Answer Sheet Art

It's always interesting to look at the answer sheets some of the teams turn in after each round. Some are spotless with only the answers written down, while others have notes, scribbles, calculations and corrections covering the front and back of the paper.

And then some teams get a bit more creative with the back of their answer sheets. Elizabeth from the Slow P'Touhy team provide the artwork you see here. Either she gets really bored between questions or the questions aren't hard enough.

By the way, creativity on answer sheets will earn you praise from Dan The Man and probably a spot on the Web site. It will not, however, earn you extra points on trivia.

More art

Here's another example of answer sheet art, this one by Ryan of Next Round's On Me.

Hold me closer Tony Danza

No, please don't. The title of this post is an example of a mondegreen. On the TV show “Friends,” Phoebe mistakes the Elton John lyric “Hold me closer tiny dancer," for “Hold me closer Tony Danza.”

A mondegreen is the mishearing (usually accidental) of a phrase, such that it acquires a new meaning. The term was coined in 1954 by American writer Sylvia Wright.

The Gwen Stafani song "Holla Back Girl" has an interesting mondegreen.

Pop vs. Soda vs. 'Coke'

When you offer someone a carbonated beverage that is not a beer, what do you call it? According to research done by Matthew Campbell and professor Greg Plumb of East Central University in Oklahoma it depends on what part of the country you are in.

Most Southerns (yours truly included) call it a "Coke," even if it's not the name brand or even a cola beverage. Click HERE to see an interactive map. If you click on the smaller map of the U.S., you can click on an individual state and see the breakdown by county. I grew up in Anderson County, Tenn., where 24 of the 32 respondents used the term "Coke" for all carbonated beverages.

Dan The Man Showcase Song of the Week

The Dan The Man Showcase Song of the Week is Christina Aguilera's "Makes Me Wanna Pray." The song features Steve Winwood.

Click the iTunes logo to hear a clip of the song. (You must have iTunes installed on your computer. Let me know if you have problems with the link by sening me a message to danthemantrivia-at-gmail-dot-com.)

Aguilera is the star of the song, obviously, but Winwood is no slouch himself. He began his musical career in the early 1960s at age 15 when he joined the Spencer Davis Group. The band had a couple of hits "Gimme Some Lovin'" and "I'm a Man." throughout at the 60s and 70s, Winwood played with some of the biggest musicians of the time, including Jimi Hendrix, Joe Cocker and Eric Clapton. He was also a regular on the blues scene, playing with such legends as Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, John Lee Hooker, B.B. King and T-Bone Walker.

In the 1986, Winwood released a solo album, "Back in the High Life," that went triple platinum. Two years later his album "Roll With It" topped the Billboard charts in the U.S.

Very late update

Yes, Dan The Man is running a little late with updating the trivia blog. The day job has been a little hectic this week. I've got some cool things to post, but they'll have to wait for a few more days.

It's not cool stuff ya'll are after anyway - it's hints to tonight's questions that you seek. Here are a few clues:

• NFL Hall of Fame quarterbacks from the University of Alabama.

• Last names of characters on 'Sex and the City.'

• Some 'Friends' trivia.

• An entire round I've dubbed "Cereal Killers." It's about mascots from cereal companies.

• And as always, there will be a round of Name That Tune, with some favorites from Dan The Man's iPod.

See ya'll tonight!

Correction

Hank takes exception with the photo of the short bus I published below. He says this is the short bus he rode. Nice wheels.

The winners are …

Congratulations to 7 Gables for winning Game 1 in dramatic fashion! After three rounds of trivia, 7 Gables and the Slow P'Touhys tied for first place. Jerry from 7 Gables and Jay from Slow P'Touhys battled in the TV Theme Song tie-breaker. Evidently these guys don't watch television because neither correctly guessed the first two themes ("Kojak" and "Taxi"). I thought the third song would have been a cinch, but Jerry didn't correctly identify the theme from "The Jeffersons" until 15 seconds into it.

In Game 2, former champions Henry and Adam earned the championship belt after several weeks of not ranking. Taking a jab at 7 Gables and their 17 team members, Henry and Adam named their team 477,777,777 Gables. Joining Henry and Adam in the victory dance were team members Kristen, Shirley, Joe the Nurse, Estelle and Tony.

By the way, Debbie and Jerry from the 7 Gables team were kind enough to bring in potato leek soup for everyone at the Emerald Hen to enjoy. Since I'm usually running late on trivia nights, it's tough to get something for supper that's not Mickey D's. The soup hit the spot.

Debbie and Jerry plan to bring in soup the first Wednesday night of every month. The next "soup night" is Sept. 6. Debbie says they plan to make beef barley soup in September. Everyone is welcome to have a couple of cups. All they ask is that you donate a couple of dollars to help defray the cost. They've promised any remaining funds will go into the Dan The Man Trivia tip jar. Yes, I have a vested interest, but please don't let that deter you from eating some delicious soup.

I forgot to take a picture of the soup, so this photo comes from the So Cal Foodie blog, which includes a recipe for potato leek soup.

Get on the bus, Gus

A new school year has started which means the big yellow buses will be crowding the streets during rush hour traffic. With that in mind, here are a few questions to ponder:
• What is the official name of the color yellow used on school buses?
• What year did the color become a national standard?
• Who is considered the "Father of the Yellow School Bus?
• And finally, according to the Orlando Sentinel, how many Seminole County students rode the bus during the 2005-2006 school year?
By the way, Hank Dieckhaus rode one of these short buses to school every day.

Are you ready for some football?

The NFL inducted John Madden (above), Troy Aikman, Harry Carson, Warren Moon, Reggie White, and Rayfield Wright into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday. With football season just around the corner, expect some gridiron trivia. The Sunday Orlando Sentinel also had some good Hall of Fame trivia (hint, hint).

TV theme songs

During this Wednesday's (Aug. 2, 2006) Game 1 (which starts about 7:30 p.m.) will feature TV theme trivia. I'll play clips from some classic shows, you name them.

The biggest thing in the universe

Yes, it's even bigger than Henry's vocabulary. Read more here.

Close call

British artist Banksy created a stir in Bristol, England when he painted this mural on the side of a sex clinic. Get the full story here.

Don't wash these windows

For the man or woman who has everything, now than can have their very own Dogs Playing Poker - on the back window of their dusty car. Check out some of Texas artist Scott Wade's other master pieces.

Robert's new 'do?

Perhaps Robert should have tried this wig when he lost his hair to chemo. Might have made for a kinder, gentler Robert. If you want to know how to make this thing, click here.

7 Gables adds another win

7 Gables team members celebrate another win, this time prevailing in the second game on Wednesday, July 26, 2006. Dan The Man Trivia is held every Wednesday night starting about 7:30 p.m. at The Emerald Hen.

Slow P'Touhy wins again!

Showing that their earlier victory was not just a fluke, Elizabeth and Nancy from The P'Touhy's combined with Slow Win to notch another victory. The team actually tied with City Slickers (see below), but veteran trivia player Jay secured the victory in the staring contest.

The Stare Master

The City Slickers tied with Slow P'Touhy for first place in Game 1 Wednesday, July 26. To break the tie, Greg from the City Slickers and Jay from Slow P'Touhy stared at each other until one of them blinked. The contest went on for about three minutes before Greg finally cracked - though there is a question on whether the judges missed Jay's blink. Afterward, Greg practiced his stare and then was consoled by the lovely Linda.

Freaky, uh?

The anagram for “alien forms” is “life on Mars."

Mars trivia is certain Wednesday night.