Patrick Curran on a recent airing of Jeopardy!

/ Courtesy of Jeopardy Productions, Inc.

Update, Jan. 10: D.C.-area consultant Patrick Curran’s run on Jeopardy! came to an end Monday evening. He lost to fellow contestant Connor Sears, who raked in an impressive $28,000 in one night.

Curran’s two-night winnings totaled $45,000. He congratulated Sears on Twitter after the show aired Monday:

Update, Jan. 9: Curran won again on Friday and will be back at the podium Monday, Jan. 9. The crew at Breadsoda is having a blast cheering him on.

Steve Teague, co-owner and general manager at Breadsoda, says the bar immediately started gaining Instagram followers when the news about Curran’s first Jeopardy appearance hit social media. “It’s almost like when the Caps or Nats get into the playoffs, you want them to keep going and going,” Teague says. “We’re hoping for Pat to do well. It keeps the place going, and it’s exciting.”

Christian Hunt, who’s hosted trivia at Breadsoda since 2014, says he’s been especially proud to see one of his first regulars not only make it onto Jeopardy! but win multiple nights in a row.

“It’s just an honor,” Hunt says. “I mean, everyone has been just over the moon. It really has been like a sporting event at Breadsoda. We have it on the big screen and all the TVs. People are cheering and clapping and living and dying with each question. On Friday, he got two of the three Daily Doubles, so people were going ballistic. It’s just been awesome.”

On Monday, Breadsoda will host another watch party to support Curran starting at 7:30 p.m., followed by a condensed trivia night directly after.

Original: This local consultant and Georgetown alum is also a trivia buff and the latest Jeopardy! champion.

Who is Patrick Curran?

We have a winner!

That’s right, local trivia nerds, Glover Park resident Patrick Curran beat out defending champ Lloyd Sy on Thursday night’s airing of America’s favorite trivia show. In final Jeopardy, he correctly guessed the answer (The Godfather) after wagering $5,200, to bring his total earnings to $30,000. Curran has secured his spot in Friday’s episode, and that’s as much as he’s allowed to share about his appearance on the show, which he taped back in November.

While he’s not the first person from the D.C. area to appear on the show, Curran has gained something of a local fanbase due mostly to his regular presence at the Wisconsin Ave. watering hole Breadsoda, where he attends Monday night trivia and is a two-time Trivia Cup champion.

“D.C.’s a great town for [trivia] because I think there’s a lot of — frankly, I say this with love — nerdy people who come here trying to work for the government and save the world,” Curran said when reached by phone. “You go out to the bars at night, and there’s a lot of people who are eager to show off what they know about the world.”

Curran says his trivia know-how began in his childhood when his parents watched Jeopardy! every night.  He adds that now, his wife and family are weary of his pleas to play Trivial Pursuit, but all his time doing crosswords and watching game shows have finally paid off.

Curran says he’s filled out the free “anytime test” to become a contestant on Jeopardy! many times over the years. He finally heard back from the show’s producers last summer and learned he was moving on to the next phase; which ultimately included another set of tests and a background check. Next thing he knew, he was flying out to Los Angeles with family and friends to make his TV debut.

Curran says he prepared for the show with flashcards and an app on his phone. He also made use of the Georgetown branch of the D.C. Public Library, borrowing reference and children’s educational books, which he says are surprisingly useful for memorizing things like important dates and factoids.

“They were wonderful and helpful,” he says of the librarians.

The 30 year old moved to D.C. from Vermont for college in 2010 and has lived here ever since. He worked in communications for Georgetown for a while before taking his current job in strategic communications with the Tysons-based consulting firm Logistics Management Institute.

“I like my job, I love D.C., and I’m happy to be here,” Curran adds. “I really enjoy the dining and bar scene in the city … all the museums and cultural opportunities we have here.”

He has roots in the Buffalo area, where locals are also supporting him from afar; both his late father and grandfather father were well-known journalists in Western New York — yay, local news!

Curran says he watched Thursday night’s show with about 40 locals at Breadsoda, of course. He’ll defend his title in Friday’s episode, which airs on ABC at 7:30 p.m., and Breadsoda will host another watch party to support Curran.

Filed Under: Arts and Culture, Breadsoda, dc trivia, jeopardy, Patrick Curran,