Biography
Spangenberg, at the time a member of the New York City Transit Police Department (now the Transit Bureau of the New York City Police Department), won $102,597 in five days. On his fifth and final appearance, he set a one-day record of $30,600. Prior to 2003, winners were retired after five consecutive victories and due to a winnings cap in place on Jeopardy! at the time, Spangenberg was only able to keep $75,000 of his total winnings; he donated the remaining $27,597 to the Gift of Love Hospice, a facility operated by the Missionaries of Charity.
Shortly after he won his first five games in 1990, he appeared on Late Night with David Letterman and played the Jeopardy! home game on the show with Dave. He would also later appear on its successor program The Late Show as a member of the New York City Transit Department choir.
Spangenberg also won Jeopardy!'s Tenth Anniversary Tournament in 1993, winning $41,800, and earlier appeared in the 1990 Tournament of Champions (winning $5,000 for being a semifinalist) and Super Jeopardy! (winning $5,000 for being a quarterfinalist), then later in the 2002 Jeopardy! Million Dollar Masters (winning $10,000 for being a quarterfinalist) and 2005 Jeopardy! Ultimate Tournament of Champions tournaments. He won an additional $105,199 in the Ultimate Tournament of Champions, which, when combined with his original appearances and other tournament winnings, increased his grand total to $259,596.
In 2007, Spangenberg was one of sixteen former game show contestants invited to participate in GSN's Grand Slam tournament. Seeded twelfth in the tournament, Spangenberg was matched up with former United States Navy officer David Legler, who had won a then-record setting $1.765 million on Twenty One in 2000. Spangenberg only won one of the three rounds of play against Legler and lost after his allotted time ran out.
Read more about this topic: Frank Spangenberg
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