BETHLEHEM, Pa. — When Andrew Daniels, Michael Sneeden and John Gilpatrick learned the new TV show "Pop Culture Jeopardy!" was seeking contestants, they wanted to apply.
No question.
"One of the things we all bonded over was just being obsessed with all kinds of pop culture-related things," Gilpatrick said.
Daniels, a Lehigh Valley native, and Gilpatrick, of Scranton, met in college through Lehigh University's school newspaper, The Brown and White.
After graduating in 2010, the two got a job at health and wellness content company Rodale Inc., working for the publication Men's Health, and met Sneeden shortly after he joined the team in 2014.
Gilpatrick said he previously auditioned for "Jeopardy!," but he wasn't selected.
Part of the testing process asks participants to sign up for the "Jeopardy!" email newsletter, he said, and "for whatever reason," the newsletter that contained an ad for "Pop Culture Jeopardy!" auditions caught his eye.
"I believe our origin story is like, both John and Mike texted me and said, 'We have to do this,'" Daniels said. "And, well, why not just fuse the three of us?
"And the rest was kind of history from there."
The application process for 100
Unlike traditional "Jeopardy!," "Pop Culture Jeopardy!" invites three teams of three to compete, with — You guessed it — pop culture-related categories.
The categories include such topics as "Reality Stars," "Misheard Song Lyrics," "Jock of All Trades," "Classic Movie Endings" and "Sitcomedy Tonight."
The "brand new twist" on the trivia show — which first aired in 2024 — includes Daily Doubles and Triple Play, which give any player from each team the chance to buzz in for three times the points.
"I know, for me, at least, this was a little point of anxiety throughout the whole thing — you're on this team with these your friends now, so it's like, you also don't want to let them down."John Gilpatrick, contestant on season two of Pop Culture Jeopardy!
The three teams compete in knockout rounds to advance to the quarterfinals, semifinals and finals for a chance to win $300,000.
So far, only the knockout rounds have aired from Season One — which will feature Gilpatrick, Daniels and Sneeden.
New episodes stream every Wednesday.
The trio said the application includes a timed 50-question online test. If participants pass with enough points, they're then interviewed by producers to gauge their charisma.
The most nerve-wracking part? They never found out their scores.
"I know, for me, at least, this was a little point of anxiety throughout the whole thing," Gilpatrick said. "You're on this team with these your friends now, so it's like, you also don't want to let them down.
"It's like, if they did well on the test, I didn't really want to be the one who got those few extra questions wrong that ruled us out."
Choosing a team name, uniform
The men said they felt they had a fighting chance, at least.
Gilpatrick best knew movie-related topics, Daniels was well-versed in music and Sneeden "grew up in front of the TV." All three were "also always talking about sports," Sneeden said.
Two months passed by with no word. Still, the group was happy to have made it that far.
"And then something hit our [email] inbox, like, 'Hey, we're absolutely interested in you guys being on the show. Give us some availability in August and we'll go from there,'" Sneeden said.
"From there" meant coming up with a team name and uniform.
"And because we were kind of going, like, full dad-core, as all children of the '90s, and all sons of our fathers, we just sort of tried to channel our dads and what they would have worn back then. And we landed on oversized polos in obnoxious colors, jean shorts, tube socks, and white shoes."Andrew Daniels
Gilpatrick laughed as he noted that once the team made it to the green room on the set of the show in California, other teams asked, "'Oh, how many times did you need to submit different wardrobe options to the producers?'"
It was a once-and-done deal for the trio, who said they "leaned into" the team name Three Almost Dads.
Daniels explained that Sneeden and his wife had recently become parents and Gilpatrick's wife was "a couple months away," from giving birth.
They all set out to California the day after the Daniels' baby shower in Bethlehem for his eight-months-pregnant wife.
"And because we were kind of going, like, full dad-core, as all children of the '90s, and all sons of our fathers, we just sort of tried to channel our dads and what they would have worn back then," Daniels said.
"And we landed on oversized polos in obnoxious colors, jean shorts, tube socks, and white shoes.
"John wore a fanny pack — really elite fits, I'd say."
Gilpatrick laughed, saying other teams appeared to be "mulling about" their outfit choices.
"But I think you kind of got to go at least a little dorky on this kind of stuff," Sneeden said with a smile. "If you claim to be like, the coolest person on 'Pop Culture Jeopardy!,' then what does that say?"
'Weirdly not nervous'
With their episode set to air Wednesday, Jan. 22, on Prime Video, the Three Almost Dads (now Three Current Dads) all share different emotions about watching their TV appearance.
But they said they know they'll be together when they do.
Sneeden currently lives in Philadelphia. With Daniels and Gilpatrick both residing in the Valley, Daniels said he thinks they'll likely end up at his Allentown home.
"Because we all went through this together, and I think that's the best way to do it is to experience it again together."Andrew Daniels
"I think what we'd like to do first before we open it up to something bigger, is just the three of us watch it with our wives and our kids," he said.
"And just sort of relive the experience in an intimate way before we invite other people over to watch. Because I think that's special, right?
"Because we all went through this together, and I think that's the best way to do it is to experience it again together."
Daniels said he "kind of black[ed] out that experience." While it was fun, he said, he feels "a little nervous" to watch it back.
Sneeden, on the other hand, gave a straightforward no.
"Yeah... I'm not looking forward to it," he said. "I'll probably walk away when we're on. I just — I don't know, I'm nervous about it; seeing yourself on TV."
Gilpatrick, however, said he's "weirdly, not nervous about it right now."
'Finally they have some outlet'
Nervous or not, the trio walked away from their trivia show appearance having interacted with comedian and "Pop Culture Jeopardy!" host Colin Jost, one final bonding moment semi-pre-parenthood and — once the episode airs — the chance to talk about the opportunity freely.
Producers told the team they could tell their wives, but the competitors and any audience members they invited to the taping had to sign a non-disclosure agreement.
"This is, in many ways, our superpower; just useless knowledge of pop culture."Andrew Daniels, contestant on season two of Pop Culture Jeopardy!
Team members can't talk about their performance yet, but Sneeden jokingly said their wives sounded happy for them, regardless.
"I think there's a little bit from our wives and maybe our parents, that when we're telling [that they competed], a little bit of relief, like, 'Oh, finally, they have some outlet to put this to,'" Sneeden said.
"Because it is a show tailor-made for us in the sense that, as Andrew said, we'd be talking [about pop culture] anyway. It is so, so, so annoying to our wives the way we talk about this stuff like that."
There was a brief burst of laughter that interrupted the interview.
"When we were done, I at least felt... very emotional about the experience in general, because it's this surreal thing that you experience," Daniels said.
"But also just because this is, in many ways, our superpower; just useless knowledge of pop culture and this was like literally the pinnacle of using that superpower until they create some other show that we can be on.
"But this is a good opportunity now that it's close to airing to relive that and peak again, I guess, which is exciting."
