Date of first appearance:
June 16, 1998
Total winnings:
$168,599 plus a Chevy Suburban
Stats:
5-time champ, winner of 1999 ToC
Favorite anecdote:
When I went to the initial taping in 1998, I told no one where I was going or what I was doing, other than my wife. This was a hard thing for me to do to my brother and dad (both are gone now), because we 3 had always had a really tight bond with one another. But I did this just in case things went badly--to save on embarrassment. When I got back, I found it was just as easy not to tell anyone where I had been--and besides, I knew my brother wouldn't be able to keep it secret. But then, about a month before the air date, I did something rash--I bought a conversion van. Now I am by nature pretty frugal anyway, plus my brother's health had taken a serious turn for the worse. Consequently my dad asked me why I would do something so out of character. I had to tell him. As I related the experience to him there in his kitchen, my 81 year-old dad started laughing until tears came into his eyes (mine too) and we sat down on the kitchen floor, arm in arm, laughing like a couple of little kids.
Did appearances affect my life?
Whatever happens, I will always treasure that moment with my father.
Anything crazy with my winnings?
I wouldn't say crazy, other than that conversion van. We have taken a number of family vacations, mainly to beaches in Florida and South Carolina. We still have some parked for my kids' college expenses.
Anything else you would like viewers to know about you?
I'm still making music and working for the same company, though now in a different capacity. My wife, Janet, and kids, Adrienne and Doug, are doing great--we moved back to my boyhood home in Ft. Thomas, Kentucky, after my dad passed away, and have been working to restore the old place. The last 5 years I've been working with the kids at Mt. Notre Dame High School in Reading, Ohio, serving as music director for their shows. It's been a wonderful experience. I'm singing with the best church choir in Cincinnati--at Christ Church Cathedral--loving every minute. |
"He won the 1999 Tournament of Champions. A musician and licensing executive from Fort Thomas, Kentucky..."
2014 Battle of the Decades invitee: $5,000.
2005 Ultimate Tournament of Champions Round 1 player: $5,000.
1999 Tournament of Champions winner: $100,000.
Season 14 5-time champion: $68,599 + a Chevrolet Suburban.
Jeopardy! Message Board user name: Tubaman |
