My mother-in-law is in town from Toronto for Grandparents Day at our kids’ school and for our son’s First Holy Communion. Since she’s a big fan of the hit game show Jeopardy! I decided to look into tickets for a taping and was pleasantly surprised to learn that they were not only available, but they are free.
Tapings take place at Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City and I booked each one of us a ticket for Monday, May 6th. FYI: It’s just 7 miles from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), so you could even make a day trip out of it.
Here’s what it was like to be part of the Jeopardy! studio audience.
First things first: Read the instructions at the bottom of the ticket you are issued. Here’s what’s required:
-Be sure to bring a valid government-issued photo ID if you’re an adult.
-Audience members must be at least 8 years old, and anyone under 18 must be accompanied by an adult or legal guardian
-Jeopardy! typically films five episodes a day with two separate audience groups, so depending on your ticket, you’ll watch either two or three shows.
The morning taping, for which audience members are asked to arrive by 10 a.m., is the one with three shows. Then they break for lunch and do the following two tapings.
They say the entire experience takes about four to five hours from arrival to wrap-up, so it’s a good idea to eat beforehand. There’s no food or drinks are allowed inside the studio. They do have a water fountain by the bathrooms in the lobby and a water cooler with Dixie cups by the studio entrance.
Be sure to follow the strict dress code, which asks for solid dark colors, though I saw a few people in red. Avoid wearing white, busy patterns, or stripes.
-Hip, stylish attire or business casual is mandatory.
-No clothing, accessories, or jewelry with visible logos on the front or back.
-T-shirts, hoodies, shorts, hats, and flip flops are prohibited.
-Close-toed, flat shoes with backings are required; open-toed shoes, slides, or heels are not allowed for safety reasons.
-Cameras, laptops, and tablets are not permitted in the studio.
-Phones are allowed but must be silenced and absolutely no filming or photography is allowed during the show.
-Bring only small or crossbody bags; backpacks, large bags, and suitcases are not allowed. Remember, you’re on camera, and when the audience looks great, the show looks great!
We arrived around 9:40 a.m. through the Overland gate. Parking is free and there wasn’t any problem finding a spot in Sony’s parking lot.
Once you check in (show your ticket and ID), you’ll be given a wristband (gold, purple, and blue). Gold means you’re a friend of production. Purple, I assume, means you’re a friend of a contestant and blue is for the general public, which is what we had.
Then you go through a metal detector like at a sporting event.
Audience members are brought into a lobby for about 40 minutes where there’s a gift shop, some chairs, six all-gender bathrooms and a photo opp at a Jeopardy! kiosk.
At 10:10 a.m., they made an announcement going over all the rules and encouraged you to use the bathrooms. The most important rule is not to use your phone in the studio, including between breaks. You can use your phone in the gallery, which is just behind and below the studio audience seats.
At 10:35 a.m., you’ll walk to Stage 10, which takes about five minutes. They do have a golf cart for those who aren’t able.
We stood in a long line for about five minutes waiting to get into the studio. The theater-style seating holds 120 people and every seat was taken. We were on the far right, which doesn’t get any airtime and from that side, you can’t see the contestants’ faces. My wife also had a camera boom obstructing her view. It’s better to be among the first inside the theater for the better views.
The tickets are run by On-Camera Audiences and they run a smooth operation. It’s all very well organized. I asked an employee why they don’t charge and they said it’s illegal. I also asked how they make sure they have enough seat fillers because tickets are free and I would think many don’t show. She explained that they do overbook, but it usually works out. She said that with American Idol (another show they organize), they give away 2,000 tickets and about 700 people show, which is the size of the audience. This one was a little different because the audience is more mature. The average age had to be 60, and judging from the surrounding conversations, many were from out-of-town and and even out-of-country.
Tapings are around 45 minutes each with a 10-minute break in between.
The first show, which is going to air on Monday, July 7, started taping around 11:15am and lasted until about noon. Jimmy, the stagehand, did a wonderful job interacting with the audience, explaining how the show works and getting everyone excited and clapping after commercial breaks.
Ken Jennings takes audience questions (about three) after the first commercial break. As a host, Ken is so smooth and talented but he does occasionally make mistakes, so you get to see them do pick-up shots.
I asked him a question during the second game, which will air Tuesday, July 8. I was going to ask, “Do you know what the contestants write and bet in Final Jeopardy! before they disclose it?” but at the last minute I asked, “What question do you get asked the most when you’re at a party?” He said a few things including, “What do you like better—hosting or being a contestant?”
During the 10-minute break, I checked out the gallery where they had all the show’s Emmys and a lot of Alex Trebek memorabilia, including his podium and the Final Jeopardy card from when Ken Jennings was the host. See photo below:
There’s also a Jeopardy! kiosk for a better photo opportunity than the one in the lobby.
The bathrooms are a good walk outside (I’m guessing 300 yards) but it’s fun to walk between sound stages.
You can leave after two tapings, as we did, and two other people did as well. For that, they need to shuttle you to the parking lot in a golf cart.
If you’re a fan of the show, I highly recommend going to a taping. Uou will never watch Jeopardy! the same way again. It’s more fun now knowing how the magic works. Here’s their FAQ page, which will answer any more questions you may have.
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