GreekGeek

I know...that's why I said it would have been a spoof. My new theory: "Brisk" meant a rapid survey of 5 different types of literature: 1 novel, (Catch-22) 1 gonzo journalism book (Fear and Loathing...), 1 poem (Sonnet 130), 1 children's book, (The Wind in the Willows) 1 anthology (The Canterbury Tales).

I also am baffled by what "Brisk Lit" was. Looking up "brisk," I found "quick, lively, and refreshing." So I guess that applies, although it's so broad that it could include any literature that isn't notoriously slow. Or maybe it was some kind of spoof of "Brit Lit"? I knew caste, the sun, busy signal, and Fidelio. For FJ, I got hung up trying to choose between South Carolina and North Carolina, and only remembered Georgia after time was up.

Your idea reminded me of Ken Jennings' "What is a ho[e]" in response to "This long-handled garden tool can also mean an immoral pleasure seeker." Did anyone else think of the "squat cobbler" from Better Call Saul? Agreed, though its sequel Huckleberry Finn is very much worth reading, despite the problematic use of the n-word. I think it should be read by mature high schoolers only.

I knew Kit Carson would spark plenty of reaction here! I also got Tallchief, Camelot, the Vietnam War, the Mexico City DD, Auntie Mame, Ann Dowd, and Aunt Polly. I made a lucky guess on FJ.

Aw, nobody remembered the name of Clemenza, the speaker of my favorite line in The Godfather: "Leave the gun. Take the cannoli."

I think that actresses who aren't gorgeous and/or are willing to make themselves look frumpy for a role tend to get overpraised and then become the go-to for the "complicated Everywoman" roles. So they become overexposed. I don't mind Moss but lately she seems to be in EVERYTHING. Your reaction to her is similar to mine about Frances McDormand. I'm curious what you don't like about Paulson. Apart from her role as Marcia Clark in The People vs. O.J. Simpson, I couldn't name anything she's done. I read her list of credentials and was surprised to discover I've seen many of them.

Some sad news for us Leave it to Beaver fans: Tony Dow has cancer.

Enver gave Mattea a run for her money for a while there. They were neck and neck until the end of DJ, when Mattea made it another runaway. I groaned when I realized that the FJ answer was Canada. I'm not going to cry "Fix!" because I know there was no way to know that a Canadian would be playing that clue, but aargh! In the "hidden body parts" category, would "ear" have been acceptable in the "heart" clue? And why did Enver have to BMS for "unchained"? Of the other TS's, I knew diesel, Gregor Samsa, loose, released, and Molly. Even Tonya Harding saved a woman's life once.

I was amused by her comment rather than annoyed--I thought it was good strategy to think "Let's get this over with while the stakes are lower". I didn't know any of those questions either apart from Don Shula and a guess on "cheating." I remembered Elian Gonzalez because I was living in Tampa at the time. And, like others I couldn't remember the full name of Philip Michael Thomas. I thought, "Philip....Baker Hall? No..." It's even more fitting when you consider that one of the Booth brothers was Junius Brutus Booth Jr.!

I'd never heard of Friesians, but "gorgeous" was exactly the word that came to mind. The "guests and fish" quote actually goes all the way back to Plautus, the ancient Roman comedy writer. Anyhow, last night's "extras" about Canadian provinces was the first time I became annoyed with Mattea, though I agree that's on Ken. Tonight I knew hazelnut, hemophilia, Horatio Alger (I somehow sensed that one would be a TS), bell, book, and candle; Winken, Blinken, and Nod, and The Good Doctor. I'm impressed. What part of the clue led you to Greece? Like Mattea, I guessed England.

How about Jason and Justine Bateman as a brother and sister amateur detective team? They could both be mystery writers: one specializing in dark and gritty tales, the other in “cozies.” Not to gender stereotype, she would write the former and he would write the latter.

There were a lot of TS’s. I got Laredo, Russia, Big Dipper, Big River, bell, Rachel, and the Song of Solomon. I figured out FJ. Clever of them to make the answer a Disney cartoon! When I think of 50s movies, I generally think of huge spectacles like Ben Hur or something starring Brando, Dean, or Monroe. At least it wasn’t another huge Mattea runaway. I thought Alex would have been a fun champ. I liked his “bonding with Dad” story, though it had its disturbing aspects. I wish Ken had asked him what he wore for the knife act!

I was fortunate to see Robert Morse in "Tru." I was too young for the original Broadway run of "How to Succeed..." but I do remember seeing the movie at Radio City Music Hall. And Bert Cooper was the perfect capstone role. I loved that final "Best Things in Life" soft shoe, even if it was contrary to Bert's Ayn Rand-type philosophy.

I got Buzzards Bay, rubber chicken, WAVES, and Essex. No clue on FJ. I hope tomorrow’s contestants give Mattea more of a challenge. One person FJ’s are so sad!

I saw this in my local cinema today. It was good to see a small film about real people get acclaim, and the actors were terrific. Knowing that the actors playing Ruby's family are all Deaf made the movie especially impressive. But everything to do with Ruby's singing and her audition at Berklee felt false. The above poster compared it to an Afterschool Special; it reminded me of a Billy Elliott knockoff, with a singer instead of a ballet dancer and fishermen instead of coal miners. I seriously doubted one could get into a prestigious music school with a pleasant but unremarkable rendition of "Both Sides Now."

Freaky indeed! It reminded me of this picture of the Golden Girls. (The article was written before Betty White's death.)

Well, something has to balance out all those Bible-themed categories! Does the coded meaning of "420" mean that contestants can't use that number to wager? I only realized the correct FJ answer after Ken explained the significance of "orphaned." I thought it referred to the loss of her mother. For those who have trouble remembering all the wives of Henry VIII, this might help.

You're allowed your original thought, but I'm curious why you find her annoying. I haven't noticed anything about her demeanor that people typically gripe about in contestants, other than possibly the fact that she often sounds uncertain about her answers. I was nervous she would fall victim to the "four game curse" on Monday, but she came through with that "vax" answer. It's interesting that we seem to veer between really close games and huge runaways, though the former have been less frequent than the latter.

While I wouldn't exactly call it "historical fiction," I thought Valley of the Dolls gave a vivid look at all types of show business from the 1940's to the 1960's: theater, nightclubs, movies (foreign and Hollywood), television. It's not a perfect book (too much attention to the dullest of the women), but it deserves better than the dismissal as "trash" it usually gets.

My two cents on the "Mattea looks like..." conversation: Gabrielle Carteris, especially in the scenes where Andrea is wearing glasses. I got a lot of TS's Friday: daGama, Eisenhower/Churchill, The Heidi Chronicles ("Heidi" was even in the clue, but I guess none of the contestants were theater buffs), the Glengarry Glen Ross DD, the Edict of Nantes, Hamlet, and Yggdrasil. I didn't know some of the other Norse myths, though. I like Mattea but hate the runaways. I hope she gets some better opponents in the upcoming week, like Reagan on Thursday.

Well, they might have; look at these! I went in the wrong direction entirely and thought of some type of aviator glasses.

Belatedly mentioning that I also read Cheaper by the Dozen in seventh grade. I liked it at the time, but when I saw the play version years later as an adult, I was struck by what a tyrant the dad was. He treated those kids like employees. I didn't realize the sad reason he was so intense: that he knew his health wasn't good and that he didn't have long to teach them. The mother supposedly hated the book because it showed her as a sweet SAHM instead of the working woman in a male-dominated STEM profession that she actually was. I never read the sequel, Belles on their Toes, so I assume it showcased her brains better. Did you know she invented, among other things, the garbage can with a pedal? Last night I knew Poor Richard, Changes/Ganges, Aveeno, and Patek Philippe. I never watched Succession, but I knew enough from cultural osmosis to figure it out. Mandy Patinkin was one of those slow emphasize...every...word guest readers, but they did clear the board so I can't complain too much. I didn't expect Nell to be gone so soon, but Camron seems OK.

I knew the Stonewall Inn because there was a lot of publicity around the 50th anniversary of the riots in 2019. I was surprised the guy from Brooklyn didn't know it, but I was amused by the picture of Rockettes at Radio City protesting with high kicks in perfect sync.

The Pantheon in Paris. (Not to be confused with the one in Rome, which was a temple to all the gods and later a church.)

Joey must be kicking himself for not betting bigger on that Dumbledore DD. He might have stopped the game from being a runaway, though the outcome would have been the same since he missed FJ. I knew it from The Josephine Baker Story, a 1991 TV movie.