A University of Maine professor is joining the ranks of Mainers who have participated on the popular trivia show Jeopardy!
According to UMaine communications spokesperson Allen Adams, Kara Peruccio will appear on a May 9 episode of Jeopardy! The show is available to watch on WVII Channel 7 and WMTW Channel 8.
Kara Peruccio’s twin, Caitlin Peruccio, participated on the show in 2013. Both sisters had tried out for the show in the past.
Kara Peruccio is an assistant professor for UMaine’s Department of History, as well as for the Women’s, Gender, and Sexualities program.
Kara had auditioned for the show’s College Tournament when she was an undergraduate student, and then again right after she graduated in 2011. She was selected, but had been working overseas and was unable to attend taping. She also auditioned in 2020, but was not chosen.
Finally after an audition in September of 2024, Kara received a call back.
“I grew up watching ‘Jeopardy!’ with my family,” Kara Peruccio said. “We also had a ‘Jeopardy!’ CD-Rom game and it got pretty cutthroat; there was some body-checking to get to the mouse first to answer. I really enjoy trivia and so trying out for Jeopardy was a no-brainer!”
According to JBoard.tv, a Jeopardy! forum, Caitlin Peruccio came in second place. According to Kara, her sister refused to give any hints to her family on how she performed.
Kara also plans on keeping her results private until her episode airs as well as a way of “giving them a taste of their own medicine.”
In recent history, Portland resident Susan McMillan appeared on Jeopardy! twice, Augusta resident Jamie Logan appeared on the show in 2021 and South Berwick resident Heather Brown appeared on the show in 2022.