Tuesday, November 28, 2017

28 Nov 2017, Day 99

Question 1
Who choreographed the musical based on the first novel by the 2003 winner of the Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters? Answer: Debbie Allen.


First we need to find the book that won the medal. Look it up by using 2003 Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, locating that it's Stephen King Carrie. Next, place in the search field Carrie musical choreography 1988 to find the IBDB listing of the cast and crew of this late 80's flop.

Question 2:
In Chapter 1 of Laura Jackson's biography of "Bono", what was the full name of the person who collapsed at his father's funeral and died four days later? Answer: Iris Hewson.


Now the search was supposed to happen was that you would go into Google Books and look up "Bono" Laura Jackson. Then you would just browse the chapter until you read the passage depicting Mrs. Hewson's death. But that is not to be, any preview or snippets of that chapter is under embargo. So the only way to solve it is by looking at the Wikipedia article on his biography.

Question 3:
What river is impassable by man in Arunachal Pradesh and joins the Ganga River in Bangladesh? Answer: Brahmaputra.


Please see Day 49 for the explanation.

Sunday, November 26, 2017

26 Nov 2017, Day 98

Question 1
In a 2005 ceremony inducting Dan Marino to the Football Hall of Fame, who was the recipient of Dan's “one last pass” thrown from the podium? Answer: Mark Clayton.


Please see Day 53 for the explanation.

Question 2:
What American museum paid $6.9 million to exhibit artwork on loan from the Louvre from 2006-2009? Answer: High Museum of Art.


In this question required a little bit more digging on my part to come up with a optimal search query. Input in the search field $6.9 million artwork American museum, you'll see a New York Times article about this once-in-a-lifetime loan. Too bad I was in the middle of art school to enjoy it.

Question 3:
What name did the stylist, who employed Brad Goreski until October 2010, choose for her first child? Answer: Skyler.


Please see Day 84 for the explanation.

Thursday, November 23, 2017

23 Nov 2017, Day 96

Question 1:
What term describes what an actor breaks when he addresses the audience directly from stage, like in Hamlet’s “to be or not to be” soliloquy? Answer: Breaking the Fourth Wall.


Please see Day 95 for the explanation.

Question 2:
In the longest-running prime time sports program on TV, what was the nickname of the person who replaced Don Meredith during the 1974 pre-season? Answer: The Hammer.


Please see Day 72 for the explanation.

Question 3:
What kind of parent does a dad describe himself as in the 2012 Academy Award-nominated movie set in Hawaii? Answer: The Back-up parent.


First you need to know what film that attracted the Academy's attention was set in Hawaii. Place 2012 Academy Award-nominated movie Hawaii in the search field to get the answer, The Descendants, on the first page. Next, look for movie quotes from that film. Use "The Descendants" movie quotes to come up with a list of pages that might have the information. I used a page on IMDb to find my answer.

Wednesday, November 22, 2017

22 Nov 2017, Day 95

Question 1:
What was the name of the first child born to the executor of the will of the man considered the "Father of Humanism"? Answer: Eletta.


Without going into a lot of detail,, you first need to know who is the "Father of Humanism". With that you will get the Italian scholar Petrarch. Petrarch is known for rediscovery of Cicero's letters. Knowing the deceased name, now you have to find the one who carried out his will. Place Petrarch executor of will in the search field to get his son-in-law, Francescuolo da Brossano. One more search jump, Francescuolo da Brossano children will yield his kids.

Question 2:
The Icon body slammed "The Eighth Wonder of the World" at what sporting event in front of close to 100,000 people? Answer: WrestleMania III.


Please see Day 28 for the explanation.

Question 3:
What term describes what an actor breaks when he addresses the audience directly from stage, like in Hamlet’s “to be or not to be” soliloquy? Answer: Breaking the Fourth Wall.


If you use the search term addressing the audience stage acting there is a Wikipedia page with those terms on this very subject,

Tuesday, November 21, 2017

21 Nov 2017, Day 94

Question 1:
What was the more popular name for the Strategic Defense Initiative? Answer: Star Wars.


Please see Day 18 for the explanation.

Question 2:
The famous defensive tackle who died during a game against the New York Dragons, played in how many games for the Panthers during his career? Answer: twenty.


Please see Day 47 for the explanation.

Question 3:
Who, while working as an apprentice compositor, wrote articles under the pseudonym "Aristides"? Answer: William Lloyd Garrison.


Please see Day 25 for the explanation.

Monday, November 20, 2017

20 Nov 2017, Day 93

Question 1:
When Kristen Wiig first arrived in L.A. she was part of an improvisational comedy troupe whose name is taken from what Shakespearean play? Answer: Hamlet.


Please see Day 73 for the explanation.

Question 2:
What term is given to the border between the Central Alps and the Southern Limestone Alps? Answer: Periadriatic Seam.


Please see Day 33 for the explanation.

Question 3:
Whose death did the commander of the Confederate forces say was like "losing my right arm"? Answer: Stonewall Jackson.


This is a easy search. Place Confederate general "losing my right arm" in the search field to get the battle which he was killed by friendly fire. It was during the battle of the First Battle of Bull Run (Battle of First Manassas) that he obtained his nickname. It was reported that another Confederate general said, "There is Jackson standing like a stone wall. Let us determine to die here, and we will conquer."

Sunday, November 19, 2017

19 Nov 2017, Day 92

Question 1:
Because the company increased shareholder dividends for 25 years in a row, what S&P designation was granted the world's largest distributor of toys? Answer: S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats.


Please see Day 45 for the explanation.

Question 2:
What industry is the primary user of perchloroethylene, a chemical that researchers at Boston University have linked to mental illness, like bipolar disorder? Answer: dry cleaners.


Please see Day 8 for the explanation.

Question 3:
Who is generally regarded as one of the very first Americans to die in the struggle for liberty from British Rule? Answer: Crispus Attucks.


When you place revolutionary war first casualty in the search field you'll see two names. The other, an 11 year old boy named Christopher Seider died two weeks before Attucks, but in typical Internet fashion there are many arguments but no citations(even from an organization like the New England Historical Society, who have the means to investigate). Until source material becomes widely available Mr. Attucks is the answer.

Saturday, November 18, 2017

18 Nov 2017, Day 91

Question 1:
In 2012, Forbes reported that the world's most valuable sports team of the 2011 season was worth how much more than the Dallas Cowboys and New York Yankees combined? Answer: Unknown.


Let me state that most of the math problems I never understand. The reason why might have to do with sloppy math on my part or their (usually mine). But this problem doesn't make sense.
Let's start with how to get the material. Input forbes richest sports teams 2011 in the search field. You will come across 16 Jul, 2012 article of Forbes. Manchester United headed the leaderboard at $2.23 billion. But the combined worth of the Dallas Cowboys and New York Yankees is $3.7 billion, $1.47 more than Manchester United. The question stated that Manchester United is worth more than those two teams, but this is false. The only way to make that truth would be for Manchester United to be worth more that $3.7 billion.


Question 2:
Who is the son of the actress who played the mother-in-law of the “Sex and the City” character who graduated Harvard? Answer: Ben Stiller.


Please see Day 54 for the explanation.

Question 3:
The club that was established in 1935 to promote safety in the game of American football was named after a player with what nickname? Answer: Tiny.


Please see Day 67 for the explanation.

Friday, November 17, 2017

17 Nov 2017, Day 90

Question 1:
A few weeks after the birth of Michelangelo, his family returned to an Italian city that is the capital of the what region? Answer: Tuscany.


Please see Day 11 for the explanation.

Question 2:
What is the source of the pressure that has caused coyotes, which were once essentially diurnal, to adjust to a more nocturnal behavior? Answer: humans.


There's not much in the world that humans have not placed some pressures on nature, coyotes being adaptable are no exception. For the quick answer, try coyote nocturnal pressure.

Question 3:
Of the five NASA space shuttles, which one flew the most missions? Answer: Discovery.


I don't know if it's AGoolgeADay that is prompting an answer to this question or what. Nonetheless, use space shuttle most missions.

Thursday, November 16, 2017

16 Nov 2017, Day 89

Question 1:
Who presented Tonga's royal family with the animal that, when he died, was believed to be one of the longest-living animals on record? Answer: Captain James Cook.


Please see Day 7 for the explanation.

Question 2:
Which documentary screened at the 2004 Tribeca Film Festival, about the aftermath of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, quotes Thomas Merton's eponymous poem? Answer: Original Child Bomb.


I won't bore you with silly details of why, just try 2004 Tribeca Film Festival atomic bombing for quick answer.

Question 3:
What was cut into the fresco, "The Last Supper", resulting in the disappearance of Christ's feet in the image? Answer: doorway.


I had to look at the hint on this one after finding that there was a doorway cut into DaVinci's work, not a lumber slab from a hardware box store. Still you can find your way to the answer using this in the search field: fresco "the last supper" christ's feet.

Wednesday, November 15, 2017

15 Nov 2017, Day 88

Question 1:
What cabinet position had been held by the head of the commission that investigated the STS-51L disaster? Answer: Secretary of State.


I looked for sts-51l investigation commission members On the first page you will see a PDF document titled Rogers Commission Report. Page three has Mr. Rogers name as commission chairman. Considering that William Rodgers served as Secretary of State and as Attonery General you are obliged to try them both.

Question 2:
The Indian river basin that includes approximately 25% of the country's area is bound by what mountain range to the south? Answer: Vindhya.


Please see Day 40 for the explanation.

Question 3:
What renowned children's book set around the love for the first African-American to play major league baseball, starts with the line "The St. George Hotel?"? Answer: Thank You, Jackie Robinson.


Please see Day 45 for the explanation.

Tuesday, November 14, 2017

14 Nov 2017, Day 87

Question 1:
What was the jersey number of the center-fielder who led the Phillies to their fifth National League pennant in 1993? Answer: 4.


You might have the temptation to look at the Philadelphia Phillies team positions during the playoffs. I figured they won before the era of Sabermetrics popularity, so I looked for the outfielder using 1993 Philadelphia Phillies roster. Within the list you will find the outfielder Lenny Dykstra.

Question 2:
What album was released three years after the death of the artist that’s tattooed on the upper left arm of the actor who played "Irish" Micky Ward in a 2010 film? Answer: Legend.


Please see Day 78 for the explanation.

Question 3:
Early in Conrad's 1903 novella, Marlow makes a comment "one of the dark places on earth". About what place does he say this? Answer: London.


Please see Day 67 for the explanation.

Monday, November 13, 2017

13 Nov 2017, Day 86

Question 1:
What former Baltimore Colt inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1968, published an autobiography in 1987? Answer: Art Donovan.


Please see Day 15 for the explanation.

Question 2:
What traffic circle with a "square" name is located just south of the site where the author lived while writing "The Seven Pillars"? Answer: Smith Square.


Please see Day 19 for the explanation.

Question 3:
Besides the Gorilla Press, what famous finishing move did the face-painted “Warrior” famously use on Hulk Hogan to end the match on April 1, 1990? Answer: splash.


Please see Day 33 for the explanation.

Saturday, November 11, 2017

11 Nov 2017, Day 85

Question 1:
In the biography, "From Genesis to Growing Up", Chapter 14 discusses Surrealism in what Peter Gabriel song? Answer: Sledgehammer.


This is going to be a bit tedious, so bear with me. Type biography "From Genesis to Growing Up" into the search field to find the book written by Sarah Hill. Google Books has a copy scanned online for quick research. Go the book preview and in the "search in this book" field type Chapter 14, which is called "Plasticine Music: Surrealism in Peter Gabriel's Sledgehammer'". If you never seen the video you can watch it here. It's a wonder and fun example of pop culture surrealism.

Question 2:
Who was appointed to the High Court of Australia on the same day that the first woman was appointed to that bench? Answer: John Toohey.


Please see Day 10 for the explanation..

Question 3:
What is the last line of the poem in which the famous line about "Mistah Kurtz" is used as an epigraph? Answer: Not with a bang but a whimper.


The question provided all the clues for a one line query. Type poem "Mistah Kurtz" epigraph into the search field. The answer is T.S. Eliot's poem, The Hollow Men. The poem is within one of the links on the search page, scrol to the end of the 98 line work for the answer.

Friday, November 10, 2017

10 Nov, 2017: Day 84

Question 1:
What "character" did Plato use in his writing to convey his own views? Answer: Socrates.


This is an answer I already knew, it helps to be somewhat familiar with Plato and his student Aristotle. Typing in the search field Plato characters gets a page of his many characters and the most famous of those is of Plato’s teacher. You could brute force your way to the answer, but going down the page you would see his name pop up time again in various work (ie, Republic, Symposium, etc.)

Question 2:
In the teachings of Lao Tzu, what is seen as the creative force in the universe through which all things are connected? Answer: The Tao.


Typing lao tzu unifying force gives you a page about the Tao Te Ching. Tao translates from Chinese to “the Way”. If you type Tao (which is the correct answer) into A Google A Day you will receive an error. Only with westernizing Tao with the article “the” does A Google A Day consider it correct.

Question 3:
What name did the stylist, who employed Brad Goreski until October 2010, choose for her first child? Answer: Skyler.


Look up “Brad Goreski” and you will find his website, which contains his bio. When you look up his biography you will see the name of one of his employers in the fashion world. Using “Rachel Zoe" oldest child you would see the answer.

Friday, January 6, 2017

06 Jan, 2017: Day 83

Question 1:
Richard Petty Motorsports created a team for Michael Annett to compete in the 2012 Nationwide Championship, with what chain of truck stops sponsoring his car? Answer: Pilot Flying J.


Please see Day 9 for the explanation..

Question 2:
What was the name of the first literary character that Truman Capote modelled after his friend, Harper Lee? Answer: Idabel Thompkins.


Please see Day 75 for the explanation..

Question 3:
What was the English translation of the Arabic nickname that the oldest son of Saddam Hussein's gave himself? Answer: wolf.


The fastest way I found the answer was the most inelegent: type son of Saddam Hussein within the search field. Hint: Uday and Odai are the same person, but you want to look for the former if you want to answer this question.