Jeopardy! Season 38 (2021-2022)

[Trey]

I was a little worried for Ryan but he pulled it out.

Four ts's for me: The Faerie Queene, timid, tabard, and plant trees.

As soon as the FJ clue was revealed I said Jack Kerouac and no other names even came to me, which is a good thing because I might have changed my answer.

[SomeTameGazelle]

7 hours ago, ProudMary said:

This! It drives me crazy. Whenever someone responds with a surname only--which is completely within the rules!--she acknowledges that the response is correct, but then goes on to give the full name. If a response doesn't require a BMS--and NOTHING seems to require a BMS any more 😠--just move on!

I disagree. BMS should always be a burden on the contestant, not the host. If surname alone is ambiguous, the contestant should be asked to supply the first name. If surname alone is clear but the person is not a household name I like the host to supply the full name. 

[Trey]

35 minutes ago, SomeTameGazelle said:

I disagree. BMS should always be a burden on the contestant, not the host. If surname alone is ambiguous, the contestant should be asked to supply the first name. If surname alone is clear but the person is not a household name I like the host to supply the full name. 

I thought Alex, and probably Ken, always gave the first name when just a surname is accepted.  Just for clarity - and to educate the audience, if they didn't know it. I actually like them giving the first name and I don't think it holds up the game.

Edited May 18, 2022 by Trey

[SomeTameGazelle]

18 minutes ago, Trey said:

I thought Alex, and probably Ken, always gave the first name when just a surname is accepted.  Just for clarity.

Definitely Alex. And I believe Buzzy won my heart by doing it appropriately. 

Edited May 18, 2022 by SomeTameGazelle

[proserpina65]

14 hours ago, ams1001 said:

"Scottish poet" is always Burns (and I always think "Robbie Burns" in Alex's voice whenever he comes up).

Yep, and Scottish novelist is always Sir Walter Scott.  Some answers are just so predictable.

13 hours ago, Katy M said:

I said Steinbeck becuse James Dean starred in East of Eden. 

I was stumped for a second, then thought "supposedly cool, bad boy, anti-establishment type, hey, it's Jack Kerouac".  Wasn't sure it was right but I went with it.

My correct TS answers: Faerie Queene (if it's Spenser, it's always The Faerie Queene), timid and tabard.

I usually struggle with/hate the Before & After categories, but I enjoyed this one and got every answer correct.

13 hours ago, possibilities said:

I knew mortise and white mouse,

I said mortar instead of mortise even though I didn't think it was correct.  Color me surprised when mortar was the next answer.

11 hours ago, GreekGeek said:

white mouse--the latter because I remembered enough high school French.

I knew white, but apparently at no point in high school or college French did I ever learn the word for mouse.

10 hours ago, 30 Helens said:

I was concerned for Ryan for a while, but was glad he pulled it out in the end. The kitten story made me a little heart-melty.

I liked him before that, but afterwards I was like "just give him all the money now".

10 hours ago, 30 Helens said:

I was surprised that mortise and Bunyan got past everyone.

I never remember Bunyan for some reason even though he does come up now and then on Jeopardy.  I have some weird Bunyan block, I guess.

9 hours ago, ProudMary said:

Whenever someone responds with a surname only--which is completely within the rules!--she acknowledges that the response is correct, but then goes on to give the full name. If a response doesn't require a BMS--and NOTHING seems to require a BMS any more 😠--just move on!

That's actually one of the few situations where I don't mind her repeating the answer, because the judges SHOULD be requiring first names a lot more often.  Except when she mispronounces Albert, of course.

[MrAtoz]

Just to be nitpicky (because what would Jeopardy be without nitpicking?), if you want to be Scottish about it, Burns's nickname is not spelled Robbie, but Rabbie.

I figured that FJ was one of the Beat Generation writers, but I couldn't settle on which one.  I finally went with Norman Mailer (who wasn't really a Beat, but was active around the same time).

[Clanstarling]

14 hours ago, ams1001 said:

TS were Faerie Queen (I took a whole class on Spenser and Milton in college...), John Bunyan, timid, and Kepler. [There were only two TS in the first round. Eight in the second.]

"Scottish poet" is always Burns (and I always think "Robbie Burns" in Alex's voice whenever he comes up).

I am reading Hannah Gadsby's book (Ten Steps to Nanette: A Memoir Situation) right now!

I had a good first round too - ran Poets, which shocked me as my response to the category was "ugh" - I may have been a lit major but I hated poetry (loved it when I was a kid, school ruined it for me).

I really like Hannah Gadsby, her shows have been both powerful and wickedly funny.

11 hours ago, 853fisher said:

My theory is that she is unable / unempowered to parse responses other than exactly what is on the sheet in front of her.  So if the contestant says "EU" or "Auburn" or "Little Bighorn," she has to wait for the voice in her ear to tell her whether that's acceptable for "European Union" or "Auburn University" or "Battle of Little Bighorn."  I'd wager this is also reflected in the many times she replies with information that seems, to me at least, too obvious to be worth adding.  Surely someone is going over this with her, but she hasn't improved, which makes me think she can't and isn't going to.

That theory is a good one, probably for most of her pauses. But I think she does that with even the most unequivocal correct answers. It's annoying. That being said, I don't dislike her so much as I like Ken better.

The first round went great - ran one category and almost ran Tools (another category I said "ugh" to). Unfortunately I said hammer and tongs for hammer and sickle, but since hammer and tongs was the answer after that, I got that one right.

No FJ though. Toyed with Salinger (that is, I thought - who wrote Catcher in the Rye, gd, I know who the writer is). I ended up blank. Kerouac was the obvious answer, but he never would have come to mind.

[Welshman in Ca]

5 minutes ago, MrAtoz said:

Just to be nitpicky (because what would Jeopardy be without nitpicking?), if you want to be Scottish about it, Burns's nickname is not spelled Robbie, but Rabbie.

I figured that FJ was one of the Beat Generation writers, but I couldn't settle on which one.  I finally went with Norman Mailer (who wasn't really a Beat, but was active around the same time).

While we're talking about Scotland my head almost exploded with her pronunciation of Falkirk.

But we've been over this before and I'm no genius when it comes to pronouncing some USA place names.

I also got FJ by some weird way that only my brain knows.

Edited May 18, 2022 by Welshman in Ca

[Trey]

12 hours ago, GreekGeek said:

I knew John Bunyan, timid, Faerie Queene and white mouse--the latter because I remembered enough high school French.

Souris has always meant "smile" to me, so I thought the answer was white smile which made little sense. 

Quote

I said mortar instead of mortise even though I didn't think it was correct.  Color me surprised when mortar was the next answer.

I did the same thing! Then I felt so stupid.

[Ohiopirate02]

On 5/17/2022 at 3:10 AM, Bastet said:

In the same earnest way he pronounced any "foreign" word/name.  It had nothing on "genre", but "Camus" was a memorable one to still be noted.

(Nobody, contestant or host, made any sort of error; it's just a reference to a primary example of Alex's exaggerated pronunciation being particularly fun.)

Alex was terrible at his imitations of a person's/character's accent on an English/American word (e.g. when he'd try to speak like Dracula or the Terminator), but was quite impressive at being excruciatingly correct - sometimes to the extent of over-enunciating, which circled right back to humor - at properly pronouncing "foreign" words.  French, of course, was in his wheelhouse, and he was particularly fun with such words:

But it wasn't limited to that.  There used to be some terrific compilations out there, but a quick search is not giving me any.

This is the one thing I really miss about Alex and I yearn for the producers to find a permanent host who has this type of quirk.  IMHO, neither Mayim nor Ken have it.  None of the other guest hosts had it either.  I just want my Jeopardy host to have one thing that sets he/she/them apart from anyone else, something that makes them just a bit smug because of it.  Alex's deep need to correct the French from contestants was a joy.  I want my Jeopardy host to know more than me in some aspect and rub it in my face (even if Alex's French was never Parisian French).  Is Mayim smarter than me, yes, but only in certain subjects.  In other subjects, I could run laps around her.  And Ken, well he's a trivia nerd.  He has an ability to retain information, but he too has blind spots.  

[possibilities]

1 hour ago, Clanstarling said:

I really like Hannah Gadsby, her shows have been both powerful and wickedly funny.

I agree! She's a genius. Both times, I didn't know where she was going and then BAM! Genius.

Mayim comes across like she's trying too hard and at the same time being lazy about details. It's like she's all affect and nothing to back it up. It's driving me crazy this week. I did like her outfit yesterday, though. But, again, all the effort is going into appearance, not substance.

[rcc]

There will never be another Alex. Ken comes closest and I wish Mayim would go away, or host Celebrity Jeopardy. That is what she is - a celebrity. Ken has excelled at the game of Jeopardy and does very well with the contestants while hosting. He should be the permanent host. 

[cinsays]

32 minutes ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

 Alex's deep need to correct the French from contestants was a joy. 

huh...

i found this to be an unattractive show of arrogance

13 minutes ago, possibilities said:

I did like her outfit yesterday, though. But, again, all the effort is going into appearance, not substance.

you really think she's focused on what she's wearing and gives that a lot of thought?

[possibilities]

No, I think production is controlling her wardrobe more. 

[cinsays]

34 minutes ago, possibilities said:

No, I think production is controlling her wardrobe more. 

not sure how that translates into her doing a good or bad job as host, but ok

[proserpina65]

1 hour ago, cinsays said:

you really think she's focused on what she's wearing and gives that a lot of thought?

Actually I do think she pays a lot of attention to what she wears.  And I don't mean that as criticism, necessarily.  She has a certain kind of style and sticks with it.  Sometimes I like what she has on and sometimes not, but I don't believe it's a dig at her to notice.

3 hours ago, Clanstarling said:

I really like Hannah Gadsby, her shows have been both powerful and wickedly funny.

What I've seen of her work I found to be deeply unfunny, but comedy, like many other things in life, is subjective.

[Ohiopirate02]

Just now, proserpina65 said:

Actually I do think she pays a lot of attention to what she wears.  And I don't mean that as criticism, necessarily.  She has a certain kind of style and sticks with it.  Sometimes I like what she has on and sometimes not, but I don't believe it's a dig at her to notice.

There was a distinct upgrade in Mayim's wardrobe and hair and makeup when she came back from her first break.  The show sprang for a stylist to select a wardrobe that fit Mayim.  She also got some better hair and makeup people.  I noticed the change immediately.  Her new clothes are way more modern and fit her better while still being modest, the way Mayim chooses to dress.  

[proserpina65]

26 minutes ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

There was a distinct upgrade in Mayim's wardrobe and hair and makeup when she came back from her first break.  The show sprang for a stylist to select a wardrobe that fit Mayim.  She also got some better hair and makeup people.  I noticed the change immediately.  Her new clothes are way more modern and fit her better while still being modest, the way Mayim chooses to dress.  

I definitely agree.  It's still her style, but a couple of steps up.

[alias1]

2 hours ago, rcc said:

There will never be another Alex. Ken comes closest and I wish Mayim would go away, or host Celebrity Jeopardy. That is what she is - a celebrity. Ken has excelled at the game of Jeopardy and does very well with the contestants while hosting. He should be the permanent host. 

Speaking of Celebrity Jeopardy (have they confirmed her as the host?) I think she needs to be a contestant on Celebrity Jeopardy.  Then I might take her seriously as actually being smart in more than one thing.

[Prevailing Wind]

3 hours ago, possibilities said:

Mayim comes across like she's trying too hard and at the same time being lazy about details. It's like she's all affect and nothing to back it up.

I've said this before: She's an actress playing the part of game-show host.

[rcc]

20 minutes ago, SierraMist said:

Speaking of Celebrity Jeopardy (have they confirmed her as the host?) I think she needs to be a contestant on Celebrity Jeopardy.  Then I might take her seriously as actually being smart in more than one thing.

No they haven't confirmed but since they think so highly of her that would be a better fit.

[853fisher]

28 minutes ago, SierraMist said:

Speaking of Celebrity Jeopardy (have they confirmed her as the host?)

As @rcc said, they haven't confirmed the host, but generally reputable sources like Variety think Mayim is very likely.  This article hints that they are waiting to make a broader announcement, which I read to suggest that they will announce the host(s) for this spinoff and the regular show at the same time.

[Trey]

1 hour ago, SierraMist said:

Speaking of Celebrity Jeopardy (have they confirmed her as the host?) I think she needs to be a contestant on Celebrity Jeopardy.  Then I might take her seriously as actually being smart in more than one thing.

Too late for that now, but she would have made a good contestant.

[30 Helens]

Naming Mayim as host of the celebrity version and Ken as host of the daytime version would actually be a good compromise. Those who like Mayim would still get to see her on a weekly basis, and she could probably work that around her sitcom schedule without much difficulty. (I also think Mayim’s hosting style would be well suited to a celebrity version.) Ken would get to host the more important version, as he should. And production would get to save face by not having to fire or demote anyone.

Now, just hire Brad to take over the primetime tournaments, and there will be thirty very happy Helens.

Edited May 18, 2022 by 30 Helens

[Browncoat]

Catching up from last night -- I also said Salinger for FJ, but of course Kerouac made so much sense when it was revealed.  Monday night's correct FJ was a fluke.

I did get the TS of mortise, Faerie Queene, China Grove, and tabard.  And I cheered when Rosalind Franklin was given her props.  She really deserves equal credit with Watson and Crick (maybe more!).

[Bastet]

3 minutes ago, 30 Helens said:

And production would get to save face by not having to fire or demote anyone.

Nobody is getting fired or demoted no matter what they decide for permanent host of the regular game or for host of this new celebrity series; Mayim was hired to host the J! specials in prime time and Mike Richards to host the regular series.  When Richards got fired, Mayim and Ken were tapped as rotating guest hosts until a new host was hired (presumably to take over when next season begins).  She still has the job for which he was hired, and no one yet has the job from which Richards was fired.  That could go to one of them, or someone else entirely (although I doubt they're interviewing professional hosts in the interim; they will probably hire Mayim to do the regular show in addition to her other job or, more likely, hire Ken).

Celebrity Jeopardy! will be a separate weekly prime time series, which could wind up having a third host, but it would would make more sense to have Mayim do it in addition to the prime time specials (and the short shooting schedule shouldn't interfere with her sitcom's shooting schedule).

[PBnJay]

8 hours ago, MrAtoz said:

Just to be nitpicky (because what would Jeopardy be without nitpicking?), if you want to be Scottish about it, Burns's nickname is not spelled Robbie, but Rabbie.

Which is why I answered "Rabbie Burns" to my teevee.

26 minutes ago, 30 Helens said:

Now, just hire Brad to take over the primetime tournaments, and there will be thirty very happy Helens.

And one very happy PB+J.

[853fisher]

The name of the drag queen who infuriates Pierce's father with her parody of his jingle in "Community" was Urbana Champaign.  I've never forgotten the name of the school after that.

I was infuriated that FJ wasn't coming to me immediately since it ought to have been in my wheelhouse.  I paused the show and thought it out.  It might have been more than 30 seconds, but it came to me, so I'm giving myself credit. ;)

A bit more of the draft lyric, from another website: "I'm Holly / like I want to be / like Holly on a tree back home."  I can't imagine it having had such a life beyond the movie with that!  Even after it became "Moon River," a Paramount exec wanted to cut it after a preview screening.  I find these stories fascinating.

I was surprised by how poorly "You Never Take Me To..." went.  Perhaps it would have been different had the started at the top.  I think at least the first clue revealed was Greek to the players.  I got 4/5 and thought it was a cute idea.

[ams1001]

Another good day for the J! round…missed only five again. Bad day for DJ, got just over half correct.

TSes were Book of Mormon, 1/2 of the cheese clue (Gouda), Chincoteague (even though I was slightly confused by the clue…but it said Assateague so I said Chincoteague...I agree with @853fisher, if they had started at the top I might have understood the point of the category better. ), and hematoma.

No FJ but I had the right movie, at least.

 

[Katy M]

i can guarantee I would not have gotten FJ if I'd been on the show, because I said Breakfast at Tiffany's, Moonlight Sonata, Moon over MIami, Moon River (at the last second). So frustrating.

I got the missed cluess of falanges (sp?), St. Vincent (look at me getting a geography TS, unheard of), and grotto.

I got the entire categories of beastly book, Americans, and TV siblings right.

I had a good night.

[Browncoat]

Instaget FJ for me tonight.  "I'm Holly" sounds like a terrible lyric.

I have never heard Chincoteague pronounced with a hard "ch" sound.  I got that TS (pronounced with a softer, almost "sh" sound, as we do in my part of Virginia) along with Book of Mormon, edam & gouda, phalanges, Steller, Urbana, and grotto. 

 

[Mondrianyone]

Being a Jeopardy! champ surely can't be more onerous than being a ride-share driver, but Ryan is doing his best to make it seem that way. I never fall asleep during J!, although I came pretty close today.

[GreekGeek]

58 minutes ago, 853fisher said:

 

I was surprised by how poorly "You Never Take Me To..." went.  Perhaps it would have been different had the started at the top.  I think at least the first clue revealed was Greek to the players.  I got 4/5 and thought it was a cute idea.

I was so irritated with Adriana for staying with the category when neither she nor either of the others were doing well with it. And then she hit the DD, missed, and went in the hole. I was worried they wouldn't get to the Greek derivatives category, because I really wanted to see it. 

I knew gouda and edam, Agamemnon, and hematoma.

[SomeTameGazelle]

1 hour ago, GreekGeek said:

I was worried they wouldn't get to the Greek derivatives category, because I really wanted to see it. 

I know the Blue Grotto so I didn't have any trouble getting it, but the word seemed so Italian I didn't realize it had come from the Greek. Turns out it is from krypto! 

1 hour ago, Mondrianyone said:

Being a Jeopardy! champ surely can't be more onerous than being a ride-share driver, but Ryan is doing his best to make it seem that way. I never fall asleep during J!, although I came pretty close today.

He's very low-energy but he has endeared himself to me because he seems good with literature/language/music categories. I was wondering whether he knew Helen was from Sparta and was locked out or if he needed Athens and Thebes ruled out before he rang in. 

 

[PBnJay]

2 hours ago, Browncoat said:

I have never heard Chincoteague pronounced with a hard "ch" sound.

Exactly. Same here. I read "Misty of Chincoteague" when I was old enough to hold a book, rode Chincoteague ponies as a kid, visited Assateague and Chincoteague just to see the ponies in the wild, and I've never heard it pronounced other than SHINcoteague. Right, @Mindthinkr?

(But then of course, it's HER ...)

"Breakfast at Tiffanys" was on tv a while back and I was looking forward to watching. But ... I couldn't make it past the first hour. Let's just say, it did not age well.

[Bastet]

Ryan ran away with this one pretty quickly.  Checking the game dynamics graph on the archive, I see he answered a little more than half the clues, and most of them correctly.

Knowing St. Paul is the twin city of Minneapolis should have been a $200 clue.  In a Teen Tournament.

The hematoma TS surprised me a bit, given the extra time (due to two wrong answers), but I wonder if "dangerous" threw them off that track, because I've come across many people who think it's basically just a synonym for bruise.

I suspect all of them were thinking "gouda and ....?" for the Dutch cheese TS.

I came close to running the first round, but didn't know The Book of Mormon (I know it exists and is by the South Park creators, but that's it) and couldn't get any farther than The Something Hare for the Alice in Wonderland rabbit.

I didn't run a thing in DJ, though.  I got all but one each in science and TV siblings (three cheers for cultural osmosis, as I've never seen any of those shows) and only missed two each in hodgepodge and Greek (it should have been one, but I couldn't get lycanthrope from my brain to my mouth in time).  But I missed all but one city and missed three in Trojan.

FJ wasn't an instaget, but almost.  "Moon River" was the first Johnny Mercer song that sprang to mind, so once "I'm Holly" let me know it had to be the song from Breakfast at Tiffany's, I was almost positive that was indeed the song (I haven't seen that movie in eons).

Edited May 19, 2022 by Bastet

[ams1001]

13 minutes ago, Bastet said:

The hematoma TS surprised me a bit, given the extra time (due to two wrong answers), but I wonder if "dangerous" threw them off that track, because I've come across many people who think it's basically just a synonym for bruise.

Wasn't Audrey a doctor? I was surprised she didn't get that one.

[Bastet]

2 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

Wasn't Audrey a doctor? I was surprised she didn't get that one.

Oh, interesting.  I missed the introductions (and hardly ever listen to the interviews), but I just checked the archive and she's listed as a pediatric hospitalist.  Having never heard the term "hospitalist", I looked it up and found it's a doctor who specializes in providing in-hospital care.

Probably a "burden of knowledge" situation for her; I've had a couple of embarrassing misses on legal clues where I over thought and went for something more specific than J! would ever ask for, skipping past the appropriate, more broad, answer.

But methinks she's going to get some shit at work.

[zoey1996]

3 hours ago, Browncoat said:

Instaget FJ for me tonight.  "I'm Holly" sounds like a terrible lyric.

I have never heard Chincoteague pronounced with a hard "ch" sound.  I got that TS (pronounced with a softer, almost "sh" sound, as we do in my part of Virginia) along with Book of Mormon, edam & gouda, phalanges, Steller, Urbana, and grotto. 

 

Me either, and I knew few of the correct pronunciations for that area &  the Virginia peninsula.

[30 Helens]

I got hematoma, and I’m not even a doctor. Go figure.

FJ was an instaget for me. I love Breakfast at Tiffany’s, despite its more cringy aspects (and there are many, not just the Mickey Rooney character). It’s kind of like Gone With the Wind: I forgive it for not knowing better at the time, while recognizing my white privilege gives me the distance to allow such tolerance.

But in this movie’s case, it’s the cat in the rain scene that gets me every time. I once had a nearly identical scenario with my own cat, Bear, who happily escaped the rain and lived to the ripe old age of 19, so all turned out well. (Except I still miss him terribly, more than 15 years later.)

ANYWAY.  The “Holly” in the clue gave me the answer. My husband wasn’t getting it, so I tried to help him by singing it: “I’m Holly… wider than a mile. I’m crossing you in style…” Didn’t work. And neither do the lyrics in that context. 

 

 

[South]

I gotta say, when Alex was here, I would wince, and gripping the edge of my chair, I would brace myself whenever I knew the forthcoming answer was to be “Robert Burns”.  I knew it was coming, and for some reason, it annoyed the snot outta me.

Now, as to Ryan.  Isn’t he the low-key relief we were itching for only a few weeks ago?  My only beef?  After buzzing in, if he needs a moment to ponder before answering, his body language causes concern for me that he doesn’t have the answer.  He shifts, slightly twists, exhales quickly through his nose then shakes his head to one side.  Since I’m pulling for him, I’m already mumbling “well, crap”. Then after what seems like way too much time, he answers correctly!  I reckon it’s working for him, though.

Moon River.  Such a beautiful song.  Occasionally, I’ll ask Alexa to play 10 or 20 versions for me.  The movie?  Not so much.  The book?  Anytime.  Truman Capote had a way with words that has always grabbed me.  Hard.

[Mindthinkr]

9 hours ago, PBnJay said:

Exactly. Same here. I read "Misty of Chincoteague" when I was old enough to hold a book, rode Chincoteague ponies as a kid, visited Assateague and Chincoteague just to see the ponies in the wild, and I've never heard it pronounced other than SHINcoteague. Right, @Mindthinkr?

Absolutely. However you have one on me. I never got to ride any of them. I was once camping at Asseateague Island and we forgot to pack away the marshmallows we were toasting late at night. They all came for the sweet feast surprising all of us sleeping in tents. They were friendly when it came to food  

My TSs were Book of Mormon, Gouda and Edam, phalanges, Chincoteague, and hematoma. I knew the FJ had to do with Breakfast at Tiffanys, but I just couldn’t access it in my brain. 

Edited May 19, 2022 by Mindthinkr
Edited to add my TSs

[zoey1996]

Taking Chincoteague to Small Talk.

[cinsays]

12 hours ago, GreekGeek said:

I was so irritated with Adriana for staying with the category when neither she nor either of the others were doing well with it. And then she hit the DD, missed, and went in the hole. I was worried they wouldn't get to the Greek derivatives category, because I really wanted to see it. 

I knew gouda and edam, Agamemnon, and hematoma.

yeah, why didn't she just bet a little so she could be there for final jeopardy? she had no chance of winning, so why bet and get in the hole?

[Trey]

Just two ts's for me: Edam & Gouda, and Grotto.  I thought everyone had heard of the Blue Grotto.

"I'm Holly" made me jump immediately to Moon River but Johnny Mercer tossed me off for a few seconds in FJ since I only ever associate Henry Mancini with Moon River, until I noticed that it was Johnny Mercer's lyrics.

[Mondrianyone]

11 hours ago, SomeTameGazelle said:

He's very low-energy but he has endeared himself to me because he seems good with literature/language/music categories.

I'll agree to disagree on that. It seems to me that when you get to live out the dream of so many, you might want to bring just a little joy and energy to the enterprise, but whatever. Your screen name, however, brings me more than a little joy.

[Clanstarling]

23 hours ago, Trey said:

Souris has always meant "smile" to me, so I thought the answer was white smile which made little sense. 

I did the same thing! Then I felt so stupid.

Don't feel stupid. We all have moments when we should have known the answer. The mind can be a slippery thing.

22 hours ago, cinsays said:

huh...

i found this to be an unattractive show of arrogance

I can see that some would have seen it as a show of arrogance, but I never really did. It could also be seen as instructional, or simply the need of a native speaker of a language to say it correctly (according to their dialect). Like much of the discussion here today.

I spoke German as a child, and have real trouble sometimes anglicizing a word when I'm talking, because the "correct" pronunciation is the one that naturally comes off my tongue. So I guess I can seem arrogant. But it was fun on my recent trip to Austria (by way of Germany), when the airport passport check guy asked for my destination, then also asked if I was Austrian because of the way I said Salzburg, and my family in Salzburg were thrilled that I spoke just like them.

1 hour ago, Trey said:

Just two ts's for me: Edam & Gouda, and Grotto.  I thought everyone had heard of the Blue Grotto.

"I'm Holly" made me jump immediately to Moon River but Johnny Mercer tossed me off for a few seconds in FJ since I only ever associate Henry Mancini with Moon River, until I noticed that it was Johnny Mercer's lyrics.

I know my cheeses. 😉 I had definitely heard of the Blue Grotto, just did not get there from the clue.

On the other hand, I was astonished that FJ was an instaget - for  a movie I never saw. But I connected song and Holly with Moon River immediately (for some reason the character Holly Golightly sticks in my mind).

 

Edited May 19, 2022 by Clanstarling

[Ohiopirate02]

I got grotto based solely on having been to Capri and taking a boat into the Blue Grotto.  FJ was also an insta-get due to a trip to Savannah in high school with the Girl Scouts.  For reasons unknown, one of the few tidbits from the tour of Savannah I retained is Johnny Mercer writing Moon River for Breakfast at Tiffanys.  

[Miss Anne Thrope]

Please don't judge, but I got the grotto answer based on tales of the Playboy mansion. 

[SomeTameGazelle]

13 hours ago, Bastet said:

Knowing St. Paul is the twin city of Minneapolis should have been a $200 clue.  In a Teen Tournament.

I thought that they set that up as a gimme in order to help frame the somewhat opaque category "You Never Take Me To" -- but since they started from the bottom the contestants didn't get the benefit. I wasn't familiar with the pairings of Kashmir/Jammu, Grenadines/St Vincent, or  Chincoteague/Assateague and didn't understand how the category was supposed to work until they got to Minneapolis/St Paul and Urbana/Champaign.