Columbus native, Shadowbox Live theater manager and actor shares experience on 'Jeopardy!'

"Jeopardy!" host Ken Jennings said Columbus' Brandon Anderson "had to swing for the fences" on his final chance at winning the popular game show on Tuesday night.

Anderson, 44, did, betting all of his winnings — $9,000 — on the Final "Jeopardy!" question topic, "Medieval Places."

Although Anderson didn't get the right answer and lost it all to finish third, the general manager and director of communications for local theater company Shadowbox Live still won $1,000 and said he had a great time just being on the quiz show.

"Being in front of that podium, it is as big and as awesome as you can imagine," he said.

Anderson, who was born in Columbus, took his first trip to California to compete on the show.

He faced reigning champion Melissa Klapper, a professor from Merion Station, Pennsylvania, who retained her title, and Charlotte Diffendale, a letter carrier from Albany, New York.

Anderson got the first question correct, and was holding his own against Klapper for a few questions before he lost momentum.

After the first commercial break, Jennings talked about each contestant's backgrounds, noting that Shadowbox Live is the largest ensemble in the nation. Jennings then joked with Anderson that he was "doing his PR job for him."

"Thank you so much," Anderson replied good-naturedly.

Heading into the double jeopardy round, Anderson was in second place after getting a question about dogs racing to the door — though it is rarely someone there to see them — correct, with the answer "who are dogs?" The question, and answer, prompted grins and chuckles from the host and contestants.

Despite Klapper's quick reflexes and momentum, Anderson got a few more correct answers in before final Jeopardy!, hitting a $2,000 answer and preventing her from sweeping one category. After Double Jeopardy!, he was in third place.

During Final Jeopardy!, Anderson didn't get the answer right, nor did anyone else. Klapper won, having wagered and lost $5,201 of her $22,800 to earn the chance to battle again Wednesday.

How the Columbus resident got on the game show

Becoming a contestant was a long journey that began more than a year ago when Anderson, while watching the show one evening, decided to take the online audition test.

“It was kind of fun – a 50-question test where you wrote in your answers. I sent it off and about a week later, got a note saying, ‘Congratulations! You passed to the second round of the audition process’,” Anderson said.

Anderson, who's also been a performer with Shadowbox Live, found the second test a bit more daunting, as it had twice as many questions and was timed. "It was a little bit harder," he said. "But then, I got another note saying, "Congratulations! You passed to the next round!'"

Next came a Zoom audition and mock interview during which Anderson's ebullient personality shined so brightly that he received a phone call a month later from a producer asking when he could come to California.

"I screamed out loud," Anderson recalled. "In all, it was about a 13-to-16-month process. Just getting on the show is the hardest part."

Anderson's experience with Ken Jennings

On the "Jeopardy!" set in Culver City, Jennings' humor and laid-back demeanor helped put the contestants at ease, Anderson said.

"He comes in and greets everybody and it's so great because Ken Jennings is just as awesome in person as he is on TV," he said. "He was so excited for everyody because he's been in our shoes. He told us to just have fun. He makes you feel as comfortable as possible and he's so funny, cracking jokes during commercials...

"Being on the stage where you saw these great players do their thing, you're like, 'I'm standing on this stage where (38-time champion) Matt Amodio was, where (40-time winner) Amy Schneider was!" Anderson continued.

Anderson, who has been with Shadowbox Live for almost 22 of the company's 35 years, has performed in numerous productions, including "The Rocky Horror Show," "Jesus Christ Superstar," "Rent" and “No Return: The Deadly Dance of Bonnie and Clyde." He said his background as an actor lent itself well to appearing in front of a television camera.

"Being a performer was a really big help. It’s kind of jostling to do things you normally do under a lot of lights with sound equipment attached to you," he said. "So, you switch on your performer mode and say, 'I'm going to (portray) a 'Jeopardy!' contestant,' and that put away a lot of my nervousness.

"Going through rehearsals, makeup, wardrobe—it was familiar in all respects."

bpaschal@dispatch.com

dking@dispatch.com

@DanaeKing

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Brandon Anderson of Columbus had 'awesome' experience on Jeopardy