“Slightly Elastic Rules”

Written by Lazers
Names edited by Hilts

I didn’t know what sort of crowd to expect at TC Pub this night before a major holiday- would it be large, as people looked to get hammered the night before an off day, or would it be small, as people looked to get hammered elsewhere? It was the latter. Even the Bar primarily featured the B-team, with only Lawyer making a late appearance.

The competition: Bar, Morning Wood, and Comfortably Dumb

J&B represented by: Chemical Man, Stix, Morning Nurse, Dragon, Hilts, Gf and Lazers.

The game would be played under the “one correct answer per team” rules. Although this rule is blatantly anti-J&B, I have to admit that it has provided for some very competitive trivia nights.

First half: Modern Music/Sports Mix/TV

How wide is an NFL field?
Who was the first catcher to win “rookie of the year”?
In what year were baseball fans first allowed to keep balls hit into the crowd?
Who was the first American League player with a 4-homer game (Hall of Famer)?
Sox Opening Day 1st baseman in 1989?

J&B is loaded with ladies tonight and got to battle the Bar in a “long distance roll” competition. Morning Nurse takes the points for J&B.

Stix, on Hilts: “Morning Nurse wanted to see a show.” Let the vocal onslaught ensue (highlights included threats to throw the Bar into a volcano, as well as accusations that Deborah Norville was Benkowski’s pimp).

Scores at the half: J&B 1100 Wood 1090 Dumb 910 Bar 770

Second half: Potpourri/Sports Year of Birth/Current TV

On which network did “Get Smart” appear? (not so sure that’s “current”)
NFL strike year of ’87- who led the Bears in rushing with 586 yards?
1969 Best Supporting Actress Goldie Hawn- for what movie?
Who was the first female athlete to appear in a Wheaties TV commercial?

Second half ladies battle pits J&B against the Bar in a “most piercings” competition. Gf takes the points for J&B.

Scores after two halves: J&B 2370 Wood 2100 Dumb 1870 Bar 1620

Choice of category: Entertainment of 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, or 00s. Only one question in each.

J&B selects the 1970s and wagers the classic (1831).

1970s: Who was the voice of Superman in the “Superman” cartoon show?

1990s: In “Home Alone” from what gangster movie does Kevin use the audio to scare the robbers (4 words)?

2000s: What musical group had a pair of songs that each spent much time at #1 on the charts during 2003-2004?

Home players?

Part II

J&B guesses Casey Kasem- confidence level reflects uncertainty.

First half answers:
53 1/3 yards wide
Johnny Bench
1921
Lou Gehrig
Greg Walker

Second half answers:
NBC
Neal Anderson
Cactus Flower
Mary Lou Retton

Final Question:

Bar- 1620- 2000s- guesses U2 (no)- wagered 1620- thanks for playing.

Comfortably Dumb- 1870- 1990s- guesses “St Valentine’s Day Massacre” (no)- wagered 1870- thanks for playing.

Morning Wood- 2100- 2000s- guesses Outkast (correct)- wagered 2100- up to 4200 and the lead.

J&B- 2370- 1970s- guesses Casey Kasem (no)- wagered 1831- down to 539, and the victory goes to Morning Wood.

Answers:
1970s: Bud Collyer
1990s: Angels With Dirty Faces
2000s: Outkast

It was another of those “Jim Segredo test” nights from high school, as Benkowski appeared to be writing the questions just prior to giving them. Conspiracy discussion soon popped up, theorizing that the difficulty level of the final questions tied directly to the category and wager by J&B. David Stern is denying everything.

As follow-up, Bud Collyer was involved with many Superman projects during his career, including “The New Adventures of Superman” cartoon that ran from 1966-1970. Collyer died in 1969, which makes me think the “voice of Superman” question should have been the Entertainment of the 1960s question, not the 1970s.

The main source of animated Superman during the 1970s appears to be various incarnations of “Superfriends”, for which Danny Dark voiced the Man of Steel. Dark was best known for providing the voice of Starkist Tuna’s “Sorry Charlie” commercials.

Interesting side note: the narrator of the original “Superfriends” was Ted Knight.

As Stix mentioned last night, Casey Kasem provided the voice of Robin for various incarnations of “Superfriends” during this era. Kasem’s filmography also notes one appearance on the “Dean Martin Show” as Adolph Hitler. I thought Hilts would appreciate that tidbit.

Next trivia night in two weeks: Thursday, July 17th. Early indications are that the Missouri Department of Revenue will be sending a contingent of players.

Finally- good luck to Stix regarding next week’s procedure. While you are out of action, J&B has negotiated a deal with Casey Kasem to answer the music questions.