July 31, 2008 question

The man of the forest is the orangutan. Yeah, that's right, the "orang" in his name has nothing to do with his color. It's just the Malay word for man. Of course, the Malay people are typically very round and juicy, so you can draw your own conclusions. But I'll allow no such flexibility on today's question, which branches off of yesterday's in a "rhymes with orang" kind of way. Here's the question:

According to Merriam-Webster's dictionary, the primary pronunciation of orangutan rhymes with:

A) Tan
B) Tang
C) Ton

And orange-flavored kudos to Andrew, Heather M (the M stands for Malay Is My Fourth Language), Karen M (the M stands for Misty Gorillas), and Charles for knowing all about the sometimes orange, sometimes reddish, and sometimes maroon orangutan.

July 30, 2008 question

An Andean Condor can fly three (and a half) miles high (or about 18,000 feet). That is really high. If you're not a condor, you don't want to be caught alive that high (being caught dead there would be fine . . . I mean, you're already dead, what's gonna happen?).

Anyway, I think I have a question or two left from my visit to the zoo, so let's see who really reigns supreme in the animal trivia kingdom:

What animal's name is derived from the Malay word for "man of the forest"?

Oh, and I can't forget to give credit to those who knew the condor's altitudinous limits:

Frank
Andrew
Heidi

Your brains are soaring. . . . You, um, might want to get that checked.

July 29, 2008 question

The only mammal parasite is the Vampire Bat, although Karen H pointed out that in some cases a conjoined twin is classified as parasitic. But since that doesn't really span an entire species of mammal, I'll give sole credit to Andrew, who really knows his bloodsuckers.

Speaking of bloodsuckers . . . geez, I could put just about anybody here and really deliver a knockout insult. But I'm going to refrain, because I'm really not that vindictive of a person. Some of you may be wondering that as you've seen your name accidentally left off of the trivia winners list when you KNOW you got the answer correct. Well, let me assure you: I didn't mean to withhold credit from you. And even if I did, I wouldn't tell you. I'm not that upfront of a person, either. Be that as it may (and believe me, it may) here's today's zoo question:

How many miles high can an Andean Condor fly?

July 28, 2008 question

I'm not sure why I worded the question as I did, but as a result of the confusion, I'll accept 0 or 1 month as a right answer for Friday's question. Adolf and Eva were married for about a day until self-inflicted death parted them.  Here's who knew it wouldn't last:

Heather M (the M stands for Matrimony Has Never Been So Unholy)
Elena
Mike K (the K stands for Knot Not Tied Very Long)
Karen M (the M stands for Marriage Made In . . . A Bunker Way, Way Down There)

And on that cheery note, we segue seamlessly into the trivial world of stuff I learned on my trip to the zoo. Here's the first in what promises to be a very short series of questions:

What is the only mammal considered to be a parasite?

July 25, 2008 question

Man, I can't sneak anything past you. Here's who knew that the mystery couple was Archie and Jughead:

Paul C (the C stands for Cutting Room Floor)
Heather M (the M stands for Maybe Betty)
Andrew
Karen M (the M stands for Maybe Veronica)
Steve T (the T stands for Teenage Wasteland)
Micaela
Mathias
Jacqueline
Karen H (the H stands for Hey, Meathead)
Charles

Today's duo is slightly less comedic. Here it is:

For how many months were Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun married?

July 24, 2008 question

Ken Carson and Barbie Roberts became just friends in 2004 shortly before Aussie/Cali surfer dude Blaine shot the curl into the world of plastic leggie doll-o-dramas. Islem, Kristin, and . . . Kyle? knew that tidbit about Ken. You should be proud.

Really. Don't be ashamed. Not at all.

. . . Anyway, before the next gruesome twosome question, I just thought I'd take a moment to ask this political sidebar question: Why is Barack Obama already acting like he's president? Here's my political sidebar answer: because, setting aside whatever feelings anyone may have about his politics or his stances on the issues or the favorable media bias, the guy is good. It's gonna be real hard for John McCain to beat Obama in this battle between Scottish and Irish. Obama is convincingly playing the part of president, and John McCain is convincingly playing the part of Bob Dole.

Please don't interpret this as endorsement (and don't interpret that as a denouncement), but I've said it before and I'll say it again: Barack Obama is the next president of the United States. Here's today's question:

What are the more popular names of Archibald Andrews and Forsythe Pendleton Jones III?

July 22, 2008 question

Dick Grayson was the first Robin. Anybody could have told you that. And by "anybody," I mean:

Paul C (the C stands for Caped Crusader And Star Of The Dark Knight)
Islem
Robbie

Well done, dynamic . . . trio. Unfortunately, we have no time to celebrate your glory (or the fact that Paul C really is in the new Batman movie and is therefore linked to Kevin Bacon by two degrees--Paul C was in The Dark Knight with Gary Oldman; Gary Oldman was in Murder in the First with Kevin Bacon). No, we have to react to the story that Mattel won their case against the makers of Bratz, since the designer who created these darling Barbie-trouncers was a Mattel employee at the time the dollz were dreamed up. So, here it is, in honor of the victors, the next question in the series of famous duos:

What is the last name of Barbie's ex-boyfriend Ken?

July 18, 2008 question

I will tell you the name of the pitcher in "Who's on First?" . . . Tomorrow. Why don't you tell us now? I just did. When? Just now. Well tell us again! Okay, Tomorrow. Don't tell us tomorrow! Why not, you just asked me to? We just want to know the name of the pitcher, so tel us today! That's the catcher. Who's the catcher? No, Who's on first.

And so on. Here's who knew:

Islem
Paul C (the C stands for Catching Today, Pitching Tomorrow)
Kyle

Way to sift through the confusing pronouns! Of course, today you'll have to solve the trivia mystery Batman style as we go from comedic duos to the Dynamic Duo. Here's the question:

What was the true identity of Batman's first Robin sidekick?

July 17, 2008 question

Stanley or Stan Laurel is the massively challenged (i.e. skinny) member of the Laurel & (Oliver) Hardy comedy team. Congratulations on another fine trivia performance from:

Maridee
Konrad
Paul C (the C stands for Chum)
Larry
Kyle
Karen M (the M stands for Make 'Em Laugh)
Heather M (the M stands for Make 'Em Breakfast)
Steve J (the J stands for Jazzy Jeff)
Andrew
Charles
Karen H (the H stands for Humorous Not Humongous)

Wow. That's a whole lot of smarts. Let's see who can maintain trivial supremacy as we move to yet another comedic duo. Here's the question:

In the Abbott & Costello routine "Who's on First?" what was the name of the pitcher? I mean, What was the name of the second baseman, but who was the pitcher? No, wait, Who was the first baseman. I don't know . . . THIRD BASE. Anyway, fill in the blank. The pitcher's name was ________?

July 16, 2008 question

I'm so sorry to keep you waiting for the lung-draining answer to Friday's question. The past couple mornings have been rough . . . who gets a cold in the middle of July?

Anyway, that's not important. What is important, nay, crucial, nay, trivial is that I give a threshing floor full of credit to Konrad, Maridee, Charles, Heidi, Karen M (the M stands for Mucho Longo Waito) and Karen H stands for Hors D'oeuvre Des Fibres) for knowing that bran is the fibrous hard outer shell of cereal grains. I'm sure they also knew that the germ is the tasty fiber-free part.

But we're moving on. Instead of taking time to bask in the glow of trivial correctness, you want to challenge yourself once again, I'm sure, to new levels of brain activity and pointless recall. So here you go, the first in a series of famous duo trivia questions:

In the Laurel and Hardy comedy team, what was the first name of the skinny one?

July 11, 2008 question

After his first term as governor of Arkansas, Bill Clinton lost the 1980 gubernatorial election to Frank D. White, only to reclaim his spot in the Governor's Mansion by winning the 1982 runoff and spending the next 10 years in that spot before moving into a bigger house. (And after he left office, Mike Huckabee became the Lt. Governor, then the Governor four years later.)

Steve J (the J stands for Just For The Record, Heidi, Bill Actually Won The Election To Become The Next Ronald McDonald) was the only winner and is currently moving his things into the Trivia Mansion. Hopefully he'll have time to answer this question:

What is bran? Seriously, what is it?

July 10, 2008 question

Hillary Clinton was 45 when she became First Lady of the United States, but she was 31 when she first became First Lady . . . of Arkansas. And since everyone's guesses ranged from 41 to 43, I don't know whether to give credit to people closer to 45 or closer to 31. As a result, no credit! That's right. I'm hurt that as a group you have tossed Ms. Clinton to the side of the road and forgotten all about her illustrious history as a lawmaker and mover & shaker in Arkansas. You're all in time out.



Okay. Time out's over. I hope you've learned your lesson, cuz here comes some more Clintonian trivia:

What was the last election that Bill Clinton lost?

July 9, 2008 question

Dana Torres is 41 and still one of the best swimmers in the world. By way of comparison, here's today's question:

How old was Hillary Clinton when she first became First Lady?

And here's who knew about Dana's age:

H. E. (H E stands for How Elderly?)
Kristin
Julia
Jacqueline
Kyle
Steve J (the J stands for Joints Ache)
Karen M (the M stands for Making History)
Dana
Paul K (the K stands for Kicking, Still)
Heather M (the M stands for Man, I Feel Like A Woman)

Way to go. I said, WAY TO GO!

July 8, 2008 question

The theme to Sanford and Son was written and composed by Quincy Jones, the guy with more Grammy's on his shelves than anyone else in history. Islem was the only one to get it right, although I'll give partial credit to Karen H (the H stands for How Can I Not Give Credit For Somebody Quincy?).

Well, the Summer Olympics is just one month away, and I'm finding myself extremely excited for it. This is the first time son #1 will be old enough to really understand what is going on, and I think he'll absolutely eat it up. It should be a slightly better influence on him than American Gladiators is. My only fear is that his favorite event will be javelin or the hammer throw.

So now I have a few topics for possible trivia questions . . . but I'm finally settled on this one:

How old is Dana Torres, slated to become the oldest American swimmer ever to compete in the Olympics?

July 7, 2008 question

Garfield died a few months after he was shot. His shooter, Charles Guiteau, died the following July. Here's who knew:

Steve T (the T stands for The Fourth Rocks)
Kyle
Nancy K (the K stands for Kid Rock)

Now, on to today's trivia, which was revealed to me as by a dream. Except it wasn't a dream, it was the closing credits to Hancock. Here's the question:

Who wrote and performed, "Streetbeater," also known as the theme to Sanford and Son, also known as the greatest wordless song ever?

July 3, 2008 question

James A. Garfield was shot by Charles Guiteau (but he swears it was in self defense), and here's who knew:

Matthias
Islem
Kyle
Karen M (the M stands for Marley Lover)

President Garfield is a wellspring of trivial abundance, so I can't stop with just one question. Here's the next one:

Who died first: President Garfield or the man who shot him?

July 2, 2008 question

Cobalt has the blues, since no one knew his number was 27. Nestled there between iron and nickel, nobody pays much attention to cobalt. Poor cobalt.

Well, since nobody knew the science question, we'll have to move on to history. Here it goes, summer school students:

Who did Charles J. Guiteau shoot at a train station on this date in 1881?

July 1, 2008 question

Whoa! Just got back from being abducted by aliens. They made me build a swing set. By the end of it, I would have preferred the usual probe regimen, but abductees can't be choosers, as the saying goes. The saying is less popular here on earth, but trust me, on the mother ship you get tired of hearing it.

Anyway, here's who knew that sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) mixed with acids of various sorts creates a little something something me and Martha S. like to call baking powder:

Islem
Karen H (the H stands for How Do You Know Martha?)
Karen M (the M stands for My Stylist Was Her Cell Mate)
Heidi

While we're on the subject of household chemistry, here's another question about the elements, as we in trivia are accustomed to covering periodically:

What is number 27 on the Periodic Table of the Elements?