What's the song in the new Amazon Kindle commercial?

Search: song new kindle

Why: I saw it last night during "LOST."

Answer: "Stole My Heart" by Little & Ashley, aka Annie Little and Marcus Ashley. This commercial:

Annie Little, btw, also sang "Fly Me Away" in a Kindle commercial that you saw last year, and she also starred in it.

So are both Little and Ashley in this commercial? According to their MySpace:

The songs in the Amazon commercials began with photographer/director Angela Kohler and production partner Ithyle Griffiths inviting Annie to collaborate with them for an Amazon Kindle video contest, which they proceeded to shoot in a single seven hour day in July 2009. In addition to Little & Ashley performing and co-writing the accompanying song “Fly Me Away”, Annie also starred in the commercial, which ultimately won both the Audience and the Amazon Jury prize. The winning entry is currently airing on television in addition to a subsequent Kindle commercial that features Annie on-screen as well as Little and Ashley’s song “Stole My Heart”, available on their new EP along with “Fly Me Away” and two additional tracks—“Still Missing You” and “Telegrams to Mars”—exclusively on Amazon.

So no, that guy is Ryan Curry.

UPDATE!!!!!!! June 11!! If you are looking for the one that goes "Come on, let's go," read about it right here! It's the same folks!

Source: Yahoo! Answers

The More You Know: Listen to the whole song here:

Lyrics go like:

Once upon
A time I saw you walk along
A moonbeam; what a lovely girl
I followed you around the world

I love you, don't you see
You stole my heart in 1-2-3
I love you, yes it's true
You stole my heart and
I'm gonna steal yours too

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Who started April Fools' Day?

Search: april fools day origin

Why: It's tomorrow. Be smart; stay clean; keep the dream.

Answer: Nobody knows! It has been a part of European cultures since at least the 1500s, and it almost definitely has something to do with calendar reform. In 1708, the British magazine Apollo asked “Whence proceeds the custom of making April Fools?” Theories:

• 16th century French calendar reform - In 1564, France moved the start of the year from the end of March to January 1. Those who stubbornly clung to the old system and celebrated the New Year during the week of Mar. 25 - April 1 became the butt of jokes. Pranksters stuck paper fish to their backs, and the victims were called Poisson d’Avril, "April Fish" - which is still the French term for April Fools. Here's an April Fish postcard:

• Julian calendar reform - In 46 BC, Julius Caesar moved the New Year to Jan. 1. Efforts were made to Christianize the calendar, and some countries justified this as the date of Christ's circumcision. However, this meant the solar year was different from the calendar year, and in the 1500s, various countries started the year on different dates. France used Easter as the start of the year in accordance with the lunar cycle. In 1563, King Charles IX decreed Jan. 1 to be the first day of the year, thus aligning legal convention with what had become the popular practice, especially in Roman custom. In 1582, Pope Gregory issued a papal bull that decreed - and urged Christian nations to accept - sweeping calendar reform. It included moving the start of the year to January 1, as well as creating a leap-year system and eliminating 10 days from the month of Oct. 1582 to correct the drift of the calendar. France had already changed the start of the year in 1564... so this really has nothing to do with April Fools' Day.

• British calendar change - The British traditionally observed New Year’s Day on March 25 (the Feast of Annunciation), followed by a week of festivities culminating on April 1. In 1752, the British changed the start of the calendar year to Jan. 1. The festival held on April 1 (the “octave” of the March 25th calendar year change) may have evolved into April Fools' Day.

Source: Museum of Hoaxes

The More You Know: Whatever. Do something totally wacky.

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Where did the sperm whale get its name?

Search: sperm whale name

Why: On FuckYeahAlbuquerque:

Answer: A fluid that comes out of its head!

The head of the sperm whale contains a huge bony container that is filled with a white viscous liquid composed of oil and a white waxy substance called spermaceti ("sperm of whale" in Latin, cetus being Latin for "whale"). Early on people thought the spermaceti was the whale's sperm, no doubt from its appearance, and the name stuck even after people knew better.

Also:

I'm not sure there's agreement even today on what the whale DOES do with the stuff, though. Last I heard the idea was the whale focussed sound waves through it to stun its prey, which explains how the young whales can eat, since they supposedly don't grow any teeth until they're ten years old.

Source: Ask a Scientist

The More You Know: Also:

Spermaceti is the semi-liquid, waxy substance found in the spermaceti organ or case in front of and above the skull bone and also in the junk, the area below the spermaceti organ and just above the upper jaw

It keeps spermaceti in its junk, lol.

Also:

The sperm whale is also known as the cachalot, which is thought to derive from the archaic French for "tooth" or "big teeth"

but not catchalot, mirite, Ahab?

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I want to see a picture of Bob Seger

Search: bob seger

Why: On PostSecret:

-----Email Message-----

I wish I had taken a naked picture of my husband, back in the day when he was a hard body and looked like Bob Seger. He is gone now and I miss him.

I have no idea what that guy looks like.

Answer: Hmm.

Source: Google Images

The More You Know: And also:

Y/N?

which is funny because, according to science:

Scientists have used computer software to research the facial features most likely to produce a laugh - and the resulting image bears an uncanny resemblance to Gervais.

Psychologist Dr Anthony Little scanned 179 facial features of 20 comedians and concluded the winning look was a combination of a round face, small forehead, wide nose, big lips, large eyes and high cheekbones.

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What ethnicity is Phoebe Cates?

Search: phoebe cates

Why: Fast Times at Ridgemont High is on (but I am not watching it; I am watching French Kiss. Busy night for Carls).

Answer: Her father was of Russian Jewish descent, and her mother was of Russian Jewish Filipino Chinese descent! Exotic!

P.S., her father Joseph's last name used to be Katz, wink. He was a producer on Broadway and worked in TV. Maybe he didn't get the memo about how the Jews control Hollywood (and America).

Source: Wikipedia

The More You Know: And also, she has been married to Kevin Kline, star of French Kiss (which I am watching), since 1989. Who knew? Their son Owen was in The Squid and the Whale. Actually, I think I remember that.

It may interest you to know that Phoebe's best friend is Jennifer Jason Leigh, who is married to Noah Baumbach, who directed The Squid and the Whale. Just saying.

What has Phoebe been in since Drop Dead Fred? Big fat nothin.

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What is Baz Luhrmann's real name?

Search: baz

Why: I'm watching Romeo + Juliet.

Answer: Mark Anthony Luhrmann! His nickname was given to him due to a perceived resemblance to the 1960s sock puppet Basil Brush. (Australian people say basil like "baz-il," not "bay-zel.")

Source: Wikipedia

The More You Know: In case you were wondering, yes, Leonardo DiCaprio has been nominated for an Oscar - or 3, in fact:

1. What's Eating Gilbert Grape? (1994) - Best Supporting Actor
2. The Aviator (2004) - Best Actor
3. Blood Diamond (2007) - Best Actor
   

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What movies were filmed in Austin, TX?

Search: whip it

Why: Dan is thinking of moving there to make films, even though Hollywood is in Southern California (and so is Disneyland).

Answer: Lots! Among them:

• Friday the 13th (2009)
• Whip It (2009)
• Death Proof (2007)
• Grindhouse (2007)
• Planet Terror (2007)
• Capote (2005)
  
• Sin City (2005)
• Friday Night Lights (2004)
• Kill Bill: Volume 1 (2003)
• The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)
• Miss Congeniality (2000)
  
• Road Trip (2000)
• Boys Don't Cry (1999)
• Varsity Blues (1999)
• Office Space (1999)
• The Faculty (1998)
• From Dusk Til Dawn (1996)
• Michael (1996)
• Waiting for Guffman (1996)
• Mortal Combat (1995)
  
• Dazed and Confused (1993)
• What's Eating Gilbert Grape? (1993)
• Blood Simple (1984)
• The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

Source: IMDb

The More You Know: What movies were filmed in Memphis, you ask?

• Soul Men (2008)
  
• My Blueberry Nights (2007)
• Black Snake Moan (2006)
• Hustle & Flow (2005)
  
• Walk the Line (2005)
  
• 21 Grams (2003)
• Cast Away (2000)
  
• Road Trip (2000)
• The Rainmaker (1997)
• The People vs. Larry Flynt (1995)
• The Client (1994)
  
• The Firm (1993)
  
• The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

and episodes of these TV series:

• Cops
• Man vs. Food
  
• Route 66 ("Give the Old Cat a Tender Mouse")
  
• True Life ("I'm in an Interracial Relationship")
• Unsolved Mysteries ("Martin Luther King")
  
• WWF RAW is War

[emoticon with the shifty eyes]

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What is the Adam's apple?

Search: adam's apple

Why: Jon Favreau bruised his when he tried to become the Ultimate Fighting Champion. During a really boring meeting today, I stared at Reggie's for like 4 full minutes.

Answer: It's the larynx! Both boys' and girls' grow during puberty, but girls' don't stick out as much. According to KidsHealth:

Most girls don't have Adam's apples, but some do. It's no big deal either way.

Yeahok.

The larger larynx gives boys deeper voices (and makes them crack), and girls' voices get deeper as their larynxes get larger, too. Because boys' larynxes grow so much more, it makes their voices deeper than girls' voices.

Source: KidsHealth.org

The More You Know: The larynx is made of thyroid cartilage .

The laryngeal prominence is usually more prominent in adult males because the thyroid cartilage elongates during puberty, protruding out the front of the neck more noticeably. The result is that the two laminae (thin cartilage) of the thyroid cartilage that form the protrusion meet at an average angle of 90° in males, and 120° in females, so there is less cartilage protruding out in females.

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I want to watch the SNL digital short "Boombox"

Search: snl boombox

Why: It's funny.

Answer: By The Lonely Island, and that's Julian Casablancas (of The Strokes, who still exist). Everyone was wearing fingerless gloves:

Source: Hulu

The More You Know: The 3 guys in The Lonely Island (TLI) are Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone (the cute little one), and Akiva Schaffer. They started doing comedy skits in junior high in Berkeley, CA. They created MacGruber, and Taccone directs all of those sketches and is directing the movie (due out May 21).

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What's the origin of the word charlatan?

Search: charlatan origin

Why: The judge presiding over a case of a family of shoplifters called Dr. Phil - who had "treated" the couple on his show - "a terrible, terrible man" and said, "What a charlatan this man is."

Answer: Well, nobody is certain. Of course. Originally, it referred to "a patent medicine salesman, an itinerant seller of useless potions, liniments and cure," but maybe someone who put music outside his store to draw in customers. According to the Oxford English Dictionary:

• derived from Italian ciarlatano, "babbler," which came from
  
• ciarla, "to prattle or chat"
• or cerrtano, "a seller of phony Papal indulgences," which came from
• the Italian village Cerretto, which had a bunch of such jerks
  

Source: Word Detective

The More You Know: Other funny words for charlatans:

• quacksalvers - from the quacking sound of their patter as they pushed their phony “salves”... now just “quack”
• mountebank - from the Italian monta in banco, literally “to climb up on the bench,” referring to the elevated platform from which the “quack” usually made his sales pitch
• Slap Chop Guy

Nice jacket, Vince.

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I want to hear the song "Rum and Coca-Cola"

Search: rum and coca

Why: Mr. Van Eyck used to sing it with a glint in his eye as he sipped from a Coke can in his podium and taught us about the American Revolution. And I want it to be in your head for the rest of the day.

Answer: Here we go! The song was a calypso originally composed by Lord Invader (!!!!!!) and Lionel Belasco. It was a huge hit for the Andrews Sisters in 1945:

Source: YouTube

The More You Know: Hold up, let's go back to Lord Invader, which just might be the name of my next pet. His real name was Rupert Edward Grant (not Grint), and he was known for his gravelly voice. TURNS OUT he is often credited with writing my favorite [Harry Belafonte] song "Zombie Jamboree," even though he didn't. But he did write the "Bed Bug Song"!

It's summer. Let's go to Trinidad.

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Where are the Canary Islands?

Search: canary islands tenerific

Why: Just watching "LOST." Don't mind me.

Answer: Near Morocco:

Also, in 1977, Tenerife was the site of the deadliest plane crash in history, with 583 killed.

Source: Google Maps

The More You Know: They're owned by Spain. A relevant history:

The sugar-based economy of the islands faced stiff competition from Spain's American colonies. Crises in the sugar market in the 19th century caused severe recessions on the islands. A new cash crop, cochineal (cochinilla), came into cultivation during this time, saving the islands' economy.

By the end of the 18th century, Canary Islanders had already emigrated to Spanish American territories, such as Havana, Veracruz, Santo Domingo,Texas, and Louisiana. These economic difficulties spurred mass emigration, primarily to the Americas, during the 19th and first half of the 20th century. From 1840 to 1890, as many as 40,000 Canary Islanders emigrated to Venezuela. Also, thousands of Canarians moved to Puerto Rico; the Spanish monarchy felt that Canarians would adapt to island life better than other immigrants from the mainland of Spain. Deeply entrenched traditions, such as the Mascaras Festival in the town of Hatillo, Puerto Rico, are an example of Canarian culture still preserved in Puerto Rico. Similarly, many thousands of Canarians emigrated to the shores of Cuba as well.

During the Spanish-American War of 1898, the Spanish fortified the islands against possible American attack, but an attack never came.

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Has a twin ever been heir to a throne?

Search: have twins ever been heir

Why: On last week's "Archer":

ARCHER: When Mother found out you cheated on Lana-
CYRIL: You cheated on Lana plenty.
ARCHER: Yeah, but with starlets, models - oh, and one time, two actual princesses.
PAM: Two at the same time?
ARCHER: Yeah, they were sisters.

Answer: There have been several sets of royal twins, but I see only 1 that actually became King:

• 1430 - King James I and Joan Beaufort of Scotland - Alexander Stewart, Duke of Rothesay (died in infancy) and James II, King of Scotland [5th and 6th children, but first sons]
  
• 1556 - King Henry II and Catherine de Medici of France - Joan of Valois (stillborn) and Victoria of Valois (died at 7 weeks old) - [9 and 10 of 10 children]
• 1727 - King Louis XV and Marie Leszczyńska of France - Louise Élisabeth de France (later the Duchess of Parma) and Henriette de France [1 and 2 of 11]
• 1750? - Chief Keawepoepoe and Kanoena of Hawaii - Kameʻeiamoku and Kamanawa, the niau-pio twins on the Hawaiian coat of arms:

• 1893 - Prince Frederick Charles of Hesse [King of Finland] and Princess Margaret of Prussia - Friedrich Wilhelm Sigismund and Maximilian Friedrich Wilhelm Georg [1 and 2 of 6] (both twins died in WWI, but their dad renounced the throne anyway; see below)
  
• 1896 - Prince Frederick Charles of Hesse [King of Finland] and Princess Margaret of Prussia (same fertile parents!! [they had a third set of twins, too!]) - Philipp, Landgrave of Hesse (and Nazi Chancellor) and Prince Wolfgang of Hesse, Crown Prince of Finland:
  

• Wolfgang would have been his father's heir as King of Finland instead of his elder twin Prince Philipp of Hesse (1896–1980), apparently because Wolfgang was with his parents in 1918 and ready to travel to Finland (where rumoredly a wedding to a Finnish lady already was in the preparation for the coming Crown Prince). Philip was in the military and incommunicado at the time.

• 1981 - King Randor and Queen Marlena of Eternia - Prince Adam, aka He-Man, and Princess Adora, aka She-Ra, Princess of Power
  

And there are lots of other Earls, Counts, children of Princes and Princesses (not Kings and Queens), and other people who married into royalty and whatnot, but who cares, y'know? Not me.

Source: Yahoo! Answers, Wikipedia

The More You Know: And, well, there was the Man in the Iron Mask - who was a real person, btw, not just a Dumbass character.

Also, here are some other famous twins. I blog about them kind of a lot. I think they are just fascinating.

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I want to see a picture of a scallop

Search: scallop; scallop eye

Why: One of the reasons I steer the fuck clear of spiders is because they have 8 goddamn eyeballs, which means they are demon spawn. (I'm not putting a picture here to prove this to you because I don't even want to look at it. Hell, I don't even want to think about it. I was up half the night imagining giant spiders in my room - again. God in heaven.)

Does any other animal have more than 2 eyes? Well, the scallop does, all the way around its shell. And I'm never eating one again.

Answer: Yuuuck. Those aren't blueberries.

Their eyes can't see shapes, but only detect light and motion. They are the only bivalves with eyes.

Source: Google Images

The More You Know: While searching, I saw the biggest spider in history and my heart stopped beating and my blood froze solid and I thought I might die. I still might. It was the size of a cat, or at least a guinea pig. I don't want to live in a world where that goddamn thing exists. Oh god oh god. I hope you're happy.

Anyway, the name "scallop" is derived from the Old French escalope, which means "shell." Here is how the scallop eyeball works, in case you were wondering:

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Who sings that song that goes "I'll follow you and you'll follow me"?

Search: "i'll follow you and you'll follow me"

Why: It was on "Ugly Betty" last night.

Answer: "Let Your Love Grow Tall" by Passion Pit! Get it in your ears!

Source: Google!

The More You Know: The link to their MySpace was already purple on my computer. Turns out they also did that song "Sleepyhead" in the Palm Pixi commercial you saw every 12 minutes in the weeks leading up to Christmas. Remember? This one:

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What exactly is the Kraken?

Search: kraken

Why: I always thought it was an octopus (like the one in Pirates of the Caribbean 2) or possibly a squid, but what kind of octopus or squid has a head like this?

Answer: A many-armed Scandinavian sea beast! Facts:

• It is also known as the Krabben, Sciu-Crak, and Hafgufe.
• 12th century Norwegian stories mention a creature the size of an island.
• It has arms that can reach the top of the highest mast.
• Tons of fishies gravitate around Kraken. If a boat successfully fishes around the monster without waking it up, it will catch more than it can carry.
  
• In the 1752 Natural History of Norway, the Bishop of Bergen described the Kraken as a "floating island" 1.5 miles across. He wrote, "It seems these are the creatures's arms, and, it is said, if they were to lay hold of the largest man-of-war, they would pull it down to the bottom."
• The Kraken attacked at least 3 ships in the 30s.
  
• It was probably a giant squid.
• It probably though the ship was a whale.
  

Source: Monstrous.com

The More You Know: Did you know there is a squid even bigger (mass-wise) than the giant squid (aka the architeuthis), the star of my favorite movie The Beast (1996) (TV)? Well there is, and it is called the colossal squid. This goddammer* is 46 ft long, weighs over 1,000 lbs, and wants to eat you for a snack!

*I stole that word from this story about the imminent Sharktopus, which I am very excited about. Very.

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Was there really a Staff Sgt. Dwight J. Morgan?

Search: staff sergeant dwight morgan

Why: I am watching "7th Heaven," obviously, and Ruthie's pen pal was named Dwight J. Morgan. He got killed in Afghanistan, and ever since, someone has said, "Thank you, Staff Sergeant Dwight J. Morgan" approximately every 25 seconds.

Answer: Yes! He was from Mendocino, CA. He died at age 24 on Jan. 19, 2002, during Operation Enduring Freedom when a Marine CH-53E helicopter crashed in a remote region 60 km south of Bagram in Northern Afghanistan. He is survived by his wife, Theresa, and son, Alex.

He was assigned to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 361 (HMH-361), the "Flying Tigers" of Marine Aircraft Group 16, Combined Task Force 58, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, Marine Corps Air Station, Miramar, CA.

Source: Fallen Heroes Memorial

The More You Know: This episode is called "The Known Soldier." The idea of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was first conceived in 1916 by the Reverend David Railton, who - while serving in the British Army as a chaplain on the Western Front - had seen a grave marked by a rough cross, which bore the pencil-written legend "An Unknown British Soldier." He proposed that a similar grave should exist in Britain as a national monument. This is the one in Arlington National Cemetery in VA:

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What's the origin of the word leprechaun?

Search: leprechaun etymology

Why: It's St. Patrick's Day, you guys! Woooooo!!

Answer: Get this: It's Irish! And it has metathesis, which means the syllables got swirled around a bit (like how we say iern instead of i-ron).

• From lu, "little" + corpan, "body" (like corpus, corporeal) = luchorpan, "very small body"
• Commonly spelled lubrican
• Leithbragan is also listed in Irish folk etymology, from leith, "half" + brog, "brogue," because the spirit was "supposed to be always employed in making or mending a single shoe."

Also:

Spotting a leprechaun does indeed bring good luck, according to legend, but it's not an easy task. The sound of the fairy's shoe hammer is purported to lead one to an elusive pot of gold, but the mischievous creatures will cunningly try to entice humans with riches, only to snatch it away in an act of trickery.

The fairies guard the treasure believed to have been buried by the Danes who once conquered Ireland.

When they are not making shoes or guarding treasure, the tiny green figures are known to be merry-makers who drink, dance, and play music.

Source: EtymOnline, Fox News

The More You Know: Have you found the Shamrock Shake yet? Get there!

It's green!

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Who played Zoe on "LOST"?

Search: lostpedia zoe; lost zoe recon

Why: I have seen that face before.

Answer: Sheila Kelley, aka Debbie in Singles!! Check out her rad 1992 hair at 0:36, 0:48, 1:18... oh, just watch the whole thing. Come to Debbie Country!

Source: New York Times, IMDb

The More You Know: Also, in case you were wondering where you had seen that dumb skank Ava at the beginning of the episode, it was in She's All That.

Jump up my ass, Zach.

UPDATE 4/18/2011!!! She also played Lily's sister Carol tonight on "Gossip Girl."

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Who wrote the Schoolhouse Rock! songs?

Search: school house rock

Why: We listened to "Schoolhouse Rock! Rocks" the other day, and "No More Kings" by Pavement just sounded like a regular Pavement song.

Answer: Most were by Bob Dorough! He is a trained jazz performer - a pianist, vocalist, saxophonist, and clarinetist - and an arranger.

He is known as "the only singer to record with Miles Davis." While this may not be 100% true, he did record two vocals with Davis, in 1962, "Nothing Like You" and "Blue Xmas," both of which he composed.

In 1971, he was asked to "set the multiplication tables to music." For example:

3 x 10 is 30
3 x 9 is 27
3 x

(I am singing it. You can't really tell.)

So anyway. It was popular as heck, and he did this til 1985. (Did you know there are more than 50 of them? 50!)

These days, Dorough mainly plays and records jazz with a trio.

Source: IMDb, BobDorough.com

The More You Know: Dorough also worked with Nellie McKay on her last 2 albums, including Normal as Blueberry Pie - A Tribute to Doris Day. Here is a song that is on neither of those albums:

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What are the most common last names in the US?

Search: most popular last name in america

Why: In the Netherlands, "Calvin & Hobbes" is called "Casper & Hobbes." Mischa says that might be because Calvin is not a popular name over there. Eli says it's not a popular name over here, either. They're named after philosophers, for chrissake, and they certainly have (had) Calvinism in the Netherlands.

He says:

This would be like translating Lost, but renaming "Locke" as "Smith".

Edit: Scratch that, Adam Smith was a philosopher too.

Answer: According to the 2000 Census, they are!

1. Smith
2. Johnson
3. Williams
4. Brown
   
5. Jones
6. Miller
7. Davis
8. Garcia
   
9. Rodriguez
10. Wilson
11. Martinez
12. Anderson
13. Taylor
    
14. Thomas
15. Hernandez
16. Moore
17. Martin
18. Jackson
19. Thompson
20. White
21. Lopez
22. Lee
23. Gonzalez
24. Harris
25. Clark
26. Lewis
27. Walker
28. Robinson
29. Perez
30. Hall
    

Source: InfoPlease

The More You Know: The first on the list that came up with no Wikipedia hits of any philosopher - even still living, even just a college professor - was Garcia.

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Who is Venus Xtravaganza?

Search: Venus Extravaganza

Why: In the fourfour recap of last week's "America's Next Top Model" (which is the main reason I still watch the show - so I can understand these recaps), the first comment says:

Is it just me, or does Gabrielle look a lot like Venus Extravaganza?

Posted by: Noah

Answer: A transgender Italian American who was saving up money for sex reassignment surgery while earning a living as a prostitute in New York City before she died in 1989! Her given name was Thomas Pellagatti, but she was redubbed because of her membership in the House of Xtravaganza, where everybody is named like Dante Xtravaganza or Fallopian Tube Xtravaganza. As far as I can tell, this house has something to do with Harlem ball culture, where young drag queens and transgender peeps walk and vogue to compete for trophies. House of Xtravaganza and Robert / Venus were featured in the 1990 documentary Paris is Burning.

Was that Bruce McCulloch? You better believe that's going on my Netflix.

Anyway, in 1989, Venus was strangled to death and stuffed under a bed. Her body was found 4 days later.

Source: Wikipedia, BlackBook

The More You Know: So back to the real question. N/Notreally?

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How big is a league?

Search: league

Why: I'm watching The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (1953), which was written by Ray Bradbury. Did you know he wrote monster stories? Or that he is still alive? Me neither. Time Warner says this movie is "about a prehistoric creature rambling through Manhattan and Coney Island." I hope it looks like this:

Anyway, it reminds me of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.

Answer: 1 league = 5.5560 kilometers or 3.45233 miles, so 20,000 leagues = 111,120 km or 69,046 miles

A league is most frequently refers to the distance a person or a horse can walk in an hour.

Source: Google Calculator

The More You Know: A fathom, which I suppose I should have been wondering about first, is 1.8288 meters (2 yards, 6 feet), so 20,000 fathoms = 36.57 km or 22.7 miles. That's not very far, right? Turns out they find this thing hibernating in the Arctic Circle, and it looks like a damn dinosaur:

But Wikipedia says of this crapfest:

It was one of the first "monster movies" that helped inspire the following generation of "creature features", coining it with the atomic age

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What's the origin of the name Harlequin?

Search: harlequin origin

Why: In FishVille (I play multiple Facebook games, why don't you go cry about it), Richard sent me a Harlequin Turkfish:

Other Harlequins I can think of include porny novels for ladies, that jester thing, Harley Quinn from Batman - who, let's face it, is the same thing:

and Kevin Smith's kid, who he also named Harley Quinn because he is a tremendous nerd.

Answer: WELL. It's terrifying (if this is right):

1. Danish ellerkonge or elverkonge, the malevolent "King of the Elves" was mistranslated to
2. German Erlkönig, Erlenkönig, "alder king" became
3. Erkling - who, by the way, appears in the Harry Potter video games - became
4. Herla Cyning, "Herla the King" (aka Norse Woden), the demonic leader of the Wild Hunt, which involved demons riding ghost horses in the dead of night and attacking peasants or dragging them from sleep down to the land of the dead, YIPE! to
   
5. Old French Herlequin (or "Hellequin"), a stock character in French The Passion plays, to
   
6. Italian Harlequin in commedia dell'arte, the improvisational stage comedies popular in Italy in the 16th and 17th centuries

...with Scaramouche, remember?

Today, the word "harlequin" generally refers to a pattern of brightly-colored diamond shapes, most often seen in the costumes.

Source: Word-Detective, Wikipedia

The More You Know: Do yourself a favor and don't ever do a Google Image search of the word "harlequin." Remember that disgusting little tomato-eyed baby you accidentally saw once on the Internet? It had a skin disease called harlequin type ichthyosis, characterized by a thickening of the keratin layer in fetal skin, huge diamond-shaped scales, and horribly contracted eyes, lips, ears, etc. Yech. Poor, poor disgusting babies.

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