Warren High School teacher on 'Jeopardy!'
"Jeopardy!" host Alex Trebek is becoming familiar with the names of Chicago's suburbs.
Warren Township High School math teacher Tom Witek of Gurnee will be the latest suburban resident to appear on the venerable show Friday, Sept. 12. He'll face two other contestants at 3:30 p.m. on WLS-Channel 7.
"They make you feel like you're the smartest person who's ever gone out there," Witek, 53, said of the "Jeopardy!" crew in California.
Witek will join Wheaton-area resident Hunter Brown, Greg Peterson of Park Ridge and Su Kim of Elgin on the list of suburban "Jeopardy!" contestants who have appeared within the last year or so.
Kim bagged $46,901 over a four-day stint on the show.
Witek, who teaches at Gurnee-based Warren District 121's Almond Road upperclassmen campus, can't say how well he performed on "Jeopardy" because, if he blabs in advance, he won't receive any winnings or even the $1,000 minimum paid to third-place finishers. "Jeopardy!" checks are mailed 120 days after the show airs.
His path to "Jeopardy" began in March 2007 when he took a 50-question online test. Witek said you only get eight seconds to answer, so an Internet search engine isn't an option for assistance.
After nearly forgetting he took the test, Witek was called to a "Jeopardy!" audition to face other contestants in a mock game at a downtown Chicago hotel in August 2007. Out of mind again after many months, Witek was surprised to get a call inviting him to Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City, Calif., for two days of taping in mid-July.
Witek has played along while watching "Jeopardy!" on television since the days when Art Fleming hosted. He learned the real thing involves having a good touch on the electronic button to answer on the studio stage.
"That's part of the reason you go out there. Are you as good as you think you are?" Witek said.
Witek didn't receive any math questions, but science, geography and history are among his strong suits. He said he boned up on a variety of topics before the show, including weak areas such as Academy Award-winning movies.