Alex Trebek calls Canada 'a special place' in never-before-seen Academy Icon Award acceptance speech

Jeopardy! fans everywhere are in for an emotional week as tomorrow’s episode will be the final one featuring the game show's iconic host Alex Trebek, who died in November following his battle with pancreatic cancer. 

If your eyes weren’t already full of tears, the Canadian Academy has released Trebek’s never-before-seen acceptance speech for the 2020 Academy Icon Award. Trebek was set to receive the award at the 2020 ceremony, but when the Canadian Screen Awards were postponed and moved to May 2020, they decided to present the “special awards” in 2021. 

The Canadian Academy shared Trebek’s pre-recorded acceptance speech for his “exceptional ongoing contribution to the media industry” on social media on Thursday. In his video message, the iconic Jeopardy! host said, “I guess it means that I’m being honoured as sort of a goodwill ambassador.”

“You know that’s not a tough gig. You host a popular show for 36 years, you get to be known, you get to be liked,” Trebek added. “Maybe people think you’re a nice guy? They know you’re Canadian — ergo, Canadians are nice people, and the country must be a special place. Well, it is! And not just because we're nice." 

Trebek said that he thinks Canada is a special place because it’s “a country of accomplishment in education, business, science, the arts and entertainment.” He also gave props to Canada for doing it all “bilingually, in two languages,” he added before switching from English to French. "For more than 50 years, I have tried to convey the message that francophone culture is something that is very important, very special — not only for the province of Quebec but for our entire country," Trebek said in French.

Trebek said that the French culture has won Canadians “great success on the international stage,” crediting Xavier Dolan, Félix Leclerc, Jean-Paul Riopelle, Louis Hémon and the Montreal Canadiens with 24 Stanley Cup championships."

Switching back to English, Trebek said, “But more than these accomplishments, Canada has now acquired great stature in the world for something entirely different. It’s a welcoming society, and it has expanded that welcome to go beyond the level of tolerance to one that I believe is even better. I think the essence of Canada now is acceptance. And long may it continue."

Trebek segued from the acceptance of Canada to accept his award. “I accept this with gratitude, humility and pride,” the Canadian legend said before adding that he takes pride in his country and "the work all of you folks are doing on a daily basis to help maintain Canada's stature in the world." Who is cutting onions?!

“In honour of the January 8th episode of #Jeopardy!, the final new episode hosted by #AlexTrebek, we are humbled to share this special video of him accepting his Academy Icon Award from the 2020,” The Canadian Academy tweeted, adding, “Today we honour his legacy.”

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Trebek was born in 1940 in Sudbury, Ontario where his father immigrated from Ukraine and his mother was French Canadian. He later immigrated to the United States in 1973 and became a U.S. citizen years later.

Trebek hosted Jeopardy! for 36 years and touched the lives of many families around the globe. He holds the Guinness World Record for most episodes of a game show hosted as of June 2014 with 6,829 episodes.

Trebek had been very open about his battle with pancreatic cancer and revealed the news of his diagnosis to his fans in March 2019. After undergoing months of treatment, Trebek shared that he had finished treatment in August of the same year but only one month later he said he was undergoing chemotherapy once again.

The Los Angeles Times reports that Katie Couric is set to serve as one of the first guest hosts of Jeopardy! after the final episodes featuring Trebek finish airing later this week. Jeopardy! producers have said that the show will feature guest-hosts until they find a permanent replacement, though it will be extremely hard to replace the host of 36 years. Jeopardy! champion Ken Jennings is also set to host episodes of the long-running trivia show. 

Trebek's final episode, airing tomorrow, will include "a special tribute to the life and work of the man who captained America's Favourite Quiz Show with skill, style, and sophistication for 36+ years," according to a statement from Jeopardy! producer Sony Pictures Television. 

BEFORE YOU GO: How Alex Trebek's passion about trivia made Jeopardy! so special

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