Featured J!Buzz

Take a look back at Alex Trebek presenting clues about Machu Picchu. Don’t miss episodes of “Around the World With Alex,” which air until August 27.

Producer Brett Schneider’s Notebook: During the many years I worked with Alex on location shoots, I learned early on to be prepared for three things: he would always be ready to start much earlier than call time, he would have all clues memorized along with suggested camera framing for each, and that his patience for getting the right take was balanced by his impatience for wasted time. Despite the fact that local guides at Machu Picchu warned us about early morning fog, Alex was onsite and ready to start shooting his clues well before the sun rose. And even though we couldn’t see more than a few feet in front of our faces until long after sunrise, it was Alex’s intention to knock out what would normally be 2 days-worth of shooting in 1 day. Undeterred by the steep stone stairs, the mountainous landscape, or the altitude (8,000 feet), with Alex leading the charge we somehow managed to get it all done.

Jeopardy! Clue Crew member Sarah Whitcomb Foss’ Note: While flying from Lima to Cusco, Alex and I were doing some souvenir shopping at the airport gift shop where he tried on the traditional Peruvian knit chullo hat seen in the picture here. Just after I snapped this photo, a stranger wandered up and took another quick picture with him, then disappeared without saying a word. After he left, Alex asked, "Sarah, who was that?" I responded, "Alex he's not part of the local crew. He's a fan that just got the best photo of you!”