WEEK OF MARCH 31, 2008
Word of the week: "CamelCase." It is the practice of writing compound words or phrases with a capital letter somewhere within them. The word is derived from the camel-like "bumps" formed by the internal uppercase letters as compared to the surrounding lowercase letters. Many well-known trade names use CamelCase, like iPhone, eBay, FedEx and BlackBerry.
Sorry to be so late on this, but we were very amused to discover that media celebrity Paris Hilton was engaged for a time in 2005 to a fellow with the same first name, shipping heir Paris Latsis. It reminded us of when Tom Cruise and Penelope Cruz were an item a few years before that. If you can think of any other celebrity couples with an interesting name relationship, please let us know.
Prime-time durability update: Thanks to all who wrote with nominations for starring-role spreads exceeding David McCallum's 44 years. We now know two stars with an even greater spread: James Garner with 48 (1957-2005, "Maverick" and "8 Simple Rules..."), and the winner, Mike Wallace's 50-year spread (1956-2006, the game show "The Big Surprise" and "60 Minutes").
The French region of Provence has been inhabited since prehistoric times. Marseille, its largest city, was founded circa 550 B.C. by Greek colonists. Later inhabited by Ligurians and Celts, the region was conquered by the Roman Empire in the second century B.C. As one of the first areas conquered by Rome, it was given the name Provincia ("province" in Latin).
The 20th Century Fox film studios and the various Fox television networks, today owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, are named for a man whose connection to the company ended more than 75 years ago. Hungarian-born William Fox (born Wilhelm Fuchs) founded his film company in 1915 and lost it to a hostile takeover in 1930. Fox merged with Twentieth Century Pictures in 1935.
What's in a letter? Pharmaceutical-company research has shown that drug names that contain letters with a "hard edge" (like P, K, and T) convey effectiveness. The letter X leaves a "scientific" impression, Z conveys "speed," and L, R or S have a calming or relaxing effect.
Small-town celebrity birthplace of the week: Webster City, Iowa (current population about 8,000). Historical novelist MacKinlay Kantor was born there in 1904. Kantor's narrative poem "Glory for Me" was the basis of the classic 1946 film "The Best Years of Our Lives," which won seven Academy Awards.
The "Hollywood Suntan" is a symbol of stylish good health today, but it wasn't always so. In the 19th century, a suntan was the mark of a laborer who worked outdoors. Actor Douglas Fairbanks Sr. was among the first to popularize the suntan, around 1920. It was helped along by French fashion designer Coco Chanel, who began using tanned mannequins in the "Roaring" decade.
What's the world's most played song? There's probably no way to get a definitive answer, but Lu Hughes of Walnut Creek, Calif., nominates "It's a Small World," which is heard at the attraction of the same name in Disney theme parks worldwide. She figures there's no time when the song isn't being played somewhere. Have another nomination? Please let us know.
Veteran crossword fans may remember the word "evoe," an ancient Greek exclamation of exhilaration that was once a crossword staple. It's now extinct, thanks to modern puzzle editors' distaste for obscurities. We were reminded of "evoe" when we recently encountered EVOO, the acronym for "extra virgin olive oil," popularized by TV cooking show host Rachael Ray.
TRIVIA
1) On three occasions in Academy Award history, one film yielded three of the five nominees for Best Supporting Actor. Coincidentally, all three films won a Best Picture Oscar. Two of the films are "On the Waterfront" and "The Godfather." What is the third?
A) "The Godfather Part II"
B) "Gone With the Wind"
C) "Forrest Gump"
D) "Rocky"
2) On April 30, 1939, the opening night of the New York World's Fair, the switch that illuminated the fairgrounds was thrown by what celebrity?
A) Thomas Edison
B) Judy Garland
C) Babe Ruth
D) Albert Einstein
3) Complete this quote from German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe: "Nothing shows a man's character more than ..."
A) The foods he eats
B) What he laughs at
C) How he handles success
D) The personality of his children
4) Which of these English words, all derived from the plural of Italian words, does not have a "singular Italian" version in American English dictionaries; that is, the same word ending in an "o" instead of an "i"?
A) Broccoli
B) Graffiti
C) Paparazzi
D) Biscotti
5) The Hammer, Jupiter, Sleeping Beauty and Vesuvius are all names of:
A) Horses that have won the Kentucky Derby
B) Grammy-winning rap artists
C) Stradivarius violins
D) Casino slot machines
ANSWERS
1) The three films that have each yielded three of the five nominees for Best Supporting Actor, all Best Picture Oscar winners, are "On the Waterfront," "The Godfather" and "The Godfather Part II."
2) Physicist Albert Einstein threw the switch that illuminated the 1939 New York World's Fair on its opening night.
3) According to German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe: "Nothing shows a man's character more than what he laughs at."
4) The word "broccoli," literally "little sprouts" in Italian, has no singular "broccolo" version in American English dictionaries. (Thanks to Joe Lasusky of Castro Valley, Calif., for the idea.)
5) The Hammer, Jupiter, Sleeping Beauty and Vesuvius are all names of Stradivarius violins.
STAN'S WEEKLY TRIVIA CHALLENGE CONTEST NO. 79
What Oscar-winning actor is a "direct link" between Charlie Chaplin and Charlie Sheen, having appeared in one of Chaplin's last films, as well as a 1990s film with Sheen?
HOW TO WIN: Send your answer, with your full name and address, either by e-mail to TriviaBits@gmail.com, or on a postcard to Stan Newman's Trivia Challenge No. 79, P.O. Box 69, Massapequa Park, NY 11762. Only one submission per person, please. Answers must be received within seven days of publication. One winner will be chosen at random from all correct entries, who will receive a copy of Stan's new book "15,003 Answers: The Ultimate Trivia Encyclopedia," courtesy of Random House. Answer and winner will be announced in a future issue.
ANSWER TO TRIVIA CHALLENGE CONTEST NO. 72
The Oct. 30, 1938, radio broadcast of an adaptation of H.G. Wells' "War of the Worlds" brought national fame to the show's director, Orson Welles. Playing in the CBS orchestra for the broadcast that night was Mitch Miller of 1960s "Sing Along" fame, who will celebrate his 97th birthday on July 4th. Winner: Leslie Reese of Amarillo, Texas.
Stanley Newman is the editor of the Newsday Crossword and author/editor of more than 125 books on crosswords, word games and trivia, including "15,003 Answers: The Ultimate Trivia Encyclopedia" (Random House). To find out more about Stanley Newman visit StanXwords.com, or e-mail him at StanTrivia@aol.com
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