Jeopardy! boss Mike Richards will use his experience working on the post-Bob Barker Price is Right in finding Alex Trebek's replacement

The New York Times

Richards ended up becoming the executive producer of The Price is Right hosted by Drew Carey after auditioning for the hosting job himself. Richards was brought on board to fix the Carey version of the show after it initially suffered in the ratings. “They were trying to make Drew host Bob’s show,” Richards recalled to The New York Times. “And I thought it was very important that Drew host Drew’s version of The Price is Right.” Carey said that Barker himself had given him similar advice during the transition. "He said, ‘Go in there and don’t try to copy me. Do the show your own way,’” Carey said in an interview. “He was right. I can’t go in and do a Bob Barker impersonation.” Carey and Richards agreed that while Barker had a self-assured, authoritative air as host, Carey’s strengths lay in his interactions with audience members and his colleagues onstage. “I’m like a guy playing along with you or helping you up onstage and being Mr. Friendly,” Carey said of his more down-to-earth approach. So, they changed the entrance. Carey was no longer introduced as the “star” of the show, but as its “host.” ALSO: Watch Ken Jennings' comments in his debut as interim Jeopardy! host.