I went out for a solo Sporcle Live trivia outing Thursday at Original Gravity Brewing Company. Two of my teammates were enjoying some beer and whiskey (a bit TOO much whiskey, from what I heard) by a camp fire…and another teammate had dinner plans that evening. So I jumped at the chance to see how I’d do in my first solo game since maybe…three weeks ago? Results? Not bad…not bad! I finished in second for the night with 118 points, though Sporcle Live with Lauren said she forgot to report my score! Not that I blame her – for most games at OG this season, I haven’t been using my league number (we are all creatures of habit, after all). I won a $10/second place prize in game one thanks mostly to wagering nothing on the category of recent video games. I know about as much about THAT category as I do about boy bands! One really “bizarro” thing that happened was me wagering 7 and getting a country music question correct! Read on to see how I fared on the rest of the questions…
This marked the seventh time I’ve played at OG this season, which would mean that had all of our scores been officially logged, we’d be qualified to play in the venue tournament Nov. 15. But…we’re taking this season off, so our M.O. has been “play for fun, play for gift cards.” We’ve managed to win $50 in gift cards this season here so far (all of them have been second place, aka “bridesmaid” prizes…but that’s OK)! Any prize money is better than none!
All of that said…I still plan to be at the venue tournament anyway! The teams here can use the competition, if nothing else – and there are gift cards to be won!
Now the questions…
Game One
1. Landmarks – Trevi Fountain, Capitoline Museum and Spanish Steps are landmarks in what capital city? Miss for 4.
2. 2018 Films – What actor plays Freddie Mercury in the 2018 film Bohemian Rhapsody? This was actually an audio clue, but this was the answer we had to provide – miss for 1.
3. Toys – What brand of metal toy launched in 1919 includes girders and face plates?
4. Cabinet – National Cemetery Administration, Health Administration and the Benefits Administration are all subdivisions of what cabinet level department currently headed by Robert Wilkie? 9
5. Kids’ Books – Chewandswallow is the name of the town with strange weather in what book series by Judi and Ron Barrett? Thank goodness my niece used to be really into this book series…otherwise I wouldn’t have known it! Got it for 8.
6. Country Songs – What is the title of the 1998 Faith Hill hit song that describes “that pivotal moment” among other lyrics (I didn’t write them all down, I was just beside myself with excitement at getting a COUNTRY MUSIC QUESTION CORRECT)! I only knew this one because it used to be on the playlist where I work…7.
7. Companies – What personal care company founded in 1931 has used slogans such as “Is is true blondes have more fun” among other slogans? FB clue, got this for 6. I saw that a couple sitting next to me at the bar was struggling with this answer and I leaned they were first-time trivia players. So I “gave” them this answer and told them this was the Facebook “clue” answer. I also gave them the newsletter answer and one of the mystery round answers…hey…who says I don’t do anything nice? 
Hopefully they’ll be back – they said they just moved to Milan.
8. Talk Shows – A long-running CNN show airing 6,120 episodes beginning in 1985 has been hosted by what man – who now hosts shows airing on Hulu? I considered the right guy, but put down the wrong guy for 2.
9. Citrus – What citrus fruit is the size and shape of a large olive and has a name originating from Cantonese meaning “golden orange?” Not confident, got for 3.
10. Olympics – Name three of the four “throwing” track and field games. List all four for an extra “nerd” bonus point. Got this for 5, missed the bonus.
Mystery – This Day in History
On this day in…
M1. 1881 – Cubist painter of Guernica and The Old Guitarist born in Spain
M2. 1980 – Australian rock band had their first Billboard hit with Shook Me All Night Long
M3. 1971 – Due to reversing a long-standing American policy, the UN ceded the People’s Republic of China and expelled what island country simultaneously
M4. 1929 – Former Interior Secretary Albert Fall found guilty for accepting bribes in what scandal
Got all of these (gave the answer to #1 to the “newbies,” for inquiring minds…)
Scores: Twelve teams, scores 37 to 67 with This Is Sparta in first (nice job on the perfect score, guys)! I was in third with 59 playing under the name “Jason’s Mother Is The Killer, Charlie Brown,” Mind the Gap aka Big Heads Big Hearts was a bit behind me with 55.
Final Category – Recent Video Games
Since the beginning of 2010, there have been six games in the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise released that have two-word titles, including the mobile games Sonic Dash and Sonic Runners.
Name any two of the other four games.
Wagered zero…(you gotta know when you’re licked). Had the category been “80s arcade games” I MIGHT have been more confident, but even more confident had my trivia partner Mike been playing with me! But no…it was “recent video games.”
Final Scores: ‘Pods, 59; Where’s Trey, 71 (moved up from seventh).
Game Two
1. TV Roles – The CBS series King of Queens and Kevin Can Wait all feature what actor in the title roles? Thank the trivia gods for an easy TV question to start things off…10.
2. Games – What game was included with most versions of Windows prior to 2012 featuring a grid of squares to be uncovered with hidden weapons to be avoided? Speaking of my “trivia partner,” I needed him for this one! My answer was “close but no cigar…” miss for 3. Hey…I said I don’t know much about video games!
3. Academy Awards – Name either of the two films for which Christoph Waltz has received the Academy Award for best supporting actor. Name both for a “nerd” bonus point. The Oscars questions thrown at Sporcle players lately have been pretty rough…glad I knew this one for 9 plus the bonus! “Sort of” makes up for missing that foreign languages final from Tuesday!
Christoph Waltz as King Schultz in Django Unchained
4. Courts – What three-syllable adjective describes a court that is tasked with affirming or reversing decisions made by lower courts? Close but no cigar again in my guess, miss for 2.
5. Nobel Prizes – Who became the first woman to receive a Nobel Prize (receiving two) in 1903 for her research on radium? Want an interesting Google project? Look up “radium girls.” It’s quite appalling what happened to them…got this for 8.
6. Celebrity Books – Paddle Your Own Canoe – One Man’s Fundamentals for Delicious Living was written by what actor, comedian and woodworker? No clue, miss for 1.
7. MLB Players – Edwin Diaz hit the 49 mark in what category of baseball statistics on August 24, 2018 – bypassing the record previously held by Fernando Rodney? I tried…I really really tried…no home run for me! Can this game be “saved?” Miss for 4.
8. Music – Popularized in 1950s and 1960s music, what style is characterized by little instrumentation, nonsense syllables and was made famous by groups including The Platters, Deon and the Belmonts? 7
9. U.S. States – What is the largest U.S. state by total area that does not contain the letter A in its name?
10. Same Name – What name associated with a Western zodiac sign shares its name with NASA’s second manned space mission in 1964? I was PRETTY sure right away, but still felt compelled to write down EVERY Western zodiac sign name just because of all of the “close but no cigar” guesses I had this game! Got it for 5.
Visual Mystery –
Missed #1 and #4.
Scores: Eight teams, scores 46 to 58, with Mind the Gap/BHBH in first. This is Sparta was right behind them with 57, and I was in seventh with 52.
Final Category – Scientists
Would have been more confident had at least a couple of my teammates who ARE scientists been present! I wagered seven points, which would have put me in first if MTG/BHBH wagered zero on it and I got it. My strategy didn’t exactly work out (oh well can’t win ’em all).
Three women who have pioneered the modern discipline of primatology are known as the “Trimates”.
Name two of those three women.
And I proceeded to kick myself for NOT wagering 20 on this since I knew it – but still would not have put me in the “prize zone.” Still pales in comparison to what happened to that one primate researcher (photo of actress who played her in a 1988 film shown below).
This is Sparta and MTG/BHBH held on to their top spots with 77 and 78 points respectively.
Until next time, which will be a “Devil’s Night” outing at Haymaker Ann Arbor. We still have a bit of prize money to spend there. Sigh…wouldn’t it be nice to earn some more? We’ll see…we’ll see! As always, Go Pods, and stay classy, that poacher who killed Dian Fossey! You are a bad man!
OK, are you still here? Pardon me while I depart from my “routine” and put a photo in this recap that does NOT depict a cartoon character, movie character, celebrity, etc. Just to show how good of a mood I was in after Thursday’s game, here are some goofy photos of me being photo bombed by my husband’s hand! I don’t normally wear holiday themed shirts of any kind (except my one Groundhog Day T-shirt that I really have), so I did a “pictures or it didn’t happen” thing…here goes…
hebspeaks 