'Jeopardy!' Champ Brian Henegar Responds to 'Very Jerky People' Who Compared His Mustache to Adolf Hitler's

After winning over $23,000 on Jeopardy!, Brian Henegar was bombarded with tweets about his appearance — and vowed to donate some of his winnings to the Anti-Defamation League

Brian Henegar/Twitter
Brian Henegar/Twitter

Brian Henegar's time in the spotlight as a Jeopardy! champion has had the ugly side effect of exposing him to online hate.

After Henegar appeared on the game show, he was virtually trolled for his appearance — with some Twitter users comparing his mustache to that of reviled Nazi World War II instigator Adolf Hitler. "I'm seeing what a bunch of Jerks on Twitter are doing because all they can focus on my looks… So I'm going to be leaving Twitter for a while, see you soon," Henegar first tweeted.

He returned to Twitter shortly after with more thoughts, after waves of viewers rallied behind his personal style. "So…I'm back on Twitter for the time being at least… I wanna say that seeing these really hurtful comments by some very jerky people made me lose all faith in humanity," Henegar wrote. "Seeing all of your positive replies, restored it, and then some. Thank u all and god bless you."

Related:Jeopardy! Score Snafu: Contestants' Final Winnings Accidentally Revealed at the Start of Episode

Henegar also decided to use the hatred for good — by donating some of his Jeopardy! money to the Anti-Defamation League. "And second, to all of you jerkolas you thought comparing my appearance to one of the most evil dictators, who ever lived was the height of comedy, when I get my Jeopardy winnings, I will be making a donation to the Anti-Defamation League."

In the end, Henegar decided the mustache no longer has a place in his life. He first vowed to shave the facial hair but settled for growing a goatee. "I admit that I run the risk of making myself look like my evil twin from a parallel universe, but that's just the risk I am willing to take," Henegar joked.

Related:Amy Schneider and Matt Amodio to Compete Against Other Champs in New Jeopardy! Masters Series

Henegar first went viral — following his Jeopardy! win of over $23,000 — not for his mustache, but for his genuine joy at the surprising win. The guest services agent from Tennessee won on a question about novelist John Grisham.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Jeopardy! airs weeknights (check local listings).

For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.