WEEK OF AUGUST 4, 2008
Word of the week: "vertiginous," pronounced "ver-TIDGE-a-nuss." It can mean "spinning" as well as "dizzy," the latter meaning betraying its kinship to "vertigo." We first encountered the word in a humorously polysyllabic version of "a rolling stone gathers no moss," which we can't remember the precise wording of.
Walking Tall: Don Hein of Poulsbo, Wash., wants to know if the 22-foot-high cowboy boots that are a fixture of Seattle's Oxbow Park are the world's largest. Sorry, Don. That record is claimed by San Antonio's North Star Mall, which has a pair of 40-footers outside it. Edmonton, Alberta, has a single cowboy boot that's just a little shorter that that.
Unfortunate slice? Film fans will recognize the name of Barry Fitzgerald, who won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his role of Father Fitzgibbon in the 1944 film "Going My Way." Shortly after bringing his trophy home, Fitzgerald decided to practice his golf swing, and promptly cut Oscar's head off. His prize was replaced, we're pleased to report.
Trivia Treat: Our Canadian trivia pal Paul Paquet recently upgraded his excellent website www.triviahalloffame.com, to include a fun daily 12-question quiz. The site has many interesting articles about trivia, including interviews with many big names from game shows, and one with your humble trivia writer about the making of a certain trivia encyclopedia.
Weird Wide Web: Visit www.exactcenteroftheinternet.com, and you'll be greeted by a dot in the center of the screen, and the message, "this dot here below is the exact center of the internet. go ahead. click it. don't be shy." What happens when you click it? Nothing terrible, but nothing overly exciting either. Go ahead. Try it. Don't be shy.
Have you ever noticed how some pasta varieties are hard to pick up with a fork, and others don't hold sauces very well? We have. So let's be thankful for penne, the pasta that we think has the most practical design. Its hollow center and its ridges both help to hold the sauce, and its angular ends (as compared with its cousin, ziti) act as a scoop when you take it off your plate.
Eponym of the week: Civil War Union Army Gen. Ambrose Burnside. After the war, he served as governor of Rhode Island and first president of the National Rifle Association. His unusual style of facial hair, originally called "burnsides," became "sideburns" later on.
Ceiling fans keep you cooler in the summer, not by lowering the temperature, but by circulating the air, which increases the evaporation of moisture on your skin. If you reverse a ceiling fan's rotation in a heated room in the winter, it will make you feel warmer by taking cooler air from the bottom of the room and forcing it upward, and lowering the heated higher air (hot air rises, remember?) closer to the floor.
The word "divulge" is a first cousin of "vulgar." "Divulge" is derived from the Latin for "make publicly known," which in turn comes from "vulgus," meaning the common people. The Vulgate Bible, a Latin translation of the Bible from Hebrew, was commissioned by Pope Damasus I in the late fourth century, to allow the text to be readable by the masses.
Triple Star Trio: Thanks to Melissa Coker of Covington, Ga., who adds to our list of acting trios who starred in more than one film together, in different roles. Doris Day, Rock Hudson and Tony Randall appeared in three films together. They're all top-billed in "Lover Come Back," "Pillow Talk" and "Send Me No Flowers."
TRIVIA
1) The first woman to win a Pulitzer Prize for a novel was:
A) Margaret Mitchell
B) Edith Wharton
C) Pearl S. Buck
D) Harper Lee
2) The Walt Disney Company is currently the majority owner of sports cable channel ESPN. But very early in its history, ESPN’s majority owner was:
A) An oil company
B) An auto manufacturer
C) A financial services company
D) A major-league baseball team
3) On Feb. 18, 1930, aviation history was made, when for the first time, an airplane carried:
A) A cow
B) A U.S. president
C) An entire sports team
D) Another airplane
4) What French dress size corresponds to a size 10 in the United States?
A) 8
B) 18
C) 38
D) 88
5) The title of the recently published autobiography of TV host Barbara Walters is what showbiz term?
A) Rerun
B) Matinee
C) Audition
D) Camera-Shy
ANSWERS
1) The first woman to win a Pulitzer Prize for a novel was Edith Wharton, for "The Age of Innocence," in 1920.
2) In its early years, ESPN's majority owner was the Getty Oil Company.
3) On Feb. 18, 1930, the first cow was carried by an airplane, as a publicity stunt for the International Air Exposition in St. Louis.
4) The U.S. dress size of 10 corresponds to a 38 in France. A U.S. size 12 dress is equivalent to a French 40, and so on.
5) The title of the recently published autobiography of TV host Barbara Walters is "Audition."
STAN'S WEEKLY TRIVIA CHALLENGE CONTEST NO. 97
The 50th anniversary of what event was commemorated with a British coin that depicts, among other things, a stopwatch?
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. 97, 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. 90
First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy received a special Emmy Award for her 1962 televised tour of the White House. Winner: Susan Jones of Lewiston, Idaho.
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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