You know the name Ken Jennings, you know the name James Holzhauer, and now you know the name Matt Amodio; not to mention my personal favorite Buzzy “Mr. Personality” Cohen.  

However, do you know the names: Nancy Zerg, Emma Boettcher, and now Jonathan Fisher?  Probably not.  After ending Ken’s 74 game winning streak Nancy was a one-time champion.  After ending James’ 32 game winning streak Emma was a three-time champion.  It’s too soon to tell how many turns at the podium closest to the host Jonathan will have, but he’ll have to win at least 11 games to make the top 10 list. 

These examples are proof-positive of the old publicity adage:  frequency and repetition.  Excitement breeds excitement.  The more times you do something, the more the public notices you.  The algorithms of social media platforms are the same.  The more a post gets “liked,” or any type of response, the more people (connections or strangers depending on your privacy settings) the platform will show it to, which gets more likes; so it’s shown to more people and so on and so on.  It’s like that old shampoo commercial.  Familiarity breeds familiarity, as well.

The same principle applies to bad deeds as well.  You can rob one bank, and maybe get away with it, but it won’t make you famous.  You have to rob dozens of banks to be considered with the likes of a John Dillinger or a Baby Face Nelson or a Bonnie and Clyde.  Of course, the exception to the rule is Patty Hearst, who only robbed one bank, but was famous for other reasons, so one is all it took.

So, here’s to Jonathan Fisher.  I hope he gets everything he wants out of being a Jeopardy champion.  If it’s fame and fortune, I hope he has a long and fruitful run.  If it’s just the self-satisfaction of playing his personal best then he has probably already achieved that.