PT-WWTBAM Transcript 08/17/09 Lee-Ann Whitlock (Rexalite)

[BBTranscriptTeam]

Ring of Fire

Stephanie Weaver – Houston, TX
Erwin Escobar – Levittown, NY
Patrick Marino – Holland, MI
Jennifer Kiesel – Aurora, CO
Joyce Sidlosky – Canton, CT
Greg Linwood – Des Plaines, IL
Alan Garcia – Brandon, FL
Lee-Ann Whitlock – Little Rock, AR (Rexalite)
Rosemary McGinnis – Burke, VA (VAdame’s sister)
Matt Schultz – Princeton Junction, NJ


FF Question

Put the following men in the order in which they were named “Sexiest Man Alive” by People magazine, starting with the earliest.
A. Denzel Washington
B. Patrick Swayze
C. Sean Commery
D. Matthew McConaughey

Spoiler

CBAD

Stephanie Weaver – 5.30s
Patrick Marino
Joyce Sidlosky
Alan Garcia
Rosemary McGinnis – 5.33s
Matt Schultz
Lee-Ann Whitlock – 4.63s
Greg Linwood – 6.24s
Jennifer Kiesel – 9.00s
Erwin Escobar

Lee-Ann Whitlock (Rexalite)
Little Rock, AR
Stay-at-home mom

Lee-Ann’s son is fifteen months old.

Topic Tree:

Public Speaking
Big Country
Fancy Words
Literary Journeys
Decade Doings
The Birds
Bert & Ernie
Sad to Say
The Namesake
The Shape of Things
As Seen on TV
Animation
On Your Mark
It’s Official!
Mall of America

$100 Minnesota’s famous Mall of America is home to over five hundred what?
A. Stores
B. Beaches
C. Airports
D. Momzillas

Spoiler

A. Stores (9)

$200 In 2003, what U.S. state made the Boston Cream donut its official state donut?
A. Vermont
B. Ohio
C. Massachusetts
D. Florida

Spoiler

C. Massachusetts (11)

$300 What punctuation mark is sometimes referred to as a “screamer”?
A. Period
B. Exclamation point
C. Semicolon
D. Question mark

Spoiler

B. Exclamation point ( 8 )

$500 What cartoon character was the focus of a 1991 protest organized by the National Stuttering Project?
A. Wile E. Coyote
B. Bugs Bunny
C. Pepé Le Pew
D. Porky Pig

Spoiler

D. Porky Pig ( 8 )

$1K What contestant on the 2009 reality series “I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here!” first gained celebrity on “American Idol”?
A. Holly Montag
B. John Salley
C. Sanjaya Malakar
D. Torrie Wilson

Spoiler

C. Sanjaya Malakar (6)

commercial break

$2K A person who is heavier in the hips and thighs than in the torso and shoulders is often said to be what?
A. Pear-shaped
B. Banana-shaped
C. Cantaloupe-shaped
D. Strawberry-shaped

Spoiler

A. Pear-shaped (23)

$4K Which of these writers was named after the man who penned “The Star-Spangled Banner”?
A. C.S. Lewis
B. E.B. White
C. F. Scott Fitzgerald
D. T.S. Eliot

Spoiler

C. F. Scott Fitzgerald (14)

$8K In a phrase credited to Thomas Carlyle, the field of economics is known by what gloomy nickname?
A. The grim philosophy
B. The joyless religion
C. The bleak art
D. The dismal science

Spoiler

D. The dismal science (19)

$16K In the “Sesame Street” adaptation of “The Gift of the Magi,” Ernie trades his cherished rubber duckie to buy Bert a box for his what?
A. Paper clip collection
B. Favorite pair of slippers
C. Toy soldiers
D. Pet mosquito

ATA (20)

45% A. Paper clip collection
29% B. Favorite pair of slippers
21% C. Toy soldiers
5% D. Pet mosquito

Spoiler

A. Paper clip collection (7)

commercial break

Regis says that the previous contestant had a dream of him in a dress. He asks Lee-Ann what are her thoughts of Regis.

Lee-Ann: I have a great big Irish family. I often felt that you would fit in well as like another tipsy uncle.[/I]

$25K What group of birds is called a “venue” when the group walks on the ground and a “kettle” when the group circles in the air?
A. Pigeons
B. Owls
C. Vultures
D. Blue jays

ATE (17)

Jodi: Well, nothing is jumping out at me here, Lee-Ann.
I don’t think it’s owls and I don’t think it’s vultures.

Lee-Ann: Why not?

Jodi: And I don’t … you know. I’m trying to remember what … you always think of um. What is it? A murder of raven. That’s what you always hear about. I don’t know. I feel like vultures have a different term and so do owls. Not that I know them.
Um… but,… Let’s see. Um… a kettle when the group circles in the air.
Gosh. I, you know, I honestly can’t tell you. I could make an educated guess.
I don’t know why pigeons is jumping out at me, but I’ll tell you Lee-Ann, I’m not going to do you any good on this one because I don’t know the answer.

Lee-Ann: Right.

Jodi: I’m really sorry.

Lee-Ann: Well, thanks for trying.

Jodi: Yeah. I don’t think it’s vultures if it helps you any.

DD (11)

Lee-Ann’s first choice, pigeons, is incorrect.
Lee-Ann’s second choice, blue jays, is also incorrect.

Spoiler

C. Vultures (3)

Lee-Ann leaves with $1K.

Answers:
$100 A. Stores
$200 C. Massachusetts
$300 B. Exclamation point
$500 D. Porky Pig
$1K C. Sanjaya Malakar
$2K A. Pear-shaped
$4K C. F. Scott Fitzgerald
$8K D. The dismal science
$16K A. Paper clip collection
$25K C. Vultures

[NellyLunatic1980]

Stephanie Weaver – Houston, TX
Erwin Escobar – Levittown, NY
Patrick Marino – Holland, MI
Jennifer Kiesel – Aurora, CO
Joyce Sidlosky – Canton, CT
Greg Linwood – Des Plaines, IL
Alan Garcia – Brandon, FL
Lee-Ann Whitlock – Little Rock, AR (Rexalite)
Rosemary McGinnis – Burke, VA (VAdame’s sister)
Matt Schultz – Princeton Junction, NJ

Yay!

Stephanie Weaver – 5.30s
Patrick Marino
Joyce Sidlosky
Alan Garcia
Rosemary McGinnis – 5.33s
Matt Schultz
Lee-Ann Whitlock – 4.63s
Greg Linwood – 6.24s
Jennifer Kiesel – 9.00s
Erwin Escobar

Lee-Ann Whitlock (Rexalite)
Little Rock, AR
Stay-at-home mom

Yay!

$16K: I had it down to either A or B. ATA.

I have nothing more to say about Jodi and the $25,000 question. I just hope that they don't bring her to be an "Expert" on the syndie show.

[ghostjmf]

I got FF right.

1K: I swear to Pete I only got this one because I remember the media blurf on Sanjaya's hairstyles, even though I didn't watch Idol that year. And the Idol is the only name I can place of the list. Well, I've heard of Heidi Montag, but have no idea what she does. Model?

16K:

OK, much as I love the Street, I don't actually watch it. Except when with some kids. Used to watch the Muppet Show on its own, back when, some times. Anyway, the O. Henry story had a woman cutting off & selling her long hair to get money to buy a watch chain for her husband who unbeknown to her had just sold his watch to get a hair clip for her. Or vice versa. Or maybe simultaneously.

At any rate, I don't see how this relates to the Muppet version; how do rubber bands relate to paper clips? If you watch the show, you know what character collects what, so you know the answer. You can't figure it out, like you could from the O. Henry story.

ATA

25K: I was convinced this was one of those things wretched John Lipton made up. After a big board discussion, in which the contestant came in to say that its is not a popular or even exclusive to the answer term via Google, I am still thinking this is from wretched John Lipton.

I am pretty sure owls don't walk around on the ground in groups, nor for that matter fly in groups. Otherwise don't know.

PAF.

[Estonut]

25K: I was convinced this was one of those things wretched John Lipton made up. After a big board discussion, in which the contestant came in to say that its is not a popular or even exclusive to the answer term via Google, I am still thinking this is from wretched John Lipton.

Is wretched John Lipton any relation to James?

[gsabc]

25K: I was convinced this was one of those things wretched John Lipton made up. After a big board discussion, in which the contestant came in to say that its is not a popular or even exclusive to the answer term via Google, I am still thinking this is from wretched John Lipton.

Nope. I just happen to have Lipton's book in front of me. According to him, it's a wake of vultures.

I still think it's worth a try at a protest. However, I suspect the answer will be no, because none of the other birds is ever known as a "venue". The protests seem to work only if none of the answers are really correct, or more than one answer was correct. Granted that not too many people know ANY term for a group of vultures, but using what appears to be an uncommon one as the "right" answer was just nasty.

[Jeemie]

25K: I was convinced this was one of those things wretched John Lipton made up. After a big board discussion, in which the contestant came in to say that its is not a popular or even exclusive to the answer term via Google, I am still thinking this is from wretched John Lipton.

Nope. I just happen to have Lipton's book in front of me. According to him, it's a wake of vultures.

I still think it's worth a try at a protest. However, I suspect the answer will be no, because none of the other birds is ever known as a "venue". The protests seem to work only if none of the answers are really correct, or more than one answer was correct. Granted that not too many people know ANY term for a group of vultures, but using what appears to be an uncommon one as the "right" answer was just nasty.

That's why I think the protest will be futile as well.

[rexalite]

Of course I see things differently. I have gone back 600 years and found 20 different published collective nouns for vultures but have not found *any* published reference to kettle or venue. It does appear on the internet but only on user-contributed sites like WikiAnswers. People invent collective nouns as a word game. This could have been made up by anybody. So is it fair game to ask for a definition of a word that has no common usage; no consesus as to meaning and no published history or etymological foundation? Is it enough that someone somewhere has once called a group of vultures a venue? I don't think so. YMMV. It is all academic at this juncture but I do think it sucks that I went out on this question because I knew too much! If I hadn't studied collective nouns in college and learned then that they were referred to as a "wake" I probably would have guessed vultures on the faulty line of reasoning that lead others here to the "right" answer. Booklearnin shouldn't be penalized!

[earendel]

Of course I see things differently. I have gone back 600 years and found 20 different published collective nouns for vultures but have not found *any* published reference to kettle or venue. It does appear on the internet but only on user-contributed sites like WikiAnswers. People invent collective nouns as a word game. This could have been made up by anybody. So is it fair game to ask for a definition of a word that has no common usage; no consesus as to meaning and no published history or etymological foundation? Is it enough that someone somewhere has once called a group of vultures a venue? I don't think so. YMMV. It is all academic at this juncture but I do think it sucks that I went out on this question because I knew too much! If I hadn't studied collective nouns in college and learned then that they were referred to as a "wake" I probably would have guessed vultures on the faulty line of reasoning that lead others here to the "right" answer. Booklearnin shouldn't be penalized!

Jumping into this a little late...it would seem that your research would give you at least some reasonable chance at success if you decide to protest the answer. Just because I call a bunch of starlings a "constellation" and post it on a blog on the Internet doesn't make it so, even if some BAM question-writer finds it.

[rexalite]

Thanks for the support. That is the way I feel but I recognize that I am not the least bit objective about this!

[sunflower]

Of course I see things differently. I have gone back 600 years and found 20 different published collective nouns for vultures but have not found *any* published reference to kettle or venue. It does appear on the internet but only on user-contributed sites like WikiAnswers. People invent collective nouns as a word game. This could have been made up by anybody. So is it fair game to ask for a definition of a word that has no common usage; no consesus as to meaning and no published history or etymological foundation? Is it enough that someone somewhere has once called a group of vultures a venue? I don't think so. YMMV. It is all academic at this juncture but I do think it sucks that I went out on this question because I knew too much! If I hadn't studied collective nouns in college and learned then that they were referred to as a "wake" I probably would have guessed vultures on the faulty line of reasoning that lead others here to the "right" answer. Booklearnin shouldn't be penalized!

Jumping into this a little late...it would seem that your research would give you at least some reasonable chance at success if you decide to protest the answer. Just because I call a bunch of starlings a "constellation" and post it on a blog on the Internet doesn't make it so, even if some BAM question-writer finds it.

I believe you only have a day or two to protest after you tape the show. I can't remember exactly what it is...I just remember being told that if you protest, game play will still continue and you have to follow the set process for submitting the dispute. I know I went home and immediately googled the answer I got wrong and then thought, damn, I have no recourse here.

If you couldn't find it anywhere that you felt was legitimate, you should have disputed it.

PS do you have any relatives in CT? I work with someone with the same last name as you.

[gsabc]

Of course I see things differently. I have gone back 600 years and found 20 different published collective nouns for vultures but have not found *any* published reference to kettle or venue. It does appear on the internet but only on user-contributed sites like WikiAnswers. People invent collective nouns as a word game. This could have been made up by anybody. So is it fair game to ask for a definition of a word that has no common usage; no consesus as to meaning and no published history or etymological foundation? Is it enough that someone somewhere has once called a group of vultures a venue? I don't think so. YMMV. It is all academic at this juncture but I do think it sucks that I went out on this question because I knew too much! If I hadn't studied collective nouns in college and learned then that they were referred to as a "wake" I probably would have guessed vultures on the faulty line of reasoning that lead others here to the "right" answer. Booklearnin shouldn't be penalized!

Jumping into this a little late...it would seem that your research would give you at least some reasonable chance at success if you decide to protest the answer. Just because I call a bunch of starlings a "constellation" and post it on a blog on the Internet doesn't make it so, even if some BAM question-writer finds it.

I agree with this, since if they accept your reasoning, it then appears as if there was no right answer among the choices.

Explain your background, list your research with the references, and see if you can find out what their sources were (yes, plural; they SHOULD have more than one for a legitimate question). Ask for a replay, starting where you left off before the offending question. And good luck.

[rexalite]

I'm not actually sure what the rules are regarding protests as they aren't covered in the rules that they provide. I think it is sort of informally handled. I know they are strict on protests based on equipment malfunction- those have to be protested right away- but otherwise I think they take it on a case by case basis.

No relatives in CT that I know of - we are in Arkansas.

[gsabc]

I'm not actually sure what the rules are regarding protests as they aren't covered in the rules that they provide. I think it is sort of informally handled. I know they are strict on protests based on equipment malfunction- those have to be protested right away- but otherwise I think they take it on a case by case basis.

Get in touch with TheConfessor. He'd be the resident guru on successful protests.

[Bob78164]

I'm not actually sure what the rules are regarding protests as they aren't covered in the rules that they provide. I think it is sort of informally handled. I know they are strict on protests based on equipment malfunction- those have to be protested right away- but otherwise I think they take it on a case by case basis.

Get in touch with TheConfessor. He'd be the resident guru on successful protests.

PSM also successfully protested a question. I commented on her protest letter before she sent it. --Bob

[ulysses5019]

I don't think you have anything to lose by protesting. However, I was watching an episode of Cash Cab last week (they seem to show episodes randomly from all their seasons), and one of the questions was about a "kettle of bald birds blah blah blah". I can't remember the exact question but it did start with "kettle" and the given answer was vultures. I have no idea where they get their questions but there you have it.

[sunflower]

Here's a reference that uses the term "kettle" - from the web page of Kern Valley Vulture watch.

http://www.natureali.org/TVfacts.htm


There is also a link to the Turkey Vulture Society's webpage, you might be able to find something there. There are email addresses and I'm sure the vulture loving people associated with them would be happy to help you out.

http://vulturesociety.homestead.com/

[sunflower]

Here's a reference that uses the term "kettle" - from the web page of Kern Valley Vulture watch.

http://www.natureali.org/TVfacts.htm


There is also a link to the Turkey Vulture Society's webpage, you might be able to find something there. There are email addresses and I'm sure the vulture loving people associated with them would be happy to help you out.

http://vulturesociety.homestead.com/

It's actually on the main page of the Turkey Vulture Society's webpage, I didn't see it at first, in the Quick Facts section...

A group of vultures is called a "Venue". Vultures circling in the air are a "Kettle".

Sorry if that isn't what you wanted to hear I know how it feels, believe me!!

[frogman042]

Here's a reference that uses the term "kettle" - from the web page of Kern Valley Vulture watch.

http://www.natureali.org/TVfacts.htm


There is also a link to the Turkey Vulture Society's webpage, you might be able to find something there. There are email addresses and I'm sure the vulture loving people associated with them would be happy to help you out.

http://vulturesociety.homestead.com/

It's actually on the main page of the Turkey Vulture Society's webpage, I didn't see it at first, in the Quick Facts section...

A group of vultures is called a "Venue". Vultures circling in the air are a "Kettle".

Sorry if that isn't what you wanted to hear I know how it feels, believe me!!

Yeah, but is it the traditional term?

[sunflower]

Here's a reference that uses the term "kettle" - from the web page of Kern Valley Vulture watch.

http://www.natureali.org/TVfacts.htm


There is also a link to the Turkey Vulture Society's webpage, you might be able to find something there. There are email addresses and I'm sure the vulture loving people associated with them would be happy to help you out.

http://vulturesociety.homestead.com/

It's actually on the main page of the Turkey Vulture Society's webpage, I didn't see it at first, in the Quick Facts section...

A group of vultures is called a "Venue". Vultures circling in the air are a "Kettle".

Sorry if that isn't what you wanted to hear I know how it feels, believe me!!

Yeah, but is it the traditional term?

If not "traditional"...perhaps "popular".........

[Bob Juch]

Here's a reference that uses the term "kettle" - from the web page of Kern Valley Vulture watch.

http://www.natureali.org/TVfacts.htm


There is also a link to the Turkey Vulture Society's webpage, you might be able to find something there. There are email addresses and I'm sure the vulture loving people associated with them would be happy to help you out.

http://vulturesociety.homestead.com/

It's actually on the main page of the Turkey Vulture Society's webpage, I didn't see it at first, in the Quick Facts section...

A group of vultures is called a "Venue". Vultures circling in the air are a "Kettle".

Sorry if that isn't what you wanted to hear I know how it feels, believe me!!

Just because one person says it doesn't make it true. No one's found any additional refrences.

[Jeemie]

I understand how you feel, but I still say this won't fly.

It's not as clear-cut as Ed's question (I don't remember PSM's). Ed not only found that the glowing potato came from Scotland, he got a letter from a British scientist documenting glowing tomato experiments.

So, the answer the question-writers gave was clearly wrong...and he clearly gave the right answer to the question the writers asked.

In this case...it is not as clear-cut. There ARE references...some scientific...out there...that give this as an answer.

I did not study collective nouns...well, not as seriously as you did. I know some of the more common ones, but a lot of what I know about birds' names, I know from some friends who are bird-watchers (although I haven't spoken with them in a while).

When your question came up, I did not "come to the right answer through faulty reasoning". I came to the right answer via the Ogi Ogas method.

When the answers came up, I didn't think what the other birds were called as a collective. The answer "vultures" leapt out at me as the right answer.

So while you talked to the expert, I kept saying "vulture" over and over, seeing if anything else would pop up. The only thing that did was "turkey vultures". I was wondering: "Did my friends tell me this, or did I see it somewhere else?"

So right after you were finished, I typed "turkey vulture" into Google. The first hit is for the Turkey Vulture Society, a non-profit scientific group dedicated to the preservation and study of turkey vultures.

http://vulturesociety.homestead.com/

Searching around their site, I hit their "Quick Facts" link.

http://vulturesociety.homestead.com/#anchor_13471

The second fact quote on the link is:

A group of vultures is called a "Venue". Vultures circling in the air are a "Kettle".

So either I was on this site before, for some dumb reason, or else my friends at one time told me this.

At any rate, the question may have been undervalued, but I don't think you can protest on the grounds that "it's not in common use".

[Jeemie]

Here's a reference that uses the term "kettle" - from the web page of Kern Valley Vulture watch.

http://www.natureali.org/TVfacts.htm


There is also a link to the Turkey Vulture Society's webpage, you might be able to find something there. There are email addresses and I'm sure the vulture loving people associated with them would be happy to help you out.

http://vulturesociety.homestead.com/

It's actually on the main page of the Turkey Vulture Society's webpage, I didn't see it at first, in the Quick Facts section...

A group of vultures is called a "Venue". Vultures circling in the air are a "Kettle".

Sorry if that isn't what you wanted to hear I know how it feels, believe me!!

Just because one person says it doesn't make it true. No one's found any additional refrences.

It's on a site for scientists dedicated to studying the friggin' birds!

I don't think "it's not common" is grounds for a protest.

[sunflower]

I understand how you feel, but I still say this won't fly.

It's not as clear-cut as Ed's question (I don't remember PSM's). Ed not only found that the glowing potato came from Scotland, he got a letter from a British scientist documenting glowing tomato experiments.

So, the answer the question-writers gave was clearly wrong...and he clearly gave the right answer to the question the writers asked.

In this case...it is not as clear-cut. There ARE references...some scientific...out there...that give this as an answer.

I did not study collective nouns...well, not as seriously as you did. I know some of the more common ones, but a lot of what I know about birds' names, I know from some friends who are bird-watchers (although I haven't spoken with them in a while).

When your question came up, I did not "come to the right answer through faulty reasoning". I came to the right answer via the Ogi Ogas method.

When the answers came up, I didn't think what the other birds were called as a collective. The answer "vultures" leapt out at me as the right answer.

So while you talked to the expert, I kept saying "vulture" over and over, seeing if anything else would pop up. The only thing that did was "turkey vultures". I was wondering: "Did my friends tell me this, or did I see it somewhere else?"

So right after you were finished, I typed "turkey vulture" into Google. The first hit is for the Turkey Vulture Society, a non-profit scientific group dedicated to the preservation and study of turkey vultures.

http://vulturesociety.homestead.com/

Searching around their site, I hit their "Quick Facts" link.

http://vulturesociety.homestead.com/#anchor_13471

The second fact quote on the link is:

A group of vultures is called a "Venue". Vultures circling in the air are a "Kettle".

So either I was on this site before, for some dumb reason, or else my friends at one time told me this.

At any rate, the question may have been undervalued, but I don't think you can protest on the grounds that "it's not in common use".

Great minds think alike...I'm guessing you were in the process of typing this while I posted one of the same links!

[chad1m]

I just hate any questions on collective nouns for animals. It seems so... arbitrary.

[sunflower]

It's actually on the main page of the Turkey Vulture Society's webpage, I didn't see it at first, in the Quick Facts section...



Sorry if that isn't what you wanted to hear I know how it feels, believe me!!

Just because one person says it doesn't make it true. No one's found any additional refrences.

It's on a site for scientists dedicated to studying the friggin' birds!

I don't think "it's not common" is grounds for a protest.

And if it were, I'd have protested and won on my pineapple question, since the "popular" varieties are not even found in this country, since we have our own bizarro varieties of pineapples here. Damn Dole and Del Monte for ruining it for me!!!