WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 15, 2008
Word of the week: "muselet." It is the wire apparatus that secures a champagne cork to the bottle, invented by Frenchman Adolphe Jacquesson in 1844. Monsieur Jacquesson also devised the decorative metal capsule that covers the cork under the muselet. A placomusephile is a collector of those capsules.
Unwrapped Update: Thanks to all who wrote with explanations of why many foreign-made music CDs aren't shrink-wrapped. But we don't have the final word on the matter, because two plausible answers were proposed. What do you think? Is it to allow U.S. Customs to inspect the product, or to cut down on foreign bootlegging? Or maybe a bit of both? If you have any additional info on this, please let us know.
For 21 straight years (1959-1980), producer Quinn Martin had at least one TV series in prime time, an industry record. It started with "The Untouchables" and ended with "Barnaby Jones," with such classics as "The Fugitive" and "The Streets of San Francisco" in between. Martin was once married to Madelyn Pugh, part of the writing team for "I Love Lucy."
We recently bought an antique ruler promoting a Stockton, Calif., printing company that had a four-digit phone number. It got us to do a little research on phone-number history. We were surprised to learn that the use of area codes in the U.S. goes all the way back to 1951, when residents of two New Jersey communities were first given the ability to "direct dial" 11 cities nationwide. More on the subject in a future column.
There's a direct connection between La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles and carrot cake, and that's entrepreneur George C. Page. Page funded the L.A. museum that displays the Tar Pits' discoveries. He was also responsible for the popularization of carrot cake in the U.S. after World War II, having massive amounts of dehydrated carrots left over from his inventory originally intended for American troops.
There are two "degrees of separation" between Steve Martin and Raymond Burr, whose character in the 1956 film "Godzilla" was named Steve Martin. Burr starred in "Airplane II: The Sequel" with Peter Graves, who appeared in "Looney Tunes: Back in Action" with Martin. By the way, Steve Martin was also the name of William Demarest's character (Al Jolson's fictional mentor) in the original "Jazz Singer" and "The Jolson Story."
Pseudo-eponym of the week: the Muphry of Muphry's Law. It was first described by Australian editor John Bangsund in 1992, as "If you write anything criticizing editing or proofreading, there will be a fault of some kind in what you have written." So we hope it's clear why there's no Muphry. Uncountable letters and e-mails sent to your humble trivia author over the years have complied with this law.
Some big-league baseball games are played outdoors; some are played indoors in domed stadiums. The first major-league game to be played both indoors and outdoors was on June 7, 1989, at Toronto's retractable-roof Skydome. With impending rain, the roof started to close in the fifth inning. But the process took 34 minutes, not fast enough to stop a brief rain delay until the roof snapped shut. (Thanks to Doug Lyons of Scarsdale, N.Y.)
The "clink" sound that is made by touching glasses in a toast has nothing to do with the "clink" that's a slang term for a prison. The former meaning comes from a Danish word for a ringing sound. A prison is called a "clink" because of Clink Street in London, which was the site of a notorious prison that was located there from 1178 to 1780.
The first-season opening of the 1960s TV series "The Fugitive" includes a scene of people being helped from a train wreck. Look closely, and you'll see "CHEMIN DE FER" (French for "railroad") on the side of the train. Obviously, that scene was taken from French or Canadian "stock footage." Someone at the show finally noticed, because in the second-season opening, the scene is darkened so that those words aren't visible.
TRIVIA
1) Cincinnati's Riverfront Stadium (aka Cinergy Field), former home of the National League Reds and the NFL Bengals, was built on the site of the birthplace of what famous American?
A) Babe Ruth
B) Warren G. Harding
C) Roy Rogers
D) Susan B. Anthony
2) The next time you're in Montreal, look for the PFK stores scattered throughout the city. You would be most likely to visit a PFK if you wanted to buy a:
A) Dinner
B) Dress
C) Doll
D) Duvet
3) Ohio is known as the Buckeye State, of course, but what's a buckeye?
A) A deer
B) A fish
C) A tree
D) A flower
4) How many letters of the alphabet are not the first letters of the names of U.S. states?
A) 4
B) 7
C) 10
D) 13
5) The first day of May is celebrated around the world as May Day, often with festivities related to the labor movement. May 1st is celebrated in Hawaii as:
A) Lei Day
B) King Kamehameha Day
C) Diamond Head Day
D) Independence Day
ANSWERS
1) Cincinnati's Riverfront Stadium was built on the site of the birthplace of cowboy star Roy Rogers.
2) In the Canadian province of Quebec, PFK stands for Poulet Frit de Kentucky, French for Kentucky Fried Chicken (aka KFC).
3) Ohio gets its nickname of the Buckeye State from the buckeye tree, which is related to the maple and the horse chestnut.
4) The seven letters of the alphabet that are not first letters in the names of U.S. states are B, E, J, Q, X, Y and Z.
5) Previous answer: May 1st is celebrated in Hawaii as Lei Day, honoring the floral garland that is a symbol of the state.
STAN'S WEEKLY TRIVIA CHALLENGE CONTEST NO. 103
What actor won the most Primetime Emmy Awards for portraying the same character on the same TV series?
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. 103, 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. 96
The first Best Song Academy Award winner from a film other than a musical or a comedy was "Mona Lisa," from the 1950 World War II drama, "Captain Carey, U.S.A." Winner: Suzanne Cook of Pekin, Ill.
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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