Alex Trebek’s Widow Jean Sits Down for Her First Interview Since His Death

Six months after Alex Trebek’s death, his widow Jean sat down for her first TV interview.

Asked how she is doing following the loss of her husband, Jean told Savannah Guthrie on “Inspiring America: The 2021 Inspiration List,” which airs on Saturday, “I think right now, talking with you, I'm good… I absolutely have moments of waves of grief that just come over me. I miss him a lot.”

Reflecting on Alex’s openness about his pancreatic cancer diagnosis, Jean shared, “I think that is one of Alex's gifts was that he could be very resolute and know that the truth will not hurt you and he wanted to empower people to move through whatever challenge they had in life with a sense of inner strength, inner dignity, and love, and love.”

After his cancer revelation, Alex received an outpouring of love and support from his fans. Jean pointed out, “I think one of the beautiful things, the blessings that came, if you can call it a blessing, was that he got to really see the outpouring of love and admiration that he gave to the world.”

“And some people just, you know, you don't see that while you're still embodied, you don't get to really witness all the love that people feel for you,” Jean added. “And I know that that was in and of itself a huge inspiration for Alex.”

In November, Jean broke her silence on Alex’s death, sharing a photo from their 1990 wedding and writing on Instagram, “My family and I sincerely thank you all for your compassionate messages and generosity. Your expressions have truly touched our hearts. Thank you so very, very much.”