Tuesday, September 24, 2013
Ken Jennings Tuesday Trivia - September 17
THIS WEEK'S QUESTIONS
1. In January 2011, two songs named for explosives traded off several times at the top of the pop chart. One was a Katy Perry song; the other was by Bruno Mars. Name either one. no idea
2. If you use a bottle of a common household product that includes zinc pyrithione as its active ingredient, what chronic condition are you most likely treating? dandruff
3. What large world city was home to the original "favela" neighborhoods, where 1.2 million people live today? Rio de Janeiro
4. All eight of the lead regulars on The Mary Tyler Moore are still alive, except for one who died in 1986. Name that performer. Ted Knight
5. What first name is shared by all three of the youngest men to be named Chief Justice of the United States? John (Marshall, Jay, Roberts?)
6. What novel devoted 70 pages, in its first edition, to a single speech, a radio lecture delivered by inventor John Galt? Atlas Shrugged. Who is that John Galt guy anyway?
7. What unusual distinction is shared by these countries? Cambodia, China, Hungary, Japan, North and South Korea, Madagascar, Taiwan, Vietnam. is this something that is taken from popular culture? I cannot see a common thread otherwise
LAST WEEK'S ANSWERS
1. "Ikebana" is a Japanese art whose name literally means "giving life to" what objects? Ikebana is the art of flower arranging. I knew this at one time. Shoot, I could have scored 100% this week.
2. In 27 of the 50 U.S. states, the highest-paid state employee does what specific job? He's a football coach--typically at the largest state university. In 13 other states, the top-earning public employee is a basketball coach. And in 11 states, it's some loser who doesn't yell at sweaty men. (Unless that's what s/he is into in his/her spare time.) correct
3. Two of the greatest challenges to Bill Clinton's presidency happened on the same date: April 19, in 1993 and 1995. In what two U.S. cities did these events take place? These events are the Waco siege and the Oklahoma City bombing. This wasn't a coincidence; Timothy McVeigh planned the bombing to take place on the second anniversary of Waco. correct
4. What Roman god appropriately lent his name to the planet that was, until 1915, believed to orbit between the Sun and Mercury? Vulcan, the Roman god of the fire, was the namesake of this (non-existent but) very hot planet. If you think about it, that's totally [LOWERS SUNGLASSES] logical. correct
5. What titular advice does Facebook executive Sheryl Sandberg give the women reading her 2013 bestseller? "Lean In." correct
6. What 1974 film--the only outright comedy to top the yearly box-office gross between the 1940s and the 1980s--was set a century earlier, in 1874? Mel Brooks's Blazing Saddles. What a weird, almost 40-year dry spell for comedies. By some accounts, The Graduate was the highest grossing film of 1967, but it's a quasi-drama with many fewer fart jokes, so I added the word "outright" to the question. correct
7. What unusual distinction is shared by these world leaders? Silvio Berlusconi, Anthony Eden, Bob Hawke, Nelson Mandela, Angela Merkel, Andreas Papandreou, Vladimir Putin, Ronald Reagan, Nicolas Sarkozy, Pierre Trudeau. All have been divorced. Many are the only divorcees--past, present, or future--ever to lead their respective nations. correct!
1. In January 2011, two songs named for explosives traded off several times at the top of the pop chart. One was a Katy Perry song; the other was by Bruno Mars. Name either one. no idea
2. If you use a bottle of a common household product that includes zinc pyrithione as its active ingredient, what chronic condition are you most likely treating? dandruff
3. What large world city was home to the original "favela" neighborhoods, where 1.2 million people live today? Rio de Janeiro
4. All eight of the lead regulars on The Mary Tyler Moore are still alive, except for one who died in 1986. Name that performer. Ted Knight
5. What first name is shared by all three of the youngest men to be named Chief Justice of the United States? John (Marshall, Jay, Roberts?)
6. What novel devoted 70 pages, in its first edition, to a single speech, a radio lecture delivered by inventor John Galt? Atlas Shrugged. Who is that John Galt guy anyway?
7. What unusual distinction is shared by these countries? Cambodia, China, Hungary, Japan, North and South Korea, Madagascar, Taiwan, Vietnam. is this something that is taken from popular culture? I cannot see a common thread otherwise
LAST WEEK'S ANSWERS
1. "Ikebana" is a Japanese art whose name literally means "giving life to" what objects? Ikebana is the art of flower arranging. I knew this at one time. Shoot, I could have scored 100% this week.
2. In 27 of the 50 U.S. states, the highest-paid state employee does what specific job? He's a football coach--typically at the largest state university. In 13 other states, the top-earning public employee is a basketball coach. And in 11 states, it's some loser who doesn't yell at sweaty men. (Unless that's what s/he is into in his/her spare time.) correct
3. Two of the greatest challenges to Bill Clinton's presidency happened on the same date: April 19, in 1993 and 1995. In what two U.S. cities did these events take place? These events are the Waco siege and the Oklahoma City bombing. This wasn't a coincidence; Timothy McVeigh planned the bombing to take place on the second anniversary of Waco. correct
4. What Roman god appropriately lent his name to the planet that was, until 1915, believed to orbit between the Sun and Mercury? Vulcan, the Roman god of the fire, was the namesake of this (non-existent but) very hot planet. If you think about it, that's totally [LOWERS SUNGLASSES] logical. correct
5. What titular advice does Facebook executive Sheryl Sandberg give the women reading her 2013 bestseller? "Lean In." correct
6. What 1974 film--the only outright comedy to top the yearly box-office gross between the 1940s and the 1980s--was set a century earlier, in 1874? Mel Brooks's Blazing Saddles. What a weird, almost 40-year dry spell for comedies. By some accounts, The Graduate was the highest grossing film of 1967, but it's a quasi-drama with many fewer fart jokes, so I added the word "outright" to the question. correct
7. What unusual distinction is shared by these world leaders? Silvio Berlusconi, Anthony Eden, Bob Hawke, Nelson Mandela, Angela Merkel, Andreas Papandreou, Vladimir Putin, Ronald Reagan, Nicolas Sarkozy, Pierre Trudeau. All have been divorced. Many are the only divorcees--past, present, or future--ever to lead their respective nations. correct!
