Homecoming Game

Transcript

OPHIRA EISENBERG, HOST:

Now we're going to crown in this week's grand champion. Let's bring back, from TV Movies, Jessica Minnen.

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EISENBERG: From Semordnilap Palindromes, Alex Gelman.

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EISENBERG: From Award-Winning Tonys, Alex Strekel.

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EISENBERG: From Sit Down, Alexander Kaufman.

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EISENBERG: And from What Is Jeopardy?, Russ Bird.

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EISENBERG: Our puzzle guru, Art Chung, will lead this final round, titled Homecoming Game.

ART CHUNG, BYLINE: For this final round, every answer will include the name of major U.S. college or university. So, for example, if we said a phrase commonly used to describe the Boston accent asks you to park your car in this college square, you would say Harvard Yard. We're going to play this spelling bee style, so one wrong answer and you're out. You only have a few seconds to give me that answer. The last person standing is our ASK ME ANOTHER grand winner. And for your prize, Tituss Burgess will record a happy birthday greeting for you or a friend, so pretty awesome.

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CHUNG: Here we go. Jessica, it's what the D.C. stands for in Washington, D.C.

JESSICA MINNEN: District of Columbia?

CHUNG: District of Columbia is correct. Thank you very much, Jessica.

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CHUNG: Alex G., the setting of a Victor Hugo novel, this cathedral was largely destroyed during the French Revolution.

ALEX GELMAN: Notre Dame?

CHUNG: That's right.

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CHUNG: Alex S., this poultry company's famous ad slogan was, it takes a tough man to make a tender chicken.

ALEX STREKEL: Purdue?

CHUNG: That's right.

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CHUNG: Alexander, born Howard Alan Frances O'Brien, she's a popular horror writer whose books feature the vampire Lestat.

ALEXANDER KAUFMAN: Mary Shelley?

CHUNG: No. I'm sorry, that's incorrect. Could you step aside? Russ?

VALERIE BIRD: Anne Rice.

CHUNG: That's correct. Thank you, Alexander, but you're out.

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CHUNG: Back to Jessica. This fictional boy detective solves crime for 25 cents a day plus expenses.

MINNEN: Encyclopedia Brown?

CHUNG: You got it.

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CHUNG: Alex G., in the second Indiana Jones movie, Harrison Ford entered this booby-trapped location.

GELMAN: Temple of doom?

CHUNG: That's right.

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CHUNG: Alex S., mystery writer Mary Roberts Rinehart is credited with coining this forward cliche in which a male servant is blamed for committing the crime.

STREKEL: The butler did it?

CHUNG: Yep, that's right.

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CHUNG: Back to Russ. In 1896, this company became the first to sell toothpaste in a tube rather than a jar.

BIRD: Colgate.

CHUNG: That's right.

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CHUNG: Jessica, this English singer agreed to pay royalties to Tom Petty because his song "Stay With Me" sounded a lot like "Won't Back Down."

MINNEN: Sam Smith.

CHUNG: Correct.

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CHUNG: Alex G., in his 1836 essay "Nature," this poet outlined the philosophy of transcendentalism.

GELMAN: Ralph Waldo Emerson.

CHUNG: Correct.

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CHUNG: Alex S., she's Anderson Cooper's mother. I've got to give you three seconds.

STREKEL: Three seconds. Yale?

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CHUNG: Sorry, I don't - Russ, do you know the answer?

BIRD: Shelley Cooper?

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CHUNG: No, that's not right either.

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CHUNG: Jessica, you can knock out a couple of contestants if you know the answer.

MINNEN: Cooper Union?

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CHUNG: That is a college. Alex, if you know the answer you are our grand prize winner.

GELMAN: Gloria Vanderbilt?

CHUNG: That's right.

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EISENBERG: Nice job, Alex. You are our ASK ME ANOTHER big winner. Enjoy your grand prize that will be provided to you by our VIP Tituss Burgess.

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GELMAN: I can't wait.

EISENBERG: Hi, Tituss.

TITUSS BURGESS: Oh, congratulations.

GELMAN: Thank you.

BURGESS: Alexander, what happened?

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KAUFMAN: You're rubbing it in, man. You're rubbing it in.

BURGESS: I'm just kidding. (Laughter).

EISENBERG: Yeah. Who would you like this message to - to you or a friend?

GELMAN: You know, I think its got to go to Alexander.

KAUFMAN: Yeah, for real.

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BURGESS: That is so sweet.

EISENBERG: I know, selfless.

JONATHAN COULTON, BYLINE: You know why? Because Alex respects artistry, and he's given up his prize...

BURGESS: That is so sweet.

COULTON: ...To Beyonce.

BURGESS: All right.

(Singing) Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday, dear Alexander.

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BURGESS: (Singing) Happy birthday to you.

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EISENBERG: Tituss Burgess, everybody.

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EISENBERG: And by the magic of both of them being named Alex...

COULTON: It's usable for both of them. It's great.

EISENBERG: They both get it.

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EISENBERG: That is our show. Thank you so much for listening.

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EISENBERG: If you would like to be a contestant, find us on Facebook or Twitter, just look around for NPR ASK ME ANOTHER. And you could be a puzzle player anytime, anyplace by downloading our podcast from iTunes, Stitcher or TuneIn. And to see us live, go to amatickets.org. ASK ME ANOTHER's puzzle guru is Art Chung.

CHUNG: Hey. My name anagrams to narc thug.

EISENBERG: Our house musician is Jonathan Coulton.

CHUNG: Thou jolt a cannon.

EISENBERG: Additional puzzle writing by Annabelle Bacon, Kyle Beekley (ph), Natasha Lake (ph), Karen Lury (ph), Glenn McDonald (ph) and Christine Walters (ph). ASK ME ANOTHER is produced by Jesse Baker, Josh Rogosin, Eleanor Kagan, Denny Shin (ph) and our intern, Aaron James, along with Portia Robertson Migas and Eric Newsom. We are recorded by Damon Whittemore, Kristin Mueller and David Hertkin (ph). We'd like to thank our home in Brooklyn, NY, The Bell House.

CHUNG: Hot heel blues.

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EISENBERG: And our production partner, WNYC. I'm her ripe begonias.

CHUNG: Ophira Eisenberg.

EISENBERG: And this was ASK ME ANOTHER from NPR. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.