I’ll Take Grandstanding Up-And-Comers For $1000, Alex

It’s not his inability to budget or his perennial up-and-coming status (incidentally, what do you call it when you were once up and coming but never got there — “the downstalling of an up-and-comer”?) but rather the Jeopardy questions:

A Queens City Councilmember recently found himself as one of the clues on the popular game show “Jeopardy!” and a day later the clue resonated in a real-life example.

The Jeopardy clue, “New York City Councilman Eric Gioia says 10 U.N. Missions owe the city $8 million in these.”

“What is parking tickets,” buzzed in a contestant with the correct answer for $1,200.

For years, Gioia has been a fervent voice in the movement to collect outstanding parking tickets and property taxes owed to the city.

“For a kid from Queens who used to watch “Jeopardy!” on TV with my parents in Woodside this was quite a thrill,” Gioia said. “We’ve got to find creative ways for the city raise and save money in tough economic times, so it’s especially important that the city collect on diplomats who owe the city millions in parking tickets and taxes. I’m happy Alex Trebek realized it too.”