JAQR - November 12, 2023
Element etymologies, Explorers, Janis Joplin, French painters, The Scourge of God, The SCLC, James L. Brooks, Larry McMurtry, Golf terms, and more...
Thank you for reading another issue of the Jeopardy Answer & Question Recap, or JAQR [“jacker”] for short. This recap includes two clues from each episode of Jeopardy! between Monday 11/6 and Friday 11/10. The recap will include Daily Doubles, Final Jeopardy clues, and Triple Stumpers. The first half of the recap will include just the clues so you can quiz yourself if you want. The second half will give you some (hopefully) interesting information about the clues and/or some related info.
DAILY DOUBLE #1
GOVERNMENT & POLITICS
Randhawa is the maiden name of this Republican, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations
DAILY DOUBLE #2
GREENS
The name of this element comes from the Greek for "light green"
FINAL JEOPARDY #1
MUSIC & LITERATURE
John Steinbeck called this "one of the great songs of the world" & wanted the music & lyrics printed in one of his novels
FINAL JEOPARDY #2
EXPLORERS
Perhaps inspiring a line 2 centuries later, in 1774 he wrote that he was headed "farther than any other man has been before me"
TRIPLE STUMPER #1
CALL OUT THE BOB SQUAD
This was Janis Joplin's only No. 1 hit as a solo performer
TRIPLE STUMPER #2
DEATH
A final pose is depicted here by this French painter
TRIPLE STUMPER #3
FAN MAIL TO HISTORIC FIGURES
You got the Eastern Roman Empire to pay a ton of gold per year! Will you speak to our "Scourge of God" fan club?
TRIPLE STUMPER #4
OPERATION
Breadbasket: Boycott of discriminatory businesses begun in 1962 by the SCLC, this
TRIPLE STUMPER #5
OSCAR-WINNING SCREENPLAYS
1983: James L. Brooks, from the novel by Larry McMurtry
TRIPLE STUMPER #6
GOLF
A rare old gold coin, or an even rarer 3 under par on a single hole
BONUS CLUE #1
WORLD HISTORY
This African capital renamed an area Mexico Square to honor Mexico's WWII-era support of its sovereignty during Italian occupation
BONUS CLUE #2
FAN MAIL TO HISTORIC FIGURES
Will you sign my copy of the "Domesday Book" you commissioned, my king? It's a first edition from 1086
BONUS CLUE #3
POTPOURRI
Fretum Herculeum is the Latin name of this strait
BONUS CLUE #4
THE CATHOLIC CHURCH
The 1456 posthumous annulment of this woman's sentence by the Church was witnessed by her mother Isabelle
DAILY DOUBLE #1
GOVERNMENT & POLITICS
Randhawa is the maiden name of this Republican, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations
***NIKKI HALEY***
The politician Nikki Haley was born Nimarata Nikki Randhawa to Indian Sikh immigrants in South Carolina in 1972. She served as governor of the state from 2011-2017. She resigned in the middle of her second term to become the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. She held that position for the first two years of Donald Trump's presidency before resigning. Shortly after announcing her 2024 presidential campaign, TV journalist Don Lemon was fired by CNN for saying Haley isn't "in her prime."
DAILY DOUBLE #2
GREENS
The name of this element comes from the Greek for "light green"
***CHLORINE***
Some other element etymologies to know:
Helium = the Greek word "helios," meaning “sun”
Lithium = the Greek word "lithos," meaning "stone"
Argon = the Greek word “argon,” meaning “inactive”
Selenium = the Greek word “selene,” meaning “moon”
Krypton = the Greek word “kryptos", meaning “hidden”
Technetium = the Greek word "technetos," meaning "artificial"
Xenon = the Greek word “xenos,” meaning “foreign”
FINAL JEOPARDY #1
MUSIC & LITERATURE
John Steinbeck called this "one of the great songs of the world" & wanted the music & lyrics printed in one of his novels
***BATTLE HYMN OF THE REPUBLIC***
The poem "Battle Hymn of the Republic" was written by Julia Ward Howe (pictured below) and was published in The Atlantic Monthly in 1862. The poem was set to an old folk tune that was also used for “John Brown’s Body.” The first two lines of the poem are “Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord / He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored.” The lyrics inspired the title of John Steinbeck’s 1939 novel The Grapes of Wrath. Mark Twain wrote an "updated" version that was "brought down to date" in 1900. The parody was inspired by American imperialism and begins with the line “Mine eyes have seen the orgy of the launching of the Sword; / He is searching out the hoardings where the stranger's wealth is stored.”
FINAL JEOPARDY #2
EXPLORERS
Perhaps inspiring a line 2 centuries later, in 1774 he wrote that he was headed "farther than any other man has been before me"
***JAMES COOK***
British naval officer James Cook (1728-1779) commanded three expeditions to the Pacific Ocean:
#1 = 1768–1771 on the HMS Endeavour (namesake of the fifth and final Space Shuttle) - observed the transit of Venus in Tahiti, spent six months charting New Zealand, and surveyed Australia's eastern coast, which he called New South Wales
#2 = 1772–1775 on the Resolution - completed a west–east circumnavigation during which he sailed near Antarctica and discovered the South Sandwich Islands and South Georgia island
#3 = 1776–1779 on the Resolution - landed at Vancouver Island before failing to find neither a northeast nor northwest passage from the Pacific; he was stabbed with a spear and killed by Hawaiians after he tried to kidnap their chief due to a dispute involving a stolen boat; Cook called the Hawaiian Islands the Sandwich Islands, in honor of John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich, who was the First Lord of the Admiralty
James Cook is the namesake of Star Trek’s James Kirk, who said “Space: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its five-year mission: to explore strange new worlds; to seek out new life and new civilizations; to boldly go where no man has gone before!” in the intro to the TV show Star Trek: The Original Series.
TRIPLE STUMPER #1
CALL OUT THE BOB SQUAD
This was Janis Joplin's only No. 1 hit as a solo performer
***ME AND BOBBY MCGEE***
The singer Janis Joplin (1943-1970) gained fame at 1967’s Monterey International Pop Festival, where she was part of the band Big Brother and the Holding Company. At the festival, she sang the blues standard "Ball and Chain,” which was written and first recorded by Big Mama Thornton. The songs "Ball and Chain” and ""Piece of My Heart" were included on the band’s 1968 album Cheap Thrills, which hit number one. She left the band the same year to go solo. Her first solo album was 1969’s I Got Dem Ol’ Kozmic Blues Again Mama!, and her second (and final) one was 1971’s Pearl.
The album Pearl, which hit number one, includes the song "Mercedes Benz," which was the last song Joplin ever recorded and features the lyrics “Oh Lord, won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz? / My friends all drive Porsches, I must make amends.” The album Pearl also includes "Me and Bobby McGee," which includes the lyrics “Freedom is just another word for nothin' left to lose.” The album was released three months after she died of a heroin overdose at the age of 27 at the Landmark Hotel in Hollywood. She is part of the so-called 27 Club, along with Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain, and Amy Winehouse. The Rose was a thinly veiled biographical movie that was released in 1979 and starred Bette Midler (in her film debut) as a self-destructive rock star.
TRIPLE STUMPER #2
DEATH
A final pose is depicted here by this French painter
***JACQUES-LOUIS DAVID***
Jacques-Louis David (1748-1825) was a French painter of the Neoclassical school who often depicted historical events. His 1793 painting The Death of Marat depicts the assassination of Jean-Paul Marat, who was a radical activist during the French Revolution. Marat was stabbed to death with a knife by Charlotte Corday while he was taking a medicinal bath (Marat had a chronic skin disease due to often having to hide in the Paris sewers). Corday was guillotined a few days after the assassination. The painting is located in the Oldmasters Museum in Brussels. The painting was recreated in the 2010 documentary Waste Land, which follows Brazilian artist Vik Muniz as he travels to a landfill near Rio de Janeiro to collaborate with a group that makes art using garbage.
Another famous David [dah-VEED] painting is 1784’s Oath of the Horatii (pictured below). It was inspired by a legendary seventh century BC war between Rome and Alba Longa, which was settled by the three Horatii [hor-AY-shee-eye] brothers (from Rome) battling the three Curiatii [cure-ee-AY-shee-eye] brothers (from Alba Longa). The painting depicts a father holding out swords to his saluting sons. The painting is located in the Louvre in Paris. A smaller version of the painting is in the Toledo Museum of Art in Ohio.
TRIPLE STUMPER #3
FAN MAIL TO HISTORIC FIGURES
You got the Eastern Roman Empire to pay a ton of gold per year! Will you speak to our "Scourge of God" fan club?
***ATTILA THE HUN***
Attila was the king of the Huns (a nomadic people from Central Asia) from 434-453. He is nicknamed the “Scourge of God," or in Latin, “Flagellum Dei.” For the first half of his reign, he ruled jointly with his brother Bleda (possibly the namesake of Buda, as in the city that united with Pest to form Budapest), but then Bleda died (or was possibly killed by Attila while on a hunting trip). Attila invaded the Eastern Roman Empire in 441, but was unable to conquer the city of Constantinople with his archers due to the city’s double Theodosian Walls (named for Theodosius II).
Attila invaded Gaul (modern-day France) in 451. According to legend, the city of Paris was saved by the prayers of Saint Genevieve. Attila was defeated at the Battle of the Catalaunian Plains (in northeast France) by the combined forces of the Roman general Aetius and the Visigoth king Theodoric I. The following year, Attila invaded Italy and sacked several cities, including Padua, Verona, and Milan. Pope Leo I convinced Attila to spare Rome. Attila is believed to have died in his sleep from a nosebleed on the night he married Ildico. The people who buried him were killed so that his grave would never be discovered and/or disturbed. He was succeeded (poorly) by his sons Ellac (who died a year later at the Battle of Nedao), Dengizich, and Ernak.
TRIPLE STUMPER #4
OPERATION
Breadbasket: Boycott of discriminatory businesses begun in 1962 by the SCLC, this
***SOUTHERN CHRISTIAN LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE***
The SCLC was a civil rights organization founded in 1957 that conducted leadership-training programs and voter-registration drives. It also carried out Operation Breadbasket, a boycott of white businesses that refused to employ African Americans. In the summer of 1968, the SCLC organized the Poor People's Campaign, which sought to gain economic justice for poor people. The organization’s first president was Martin Luther King Jr., who was succeeded after his assassination by Ralph Abernathy. After MLK’s assassination, the SCLC lobbied for his birthday to be a national holiday.
Other acronymic organizations to know include:
CORE [“core”] = Congress of Racial Equality
NAACP [“N-double-A-C-P”] = National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
SNCC [“snick”] = Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee
TRIPLE STUMPER #5
OSCAR-WINNING SCREENPLAYS
1983: James L. Brooks, from the novel by Larry McMurtry
***TERMS OF ENDEARMENT***
James L. Brooks created, wrote, and produced The Mary Tyler Moore Show and its spin-offs, Rhoda and Lou Grant. He did the same for Taxi, which aired from 1978-1982. Brooks then moved on to movies. He directed, wrote, and produced hits such as Terms of Endearment (1983), Broadcast News (1987), and As Good as it Gets (1997).
The movie Terms of Endearment centers on an overbearing mother (Aurora) and her daughter (Emma, who is diagnosed with cancer), who are played by Shirley MacLaine and Debra Winger. Both were nominated for Best Actress, but Warren Beatty's sister (aka Shirley MacLaine) won. The movie's cast also included John Lithgow (whose character Emma has an affair with) and Jack Nicholson (who played retired astronaut Garrett Breedlove, who begins a romance with Aurora). Both actors were nominated for Best Supporting Actor, but Nicholson won. The movie’s 1996 sequel was titled The Evening Star.
The movie Terms of Endearment was based on a Larry McMurtry novel that was part of his Houston series (six novels at least partly set in Houston, Texas). McMurtry’s first novel was titled Horseman, Pass By, which was adapted into the 1963 movie Hud starring Paul Newman. His other novels include The Last Picture Show, which is about the small town of Thalia, Texas during the 1950s, and Lonesome Dove, which is about an 1800s cattle drive on the Goodnight-Loving cattle trail from Texas to Montana. McMurtry also co-wrote the screenplay to Brokeback Mountain, which was based on an Annie Proulx [pru] story.
TRIPLE STUMPER #6
GOLF
A rare old gold coin, or an even rarer 3 under par on a single hole
***DOUBLE EAGLE***
Golf scoring terms to know (lower is better):
Condor -4 [almost impossible]
Albatross or (Double Eagle) -3 [extremely rare]
Eagle -2
Birdie -1
Par E (even)
Bogey +1
Double Bogey +2
Triple Bogey +3 [poor Jean van de Velde]
Speaking of par, check out PAR, a very fun and free-to-play trivia game that tests your knowledge, deductive ability, and competitive fire. The website is: https://par.live
BONUS CLUE #1
WORLD HISTORY
This African capital renamed an area Mexico Square to honor Mexico's WWII-era support of its sovereignty during Italian occupation
***ADDIS ABABA***
For more about the First and Second Italo-Ethiopian wars, check out the second paragraph of Daily Double #4 from this previous JAQR: https://jaqr.substack.com/p/jaqr-may-14-2023
BONUS CLUE #2
FAN MAIL TO HISTORIC FIGURES
Will you sign my copy of the "Domesday Book" you commissioned, my king? It's a first edition from 1086
***WILLIAM THE CONQUERER***
For more about the Domesday Book, check out DD #1 from this previous JAQR: https://jaqr.substack.com/p/jaqr-august-27-2023
BONUS CLUE #3
POTPOURRI
Fretum Herculeum is the Latin name of this strait
***STRAIT OF GIBRALTAR***
Check out DD #2 from the second ever “regular” issue of JAQR to learn more about the Strait of Gibraltar: https://jaqr.substack.com/p/jaqr-september-30-2022
BONUS CLUE #4
THE CATHOLIC CHURCH
The 1456 posthumous annulment of this woman's sentence by the Church was witnessed by her mother Isabelle
***JOAN OF ARC***
For more about Joan of Arc, check out DD#2 from this previous JAQR: https://jaqr.substack.com/p/jaqr-october-28-2022