Carol Kaelson/Jeopardy Productions, Inc.
Three weeks ago, Mike Richards was on top of the World. He beat out several celebrities to be named the host of Jeopardy. Unfortunately for him, as quickly as he was given the job, it was taken away from him.
Past derogatory comments he made came back to haunt him. Because of that, he was said to have stepped down from the job, but Sony let him keep his Executive Producer position at Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune.
That is until now. According to Variety, the staff of both shows got a letter from Suzanne Prete, EVP, Business and Strategy, informing them of his termination.
I’m writing to let you know that Mike will no longer be serving as EP of Wheel and Jeopardy! effective immediately. We had hoped that when Mike stepped down from the host position at Jeopardy! it would have minimized the disruption and internal difficulties we have all experienced these last few weeks. That clearly has not happened.
Michael Davies from Embassy Row has agreed to help with production on an interim basis until further notice. Michael and I will work together with all of you in the weeks ahead to ensure that production remains on schedule and we do not miss a beat as we head into the new season.
I know this has been a challenging time for the entire team, and I want to thank you all for your cooperation and professionalism over these last few weeks. As Ravi mentioned last week, I will be more involved in the day-to-day on our shows moving forward and I am looking forward to working closely with all of you. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you need anything.
Sounds like the staff finally felt free to tell management what they really thought of their boss.
I wonder who Sony will hire first, a host or an EP. It is going to be hard for the staff because they are without their two most important people and everything is in flux. Plus, dealing with the egos and inexperience of the guest hosts is going to be so much harder without a boss to reign them in.
Personally, I think they should have cancelled Jeopardy after Alex Trebek’s death. He was the show as much as the trivia answers. Without it, it is just not the same.
