THE PUZZLE CORNER: NOVEMBER 22, 2014

FUN FACT
The countries that do celebrate Thanksgiving don't celebrate it on the same day.

Thursday is Thanksgiving here in the United States of America, so let's serve up some appropriate enigmas.

TRIVIA TIME
Everybody knows that the first ship to land at Plymouth Rock was the Mayflower. But what was the name of the second ship to make the voyage?

THE LETTER SHUFFLE
How many words can you make out of the letters in THANKSGIVING?

We'll reveal all next weekend.
But for now, let's open up THE ANSWERS BOX and reveal the results of the November 15, 2014 Puzzle Corner and our quiz celebrating the 75th anniversary of The Wizard of Oz movie.

01. What does the initial represent in author L. Frank Baum's name?
His first name: Lyman.

02. How did Baum come up with the name Oz?
From the label on the second drawer of a two drawer file cabinet: O-Z. The other drawer was labeled A-N.

03. Who did the MGM studios originally hope to cast as Dorothy Gale?
Shirley Temple, but they could never work out a deal with Fox, where she worked at the time.

Buddy Ebsen, costume test shot

04. Who was originally cast as the Tin Woodsman?
Ray Bolger, but he arranged a trade with Buddy Ebsen, because Bolger thought the Scarecrow role suited his dance style better. The rest of the legend, about Ebsen becoming deathly ill due to the original makeup used for the Tin Woodsman and Jack Haley coming into the role are true, as reported in the August 23, 2014 Puzzle Corner, which asked who was supposed to play the role.

05. True or False: Like much of the main cast, Judy Garland had a dual role in the film.
This is actually a maybe. Many people suspect

WHO is this woman? Inquiring minds want to know!

her of having a cameo as the woman
holding the Siamese cat that Toto chases, which prematurely launches the Wizard's hot air balloon. Others claim it is an actress by the name of Lois January. Unfortunately, no official record exists to either confirm or deny either theory.

06. True or False: One performer actually had more than two roles in the film.
TRUE. Frank Morgan, besides being Professor Marvel in Kansas and the Wizard in Oz; was also the doorman to both Oz and the Wizard's quarters as well as the coachman that took Dorothy and company between the two. There was no official explanation for the multiple appearances in the movie, but MGM wanted more work out of the actor in relation to the money he was earning for the picture.

07. What musical number was cut from the movie to make it more "timeless"?
The Jitterbug. There is still a brief reference to it in the Witch's dialog before the scene in the poppy field.

08. What, if any, Oscars did The Wizard of Oz win?
Best Original Musical Score and Best Original Song for Over The Rainbow.

THE PUZZLE CORNER: NOVEMBER 15, 2014

FUN FACT
While early TVs and VCRs only showed them in traditional black and white, the Kansas sequences in the 1939 MGM movie The Wizard of Oz are actually in sepia tones!

1939 movie poster

Today's Puzzle Corner celebrates the 75th anniversary of the classic musicalThe Wizard of Oz with a special quiz!
version of

01. What does the initial represent in author L. Frank Baum's name?
02. How did Baum come up with the name Oz?
03. Who did the MGM studios originally hope to cast as Dorothy Gale?
04. Who was originally cast as the Tin Woodsman?
05. True or False: Like much of the main cast, Judy Garland had a dual role in the film.
06. True or False: One performer actually had more than two roles in the film.
07. What musical number was cut from the movie to make it more "timeless"?
08. What, if any, Oscars did The Wizard of Oz win?

We'll reveal all next weekend. But for now, let's open up THE ANSWERS BOX and discover the results of November 8, 2014 Puzzle Corner.

FAMOUS FIRSTS
Who was the first President of the United States to have his own, official Presidential Library?
Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

TRIVIA TIME
What is the formal name of the device used to measure your feet in shoe stores?
It is The Brannock Device.

THE PUZZLE CORNER: AUGUST 23, 2014

FUN FACT
Dolphins always sleep with one eye open!

THE LETTER SHUFFLE
The answers to our very long quiz all share 2 letters, but differ in the rest. Based upon the clues below, do you know what the words are?
HINT: ALL the answers are the same length.

01. To utter a hesitation
02. Previously owned
03. Owns now
04. (In)Famous Sci-Fi system
05. A Crone?
06. A laugh
07. Mister Solo?
08. A meat
09. Head wear
10. Animal food

We'll reveal all next weekend. But for now, let's peek inside THE ANSWERS BOX and discover the results from our August 16th Puzzle Corner and our extended TRIVIA TIME that covered multiple recent events.

Ebsen in Tin Man costume

Peace in music

THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE WIZARD OF OZ
Which actor was originally supposed to be the Tin Woodsman?
Buddy Ebsen! But he was allergic to the original silver makeup used and had to be hospitalized, which caused the MGM Studios to recast the role and reconfigure the makeup.

THE 45TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE WOODSTOCK MUSIC FESTIVAL
Who was the opening act for the three day event? Richie Havens.

Williams, circa 2011

IN MEMORY OF ROBIN WILLIAMS (1951-2014)
What was the title of his very first comedy album?

Martel with Bob Crane

Reality, What A Concept! The vinyl record was released in 1978 and sadly, has yet to make it in CD or MP3 formats even after all these years.

IN MEMORY OF ARLENE MARTEL (1936-2014)
While many remember her as T'Pring in the classic Star Trek episode "Amok Time", as who in what series did she most often guest star?

Bacall, circa 1950s

She played French resistance fighter "Tiger" in five different episodes of Hogan's Heroes.

IN MEMORY OF LAUREN BACALL (1924-2014)
Why did actor Humphrey Bogart call her "Baby"?
Because of the age difference between them. He was 45 and she 20 when they wed, but were happily married until Bogart's untimely death at age 57.



Images courtesy of Wikipedia, Clip Art, and the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.

THE PUZZLE CORNER: AUGUST 16, 2014

No "Fun Fact" in this installment folks, because a lot has happened over the past week and we have a lot of ground to cover in this special presentation of TRIVIA TIME.

Woodstock

THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE WIZARD OF OZ
Which actor was originally supposed to be the Tin Woodsman?
Hint: Photographic proof exists, but posting it now would give away the answer.

THE 45TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE WOODSTOCK MUSIC FESTIVAL
Who was the opening act for the three day event?

Williams, circa 2011

IN MEMORY OF ROBIN WILLIAMS (1951-2014)
What was the title of his very first comedy album?

IN MEMORY OF ARLENE MARTEL (1936-2014)
While many remember her as T'Pring in the classic Star Trek episode "Amok Time", as who in what series did she most often guest star?

Bacall, circa 1950s

IN MEMORY OF LAUREN BACALL (1924-2014)
Why did actor Humphrey Bogart call her "Baby"?

We'll reveal all next weekend.
But for now, let's open up THE ANSWERS BOX and discover the results from the August 9, 2014 Puzzle Corner.

NEXT?
Given the sequence below, can you figure out what the next item should be?
8 = 56
7 =42
6 = 30
5 = 20
3 = 6 because the given number and its missing multiplier keep decreasing by 1 as the sequence progresses.

BEFORE AND AFTER
Two separate things share at least one word in common and can be combined to make something new.
Based upon the given clue "A C. S. Lewis novel about an infamous Super Bowl event", the answer is The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe Malfunction.