Answers are at the end, though I didn’t write down every single one (I was juggling a lot of tasks in the game).
We occasionally meet up for virtual Sporcle Events games for the purpose of being able to catch up with friends who have moved away so far that meeting up for live games is impossible. Unless it involves making a super long road trip, hopping on a plane or strapping on a jetpack.
Paying the $24 fee for the three ticket minimum required for a two-hour virtual meetup is far cheaper than all of those other options!
We wanted to say a “Happy Belated Birthday” to our dear longtime friend and trivia team founder Sam, who lives in the “peninsular” region of Virginia with his wife Angela.
Sam was always one of those friends who was great at getting his group of friends out doing stuff – like playing Ultimate Frisbee, going on group camping and cabin trips, taking martial arts classes, meeting up for bar trivia nights, and meeting up for his and Angela’s beach wedding on Michigan’s lovely West Coast in 2014.
We all need that kind of friend, don’t we?
I still try hustling players for bar trivia nights and cabin trip meetups. Though there are a lot fewer people coming out for them anymore (Sam is not the only friend from our group whom has moved away).
The virtual meetups are fun when I’m lucky enough to get at least a couple of people from the “old days” to be able to join us!
We got one of the two final questions correct in this night, blew an entire mystery round and won absolutely no prizes. But as always the experience was…priceless 😀
Here were our questions:
Round One
1 Kids’ TV – What character, who lives in front of 123 Sesame Street, has a pet worm named Slimey and a pet elephant named Fluffy? Missing this would have made us very “grouchy” indeed. 🗑️
2 National Parks – What U.S. national park that comes last alphabetically?
1 Kids’ TV – What character, who lives in front of 123 Sesame Street, has a pet worm named Slimey and a pet elephant named Fluffy?
2 National Parks – What U.S. national park that comes last alphabetically?
Nerd point: Which of the 63 U.S. national parks comes first alphabetically?
Got these.
3 Constitution – What number amendment to the U.S. Constitution specifically ensures that defendants have the right to a speedy and public trial, among other protections? Miss.
4 Swimming – Michael Phelps won eight gold medals at the 2008 Summer Olympics, breaking the record for most gold medals at a single Olympics previously held by what American swimmer?
Nerd point: The 2008 Summer Olympics were held in what city?
Missed nerd point.
Mystery Round One
The correct answer to each clue is a portmanteau (a new word formed by combining parts of two or more distinct words, such as “brunch” or “smog”).
M1 Australian food spread that was first sold in stores in 1923
M2 Singing group that performed the theme song for the game show Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego?
M3 Word game similar to the Scrabble variant Take Two that debuted to the public in 2006 at the London Toy Fair
M4 Word that describes voter remorse over a 2016 referendum in the United Kingdom
Missed two and four.
Round Two
5 1970s Hits – The 1970 single “Snowbird” by Anne Murray was certified gold by the RIAA, a first for a solo woman artist from what country?
Oh 🍁!
6 Documentaries – We Are Made of Star Stuff is the subtitle of a 2026 documentary that explores the life and work of what original host of the TV series Cosmos?
Nerd point: Cosmos was first broadcast in 1980 on what network?
Got both of these.
7 Measures – What does the “C” stand for in the CGS system of units, a variant of the metric system where each of the letters stands for a unit of measurement? Miss.
8 CEOs – In September 2026, John Ternus took over as CEO of what tech company that was previously led by Tim Cook?
Nerd point: What fictional regional manager on TV shares his name with the very first CEO of this tech company? Missed nerd point, though we did brainstorm the right guy.
Mystery Round Two – see pic above
I don’t bother writing down scores in virtual games. But there are always some near perfect and perfect scores. Do with that information what you will. I’m not insinuating that other teams would cheat in a prizeless game (wait yes I kind of am).
Which begs so many questions the biggest of which is…
WHY? 🤯
If there is a prize on the line, I can understand cheating (though I don’t condone it). But if no prize, I’ll ask again…
WHY? 🤔
OK maybe there are some virtual trivia teams that are really that good. Which begs the question why not put those mad knowledge skills to work and go out and win actual prizes?
Don’t want to leave your home? Fair enough. Lots of legitimate reasons for this in a disease ridden hellscape of a world. Point taken.
Tired of all of my pointless questions about teams that may or may not be cheating in virtual trivia games? 🤔
How about a more important question? 😂
Final question 1:
In 2025, what actor set the record for the longest Academy Award acceptance speech in history at five minutes and 40 seconds, greatly exceeding the ceremony’s 45-second limit? This individual also won an Academy Award in an acting category in 2003.
I based my guess on knowing the name of a best leading actor winner who worked under an exiled disgraced director in a film nominated for a 2002 film.
When a teammate asked if he also won an award in 2025, I said…
Uh…I dunno? Maybe? 🤔
Could have looked it up, but honestly, it takes all of my hand-eye coordination to submit game answers (I am so shitty at phone typing), get screen captures of questions all while avoiding dropping my phone on the damn floor. Opening another window to look up an answer? That’s just way too much work for me! 🦥 🥱
But we got it right! Lots of hooping and laughing in my husband’s upstairs office that only a select few got to hear! Trivia excitement in pink pajama pants and slippers!
Which begs the question – why bother celebrating pointless trivia victories when there is no prize on the line?
“Uh…I dunno!” 😂
Game Two/Round Three
9 Song Lyrics –
What two words are sung four times in the outro of the 2003 hit song “Mr. Brightside” by The Killers? Nerd point: The Killers formed in 2001 in what city? Dave and I teamed up here, he knew the song, I dredged up the one fact I know about this band other than Sporcle writers seem to love asking about them 😉
10 Cocktails – According to the International Bartenders Association, the two main ingredients in a dark ‘n’ stormy cocktail are ginger beer and what liquor? We put in a generic liquor name and also a specific one on parentheses 🐙🦑. Which we may have bought on purpose in airline form before just because we thought the bottle was cool and a store in Tawas City was selling them cheap 😎
11 Golfers – In August 2026, what golfer passed Tiger Woods for first place on the PGA career money list? Miss.
12 Borders – Name one of the two countries that share a land border with Kuwait, both of which also have coasts on the Persian Gulf.
Nerd point: Name both countries.
Got both.
Mystery Round Three
Odd One Out
Choose the entry in each list that does not belong.
M1 Songs by SZA that reached the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100—”Saturn,” “Kill Bill,” “Good Days,” and “Say So”
M2 MLB franchises that have made the World Series in the 2020s—Houston Astros, New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, and Toronto Blue Jays
M3 Cities that are among the five most populous in Italy—Naples, Venice, Rome, and Milan
M4 Best Picture Oscar-nominated films directed by women—Lost in Translation, Nomadland, Lady Bird, and Wicked
We came by our lack of knowledge honestly here. Total… goose…egg! 🥚
We did go on a tangent here about a menu item that used to be available at Romano’s Macaroni Grill – which was “Bella Napoli.” The rumor was it was discontinued because of food safety concerns involving its ingredients or preparation. That was what was told to us at the time.
I asked an AI generator, and it basically said it was too labor intensive of a dish and was cut from the menu to save costs.
It was SO yummy 😋
Deep fried pasta chips covered with white crema cheese, Parmesan cheese, chives, black olives, tomatoes and probably drizzled with something awesomely delicious. May have had sausage that we asked to be left off. My husband Mike and I could easily make a meal out of this for the two of us.
Guess you can create it by cooking the chips in an Air fryer. But air fryers can’t quite duplicate deep-fried stuff perfectly unless you prepare the ingredients just rightp and have just the right air fryer oven. For now, I’m content just to dream about how delicious these “Italian Nachos” were!
Now that I’ve made you all hungry, let’s move on, shall we?
Round Four
13 TV Settings – What TV series that originally aired on the WB and the CW from 2000–2007 is primarily set in the fictional town of Stars Hollow, Connecticut?
I suggested the right answer, but I was talked out of it. To be fair I wasn’t super sure anyway. 😕
14 Doctors – In 1993, Dr. Helen Rodríguez-Trías became the first Latina to lead the APHA, where the “PH” stands for what two words?I
Thought my guess was so good. It was close but nope. This wasn’t gonna be our game.
15 Movie Trivia – In the Academy Award-winning film Slumdog Millionaire, what 1844 French novel is the focus of Jamal’s final question?
Nerd point: Slumdog Millionaire is based on what novel by Vikas Swarup? Miss and miss.
16 Plays – The play A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry takes its title from a line in a poem written by what poet and leader of the Harlem Renaissance?
Nerd point: This poet was born in the city of Joplin in what U.S. state?
Missed the main points, got the nerd point.
Mystery Round Four
Give the first and last names of the people described by the following clues, all of whom have the initials “A.S.” or “A.P.”
M1 Comedian who created and starred in a Comedy Central sketch comedy series from 2013–2016 and made her film debut in the 2015 movie Trainwreck
M2 Running back drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in 2007 who ranks fifth in NFL history with 14,918 rushing yards
M3 British poet notable for his use of the heroic couplet and publishing An Essay on Criticism in 1711
M4 Name by which the q 1970–1981 is best known
Missed #3.
Final Question 2:
Cabinet Departments
With over 700,000 employees as of 2026, the U.S. Department of Defense has by far the most employees of any Cabinet-level department. Name two of the other three Cabinet-level departments with over 100,000 employees.
We picked one correct department.
We may go out for one more trivia game this week. Always a last minute decision. As always, Go Pods, and stay classy, Alexander Pope!
R1 Oscar, Zion/Acadia, sixth, spitz/beijing
R2 Canada, sagan/PBS, centimeter, apple/Michael Scott
M1 Vegemite, rockapella, bananagrams, regrexit
M2 Travis kelce, Rose Mciver, a$hanti, weird al
F Adrian Brody
R3 I Never/Vegas, rum, scheffler, Saudi Arabia/Iraq,
R4 public health, Gilmore Girls, 3 musketeers/ q&A, Langston Hughes/mo
M3 say so, Red Sox, ???, ???
M4 Amy schumer, Adrian peterson, Alexander Pope, anwar sadat
F homeland security/vet affairs/justice/???
