is a rival to a cheetah,” said Andrew Weinschenker. “We were the gazelles.”

His team, which consistently places within the top three, did occasionally best Amodio’s.

Weinschenker said it’s “awesome” to know a fellow trivia attendee had a tremendous performance on “Jeopardy!”

“Knowing we’ve been around that person and played the same trivia” makes him believe he also could do well on “Jeopardy!”, he said.

Steven Glickman, a regular who plays for another highscoring team, said that one night when his team was short members, he joined forces with Amodio.

He watched every one of Amodio’s “Jeopardy!” episodes, he said, and he wasn’t at all surprised Amodio did well.

Could bar trivia have helped prepare him?

Mary Glickman, Steven Glickman’s daughter, said trivia questions at The Playwright are more challenging than those on “Jeopardy!” She credits Apuzzo, who runs the event and has kept her team coming back for nine years.

“It puts every other trivia night to shame,” said Mike Ford, another teammate.

Apuzzo writes his own questions. He has file cabinets full of them, he said.

“I do not run a fluff trivia night. My trivia night is very competitive,” he said. “I have teams that have been playing with me for five or six years.”

What’s Apuzzo’s secret? One key element is covering a diverse range of topics.

Two of this week’s categories were Greek mythology and science fiction movies. Past nights have featured questions about history, geography, food, sports and more.

“I have players who are in their twenties. I have players who are in their fifties and sixties, and they all find something in their weekly games they can identify with,” Apuzzo said.

Many teams find success by including members of differing ages, Apuzzo said.

That’s the case for the Mary Glickman’s team, where each member has a different specialty, she said.

What stood out about Amodio’s team, according to Glickman, was that they were able to do so well even though they were all in the same age group.

Since Amodio shot to “Jeopardy!” fame, people have asked Glickman if she knows the champ, she said.

She can tell them yes — and that every so often, she beat him.

“We would beat his team every week if there was a sports round,” said Glickman, a physical education teacher.