What is: A question-writer who doesn’t go out to the island enough?
“Jeopardy!” fans on Long Island were shocked to see an incorrect Nassau County village’s name listed in a question during last Friday’s episode, sparking outrage from a local legislator, Long Island Press reported.
The question read: “Type of institution that has a ‘row’ in Garden City on Long Island, including one about firefighting and a children’s one,” prompting the undisputed answer of “museum.”
But the referred-to row — consisting of the Long Island Children’s Museum, Cradle of Aviation Museum and Nassau County Firefighters Museum and Education Center — is actually located a smidgen east of Garden City in the hamlet Uniondale.
And Nassau County legislator Siela Bynoe of nearby Uniondale and surrounding areas is making sure that the show — along with its viewers — won’t forget it. She penned a letter to “Jeopardy!” executive producer Michael Davies explaining the show’s miss — one which listed a ritzy suburb in lieu of the actual working-class nabe, according to LI Press.
“For many years, Uniondale community leaders have fought to ensure their hometown receives the full recognition that it deserves from government and media organizations,” she wrote.
The Post has reached out to “Jeopardy!” for comment.
The borders between Uniondale, Garden City and neighboring Hempstead can be confusing even to locals because of their zig-zagging nature — especially near Museum Row, one located on the former runways of Mitchel Air Force Base.
But being close to the truth won’t cut it for Bynoe.
“Guided by a shared desire ‘to make Uniondale whole,’ they and the hamlet’s elected officials engage in sustained advocacy to ensure regional attractions such as Museum Row are not erroneously attributed to neighboring communities,” she scolded.
This wasn’t the first time a Uniondale staple made its way onto “Jeopardy!” — nor was it the first time the neighborhood suffered at the hands of an on-air gaffe.
The New York Islanders, who played over four decades at the nearby Nassau “Fort Neverlose” Coliseum, were the correct response to an $800 question under the category of “hockey” several years ago. When the late host Alex Trebek gave the clue “Bryan Trottier sparked this team to 4 Stanley Cup Championships from 1980 through 1983,” current host and former contestant Ken Jennings erroneously responded with the New York Rangers.
The game show has faced some other high-profile flubs in recent months. Back in March, the show downplayed the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine in an episode that was taped before Vladimir Putin invaded the latter on Feb. 24. Last summer, fans sounded off when the show used what they called an offensive, outdated term for a medical disorder, postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS); the show apologized.