Trivia People

“Big Tex” The 55-foot-tall mascot of the State Fair of Texas, seen in 2013. (Photo by Paul Komarek via Wikimedia Commons)

On this date in 2012 the 52-foot tall statue of Big Tex at Fair Park in Dallas was destroyed by fire during the Texas state fair.

Here are some things you may not have known about Big Tex and state and county fairs.

Big Tex was originally built as the world’s tallest Santa Claus in Kerens, Texas in 1949. It was built of an iron frame, papier mache and unraveled rope. In 1951, the statue was moved to the Texas state fairgrounds in Dallas and redesigned as a cowboy.

In 2012, an electrical fire began inside the statue’s wiring and burned everything but the iron framework. The fair rebuilt the monument to withstand 100 mile-per-hour winds and added three feet to make the statue an even 55 feet tall.

Big Tex burns on Oct. 12, 2012. (Photo by Christian Bradford via Wikimedia Commons)

State fairs were originally designed to promote agriculture through exhibitions of livestock, produce and other farm products. Fairs eventually added carnival rides, midway games, auto racing and concerts. County fairs are smaller versions of state fairs.

The first state fair was the Great New York State Fair in Syracuse in 1841. Eight years later the Michigan State Fair began in Detroit. The state fair with the highest attendance is the State Fair of Texas, with an estimated 3 million annual attendees. It is claimed that the corn dog was invented at the Texas state fair, but several other fairs also lay claim to it. However, several deep-fried foods have been popularized at the Texas state fair, including deep-fried Oreos, butter, Twinkies, pork ribs, cheesecake and, of course, chicken fried-bacon.

Our question, a precursor of the American state fair is the agricultural show. When and where was the first known agricultural show held?

Today is Constitution Day in Niue and Mother Teresa Day in Albania. In the United States it’s unofficially National Seafood Bisque Day. It’s the birthday of novelist John Le Carre, actor Robert Reed, who was best known as Mike Brady on “The Brady Bunch,” and fellow actors Michael Gambon and John Lithgow.

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American sprinters Tommie Smith, center, and John Carlos, right, hold their fists in the air in protest during the medals ceremony for the men’s 200 meters at the Summer Olympics in Mexico City on Oct. 17, 2968. (Angelo Cozzi/Mondadori Publishers via Wikimedia Commons)

On this date in 1968, Tommie Smith and John Carlos of the United States won gold and bronze medals respectively in the 200 meters at the Summer Olympics in Mexico City.

During the medal ceremony, the Americans raised their black-gloved fists above their bowed heads during the playing of the “Star Spangled Banner.” All three medalists, including Australian Peter Norman, who finished second, wore human rights badges on their jackets.

Here are some things you may not have known about that historic moment and the men who participated.

Tommie Smith and John Carlos were members of a group called the Olympic Project for Human Rights, which protested against racial segregation in the United States and southern Africa, and racism in sports in general. The group proposed a boycott of the 1968 Summer Games unless four conditions were met: South Africa and Rhodesia excluded from the games, Muhammad Ali’s heavyweight title restored, the resignation of International Olympic Committee president Avery Brundage and more black assistant coaches hired. In the end, South Africa and Rhodesia were excluded, but none of the other conditions were met.

Smith and Carlos decided to run, but stage a protest if either earned a medal.

Smith, who held the world record in the 200 meters, was battling a hamstring injury,  but passed Carlos coming off the turn. He went on to better his own world record and win the gold medal. The Australian, Peter Norman was second, and Carlos was third.

Smith and Carlos had intended on wearing gloves on both hands, but Carlos forgot his at the Olympic Village. Norman, who wore a Olympic Project for Human Rights badge during the ceremony, suggested that Carlos wear Smith’s left glove. The Americans raised their fists during the national anthem. They were booed by the crowd as they left the podium.

Brundage, the IOC president, ordered Smith and Carlos suspended from the American team and banned from the Olympic Village. The team refused, and Brundage, who made no objection to Nazi salutes at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, threatened to ban the entire American team. The team relented and Smith and Carlos were expelled.

Smith and Carlos received death threats upon their return to the United States. Smith went on to play for the Cincinnati Bengals of the American Football League and then became an assistant professor at Oberlin College. Carlos played for the NFL’s Philadelphia Eagles and worked with the organizing committee for the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. He later became track and field coach at Palm Springs High School.

Norman was reprimanded by the Australian team for his gesture. Despite setting 18 qualifying times for the 1972 Olympics, he was not selected to participate. In 1985, he nearly had his leg amputated after a racing injury and he fell into depression, alcoholism and pain-killer addiction.

In 2000 he was not asked to participate in ceremonies surrounding the Sydney Olympics. After that snub, the United States invited him to attend as a guest of the American delegation.  He died in 2006 of a heart attack at the age of 64. Smith and Carlos were pallbearers at his funeral.

Our question, The 1972 Summer Olympics were held in what city?

Today is World Food Day and World Anesthesia Day. In the United States, it’s unofficially National Dictionary Day, National Feral Cat Day and National Mammography Day.

The cover of the American first edition of P.G. Wodehouse’s “My Man Jeeves.” (Image via Wikimedia Commons)

Today is the birthday of English author P.G. Wodehouse, the creator of the character “Jeeves” the quintessential English butler, who actually wasn’t a butler at all.

Here are some things you may not have known about Wodehouse, Jeeves and the difference between a butler and a valet or — more properly pronounced — valet (with a pronounced “T”).

Pelham Grenville Wodehouse was born in Guildford, Surrey in 1881. During an unfulfilling career in banking, he turned to writing for magazines and newspapers, eventually earning enough to quit his job at the bank. He traveled to New York in 1904, an experience that increased his standing as a writer in London.

In 1915 he published his first story featuring the characters of the amiable, but dim, Bertie Wooster and his valet, or gentleman’s gentleman, Reginald Jeeves. Jeeves serves Wooster and not a household, so he is not a butler, though he is capable of serving in such a capacity when necessary. Wooster noted, “if the call comes, he can buttle with the best of them.”

Jeeves appears in 35 short stories and 11 novels by Wodehouse. Wooster appears in all of them with the exception of one novel. Jeeves has been portrayed on screen by Arthur Treacher, Dennis Price and Stephen Fry, among others. Wooster has been played by David Niven, Ian Carmichael and Hugh Laurie.

Wodehouse moved to France in the 1930s for tax purposes and was held by the Germans during World War II. While in Berlin, he made five broadcasts about his experiences as a prisoner, which were regarded as an act of treason in Britain. In 1946, he and his wife moved to New York, eventually settling in Southampton, Long Island, where he wrote 20 novels over the next 25 years. He became a U.S. citizen in 1955. He was knighted in January 1975, which was seen as forgiveness for his wartime indiscretion. He died less than two months later at the age of 93.

Our question, what is the first and last name of Bruce Wayne’s valet in “Batman”?

Today is Global Handwashing Day and Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day. In the United States, it is unofficially National Cheese Curd Day, National Cake Decorating Day and National Grouch Day. It’s the birthday of the author of “The Godfather” Mario Puzo, actress-director Penny Marshall and chef Emeril Legasse.

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Yeager in front of the Bell X-1, which, as with all of the aircraft assigned to him, he named Glamorous Glennis (or some variation thereof), after his wife. (U.S. Air Force photo via Wikimedia Commons)

On this date in 1947, Chuck Yeager became the first person to break the speed of sound in an airplane.

Here are some facts you may not have known about Yeager and supersonic flight.

Charles Elwood Yeager was born in West Virginia in 1923. He joined the U.S. Army Air Forces at the age of 18 in 1941. After two years working as an aircraft mechanic, he became a pilot in 1943 and was stationed in England where he flew eight missions before being shot down over France. A year after, he was allowed to resume flying and he made “ace in a day” for shooting down five enemy aircraft in a single mission. He finished the war with 11 1/2 victories.

Following World War II, Yeager remained in the Air Force and became a test pilot in a program with the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, the predecessor of NASA. The program’s goal was to break the sound barrier in a rocket-powered Bell X-1 airplane. Two days before the historic flight was scheduled, Yeager broke two ribs falling off of a horse. He kept the injury secret, seeking treatment from a nearby veterinarian. The injury caused so much pain, Yeager couldn’t latch the X-1 hatch closed by himself, so he and a fellow pilot used a broom handle to rig up a lever that would allow him to do it.

Yeager took off from what is now Edwards Air Force Base in California and broke the speed of sound, which is 768 miles per hour or 1,236 kilometers per hour, about 45,000 feet over Rogers Dry Lake in the Mojave Desert.

Six years later Yeager reached a speed of Mach 2.44, after which he lost control of the plane for 51 seconds, dropping 51,000 feet. He has able to regain control and land the plane without further problem. He earned the distinguished service medal for this feat.

He remained a fighter pilot and commanded fighter wings in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War. He retired as a brigadier general in 1975.

Chuck Yeager is 92 years old and lives in Penn Valley, California.

Our question, what type of plane holds the current speed record for manned flight in an airbreathing craft?

Today is World Standards Day, Defender of Ukraine Day and Mother’s Day in Belarus. In the United States it’s unofficially National Emergency Nurses Day and National Stop Bullying Day. It’s the birthday of former U.S President Dwight Eisenhower, UCLA basketball coach John Wooden and actor Roger Moore.

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Paddington Bear

On this date in 1958, Paddington Bear made his debut in the children’s book “A Bear Called Paddington.”

Here are some facts you may not have known about Paddington.

Paddington was created by Michael Bond, who saw a single teddy bear for sale on a shelf in a shop near Paddington Station in London. He wrote the first book in 10 days.

The book was illustrated by Peggy Fortnum.

Paddington is a spectacled bear who hails from “darkest Peru.”

In the story He arrived in London via lifeboat and was found in Paddington Station by the Brown family who live in nearby Notting Hill.

His Peruvian name is Patuso, which he says no one in England can understand, so the Browns call him Paddington after the station.

The first Paddington stuffed toy was made in 1972 by Shirley and Eddie Clarkson, who gave the prototypes to their children, Joanna and Jeremy. Jeremy Clarkson would go on to become the host of the BBC car show “Top Gear.”

2014 saw the release of a combination animated and live action Paddington movie along with the latest Paddington book, “Love from Paddington.”. In 2015, Paddington Bear threw out the first pitch at a Chicago Cubs game.

Our question, what is Paddington’s favorite food?

Today is International Day for Natural Disaster Reduction and also National Police Day in Thailand. In the United States it is unofficially National Yorkshire Pudding Day and National No Bra Day, designed to raise awareness of breast cancer. Instead of simply raising awareness of breast cancer, might I suggest making a donation toward research of metastatic breast cancer at metavivor.org

Today is also the birthday of comedians Lenny Bruce, Nipsey Russell and Sacha Baron Cohen.

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Hoover Dam with the new bypass bridge downstream. (Photo from HDR Inc.)

On this date in 1936, what is now called Hoover Dam began producing electricity.

Here are some things you may not have known about the dam.

The Hoover Dam was built between 1931 and 1936 on the Colorado River at Black Canyon on the state line between Nevada and Arizona, about 30 miles southeast of Las Vegas.

The dam cost $49 million at the time of construction, or roughly equivalent to $833 million today.

It was built for power production, flood control, water storage and recreational purposes.

The reservoir behind Hoover Dam is Lake Mead, which is  the largest reservoir in the United States in terms of water capacity.

During construction, the U.S. government changed the name of the dam to Boulder Dam to avoid association with former President Herbert Hoover, who was wildly unpopular at the time due to the Great Depression.

112 people died during construction of the dam, including 96 on the construction site itself. An additional 42 workers were said to have died of pneumonia, but in actuality likely died from carbon monoxide poisoning in tunnels.

A total of 3 and a quarter million cubic yards of concrete was used in construction of the dam and more than 582 miles of cooling pipes were run through the concrete. There is enough concrete in the dam to pave a two-lane highway from San Francisco to New York.

Boulder City, Nevada, was constructed to house the average workforce of 3,500 men at any one time. Boulder City remains today and is one of two cities in Nevada which prohibit gambling. Panaca in eastern Nevada is the other.

The name was officially changed back to Hoover Dam in 1947.

Between the dam’s completion and 2010, the highway between Phoenix, Arizona and Las Vegas ran across the top of the dam. Because of security concerns and traffic backups, a new bridge was built just downstream of the dam.

Today the dam generates 4.2 billion kilowatt hours of electricity; sending most of its power to Nevada, Arizona and Los Angeles.

Our question, how many workers are entombed in Hoover Dam?

Today is World Post Day and part of World Space Week. It’s also Independence Day in Uganda. In the United States it’s unofficially Leif Erikson Day and National Moldy Cheese Day. It’s the birthday of musicians Giuseppe Verdi, John Lennon, John Entwistle, Jackson Browne, PJ Harvey and Sean Lennon.

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New York Yankees catcher Yogi Berra (8) jumps into the arms of pitcher Don Larsen after Larsen completed a perfect game in Game 5 of the 1956 World Series against the Brooklyn Dodgers on Oct. 8, 1956 in New York. (Photo via Wikimedia Commons)

On this date in 1956, Don Larsen of the New York Yankees threw a perfect game in Game 5 of the World Series.

Here are a few facts about Larsen and the only perfect game in World Series history.

Larsen was born in 1929 in Michigan City, Indiana. His family moved to San Diego, California when he was 15 years old. In 1947, he signed a contract to play in the St. Louis Browns minor league system, receiving an $850 bonus. After serving in the U.S. Army between 1951 and 1953, Larsen made his Major League debut with the Browns on April 17, 1953. He finished his rookie season with seven wins and 12 losses. The next year, the Browns moved to Baltimore and became the Orioles. After going 3-21 in his first year in Baltimore, Larsen was traded to the New York Yankees as part of a 17-player trade.

In 1956, Larsen had 11 wins and five losses in helping the Yankees to the American League pennant. He started Game 2 of the World Series against the Brooklyn Dodgers, but lasted only 1 2/3 innings after walking four batters. Yankees manager Casey Stengel started Larsen again in Game 5 against Brooklyn’s Sal Maglie.

Both Larsen and Maglie were perfect into the fourth inning when Yankees centerfielder Mickey Mantle hit a home run. The Yankees later added another run on a single by Hank Bauer. Larsen, meanwhile kept every Dodgers batter off the base paths, in fact, Pee Wee Reese was the only Dodger able to work a three-ball count against Larsen. With two outs in the ninth inning, Larsen struck out Dale Mitchell for the 27th and final out of the game. The Dodgers were held without a hit, a walk or a runner reaching base on an error. Yankees catcher Yogi Berra ran out to the pitcher’s mound and leaped into Larsen’s arms in one of the most iconic moments in sports history. The Yankees won the game 2-0 and went on to win the World Series in seven games.

Larsen is the last living player from that game. Yogi Berra died in September at the age of 90.

Our question, who is the only other pitcher to throw a no-hitter in the postseason?

Today is Independence Day in Croatia, Children’s Day in Iran and Arbor Day in Namibia. In the United States it’s unofficially National Pierogi Day. It’s the birthday of Australian actor Paul Hogan, American actor Chevy Chase and singer Bruno Mars.

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Edgar Allan Poe in 1849. (Photo via Wikimedia Commons)

On this date in 1849, Edgar Allan Poe died in Baltimore, Maryland.

Here are some facts you may not have known about Poe and his death.

Edgar Poe was born in 1809 in Boston. At the age of two, he was orphaned when his mother died of tuberculosis. He was taken in by John Allan and his family, who added their name to his without ever formally adopting him.

Poe attended the University of Virginia for a year and later attended the United States Military Academy at West Point before being dismissed a year later.

He worked for several magazines before publishing his only novel “The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket” in 1838. In 1845 his poem “The Raven” was published in the Evening Mirror, which made Poe a household name. He was paid nine dollars for the poem.

Poe’s wife died of tuberculosis in 1847 and many of his works from this period focus on the deaths of beautiful women. His last completed work was the poem “Annabel Lee.”

On October 3, 1849, Poe was found incapacitated on a street in Baltimore. He was taken to a hospital where he lingered for four days until dying on October 7. He never regained coherency during the time, thus was not able to explain what had happened to him.

Early theories as to the cause of Poe’s death included alcoholism and suicide. Later it was suggested that Poe was poisoned as part of a ballot-box-stuffing scheme called cooping, a theory that was widely accepted for decades. Other theorized causes of death included cholera and syphilis. In 1996 doctors at the University of Maryland said much of the available evidence points to rabies as the likely cause of death.

Between the 1930s and 1998, a man dressed in black would visit the original site of Poe’s grave on the night of Poe’s birthday, January 19th. He would pour a glass of cognac and toast Poe’s memory, then leave the unfinished bottle and three roses on the grave marker. After the original toaster died in 1998, another man continued the tradition until 2009, the 200th anniversary of Poe’s birth. He has not returned since.

Our question, in Poe’s short story “The Tell-Tale Heart,” where does the murderer hide his victim’s body?

Today is the birthday of Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Russian president Vladimir Putin and cellist Yo-Yo Ma.

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Wrigley Field usher Olaf Logan stops Billy Sianis, owner of the Billy Goat Tavern, from entering the stadium in October 1945. (Chicago Tribune historical photo)

70 years ago today, a man and his goat were kicked out of a World Series baseball game, which some believe led to one of the great curses in sports history.

Here are a few facts you may not have known about the Curse of the Billy Goat.

Chicago bar owner Billy Sianis , who immigrated to the United States from Greece, operated the Billy Goat Tavern. The tavern was named after Murphy, a goat which fell off the back of a truck in front of the bar and was nursed back to health by Sianis. Sianis was known for taking Murphy to events around town as a publicity stunt for his bar.

On October 6, 1945, Sianis attended Game 4 of the World Series between the Detroit Tigers and Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Before the game, Sianis was allowed to take Murphy on the field with a sign saying, “We Got Detroit’s Goat.”

Sianis and Murphy sat in their seats to watch the game until the fourth inning when team officials told them to leave because of the goat’s foul smell.

Sianis, outraged at the offense, cursed the Cubs. Some allege the curse prevented World Series games from being played at Wrigley Field, while others say it has prevented the Cubs from reaching another World Series.

The Cubs went on to lose the 1945 World Series in seven games.

Sianis lifted the curse in 1969, but the Cubs still haven’t played in another World Series.

Billy Sianis died in Chicago in 1970. The Cubs still have a chance to reach the World Series this season. They open postseason play on Wednesday against the Pittsburgh Pirates in the National League Wild Card Game.

Our question, in what movie does one of the main characters give the address for Wrigley Field as his false address?

Today is Armed Forces Day in Montenegro and Day of Commemoration and National Mourning in Turkmenistan. In the United States it is unofficially National German-American Day and National Noodle Day. It’s the birthday of singer Jenny Lind, actress Carole Lombard and architect Le Corbusier.

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On this date in 1969, “Monty Python’s Flying Circus” premiered on BBC 1 in the United Kingdom.

Here are a few facts you may not have known about the show and its creators.

The six members of the troupe worked together on several British television shows before creating their own show in 1969. Five of them worked on “The Frost Report” with David Frost. For their work on “The Frost Report,” John Cleese and Graham Chapman were offered a show by the BBC. Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin and Terry Gilliam were offered a show by independent broadcaster ITV to begin in 1970. Cleese invited Palin to join Chapman and him on their BBC project. Palin suggested bringing along Idle, Jones and Gilliam.

What would become “Monty Python’s Flying Circus” was built around the idea that a sketch doesn’t necessarily require a punchline; sometimes the setup is funny enough on its own. However, they needed a way to transition from sketch to sketch and chose to use animations by Terry Gilliam to do this. They also used characters who would break the fourth wall to move the show along. One example is Graham Chapman’s “Colonel,” whose job was to make sure things didn’t get too silly.

The show also popularized techniques such as the cold open, which is when the program begins before the credits or opening titles.

The show lasted four seasons with 45 episodes in total.

The last episode aired on December 5, 1974.

The person responsible for “Monty Python” being introduced to American audiences was, naturally, Dean Martin.

During the summer hiatus from “The Dean Martin Show” in 1972, Martin produced a replacement program called “ComedyWorld,” which featured clips from international comedy programs. Sketches including “Bicycle Repairman” and “The Dull Life of a Stockbroker” aired on this show. Thanks to this, the owner of the American rights to BBC programming was able to convert the entire series to be able to show it in North America.

The show would go on to be one of the staples of public television stations in the 1970s and 1980s.

The troupe went on to make five movies, including a filmed version of their live show at the Hollywood Bowl. In 1989, Graham Chapman died of cancer.

The rest of the Pythons reunited in 2014 for a stage show called “Monty Python Live (mostly): One Down, Five to Go.” Tickets for the first night sold out in 45 seconds.

Our question, which of the Pythons was not British?

Today is World Teachers’ Day. It’s also Constitution Day in Vanuatu and Republic day in Portugal. In the United States it’s National Do Something Nice Day and National Child Health Day. It’s the birthday of Former U.S. President Chester A. Arthur, scientist Robert Goddard, former Czech president Vaclav Havel and actor/comedian Bernie Mac.

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