I’d like to take this moment to give a sincere thank you to my parents. Rather than get babysitters for their kids when they wanted to “go to the movies,” they would simply take us with them! Sure, sometimes the movies were fun movies with talking animals, maybe even that one animated movie that Tim Burton was involved in as a young animator. Lady and the Tramp? No! The Fox and the Hound? Yes! Boy did my mother bawl during that one (pssst don’t tell anyone that I shared that little fact about her)! We also got to see the Ralph Bakshi animated version of Lord of the Rings in theaters. Which was…bizarre, and probably drug fueled (but what do I know).

When my mom wanted to grocery shop in peace at the local A&P store without her kids tugging at her sleeve and begging her to buy all of the flavors of Kool-Aid, she would simply drop us off at the local movie theater, where my older brother and I would watch “monster movies.” Yeah, Godzilla! Those were the days. She’d buy our tickets – and maybe even some snacks, and in return she’d get at least a couple of hours to herself. It was a good deal for all involved!

But most of the movies she took us to see didn’t have talking animals or monsters in them. Except those pod people in that Invasion of the Body Snatchers remake from 1978, which scared the bejesus out of me and I still haven’t totally forgiven them.

But let’s stop burying the lede! Most of the movies I went to see were “Oscar fodder” films. Which to a kid under the age of 12 meant they were either yawnfests – or we were just too young to understand them. Reds was a 3 hour 20 minute film with an intermission – and we went to see it in the winter time. I was 7 going on 8, and my dad had this brilliant idea that we should take OFF our winter coats while we watched the movie so that going back out in the cold after the movie wouldn’t be such a shock. I’m not sure about his thinking on that one but GOD THIS MOVIE HAD A FREAKING INTERMISSION!

Some other “Gimme an Oscar” films I saw as a kid included Kramer Vs. Kramer, Tess, California Suite, at least a couple of Pink Panther films (I was so bummed that the animated Pink Panther was only in these movies for the opening credits) and…one of the movies we needed for a final question answer in last Tuesday’s trivia game. I’m not giving away the title, but it had dueling ballerinas in it or something – and Mikhail Baryshnikov, whom I now suspect my mom might have had a little crush on. Though I couldn’t tell you much about a movie I saw the last time when I was 5, I’ve learned enough things about it since then to manage to get a final question right about it in a trivia game, which was my “triviagasm” moment.

How about the questions?

Round One

1) Animated TV – Angelica, Susie, and Kimi are supporting characters on what animated series that premiered in 1991?

2) Fossils – According to the National Geographic Society, what is the approximate minimum age for preserved remains to be considered a fossil?
A) 1,000 years
B) 10,000 years
C) 100,000 years
D) 1,000,000 years

Miss.

3) Advertising – Juan Valdez and his mule, Conchita, appear in the logo for the national federation of growers of what crop in Colombia? This was one of those moments when we missed being able to use paper slips so we could write “cocaine” then cross it off and put the right answer.

4) ’80s Movies – What member of the band in This is Spinal Tap was frequently replaced because of various disastrous occurrences (this question is paraphrased) including spontaneous combustion and choking on someone else’s vomit?

Mystery One

Give the name of the nearest city with at least one of the “Big Four” sports franchises in North America given the name of another U.S. city

M1) Helena, MT

M2) Savannah, GA

M3) Little Rock, AR

M4) Mobile, AL

We got ALL OF THESE CORRECT! We might know names of players and coaches and stuff, but we know our maps!

Round Two

1) Programs – What does D.A.R.E. (Dare) stand for, in terms of the anti-controlled substance program founded in Los Angeles in 1983?

2) Cooking – Since 1930, what magazine has published 17 editions of a cookbook that is known as the “Red Plaid” book? I have this cookbook, and it has plenty of biscuit splatter on it!

3) Islands – Hilo is the most populous location on what U.S. island?

4) ’90s Music – The song heard in the following clip was released in 1996 by an artist that has a name inspired by a network that is primarily found in what modern-day country?
NERD POINT: What national capital city is in the title of this song?

This was audio, so I’ll say this was about the Transiberian Orchestra.

Mystery Two Visual

We were in fourth with 45 points going into the final.

Final Category – Academy Awards

There have been five films that have earned two performers a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress, with only one of those ten nominations earning the award.
Name any one of those films, which were released in 1950, 1959, 1977, 1983, and 1991.

This question definitely checked off the boxes for me! Especially since they gave release years for the movies – I wound up knowing four of these correct answers. Hey, I have to have some bragging points in trivia! And this particular bragging point has resulted in winning money (or coming damn close to it, but I shall not speak of that particular game ever, ever again)!

As always, Go Pods, and stay classy, Anne Bancroft and Shirley MacLaine when you’re fighting on screen!