When composer Richard Wagner was 26 years old, he was working as an orchestra conductor in Riga, Latvia, and he was deeply in debt. So he decided to run from his creditors by hopping a ship to London. His voyage in 1839 was perilous, and it didn't solve his money problems, but it did inspire him to write the "The Flying Dutchman," an opera based on the seafaring legend of a ghost ship doomed to sail for all eternity.
The first nationally syndicated episode of "Soul Train" aired on Oct. 2, 1971, and featured Gladys Knight & the Pips singing "Friendship Train" and "I Don't Wanna Do Wrong." Other performers on that episode were Eddie Kendricks, the Honey Cone and Bobby Hutton. Of course, folks in Chicago know that the show really began in 1970, as an "afternoon dance party" created by Don Cornelius for the fledgling UHF station, WCIU. (If you remember UHF stations, you've earned a special trip down the Soul Train Line!)
Along with official state flowers, trees and birds (among other things), a handful of states have an official state sport. In Alaska, it's dog mushing. In Texas, it's rodeo. In Maryland, it's jousting. Yes, jousting; the medieval competition in which knights on horseback gallop toward each other with lances poised for contact. It's been a Maryland pastime since the Civil War era, although modern-day competitions focus more on speed and accuracy than on unseating one's opponent.
Happy birthday to Siri, who made her debut on Oct. 4, 2011. Her original speaking voice was provided by voice actress Susan Bennett, who spent weeks recording words and sounds for an "unspecified Apple project." Programmers later concatenated, or reassembled, those recorded sounds to form the words and phrases of Siri's vocabulary.
Let's have a round of applause for Yakima Canutt, a bronco-busting rodeo cowboy turned Hollywood stuntman. A regular stunt double for John Wayne, Canutt was the first man to execute a horse transfer (going midgallop from a horse to another moving object) on film. He even doubled for Clark Gable on equine stunts in "Gone With the Wind." Later, he gained renown as a second-unit director specializing in designing and shooting action sequences, including the chariot race in 1959's "Ben-Hur."
In its Jan. 28, 1946, issue, Time magazine ran a feature story about mystery fiction with a picture of novelist Craig Rice on the cover. In her day — yes, "her" day, because "Craig Rice" was the pseudonym of Georgiana Randolph Craig — she sold as many novels as her contemporaries Raymond Chandler and Rex Stout. She lived hard and died young, and while even diehard crime fiction fans might not know her today, she accomplished what few people have: She had her picture on the cover of Time magazine.
TRIVIA
1. As many as 20,000 of what type of conveyance are dredged from Amsterdam's canals each year?
A) Bicycles
B) Boats
C) Cars
D) Motor scooters
2. Which of these was a No. 1 R&B hit for The O'Jays in 1973?
A) "Love Train"
B) "Mystery Train"
C) "Night Train"
D) "Peace Train"
3. Excalibur was the sword that belonged to what medieval hero?
A) King Arthur
B) Beowulf
C) Sir Gawain
D) Robin Hood
4. Siri began as a research and development project funded by what government entity?
A) Department of Defense
B) Department of Education
C) Federal Communications Commission
D) National Aeronautics and Space Administration
5. Dating back to 1900, the annual football game between the University of Washington and Washington State is known by what nickname?
A) Apple Cup
B) Cascade Bowl
C) Columbia Cup
D) Evergreen Trophy Game
6. Three different actresses have won Tony Awards for best actress in a leading role in revivals of what musical?
A) "Cabaret"
B) "Carousel"
C) "Gypsy"
D) "Hello, Dolly!"
ANSWERS
1) As many as 20,000 bicycles are dredged from Amsterdam's canals each year.
2) "Love Train" was a No. 1 R&B hit for The O'Jays in 1973.
3) Excalibur was the sword that belonged to King Arthur.
4) Siri began as a research and development project funded by the U.S. Department of Defense.
5) Dating back to 1900, the annual football game between the University of Washington and Washington State is known as the Apple Cup.
6) Angela Lansbury (1975), Tyne Daly (1990) and Patti Lupone (2008) have won Tony Awards for best actress in a leading role in revivals of "Gypsy."
WEEK OF OCTOBER 8
All black grouper fish are born female. About half of them become male when they mature and reach adult size: 3 or 4 feet from the tip of the snout to the point at which the tail fin branches into a fork. That measurement, used more often by scientists than fishermen, is known as fork length, abbreviated FL.
Most people recognize William Carlos Williams as one of America's great poets, but if you'd lived in Rutherford, New Jersey, in the 1930s and '40s you might also have known him as your physician. Williams actively practiced both professions for most of his adult life, saying that when one of them made him tired the other would reinvigorate him.
Marie Walewska, a Polish noblewoman, met the Emperor Napoleon on Jan. 1, 1807. They had an affair and she gave birth to Napoleon's son (named Alexandre Walewski for the sake of propriety). She even visited Napoleon while he was exiled on Elba. Her story might have inspired the great French chef Auguste Escoffier to create "Filets de Soles Walewska," a filet of sole served with lobster tails and truffles. Yet, she certainly never tasted it. Walewska died in 1817, 29 years before Escoffier was born.
Who doesn't love a good palindromic place name? The people of Ada, Oklahoma, sure do (as do the folks in Ada, Minnesota, Ohio and Oregon). The world's northernmost palindromic place might be Qaanaaq, Greenland, formerly known as Thule. Which is the most fun name to say? Let's call it a tie between Kinikinik, Colorado, and Anahanahana, Madagascar.
If you think mac and cheese is a great comfort food, you're not alone. People have eaten tender pasta in creamy cheese sauce for more years than you might realize. Possibly the earliest known recipe comes from a book called "Liber de coquina," written in Latin in the 13th century.
If you've ever benefited from a blood bank, you can thank Dr. Charles Drew. After receiving his medical degree from McGill University in Montreal, he became the first African-American to earn a doctorate from Columbia University, where his dissertation, "Banked Blood: A Study in Blood Preservation," proposed methods for collecting, storing and transporting blood and blood plasma. He ran the Blood for Britain program during World War II and created the prototype for American Red Cross Bloodmobiles. Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in Los Angeles is named for him.
TRIVIA
1. Which country's national rugby team is known as the All Blacks?
A) Australia
B) New Zealand
C) Pakistan
D) South Africa
2. Damson and greengage are types of what fruit?
A) Apple
B) Apricot
C) Peach
D) Plum
3. Napoleon was born in Corsica, was exiled to Elba and died on what island?
A) Madeira
B) Miquelon Island
C) St. Helena
D) Tristan da Cunha
4.Greenland is an autonomous region of what country?
A) Canada
B) Denmark
C) Iceland
D) Norway
5. Who played the female lead in the 1983 film "Risky Business"?
A) Rosanna Arquette
B) Rebecca De Mornay
C) Nicole Kidman
D) Demi Moore
6. Which vitamin is essential for helping blood to clot?
A) A
B) D
C) E
D) K
ANSWERS
1) New Zealand's national rugby team is called the All Blacks.
2) Damson and greengage are types of plum.
3) Napoleon was born in Corsica, was exiled to Elba and died on the South Atlantic island of St. Helena.
4) Greenland is an autonomous region of Denmark.
5) Rebecca De Mornay played the female lead in the 1983 film "Risky Business."
6) Vitamin K is essential for helping blood to clot.
WEEK OF OCTOBER 15
Since 1994, the unit of currency in Croatia has been the kuna, which can be divided into 100 lipa. Kuna is the Croatian word for marten, a type of northern forest animal whose pelts were traded like currency and used to pay taxes in Croatia during the Middle Ages. Lipa is the Croatian word for linden tree, considered sacred in Slavic mythology.
The United States wanted Puerto Rico so much that it took the island by force. In July 1898, during the Spanish-American War, 18,000 American troops invaded Puerto Rico — then a Spanish territory — and occupied it until Spain agreed to give it up. On Oct. 18, 1898, Puerto Rico officially became part of the United States. Nearly 20 years later, in March 1917, President Woodrow Wilson signed the Jones-Shafroth Act, granting the people of Puerto Rico U.S. citizenship.
Happy birthday to Margarita Carmen Cansino, who would have turned 100 years old on Oct. 17. You know her better as Rita Hayworth (Rita was short for Margarita and Hayworth was her mother's maiden name), the stunning star of "Gilda" and "The Lady from Shanghai." She also starred and danced with Fred Astaire in two films. But to today's audiences she might be best known for her "nonspeaking role" in "The Shawshank Redemption" — based on Stephen King's short story, "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption."
At this time of year, some knitters are thinking about the gifts they plan to knit for Christmas. They might also be thinking about the "love sweater curse." Somewhere between traditional folklore and urban legend, the "love sweater curse" states that knitting a sweater for the person you're dating is a surefire way to doom the relationship. Nonsense or not, if the knitter in your life presents you with a hat, a scarf or socks instead of a sweater, the "love sweater curse" might be the reason.
Forget singing mermaids and talking sponges, when it comes to unusual creatures under the sea, sea squirts deserve a special mention. Sea squirts are filter feeders, sucking in water through a body opening (called a siphon), straining out plankton and other edibles, and then expelling the water through a second siphon. At birth, they resemble tadpoles, swimming around looking for a rock to call home. When they find one, they latch on and begin to absorb their own internal organs, turning themselves into beautiful, passive, literally brainless creatures.
When it was introduced in 1911, Crisco brand vegetable shortening was made from crystallized cottonseed oil. (The name Crisco comes from the first syllables of crystallized cottonseed.) Promising flakier pie crusts and an economical alternative to lard and butter, Crisco's early marketing plan included a free cookbook containing 615 recipes, including something called a "Lettuce Cocktail" with a Crisco-based salad dressing. Customers ate it up. In 1914, American households consumed about 60 million pounds of Crisco.
TRIVIA
1. Which dog breed takes its name from a region of Croatia?
A) Alsatian
B) Dalmatian
C) Pomeranian
D) Saluki
2. Alexander Hamilton was born on which Caribbean island?
A) Barbuda
B) Jamaica
C) Nevis
D) Puerto Rico
3. Shawshank is a fictional prison set in what real U.S. state?
A) Connecticut
B) Maine
C) Massachusetts
D) New Hampshire
4. "The One with the Red Sweater" was a pivotal episode in the eighth season of what sitcom?
A) "Cheers"
B) "Friends"
C) "Sex and the City"
D) "Will & Grace"
5. Squirt and Ting are sodas with what fruit flavor?
A) Grapefruit
B) Kiwifruit
C) Mango
D) Papaya
6. Which of these was developed in France in 1869 as a low-cost food item for military personnel?
A) Instant cocoa
B) Margarine
C) Pretzels
D) White chocolate
ANSWERS
1) Dalmatians take their name from a region of Croatia.
2) Alexander Hamilton was born on the Caribbean island of Nevis.
3) Shawshank is a fictional prison set in Stephen King's home state of Maine.
4) "The One with the Red Sweater" was a pivotal episode in the eighth season of "Friends.
5) Squirt and Ting are grapefruit-flavored sodas.
6) Margarine was developed in France in 1869 as a low-cost food item for military personnel.
WEEK OF OCTOBER 22
Four is the only number equal to the number of letters in its English name. The same is true for vier, the German word for four. The Spanish word for five is cinco — five letters. And tre, the word for three in Italian, Danish, Swedish and Norwegian, has three letters. Just something to think about.
Plenty of female writers have used men's names as pseudonyms. Amantine-Lucile-Aurore Dupin and Mary Ann Evans wrote as George Sand and George Eliot, respectively. Even the Bronte sisters used male pseudonyms to ensure that publishers would read their submissions. More unusual is a man writing under a woman's name, as Septimus Winner was known to do. The writer of popular Civil War-era songs, such as "Listen to the Mocking Bird" and "Oh Where, Oh Where Has My Little Dog Gone?" published his more sentimental tunes under the name Alice Hawthorne.
The largest volcano on Earth is Mauna Loa in Hawaii. At 6.3 miles high and 73 miles across, it's undeniably huge. But it's a peewee compared to Olympus Mons, the largest known volcano in the solar system. Situated in the Tharsis Montes volcanic region of Mars, Olympus Mons is about 16 miles high and 374 miles across, with a volume that's about 100 times greater than that of Mauna Loa.
In Sweden, Sept. 3, 1967, is remembered as Dagen H (H Day), the day drivers switched from driving on the left side of the road to driving on the right. (H stands for Hoger, the Swedish word for "right.") Streets nationwide were closed for hours to give road crews a chance to rearrange road signs. Then, at 4:50 a.m., Swedish drivers switched sides and never looked back. Today, drivers in more than 50 nations keep to the left and pass on the right. They include the United Kingdom, Australia and Ireland as well as India, Pakistan and Japan.
In 1876, Daniel Elmer Salmon became the first person in the United States to earn a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree. In 1883, he founded the veterinary division of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Salmon is also the person for whom salmonella is named, although he didn't discover that nasty food-borne illness. It was identified by a bacteriologist named Theobald Smith, who worked for Salmon at the USDA.
Give the ancient Greeks credit for their wacky sense of humor, especially when it comes to their wildly creative accounts of the deaths of great men. The playwright Aeschylus, for example, was said to have met his end when an eagle dropped a tortoise on his head. Chrysippus, the philosopher, saw a donkey eating figs, gave him wine to wash them down and found this so hilarious that he died laughing. That's quite an ironic end for a Stoic, who wasn't prone to showing emotion, if it's true — which it almost certainly is not.
TRIVIA
1. "Four score and seven" equals how much?
A) 27
B) 28
C) 87
D) 107
2. Cartoon characters Heckle and Jeckle are which type of birds?
A) Blue jays
B) Cardinals
C) Magpies
D) Woodpeckers
3. The volcano Mount Doom (aka Orodruin or Amon Amarth) is an important location in what literary trilogy?
A) "His Dark Materials" by Philip Pullman
B) "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins
C) "Kristin Lavransdatter" by Sigrid Undset
D) "The Lord of the Rings" by J.R.R. Tolkien
4. Who won the 2018 Indianapolis 500?
A) Marco Andretti
B) Ed Carpenter
C) Gabby Chaves
D) Will Power
5. By definition, which is true of zoonotic diseases?
A) They spread by contact between animals and humans
B) They only affect pregnant women
C) They are skin diseases
D) They are transmitted through contaminated water
6. Who is the ancient Greek god of the underworld?
A) Artemis
B) Athena
C) Hades
D) Zeus
ANSWERS
1) A score is equivalent to 20, so "four score and seven" equals 87.
2) Cartoon characters Heckle and Jeckle are magpies.
3) The volcano Mount Doom (aka Orodruin or Amon Amarth) is an important location in "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien.
4) Australia's Will Power won the 2018 Indianapolis 500.
5) Zoonotic diseases are spread by contact between animals and humans.
6) Hades is the ancient Greek god of the underworld.
WEEK OF OCTOBER 29
Somewhere between clouds and rain, there's virga: rain that falls from clouds but evaporates before it reaches the Earth's surface. You can see it in the sky as wispy strands extending from the bottom of a cloud. And if you were tracking the weather with radar, it would register as rain. But because virga typically occurs over deserts and in other areas with dry conditions, the precipitation evaporates before you can feel it.
Is the White House haunted? Lots of people think so, especially staff and visitors who claim to have spotted spirits roaming the rooms. Most famous is Abraham Lincoln, whose spirit is said to occupy the Lincoln Bedroom. (Where else?) Lincoln also visits the Yellow Oval Room, where he might bump into Thomas Jefferson's ghost. Andrew Jackson naps in the Queens Bedroom. John Tyler spends time in the Blue Room. And William Henry Harrison, who died in the White House, haunts the attic.
In "The Vampire" by Heinrich August Ossenfelder, published in 1748, a man tries to woo a young woman. When she rejects his advances, he vows to get revenge by creeping into her room at night and draining her blood until she's close to death. That ghastly German poem might be the first literary reference to vampires. "The Vampyre," an 1819 story by John Polidori, was the first to be published in English, nearly 80 years before Bram Stoker's "Dracula."
In Guatemala, the annual Day of the Dead (Dia de los Difuntos) observance includes visiting cemeteries to bring flowers and tend the graves of loved ones. But it also involves something truly unique and beautiful: barriletes gigantes — enormous kites. The tradition of flying kites to honor the dead derives from Mayan customs. And these are no ordinary kites! Made from brightly colored tissue paper pieced in complex, artistic patterns, they can measure 50 feet across.
When geologists talk about hoodoos, they're referring to giant rock formations weathered into bizarre and magnificent shapes by the forces of nature. Utah's Bryce Canyon National Park is famous for them — limestone pillars ranging from 5 to 150 feet tall that have been eroded by thousands of years of rain and frost. The process is never-ending, which means that the formations you see today, such as Thor's Hammer and the Chessmen, will look different to park visitors 100 years from now.
The 1970s American sitcom "Sanford and Son" was based on a slightly earlier British sitcom called "Steptoe and Son." Both involved father and son characters running a salvage (aka junk) business. Most American adaptations of U.K. sitcoms changed the series title, but in this case the American name had special significance: Redd Foxx, who starred as Fred Sanford, was born John Elroy Sanford. His father and brother were named Fred.
TRIVIA
1. Which types of clouds are known as "thunderheads"?
A) Altostratus
B) Cirrocumulus
C) Cumulonimbus
D) Stratocumulus
2. Who was the first first lady to live in the White House? (Her ghost has been seen hanging laundry in the East Room — something she did in real life!)
A) Abigail Adams
B) Martha Jefferson
C) Dolley Madison
D) Martha Washington
3. Which of these was NOT a General Mills "monster cereal"?
A) Boo Berry
B) Count Chocula
C) Fruity Yummy Mummy
D) Ghost Raisin Toast
4. In Khaled Hosseini's novel "The Kite Runner," where did the main characters do their kite-running?
A) Afghanistan
B) Albania
C) Azerbaijan
D) Iran
5. Which animal is a trickster figure in Apache, Navajo and Paiute mythology?
A) Coyote
B) Duck
C) Snake
D) Toad
6. Which 1970s American sitcom was adapted from a British series called "Man About the House"?
A) "All in the Family"
B) "Mork & Mindy"
C) "One Day at a Time"
D) "Three's Company"
ANSWERS
1) Cumulonimbus clouds are known as "thunderheads."
2) Abigail Adams was the first first lady to live in the White House.
3) Ghost Raisin Toast was NOT a General Mills "monster cereal."
4) In Khaled Hosseini's novel "The Kite Runner," the boys did their kite-running in Afghanistan.
5) Coyote is a trickster figure in Apache, Navajo and Paiute mythology.
6) "Three's Company" is a 1970s American adaptation of the British series "Man About the House."
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