Musings of a Dead Parrot

THIS WEEK'S QUESTIONS
1. What current TV hit has the same title as its original 1970s version, except that the final character has been changed from a letter to a numeral? what tv show is a remake of something from the 1970s? All I can recall from the 1970s are Norman Lear comedies, Garry Marshall comedies and MTM and its spinoffs.
2. As doctors measure (using intra-articular space), what is the largest joint in the human body? hip?
3. Two world nations border 14 neighbors each. What third country borders *both* of those nations--and no others? Mongolia
4. What was originally called the "Pluto platter" when it was first sold in 1955? frisbee
5. What kind of animal did the witch Circe turn Odysseus's crew into? sheep
6. Who's the longest-ago major-party U.S. presidential candidate still living? I think that George McGovern is still alive. He is over 90.
7. What unusual distinction is shared by these songs? Counting Crows' "Mr. Jones," Cream's "White Room," Kermit the Frog's "It's Not Easy Being Green," Alanis Morissette's "Hand in My Pocket," Pearl Jam's "Jeremy," Radiohead's "Karma Police," Simon and Garfunkel's "America," Suzanne Vega's "Tom's Diner."

LAST WEEK'S ANSWERS
1. Thanks to her recent TV success, who has her first Top Ten hit in eight years with "On the Floor"? Replacing S-Co on American Idol was a canny career move for J-Lo. correct
2. U.S. consumption of what vegetable doubled in the 1990s, thanks to the 1986 debut of its "baby" variety? Baby carrots were a windfall for the carrot industry, even after a scandalized America discovered that baby carrots are just adult carrots shaved down with some kind of carrot lathe. correct
3. What 2011 buzzword also names a 1969 Paul Newman racing movie, a 1981 Santana single, and a best-selling Jack Welch management book from 2005? WINNING! If you routinely answer every question on this quiz "WINNING!" (I'm looking at you, Charlie Sheen!) you finally got one right this week. winning? not me
4. On May 8, 1657, who refused the British crown? That was Oliver Cromwell--within a few years he was missing the part of his body on which he would have worn said crown, so it turned out to be mostly moot. coincidentally, this came up as an answer on Jeopardy tonight
5. What sporting event was first held in 1967, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the American purchase of its territory? The Senate bought Alaska from the Russians in 1867--this is the Iditarod dogsled race. correct
6. By one common definition, what number is a "whole number" but not a "counting number"? The whole numbers are often said to start at zero, but the counting numbers start with one. The TV show NUMB3RS, on other hand, often started with a suspiciously math-themed crime. correct
7. What unusual distinction is shared by all these literary figures? Frankie Addams (The Member of the Wedding), Amir (The Kite Runner), Benjamin (Genesis), Cathy Linton (Wuthering Heights), Inigo Montoya (The Princess Bride), Smerdyakov (The Brothers Karamazov), Snow White, Oliver Twist, Voldemort (Harry Potter), the Wicked Witch of the East (Wicked). All these characters' mothers died in childbirth with them. The list of real famous names with the same sad medical incident in their pasts is quite short, so this must always have been more common on the page than in real life. correct