Francois’ langurs are primates found in parts of Vietnam, Laos and China. As adults, they’re jet-black with distinctive white facial markings that look like sideburns, but the babies are born with bright orange fur that makes them easy to spot in a crowd. Francois’ langurs live in groups of three or more, with all the females sharing child-rearing duty.
Remember that time Johnny Depp telephoned, and you hung up on him? Don’t laugh. It could have happened. Before Depp became an actor, he was a struggling musician living in Los Angeles. When the music thing wasn’t panning out, he took a job as a telemarketer selling pens. Other not-yet-famous people who worked as telemarketers — and may have called to sell you stuff — include Jerry Seinfeld, Jennifer Aniston and Iggy Pop.
The first gold record ever awarded was presented to Glenn Miller and his orchestra on Feb. 10, 1942, for 1.2 million sales of the single “Chattanooga Choo Choo.” The song features in the 1941 movie “Sun Valley Serenade,” which was set in Idaho and was basically a vehicle for Norwegian ice-skating star Sonja Henie. The real scene-stealers, though, were Dorothy Dandridge and the Nicholas Brothers, whose dazzling song-and-dance performance on “Chattanooga Choo Choo” was backed by Miller and his orchestra.
Some of the more picturesque team names in all of sports can be found among Japan’s professional basketball franchises — the Kawasaki Brave Thunders, Nagoya Diamond Dolphins and Hitachi Sun Rockers, for example. Most creative might be the Toyota Alvark Tokyo, whose name (sources at Toyota confirm) derives from the Arabic word for lightning.
You always forget something on moving day. When James Buchanan moved out of the White House in 1861 (which he did gladly), he left behind a set of French history books. So he wrote to Abraham Lincoln, who’d succeeded him as president of the United States, asking to have the books returned. The letter ends: “Sincerely desiring that your administration may prove successful in restoring the union & that you may be more happy in your exalted Station than was your immediate predecessor.”
Kavachi, in the Solomon Islands, is among the world’s most active submarine volcanoes. When it erupts, the lava it spews forms temporary islands on the surface of the Pacific Ocean. (Eventually, the motion of the ocean disperses the volcanic matter, and the islands disappear.) The water near the volcano is intolerably hot for humans. Amazingly, though, sharks and fish inhabit the area and don’t seem to mind the conditions.
TRIVIA
1. Sideburns are named for the distinctive facial hair of a man who held what position?
A) First president of the National Rifle Association
B) Governor-general of Australia
C) Poet laureate of the United States
d) World heavyweight boxing champion
2. In Greek mythology, who became queen of the underworld after she ate some pomegranate seeds?
A) Aphrodite
B) Callisto
C) Persephone
D) Thalia
3. “Down Hearted Blues” was a signature song of what Chattanooga-born performer dubbed the “Empress of the Blues”?
A) Billie Holiday
B) Ella Fitzgerald
C) Ma Rainey
D) Bessie Smith
4. The first Japanese-born player in the NBA was Yuta Tabuse, who appeared with which Pacific Division team in 2004?
A) Golden State Warriors
B) Los Angeles Clippers
C) Phoenix Suns
D) Sacramento Kings
5. Princeton University awarded Abraham Lincoln an honorary doctorate in what field?
A) Divinity
B) Humanities
C) Law
D) Philosophy
6. What was the name of the world’s first nuclear submarine?
A) USS Arizona
B) HMS Bounty
C) USS Nautilus
D) SS Poseidon
ANSWERS
1) Sideburns are named for Ambrose Burnside, a Civil War general, a former governor of Rhode Island and the first president of the NRA.
2) In Greek mythology, Persephone became queen of the underworld after she ate some pomegranate seeds.
3) Bessie Smith will forever be known as the “Empress of the Blues.”
4) Yuta Tabuse is a 5-foot-9 guard who played in four games with the Phoenix Suns in 2004.
5) Princeton University awarded Abraham Lincoln an honorary Doctor of Laws in 1864.
6) The USS Nautilus, built in Connecticut, was the world’s first nuclear-powered submarine.
WEEK OF FEBRUARY 14
In China, Nov. 11 has become known as Singles Day. (The date is written 11/11. One one one one — get it?) The idea may have originated with some university students who were tired of holidays celebrating couples and families and felt it was time the singletons got some love. In 2009, online retailer Alibaba started promoting Singles Day as a shopping opportunity, and it really took hold. Table for one? Why not?
Because medieval and Renaissance paintings were made on wooden boards, they can be dated using dendrochronology — the science of tree-ring dating. Growth rings visible on the unpainted edges of an artwork help historians estimate when the tree was chopped down. That gives them an indication of when the painting was made. The process is not perfect, but in some cases, it’s been able to trace several boards not only to the same time period but also to the same tree.
You might know that contralto Marian Anderson was the first Black singer to perform in a featured role at the Metropolitan Opera in New York. What you might not know is that in 1953, two years before Anderson’s Met debut, American coloratura soprano Mattiwilda Dobbs became the first Black singer to appear in a featured role at Teatro alla Scala in Milan — arguably the world’s most prestigious opera house. She sang the role of Elvira in Gioachino Rossini’s “L’Italiana in Algeri.”
Pearl White was the famous and highly paid star of the 1914 silent film serial, “The Perils of Pauline.” In the 20-episode series, Pauline’s perilous exploits included piloting an airplane, driving a race car and other such stunts, many of which White performed herself. It’s said that the series popularized the term “cliffhanger” to describe an episode that ends with a character in mortal danger. The cliffs in question would have been the Palisades in northern New Jersey, where the series was filmed.
Of all the useful words and phrases in the Georgian language, perhaps the most useful — and easiest to pronounce — is “zeg,” which means “the day after tomorrow.” (The English word “overmorrow” means the same thing. How come no one uses it?) Also useful and without an English language equivalent is the Georgian word “shemomedjamo” which means “I ate it all even though I didn’t intend to.” You don’t need to speak Georgian to understand that concept!
In math and physics, a nabla indicates a gradient or slope. Nineteenth-century Irish mathematician William Rowan Hamilton originated the symbol, and Scottish mathematician Peter Guthrie Tait named it nabla because its downward-pointing triangle shape resembles a type of ancient harp with a similar name. Tait’s friend and colleague James Clerk Maxwell said it should be called an “atled” because the symbol is actually an upside-down delta — the triangle-shaped fourth letter of the Greek alphabet.
TRIVIA
1. Who holds the Major League Baseball record for singles in a career?
A) Hank Aaron
B) Tony Gwynn
C) Derek Jeter
D) Pete Rose
2. The leaves of which tree are the primary food source for koalas?
A) Bamboo
B) Chestnut
C) Eucalyptus
D) Teak
3. Which world-famous work of art is housed in the Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan?
A) “The Burghers of Calais”
B) Michelangelo’s “David”
C) “The Last Supper”
D) “Mona Lisa”
4. The famous White Cliffs of Dover are formed primarily from what substance?
A) Aluminum
B) Chalk
C) Granite
D) Quartz
5. Which Shakespearean character speaks the lines: “Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow / Creeps in this petty pace from day to day”?
A) Desdemona
B) Macbeth
C) Portia
D) Prospero
6. In geometry, what term refers to an angle of greater than 90 degrees but less than 180 degrees?
A) Acute
B) Obtuse
C) Reflex
D) Right
ANSWERS
1) Pete Rose holds the Major League Baseball record for singles in a career with 3,215.
2) Eucalyptus leaves are the primary food of koalas.
3) Leonardo da Vinci’s painting “The Last Supper” can be found in the Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan.
4) The famous White Cliffs of Dover are formed primarily from chalk.
5) Macbeth speaks the lines: “Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow / Creeps in this petty pace from day to day.”
6) In geometry, an angle of greater than 90 degrees but less than 180 degrees is an obtuse angle.
WEEK OF FEBRUARY 21
George Washington was born in Virginia on Feb. 11, 1731, according to the Julian calendar, which Great Britain and its colonies were using at the time. In 1752, however, Great Britain changed to the Gregorian calendar, which necessitated the recalculation of birthdates and anniversaries. By the new reckoning, Washington’s birthday was shifted a full year and 11 days, to Feb. 22, 1732. That’s why Washington’s Birthday is observed on the 22nd of February.
A motley is the wildly colored outfit worn by court jesters — or fools — in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Around that time, the word motley also became an adjective for a group of things or people that are wildly mismatched and just a little bit crazy. That’s where we get the term “motley crew.”
For the benefit of future generations, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History has in its collection the laptop used by Sarah Jessica Parker’s character Carrie Bradshaw to chronicle her observations on “Sex and the City,” the stopwatch used in the original opening segment of “60 Minutes,” a prop egg made with plaster of Paris for the movie “Alien” and the “puffy shirt” from “Seinfeld.”
The yellow barrels you often see along highway roadsides around potential crash hazards are called Fitch barriers. They’re named for John Fitch, the race car driver turned roadside safety expert who designed them. Filled with sand or water, the barrels absorb the impact of an oncoming car, slowing or stopping it before it hits a less forgiving structure, such as a bridge abutment. Fitch barriers are an economical and effective way to increase the chances of a wayward driver’s walking away from a crash.
The painter Amedeo Modigliani reportedly told friends that he wanted to live a “short, intense life.” He achieved that goal, dying of tubercular meningitis in 1920 at age 35. (The following day, his pregnant mistress killed herself by jumping out of a window.) Spending his career in poverty, he lived near the slaughterhouses in Paris, in a room for which he paid $3 a month. So it’s ironic that in 2015, his painting “Nu Couche” (“Reclining Nude”) sold at auction for more than $170 million and another reclining nude sold for $157 million in 2018.
Adm. Richard E. Byrd returned from his Antarctic expeditions in the late 1930s with penguins he intended to sell to zoos in the United States. When the birds became sick outside their natural environment, specialists from the St. Louis Zoo treated them. Reportedly, St. Louis offered to buy a pair of penguins for $500 each, but Chicago’s Lincoln Park Zoo outbid St. Louis, and the penguins went there instead. (Thank you to the Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center at The Ohio State University for helping with this Trivia Bit.)
TRIVIA
1. The Uniform Monday Holiday Act was signed into law in June 1968 by which U.S. president?
A) Dwight Eisenhower
B) Lyndon Johnson
C) John F. Kennedy
D) Richard Nixon
2. Who was the original drummer for the band Motley Crue?
A) Tommy Lee
B) Mick Mars
C) Vince Neil
D) Nikki Sixx
3. The Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History collection contains a dress and wristbands worn by Lucy Lawless in what TV series?
A) “Downton Abbey”
B) “I Love Lucy”
C) “Wonder Woman”
D) “Xena: Warrior Princess”
4. About 90% of the world’s earthquakes occur in the Pacific region known by what name?
A) Devil’s Right Hand
B) Field of Diamonds
C) Ring of Fire
D) Rock Island Line
5. The 1958 motion picture musical “Gigi” was based on a novella by which French writer?
A) Colette
B) Victor Hugo
C) Marcel Proust
D) Emile Zola
6. In 1911, which country became the first to officially plant its flag at the South Pole?
A) Norway
B) Russia
C) Sweden
D) United States
ANSWERS
1) Lyndon Johnson approved the Uniform Monday Holiday Act in June 1968, although it didn’t officially take effect until 1971.
2) Tommy Lee is the drummer for Motley Crue.
3) The Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History collection contains a dress and wristbands worn by Lucy Lawless as Xena: Warrior Princess.
4) The earthquake-prone region that circles the Pacific from Chile to New Zealand is known as the Ring of Fire.
5) The motion picture musical “Gigi” was based on a novella by Colette.
6) An expedition led by Roald Amundsen of Norway reached the South Pole in 1911.
WEEK OF FEBRUARY 28
In the 16th century, it was fashionable for women to whiten their skin using a compound of white lead known as Venetian ceruse. Made from the white residue produced by soaking metallic white lead in vinegar, the white pigment was also used by painters. The problem was, white lead is toxic, and it poisoned a lot of women, quite possibly including Queen Elizabeth I of England, whose face was usually caked with the stuff.
When he was a boy, John Lennon was reprimanded regularly for chewing gum in school. Eventually, he finished with school, but not with gum. Watch videos of his performances with the Beatles and you’ll spot him chewing between verses of a song. The most obvious instance is the 1967 BBC broadcast of “All You Need Is Love,” but there are others. In some early Beatles footage, you’ll catch Ringo Starr playing the drums and chewing, too.
South Africa has 11 official languages. They are, in descending order by number of native speakers, Zulu (spoken by more than 20% of the population), Xhosa, Afrikaans, English, Sepedi, Setswana, Sesotho, Xitsonga, Tshivenda, Swazi and Ndebele. You never know when this bit of ulwazi, ukwazisa, inligting — information — will come in handy.
Only a fraction of the milk used to make cheese winds up in a finished wedge. The rest — as much as 90% — becomes a liquid byproduct called whey. Dumping that whey into rivers and lakes would throw off their natural chemical balance. So savvy cheesemakers in Canada, France, the U.K. and the U.S. feed it into mechanical “digesters” that convert whey into methane biogas used to power the cheesemaking facilities themselves and sometimes the villages where they’re located.
Napoleon’s 1812 invasion of Russia supposedly was thwarted by the bitter cold Russian winter, which turned the tin buttons on his soldiers’ uniforms to dust. Chemistry teachers love that story, because nothing illustrates an element undergoing physical change quite like the image of freezing soldiers with their pants falling down. Tin darkens and turns powdery at low temperatures. Whether that fact contributed to Napoleon’s marching in with 600,000 men and retreating with only about 30,000 left alive is unlikely.
Italic type got its name because it originated in Italy, developed by Renaissance printer Aldus Manutius and type designer Francesco Griffo. Its first use was in 1500 for publication of the “Epistole Devotissime” of St. Catherine of Siena. The Morgan Library and Museum in New York City and the libraries at Brigham Young University in Salt Lake City, Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, and Southern Methodist University in Dallas have copies of that 16th-century original in their rare book collections.
TRIVIA
1. Vermilion is a shade of what color?
A) Blue
B) Green
C) Red
D) Yellow
2. The Beatles’ “All You Need Is Love” opens with a passage from which national anthem?
A) “God Save the Queen”
B) “Hail to Thee, Nicaragua”
C) “La Marseillaise”
D) “The Star-Spangled Banner”
3. Which is the largest country in Africa by population?
A) Egypt
B) Ethiopia
C) Nigeria
D) South Africa
4. Which variety of cheese accounts for the biggest percentage of total production by U.S. cheesemakers?
A) Cheddar
B) Cream cheese
C) Mozzarella
D) Swiss
5. Traditionally, a tin roof sundae is made with vanilla ice cream, warm chocolate sauce and what other ingredient?
A) Butterscotch
B) Chocolate chips
C) Peppermint sticks
D) Salted peanuts
6. Helvetica typeface takes its name from the Latin name of what country?
A) Greece
B) Hungary
C) India
D) Switzerland
ANSWERS
1) Vermilion is a shade of red.
2) The Beatles’ “All You Need Is Love” opens with a passage from “La Marseillaise,” the national anthem of France.
3) Nigeria is the largest country by population in Africa — and the seventh largest in the world.
4) U.S. cheesemakers produce more mozzarella than any other cheese variety.
5) A classic tin roof sundae contains lightly salted peanuts.
6) Helvetica typeface takes its name from the Latin name of Switzerland.
TRIVIA FANS: Leslie Elman is the author of “Weird But True: 200 Astounding, Outrageous and Totally Off the Wall Facts.” Contact her at [email protected]
