Three of a Kind, Part 12 Trivia Quiz

Answer: square

Eric Maschwitz wrote the lyrics and Manning Sherwin wrote the music to "A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square" in 1939 as World War II began. The Berkeley Square mentioned (which is pronounced BAR-klee) is located in London. It was recorded by Vera Lynn, It recurs in Fritz' Lang's movie "Man Hunt" (1941). It has been recorded by Frank Sinatra, Twiggy, Mel Torme, Rod Stewart, Nat King Cole, Glenn Miller and His Orchestra, Perry Como, Harry Connick Jr., The Brian Setzer Orchestra, The Manhattan Transfer, and Petula Clark.

Madison Square Garden is located in Manhattan and provides home ice to the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League, a home court to the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association, and a home piano to Billy Joel.

A number times itself is its "square." This is notated by placing a small numeral "2" after and slightly above the number. Thus, the square of three is nine and the square of 277 is 76,729 ... obviously.

Answer: Tuesday

Tuesday gets its name from the Old English Tiwesdæg and from the Middle English Tewesday, both of which mean "Tiw's Day". Tiw is the English equivalent of the Germanic Tyr who was a god of war and of law. He was often depicted as one-handed. There is a heavy metal band named Týr in the Faroe Islands; imagine that!

Gayle Tuesday is a pseudonym used by the English comedian Brenda Gilhooly. Tuesday is a busty and typically dumb blonde. She appeared on various TV shows and ultimately on her own.

Tuesday Knight has appeared on American television and in movies, e.g. "A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master" (1988). She worked as a back-up singer before releasing a solo album. She sings lead in a Blondie tribute band. She owns her own jewelry company called Tuesday's Hip Vintage which produces Victorian, Gothic and Egyptian styles of jewelry.

Answer: topaz

Leon Uris' cold-war suspense novel "Topaz" was a critical and commercial success; Alfred Hitchcock's cinematic adaptation of that novel was a critical and commercial failure. The ideas in the story linked well with the Soviet missile crisis in Cuba. There are three different endings to the film; it was released with different endings in different places.

The Amazon Kindle e-reader runs on Topaz. This proprietary system is especially useful in reading old books and texts in a foreign language. Amazon controls the product.

William Topaz McGonagall (1825-1902) left behind a career in weaving to become a poet who performed his own works in public. A website dedicated to his poetry calls him "widely hailed as the writer of the worst poetry in the English language." His autobiography is equally awful. The best known of his works -- "The Tay Bridge Disaster" -- has been reviewed: "Perhaps, since it deals with visionary ideals plunged into total disaster, it's a fitting commemoration of his career."

Answer: boxer

Barbara Levy Boxer (b. 1940) served in the U.S. House of Representatives (1983-1993) and was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1993. Senator Feinstein got there first; the two served together for many years. Boxer is a liberal Democrat.

The boxer dog is a product of German breeding, bringing together traits useful in running down bear, wild boar and deer. The result is a medium-sized dog with short hair in many colours, with square muzzles and strong jaws. A recent survey found it to be the eighth most popular dog in America.

Boxer shorts and, to a lesser extent, boxer briefs are modeled after the kinds of shorts classically worn by boxers in the ring. Boxer shorts for boxers were introduced by Everlast in 1925; boxer shorts for men in general in about 1944. There are even boxer shorts for women, although these are more of a novelty.

Answer: woolly

Wool includes sheep's hair and the similar hair of many other animals which is of the same texture and utility. Modernly, this includes unnatural products made to synthesize substances which are woolly.

Woolly monkeys are found in the rainforests of the Amazon and Orinoco Rivers of South America. There are four sorts: the brown woolly monkey, the gray woolly monkey, the Colombian woolly monkey, and the silvery woolly monkey.

Douglas Fairbanks stars in "Wild and Woolly" directed by John Emerson. The film was based on a novel by Horace B, Carpenter. This 1917 silent classic ought not be confused with the 1932 short "Wild and Woolly" nor the 1978 made-for-TV Western "Wild and Woolly."

Answer: trigger

The part of a firearm which initiates its discharge is the trigger. The same term applies to the trigger of a crossbow. The index finger is most commonly used to actuate a trigger but some weapons use another finger or the thumb. The trigger is part of "the action" which includes trigger, hammer and safeties.

English comedian Benny Hill actually worked as a milkman. This experience inspired him to write, perform and record the song "Ernie (The Fastest Milkman in the West)" in 1970. The song is about the competition between Ernie, who drives a horse-drawn milk cart, and Ted, who delivers bread, for the heart of Sue, a widow on their route. Ernie's horse is named Trigger.

In "The Trigger," scientists invent a device to prevent war only to have it converted into a weapon of war. Arthur C. Clarke pairs well with American author Michael P. Kube-McDowell, who is a novelist, essayist and writer of short stories.

Answer: buckwheat

Fagopyrum esculentum is cultivated to produce buckwheat, as is Fagopyrum tataricum in India, and Fagopyrum acutatum in Japan. Because there is no gluten in buckwheat, it is helpful to people who suffer from Celiac Disease. The Japanese produce lovely soba noodles with buckwheat flour. Americans produce hearty pancakes. Buckwheat is used for blinis in Russia and galettes in France.

The character Buckwheat was originally created as a girl -- child actor Stymie Beard's sister in the series -- but Stymie left the cast in 1935 and Buckwheat became a male. Billie Thomas played the black kid in an intensely stereotypic way, which was the universal portrayal of that time. On the other hand, the Our Gang series placed males and females, blacks and whites all together in one group which was groundbreaking for its time.

There are several named areas of sand dunes in Death Valley National Park. One of the less well known is the Buckwheat Sand Dunes, so named because the colour of the sands makes them look like mounds of buckwheat.

Answer: bear

The Berenstain Bears appeared in 1962 in a children's book entitled "The Big Honey Hunt." The books were originally written and illustrated by the husband and wife team of Stanley and Janice Berenstain. Their sons have joined the enterprise, led the series to 300 titles, and developed franchising including film and television.

The Prophet Daniel predicts that four kingdoms will arise before the end time, each represented by an animal which arises out of the sea. These are identified in Chapter 7 as a beast like a lion with eagle's wings, a beast like a bear, a beast like a leopard with four wings and four heads, and a beast with large iron teeth and ten horns.

The rhyme, of unknown origin, says "Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear. Fuzzy Wuzzy had no hair. Fuzzy Wuzzy wasn't very fuzzy, was he?"

Answer: ginger

Ginger Baker (b. 1939) was the drummer who founded Cream with Jack Bruce and Eric Clapton. He also founded Blind Faith with Clapton, Ric Grech and Stevie Winwood. He lived for a time in Nigeria and then moved to the United States.

Ginger is extensively cultivated in India and China where it is used both as a flavouring and in medicine. The rhizome may be grated and used raw, pickled or dried for preservation. It is the dominant flavour in ginger ale and ginger beer.

Tina Louise portrayed the "movie star" character Ginger Grant on the TV series "Gilligan's Island." Others took the role when the cast was reunited to make three reunion TV movies. She often appeared wearing an evening gown to underscore her stereotypic role, which role she later blamed for limiting her career.

Answer: hang

RuPaul's "Lettin' It All Hang Out" is an autobiography (one of two) and a book of beauty tips by RuPaul Andre Charles (b. 1960). He/she is an actor (TV and movies), drag queen, songwriter, recording artist, author, television personality and model.

At some point after ceasing to drink alcohol, various ills occur in the drinker: headache, nausea, fatigue, sweats, dry mouth. This is a hangover, for which there is no known cure. Eschewing alcohol altogether and moderate drinking are both assured methods of preventing hangover.

Since around 1850, a dish called Hangtown Fry has been prepared in Placerville, California. Its legend is connected with the California Gold Rush. The Tadich Grill in San Francisco has had this dish on the menu for over 160 years.