Sunday, September 22, 2013

ROCK BY THE NUMBERS



Even if you’re not a math whiz, you shouldn’t have any problems with the quiz this time.   It’s all about Top Ten hits that have a number (or numbers) in their title.  For example:  Dolly Parton’s 1981 # 1 hit, “9 To 5” or Elvis Presley’s # 4 hit, “One Night” from ’58 or even The Grass Roots, “Two Divided By Love” in 1971.  See how this works?  Not much else to say, except our quiz starts in 3...2...1.   

QUESTIONS

1.  This Canadian group sings the opening theme to “The Big Bang Theory”.  The ‘number’ song we’re looking for was their first and so far, only # 1 on Billboards’ Hot 100 singles chart.  Their latest album is called “Grinning Streak” and they’ll be starting a U.S. tour in October.  What’s the name of the group and their ‘number’ # 1 hit?       
      
2.  Think of what you normally put on the top of a birthday cake.  Then turn your mind back to 1959 when this song, featuring lead singer Johnny Maestro, was a # 2 hit.  Maestro later went on to sing lead with Brooklyn Bridge, but this was his first taste of success.  Can you come up with the name of the song and the name of the group?           
                
3.  Most office workers leave for home at this time.  It’s also the original name of the Motown group The Jacksons.  Now that you’ve got that answer, think about the planet where we all live and other names for it.  This hit went Top Five (HINT ALERT) in 1966 for this Pennsylvania group.  Can you name them along with their ‘number’ song?             
                   
4.  Tuskegee, Alabama is the original home to this Motown group, whose lead singer eventually went on to have a hugely successful solo career with hits like “Brick House” and “Still”.  This 1978 # 1 is a love ballad to a very special ‘lady’ (HINT ALERT).  What’s the name of the group and their # 1 hit?
    
5.  This song has a year in its title.  It was the year The Beatles released their second movie, “Help!” (and received MBE medals from Queen Elizabeth at Buckingham Palace).  It was also the year former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill died, Canada got its new ‘Maple Leaf’ flag, the Montreal Canadiens won the Stanley Cup (yeah, that really helped, didn’t it?), the Los Angeles Dodgers won the 62nd World Series.  OK, so that’s the year in the title – the rest is about a man/woman relationship.  This song was one of only two that made the Top Ten, although this singer did chart 15 songs on Billboards’ Hot100.  Who is he and what’s the name of this song?                       
     
ANSWERS

1.  In 1998, Toronto’s Barenaked Ladies had the # 1 song on the Billboard Hot 100 chart with their hit, “One Week”.      


2.  “16 Candles” by The Crests was the song we were looking for.  While it didn’t make it to the top of the singles chart, it did climb all the way to # 2 for two weeks in February of 1959.  The song that kept The Crests out of the # 1 spot?  “Stagger Lee” by Lloyd Price, which also held Ritchie Valens’ “Donna” to the # 2 position the following two weeks.     
    
3.  That would be The Vogues “Five O’Clock World”, a # 4 song in 1966.  Although they charted 14 songs on Billboards’ Hot 100 chart, only four made Top Ten.  “You’re The One” was first, making it to # 4 in 1965, followed the next year by “Five O’Clock World”.  Then in 1968, they charted two # 7, “Turn Around, Look At Me” and “My Special Angel”.             

4.  The Commodores got their name by opening a dictionary to a random page and picking a random word.  That word was ‘Commode’ (also known as toilet).  Their ’78      # 1, “Three Times A Lady”, stayed at the top of Billboards’ Hot 100 chart for 2 weeks in August of 1978.        
    
5.  Remember “65 Love Affair” from Paul Davis?  No?  It was a # 6 song in May of 1982.  During that same time period, another ‘number’ song was in the Top Ten.  That was “867-5309/Jenny” by Tommy Tutone, which climbed as high as # 4 that same month (May) in ’82.  Paul Davis previously cracked the Top Ten in 1978 with his # 7 hit, “I Go Crazy”.                       

Monday, September 16, 2013

EMMY FRIEND OF YOURS



Those annual EMMY Awards are coming this Sunday.  So to celebrate, our questions this time are about TV/movie actors who also sing (or at least attempt to sing).  We’re not counting William Shatner here, who has actually released several albums or Archie Bunker aka Carroll O’Connor, who actually had a hit single (# 43 in 1972) singing (with co-star Gene Stapleton aka Edith Bunker) the theme song for their smash TV series “All In The Family”.  Their song was called “Those Were The Days”, which was the original title of the TV series until it was changed.  We’re also not asking any questions about actress/singer Gwyneth Paltrow, who has sung in at least one of her movies and is married to Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin.  Nor will we be asking about Anne Hathaway, who won an Academy Award earlier this year for her singing/acting in “Les Miserables”. 
Now, this quiz may be slightly harder than others in the past as several of these actor/singers may not have made the charts.  But not to worry.   There’ll be plenty of clues to guide you through it.  So, here we go.    

QUESTIONS

1.  This actress/singer has co-starred in several Woody Allen films, including “Match Point” (2005), “Scoop” (2006) and ”Vicki Christina Barcelona” (2008).  She’s also portrayed the Marvel comic book character Black Widow (aka Natasha Romanoff) in “Ironman 2”, “The Avengers” and the upcoming “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”,  due for release next year.  She was also married to Canadian actor (but NOT singer) Ryan Reynolds from September 2008 until December of 2010 (their divorce was finalized in 2011).  Her latest film is writer/director/star Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s “Don Jon”.  Who is she?         
      
2.  “Hannah Montana” was the first TV starring role for this actress/singer.  At this years MTV Awards, she made headlines around the world by ‘twerking’ fellow singer Robin Thicke.  In fact, she’s made headlines for a great many things lately (including cutting her hair and appearing naked in her new video).  She’s the daughter of a famous actor/singer, who co-starred with her in “Hannah Montana” on the Disney channel.  Can you name this actress/singer with a controversial lifestyle?           
                
3.  George Lucas cast this Scottish actor/singer as Obi-Wan Kenobi in the three “Star Wars” prequels.  He first came to film fame starring in 1996’s ”Trainspotting”.  He’s also appeared on stage in “Guys And Dolls” and “”Othello”.  In 1997, he was ranked # 36 on Empire Magazine’s list of “The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time”.  In 2009, he co-starred with Tom Hanks in “Angels and Demons”, the sequel to “The Da Vinci Code”.  Last year, he was nominated for a Golden Globe for ‘Best Performance By An Actor In A Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical” for the film, “Salmon Fishing In The Yemen”.  Who is this actos/singer/Jedi Knight?    
                   
4.  He’s Ironman.  That should give it away immediately.  But he’s also a singer.  His career has certainly had its ups and downs (HINT ALERT).  He says he’s filmed his last Ironman movie, but he will be back as Tony Stark aka Iron Man for another “Avengers” film in 2015.  He had a serious drug habit for many years, but eventually cleaned himself up and got his career back on track and soared to new heights, including recording a musical CD.  So who is he already?          
    
5.  She sings the opening theme to her current hit TV series and she’s been singing almost as long as she’s been acting.  Her sister stars in the hit TV series “Bones”.  She had a major role in 2005’s “The Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy”.  You didn’t see it?  I didn’t think so.  This actress/singer co-starred with Canada’s Jim Carrey as a singer/adorable elfin like person in 2008’s “Yes Man”.  The following year, she co-starred with Joseph Gordon-Levitt in “(500) Days of Summer”.  She’s starred in her own TV series (as a character named Jess) since 2011.  She has an unforgettable name, but in case you’re stumped, her first name begins with the last letter of the alphabet.  Can you guess the name of this singer/actress?                   
     
ANSWERS

1.  Scarlett Ingrid Johansson is a fine, fine, mighty fine actress/singer.  She’s released two CD’s, including 2008’s “Anywhere I Lay My Head” and “Break Up”.  While still married in 2010, husband Ryan Reynolds was named “Sexiest Man Alive” by People Magazine while Scarlett was named “Babe of The Year” by GQ Magazine.  Previously she’d been voted “Sexiest Woman Alive” by Esquire Magazine in 2006 and “Sexiest Celebrity” by Playboy in ’07.  Her movie career includes, “The Horse Whisperer” (1998), “Lost In Translation” (2003), “A Love Song For Bobby Long” (2004), “The Island” (2005), “He’s Just Not That Into You” (2009), “We Bought A Zoo” (2011) and “Hitchcock” (2012).  In 2014, her films will include “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”, “Lucy”, “Chef” and the following year (2015) there’ll be a new Avengers film titled, “The Avengers – Age of Ultron” in which she’ll continue as the character of ‘The Black Widow’.  Scarlett won a Tony Award for ‘Best Performance By A Featured Actress In A Play’ for the 2010 Broadway revival of playwright Arthur Miller’s “A View From The Bridge”.  She also received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in May of 2012.      

2.  Once you’ve seen that image of Miley Cyrus ‘twerking’ on the 2013 MTV Awards, you can never get it out of your head.  This former Disney channel star has done everything in her power to prove she’s no longer the sweet, innocent “Hannah Montana”.  Whether her acting/singing career continues to be successful is still to be decided.  These days, she’s concentrating on music and/or creating controversy with whatever she does.  Good luck with that Miley.             

3.  Ewan McGregor has appeared in such British musical theatre productions as “Guys And Dolls” (playing Sky Masterson – the role that Marlon Brando played in the movie version) and “Othello”, in which he played Iago.  He starred as Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi all three of the second set of “Star Wars” movies – “The Phantom Menace”, “Attack Of The Clones” and “Revenge Of The Sith” (and he didn’t sing in any of those).  In 2001, he co-starred in “Moulin Rouge” and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for ‘Best Actor Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy”.  Upcoming films include “Son Of A Gun” and “Jane Got A Gun” (do I detect a theme here?).  Both are scheduled for release in 2014.        

4.  It’s Robert Downey Jr.  His latest singing CD is called “The Futurist” and if you remember, in an episode of Ally McBeal, Robert sang, and quite well too,with Sting, who’s not a bad actor himself, having starred in the films “Quadrophenia” (1979) and “Dune” (1984), among many others.  Downey’s next films will be “Chef” and “The Judge”, both scheduled to be released in 2014 and in 2015, the highly anticipated sequel to “The Avengers” titled “The Avengers – Age of Ultron”.   
    
5.  Zooey Deschanel stars in the TV series “New Girl”, in which she sings the opening theme.  Her first film role was in the 1999 film, “Mumford” (not to be confused with the award winning British group Mumford and Sons).  On TV, she’s guest starred in Kirstie Alley’s “Veronica’s Closet”, “Frasier”, “Weeds” and on her real life sisters’ show, “Bones” as a distant relation.  Since 2007, Zooey has performed with M. Ward as She and Him.  Their first album together, “Volume One”, was released in 2008 with “Volume Two” coming out in 2010.  2011 saw the release of “A Very She and Him Christmas” CD and “Volume Three” was released this year (2013).  In 2011, Zooey sang the U.S. national anthem at the beginning of Game 4 of the World Series between the Texas Rangers and the St. Louis Cardinals in Arlington Stadium.  Zooey has also voiced several characters for “The Simpsons”.  She was briefly married for two years and the couples’ divorce was finalized in December 2012.  Zooey’s TV series “New Girl” is now in its third season.                       

Monday, September 2, 2013

SEE YOU IN SEPTEMBER



Well, it’s officially here.  September.  Fall is just around the corner.  Trees will soon start to shed their leaves...and we’ll start adding layers of clothing, but let’s not crowd the season too much.  We still have plenty of warm, sunny days ahead before old man Winter comes a-calling.  For our quiz this week, we’ll check your knowledge of # 1 albums during September from the ‘50’s, ‘60’s, ‘70’s, ‘80’s and ‘90’s.  There’ll be a few clues along the way just in case you get stuck.  
 
QUESTIONS

1.  This album spent ten weeks at # 1 on Billboards’ Top Pop Albums chart, including all five weeks of September 1957.  It was the album from a singer from Memphis, Tennessee, who’d first hit the singles chart in 1956 with a # 1 smash called “Heartbreak Hotel”.  The title of the album was the same as the title of his second movie.  What’s the name of this legendary superstar?     
      
2.  In 1964, there was one group that dominated the singles and albums charts.  They came from Liverpool, but quickly took the world by storm and creating a phenomenon called “??????mania”.  The soundtrack to their first movie held the # 1 spot for the entire month of September of ’64.  Can you name the group and the soundtrack album?        
                 
3.  This performer had been in the British group Humble Pie before moving to America and recording a double album which became the best-selling live album to that time.  In 1976, it was the # 1 album for 10 weeks (although not consecutive weeks), including the last three weeks in September and was the best selling album of ’76 with six million copies sold in the U.S. alone.  This album spawned three hit singles, including “Show Me The Way”.  What’s the name of this singer and his # 1 album that the readers of Rolling Stone Magazine voted “Album of the Year”?    
                   
4.  In 1982, this singer/songwriter had the # 1 album for 3 out of the 4 weeks in September.  He hails from Seymour, Indiana and early on in his career, went by a name given to him by his manager.  It was a name he apparently hated, but went along with until he became successful, then he reverted to using his real name.  The album we’re looking for was his 6th and last using his ‘stage’ name.  Can you name this “American Fool”? (HINT ALERT)       
    
5.  The daughter of this country/pop singer has been in the news recently for something she did on the MTV Awards broadcast.  And from all reports, his ‘Acky Breaky Heart” (HINT ALERT) was upset over her antics.  You most likely won’t guess the name of his album, so we’ll give it to you.  “Some Gave All”.  (Didn’t really help much now, did it?  I didn’t think so.)  This album was # 1 throughout all of September of 1992 and for several weeks before and after.  This performer co-starred with his aforementioned daughter in a highly popular weekly Disney television series about a normal girl, who’s also a pop star.  What’s the name of this singer/songwriter/actor?                
     
ANSWERS

1.  C’mon, you know it was Elvis Presley didn’t you?  The album was “Loving You”.    

2.  That could only be The Beatles and the soundtrack from “A Hard Day’s Night”, which was the # 1 album for 14 consecutive weeks starting on July 25th when it toppled Louis Armstrong’s “Hello Dolly” album.  The final week for “A Hard Days Night” at # 1 was October 24th.  The following week, Barbra Streisands’ album “People” took over the top spot.      

3.  Peter Frampton was the artist.  “Frampton Comes Alive” was the album, which was recorded at various venues around the U.S. including the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco and Long Island Arena in Commack, New York.  “Frampton Comes Alive” first hit # 1 on July 24th, 1976.  The next week, it was replaced by George Benson’s “Breezin’” album.  It jumped back into first place on August 14th and stayed there for the next 3 weeks, only to have the “Fleetwood Mac” album replace it for the week of September 4th.  Frampton bounced back into # 1 on Billboards’ album chart for the weeks of September 11th through to October 9th when Stevie Wonder’s “Songs In The Key of Life” took the top spot for the next 12 weeks.

4.  That’s right, I gave you the name of the album right there in the question.  I was feeling kinda reckless today.  Anyway, John ‘Cougar’ Mellencamp was the name we were looking for.  John’s “American Fool” album topped Billboards’ album chart during the weeks of September 11th, 18th and 25th.  It remained # 1 throughout all of October and the first week in November.  Two Top Ten singles came from the “American Fool”album  – “Hurts So Good” and “Jack And Diane”, a # 1 single for 4 weeks in the summer of ’82.  David Bowie’s manager, Tony DeFries gave him the name John Cougar, but after “American Fool”, John’s next album, “Uh Huh” came out under the name John ‘Cougar’ Mellencamp.  He eventually dropped ‘Cougar’ in the late ‘80’s.      
    
5.  Billy Ray Cyrus had the # 1 album, “Some Gave All” for 17 weeks beginning the week of June 13th, 1992.  He remained at the top of the charts until the week of October 3rd.  Daughter Miley Cyrus was ‘twerking’ with Robin Thicke at this years MTV Awards.  (According to the online edition of the Oxford dictionary, ‘twerking’ means “to dance to popular music in a sexually provocative manner involving thrusting hip movements and a low, squatting stance”).  For several years, Miley was a role model for young girls as “Hannah Montana” on TV, but I think that influence is well and truly over now.