Monday Trivia is a Contradiction!

February 2, 2023

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We started winding down the first month of 2023 with an 11-venue night of Pour House Trivia on Monday, attended by a total of 127 teams!

FIRST ROUND:

A three-parter regarding war films was the trickiest part of Monday’s opening round. Teams were asked to name the war that served as the backdrop for each trio of films, listed here:

  • 1)  The Thin Red Line, Hacksaw Ridge, Flags of Our Fathers
  • 2)  Cold Mountain, Glory, Gods and Generals
  • 3)  Battleship Potemkin, Reds, October: Ten Days That Shook the World

While the first two (World War II and the U.S. Civil War) were more easily gotten, the Russian Revolution featured in the final list of films wasn’t as successfully-named; only 22% of the field earned bonus points for getting all three answers right. From there, we tackled subjects such as the Archie Comics-based TV show Riverdale, the rumba dance that originated in Cuba, and George Eastman’s founding of Kodak. A game-high 13 teams earned perfect scores in this round.

SECOND ROUND:

Five-letter band names were featured in Monday’s audio clue, namely Queen, Cameo, and Oasis. The most difficult wagering question in the first half came next:

  • Which U.S. President is honored by a National Memorial in Riverside Park in Manhattan, featuring one of the largest mausoleums in North America, where in fact he is actually buried?

That would be Grant’s Tomb, for Ulysses S. Grant, who was named by 45% of our teams. We followed that with a question about the Lone Ranger, which carried the lowest bonus-answer success rate all night; only five teams knew that character’s real last name is Reid. Largely because of that bonus chance, no teams achieved perfect marks in the second round.

HALFTIME:

Halftime topics included aerial images of world cities and answers with the word GRAND included (such as Styx’s album The Grand Illusion and Oscar-nominated film The Grand Budapest Hotel). Thirteen teams earned all 20 points on this page, while the average score was 17.6 points. At the halftime break, these teams were on top:

THIRD ROUND:

A question about paraffin wax began Monday’s second half of trivia, and 16% of the field earned extra points for naming it in the first minute before a crossword-style clue was revealed. Later on, this question proved to be the hardest of the round:

  • The United States boycotted the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow due to the Soviet invasion of which country?

The U.S. refused to attend the Moscow Games due to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, which was correctly named by 72% of our team. The round concluded with a question about That 70s Show actor Wilmer Valderrama, whose character Fez recently returned for the new series That 90s Show. There were six perfect team scores in this round.

FOURTH ROUND:

Monday’s 6-4-2 gave three clues about Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and 15 teams earned the full six points by naming him after just one clue. The last round started with a question about The Matrix‘s special effects, followed by the most difficult query of the night:

  • People who like to play which indoor sport are often called keglers?

That term is used in the sport of bowling, which just over a quarter of the field got correct. From there, we discussed various U.S. places named Carlsbad and the impending dissolution of the band Panic! at the Disco. Finally, Three Clues about the word Eclipse brought bonus points to 14% of our teams able to get that answer after two of the three clues, the lowest bonus success rate of the second half. This round’s perfect teams were That’s So Clavin (Cushwa) and Killer Snails (Quincy’s). These were the leading teams before the game’s final question:

FINAL QUESTION (67.72% success rate):

  • Referring to a period in one’s academic life, which word is somewhat of a contradiction, coming from two Greek words meaning wise and foolish?

Just over two thirds of the field aced the final on Monday with the correct answer, sophomore. We ended up with a quartet of Perfect 21 teams: Danielle Had an Idea (Ragtime), How Did I Get Here? (Quincy’s), Brain Freeze (Quincy’s), and Killer Snails (Quincy’s). Monday’s final standings were topped by a Quincy’s three-way tie:

MONDAY’S WINNERS:

Ellie’s Pub in Winchester, VA: ON HIATUS  (FIRST CATEGORY AFTER HIATUS: NFL Stadium Names)

Cushwa Brewing in Williamsport, MD: That’s So Clavin  (NEXT WEEK’S FIRST CATEGORY: Travis Sings 1990s Hip Hop)

DRP in Alexandria, VA: Hipster Fashion Consultants  (NEXT WEEK’S FIRST CATEGORY: Peanuts)

Bushwaller’s in Frederick, MD: Wednesday  (NEXT WEEK’S FIRST CATEGORY: Hardcore Bands From New York (audio))

Rockwell Brewery in Frederick, MD: Jerk and Thrive  (NEXT WEEK’S FIRST CATEGORY: 100 Gecs)

Mark’s Pub in Falls Church, VA: Fresh Off the U-Haul  (NEXT WEEK’S FIRST CATEGORY: 1990s Country Music)

William Jeffrey’s Tavern in Arlington, VA: Dog Park Mafia  (NEXT WEEK’S FIRST CATEGORY: Stephen Sondheim)

Ragtime in Arlington, VA: Ten Thousand Dugongs  (NEXT WEEK’S FIRST CATEGORY: New Jersey Icons) 

Aslin Beer Co in Herndon, VA: First on First  (NEXT WEEK’S FIRST CATEGORY: 1990s Grunge Music (audio))

Quincy’s Bar and Grille in Gaithersburg, MD: How Did I Get Here?  (NEXT WEEK’S FIRST CATEGORY: Mississippi River)

Whitlow’s in Washington, DC: Menace to Sobriety  (NEXT WEEK’S FIRST CATEGORY: French Baked Goods)

Il Forno Pizzeria in Frederick, MD: Twerk From Home  (NEXT WEEK’S FIRST CATEGORY: Jean Harlow)

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