Tuesday, September 02, 2008
Ken Jennings Tuesday Trivia - September 2
THIS WEEK'S QUIZ
1. What TV show was originally titled Rampart, in reference to the 1990s LAPD scandal of the same name? In the Rampart scandal, cops tampered with evidence, planted evidence, stole drugs seized as evidence. What cop show does that sound like? Or lawyer show? Law and Order?
2. In September 1916, who became the first billionaire in American history? John D. Rockefeller
3. Despite its diminutive name, what is, by area, the largest state in Mexico? Baja is really two states - Baja Norte and Baja Sud. Is that what he is looking for?
4. What two colorful major league catchers were childhood friends on St. Louis's Elizabeth Avenue, a block now called "Hall of Fame Place"? I think that Yogi Berra and Joe Garagiola are both from St. Louis.
5. What is made up of slow twitch and fast twitch fibers? muscles
6. In Greek myth, into what kind of animal did Zeus turn Lycaon, the first king of Arcadia?
7. What unusual distinction is shared by all these movies? Boys Don't Cry, The Last Emperor, The Last Temptation of Christ, Nighthawks, The Princess Bride, The Royal Tenenbaums, There Will Be Blood, Wall Street.
LAST WEEK'S ANSWERS
1. The Eclipse Awards are given for achievement in what sport? Horse racing. Eclipse was the 18th-century champ from whom almost 80% of today's thoroughbreads are descended. correct
2. What's the only mainland European capital located on the Atlantic--not a sea of the Atlantic, but the ocean proper? Lisbon, Portugal, at the mouth of the Tagus river. correct
3. What famous October 1960 incident was precipitated by a speech from a Filipino diplomat named Lorenzo Sumulong? Sumulong pissed off visiting Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev so much that Khrushchev removed his shoe and banged it on the U.N. delegate desk. correct
4. The piano theme that accompanies the current "WB" logo at the start of Warner Brothers films is based on what classic movie song? "As Time Goes By," from maybe the most iconic Warner Brothers movie of all time. doh! missed by that much
5. What product was manufactured by entrepreneurs like John Underwood, L. C. Smith, Thomas Oliver, and Camillo Olivetti? You may have seen all their names on typewriters (Smith founded Smith-Corona). If you remember what a typewriter is. correct
6. What multimillion-selling U.S. musical group is named for a central Chinese mountain range? Tien Shan-Na Na. No, just kidding. The Wu-Tang Clan is named for the Wudang range, long associated with martial arts. Wu-Tang Forever! correct
7. What unusual distinction is shared by all these English words: "beam," "branch," "camp," "frank," "kindred," "noel," "rice," "rider," "staples," and "town"? These are all the middle names of well-known science fiction/fantasy authors (though you didn't have to mention the genre for full credit). Here's the full list: H. Beam Piper, James Branch Cabell, Madeline Camp L'Engle, L. Frank Baum, Philip Kindred Dick, Douglas Noel Adams, Edgar Rice Burroughs, H. Rider Haggard, Clive Staples Lewis, and Neal Town Stephenson. (One note on L'Engle: I got that name from Encarta, but I now see that other sources list Camp as her maiden name, not a given middle name. So that one's actually wrong, unless she used her maiden name as a middle name after she married.) good God, this is obscure
1. What TV show was originally titled Rampart, in reference to the 1990s LAPD scandal of the same name? In the Rampart scandal, cops tampered with evidence, planted evidence, stole drugs seized as evidence. What cop show does that sound like? Or lawyer show? Law and Order?
2. In September 1916, who became the first billionaire in American history? John D. Rockefeller
3. Despite its diminutive name, what is, by area, the largest state in Mexico? Baja is really two states - Baja Norte and Baja Sud. Is that what he is looking for?
4. What two colorful major league catchers were childhood friends on St. Louis's Elizabeth Avenue, a block now called "Hall of Fame Place"? I think that Yogi Berra and Joe Garagiola are both from St. Louis.
5. What is made up of slow twitch and fast twitch fibers? muscles
6. In Greek myth, into what kind of animal did Zeus turn Lycaon, the first king of Arcadia?
7. What unusual distinction is shared by all these movies? Boys Don't Cry, The Last Emperor, The Last Temptation of Christ, Nighthawks, The Princess Bride, The Royal Tenenbaums, There Will Be Blood, Wall Street.
LAST WEEK'S ANSWERS
1. The Eclipse Awards are given for achievement in what sport? Horse racing. Eclipse was the 18th-century champ from whom almost 80% of today's thoroughbreads are descended. correct
2. What's the only mainland European capital located on the Atlantic--not a sea of the Atlantic, but the ocean proper? Lisbon, Portugal, at the mouth of the Tagus river. correct
3. What famous October 1960 incident was precipitated by a speech from a Filipino diplomat named Lorenzo Sumulong? Sumulong pissed off visiting Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev so much that Khrushchev removed his shoe and banged it on the U.N. delegate desk. correct
4. The piano theme that accompanies the current "WB" logo at the start of Warner Brothers films is based on what classic movie song? "As Time Goes By," from maybe the most iconic Warner Brothers movie of all time. doh! missed by that much
5. What product was manufactured by entrepreneurs like John Underwood, L. C. Smith, Thomas Oliver, and Camillo Olivetti? You may have seen all their names on typewriters (Smith founded Smith-Corona). If you remember what a typewriter is. correct
6. What multimillion-selling U.S. musical group is named for a central Chinese mountain range? Tien Shan-Na Na. No, just kidding. The Wu-Tang Clan is named for the Wudang range, long associated with martial arts. Wu-Tang Forever! correct
7. What unusual distinction is shared by all these English words: "beam," "branch," "camp," "frank," "kindred," "noel," "rice," "rider," "staples," and "town"? These are all the middle names of well-known science fiction/fantasy authors (though you didn't have to mention the genre for full credit). Here's the full list: H. Beam Piper, James Branch Cabell, Madeline Camp L'Engle, L. Frank Baum, Philip Kindred Dick, Douglas Noel Adams, Edgar Rice Burroughs, H. Rider Haggard, Clive Staples Lewis, and Neal Town Stephenson. (One note on L'Engle: I got that name from Encarta, but I now see that other sources list Camp as her maiden name, not a given middle name. So that one's actually wrong, unless she used her maiden name as a middle name after she married.) good God, this is obscure
