I’m not going to say we get trivia questions about musical instruments correct all of the time – but asking about “cousins” of the French horn proved to be a tall order for most of the teams playing virtually Thursday night on “Festivus!” I’m wondering if that friend of mine from junior high and high school who played the French horn even knows about these “cousins” of the French horn – and I’m betting maybe she does – since she’s also a music teacher!

The trivia topics were all set up like the “Twelve Days of Christmas,” though because they only had eight categories – drummers, geese, dancing ladies and leaping lords were left out.

It was our usual “duo” plus a “plus one” playing on this night – our helper was Michelle A. from Vegas, Baby, and she proved quite valuable – especially on the visual round about desserts!

We finished in second for the night, read on to see how we did on the questions:

Round One

1) Partridges – On the TV series The Partridge Family, what actor and singer played Keith Partridge, later becoming a teen idol in his own right? Yup, a couple of Gen X gals whose mamas probably had crushes on him were not going to miss this one!

2) Not Turtle Doves – What type of culinary nut is used to make Turtles, a chocolate-covered candy made by DeMet’s Candy Company? Sweet success here.

3) French Horns – The French horn is one of the three most widely used varieties of brass horn in bands and orchestras. Name one of the other two, each of which also has a name based on European geography.

NERD POINT: Name both.

Miss and miss. Never heard of either of these.

4) Calling Birds – What official state bird of five Southern U.S. states has a scientific name that means “many-tongued mimic?” I immediately thought of that annoying Carly Simon/James Taylor duet that Lloyd and Harry sing in the “Mutt Cuts” van in Dumb and Dumber. I dare anyone to try listening to that in its entirety without going on a killing spree!

Mystery – Holiday Movies

Name the Christmas-centric film based on the quote and the year of release.

M1) “Nobody’s walking out on this fun, old-fashioned family Christmas.” (1989)

M2) “Strange, isn’t it? Each man’s life touches so many other lives. When he isn’t around, he leaves an awful hole, doesn’t he?” (1946)

M3) “I want my house to be seen from space!” (2006)

M4) “I’m not just a whimsical figure who wears a charming suit and affects a jolly demeanor. You know, I’m a symbol.” (1994)

Balls, the whole “remake” thing did not occur to us with the 1994 film, we went with The Santa Clause and missed.

Round Two

1) Gold Rings – In works by J.R.R. Tolkien, who was the creator of the One Ring, which appeared to be made of gold but was impervious to damage?

2) Swans – The plot of the 2010 film Black Swan revolves around the production of a ballet by what composer?

3) Swimming – What American swimmer was the most decorated woman athlete of the 2016 Summer Olympics, with four gold medals and a silver medal, all in freestyle races? Miss.

4) Maids – What cleaning service was founded in Canada in 1979 by Adrienne and Chris Stringer and partially named for a real-life passenger on the Titanic?

The company expanded into the U.S. in 1984.

Anyone else remember Molly McButter? Asking for a friend…

Mystery Two – Visual

Christmas Trees
The first National Christmas Tree was a 48-foot-tall balsam fir from which U.S. state?

It was illuminated near the White House on Christmas Eve in 1923 by a U.S. president who was born in that state.

Got this, but so did the team ahead of us.

Happy holidays, everyone! Go Pods, and stay classy, Clark Griswold!