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Phyrst Bartender Jim Eckess Competes On ‘Jeopardy!’

Phyrst things Phyrst, Jim Eckess is the realest. So real, in fact, that he competed on Wednesday night’s episode of “Jeopardy!” Unfortunately, he didn’t advance to the next episode.

Through the regular rounds, Eckess earned a total of $800 to go into the final Jeopardy question. He competed against Kelsey van Bokkem, an intern physician from San Diego, California, and defending champion Kiana Nakamura, a graduate student from Corona, California.

Eckess has been a bartender at the Phyrst for more than 33 years, according to his LinkedIn profile, so I think it’s safe to say he’s seen some shit. However, that shit apparently did not include the religious figure who was the namesake of a calendar that counts November 2017 in the year 1439 AH.

For the record, the answer was, “Who is Muhammad?” Eckss incorrectly guessed, “Who is the Dalai Lama?”

Nakamura, who was already in the lead with $16,200, was the only contestant to answer correctly and ultimately won the match handily.

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About the Author

Elissa Hill

Elissa was the managing editor of Onward State from 2017-2019. She is from Punxsutawney, PA [insert corny Bill Murray joke here] and considers herself an expert on all things ice cream. Follow her on Twitter (@ElissaKHill) for more corny jokes.

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