Alex Trebek debuts new beard on season premiere of Jeopardy

Alex Trebek is famous for asking questions, but on the season premiere of Jeopardy he had a surprising one for the audience.

To beard or not to beard? 

Trebek shocked Jeopardy fans on Monday as he debuted his new facial hair, the first time in years he has strayed from his clean shaven look. 

‘No need to inquire how I spent my summer vacation,’ Trebek told the audience.’Things got a little out of hand.’ 

Alex Trebek shocked Jeopardy fans on Monday as he debuted a new beard – the first time in years he has strayed from his clean shaven look

‘No need to inquire how I spent my summer vacation,’ Trebek joked to the audience. ‘Things got a little out of hand’

Trebek then joked he hoped the beard wouldn’t be a ‘distraction for our players’. 

The famed game show host first gave a sneak peek of his new beard with a teaser clip on the Jeopardy Instagram page on Monday.

He has since launched polls on both Twitter and Facebook, which have made it clear that fans are most definitely here for the beard. 

On Instagram 70 per cent voted for Alex to keep the beard instead of lose it, and on Twitter 68 per cent voted in favor of the new facial hair – which has been dubbed the #Trebeard. 

Many have also been singing the #Trebeard’s praises on Twitter, with some even comparing Trebek to James Bond actor Sean Connery. 

‘I always missed the mustache, but the beard? WOWZA. #silverfox,’ one very happy female fan wrote. 

Trebek has since launched polls on both Twitter and Facebook, which have made it clear that fans are most definitely here for the beard

On Instagram 70 per cent of Jeopardy fans voted for Alex to keep the beard instead of lose it

And on Twitter 68 per cent voted in favor of the new facial hair, which has been dubbed the #Trebeard and turned into a hashtag 

‘Beard on Alex, beard. on,’ another fan added. 

Trebek’s beard has even inspired it’s own Twitter profile, which joked in the bio that it was created on Season 35 and would last into infinity.

The beloved Jeopardy host actually sported a mustache for much of the game show’s history, but shaved it off in 2001. 

He grew the mustache back to celebrate Jeopardy’s 30th anniversary in 2014. 

Trebek debuted his new look months after revealing that he plans to retire from Jeopardy in two years.   

The Canadian-born presenter, who has hosted the game show since 1984, will be 80 years old when he is set to depart in 2020 after his contract runs out.

Many have also been singing the beard’s praises on Twitter, with some even calling Trebek a silver fox with his new look 

Trebek has suffered a series of recent health scares. 

He was treated for blood clots on the brain, known as a subdural hematoma, and underwent surgery earlier this year.

Trebek’s beard has inspired it’s own Twitter profile, which joked that it was created on Season 35 and would last into infinity

Trebek told Fox’s OBJECTified in July that the chances he would still be hosting the show after 2020 were ’50/50, and a little less’.

When asked who he thought could replace him, the veteran broadcaster came up with two suggestions.    

‘I mentioned to our producer not so long ago that the fellow that does play-by-play for the Los Angeles Kings – they should consider him,’ Trebek said, referring to Alex Faust.

Faust tweeted that he was ‘flattered by Mr Trebek’s kind words,’ and thrilled to learn the host is a Kings fan.

Trebek also said: ‘There is an attorney, Laura Coates. She’s African-American and she appears on some of the cable news shows from time to time.’

Coates tweeted that she was ‘incredibly honored and humbled’ that Trebek not only knows who she is, but thinks she’d be a ‘great host of my fave game show ever.’

The beloved Jeopardy host actually sported a mustache for much of the game show, but shaved it off in 2001. He is pictured here hosting the game show High Rollers in 1977

Coates is a professional attorney and legal correspondent for CNN who has worked as a journalist for a number of years.

Faust meanwhile is a 28-year-old sports broadcaster who took over from Hall of Fame broadcaster Bob Miller last season to call Los Angeles Kings games.

On top of his recent brain issues, Trebek also suffered a mild heart attack in 2012.

In 2015, he needed to host Jeopardy sitting down after undergoing knee replacement surgery.

Trebek has hosted some of the most popular game shows of the 20th century in the US and Canada during his career. 

He was recently named an Officer of the Order of Canada for services to broadcasting.

Trebek revealed in July that he plans to retire in 2020, and hinted that one possible replacement could be Alex Faust – a sports broadcaster for the Los Angeles Kings

Laura Coates was also tipped by Trebek as a possible replacement. She is an attorney and journalist who works as a legal correspondent for CNN

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