"The odds are good, but the goods are odd" - Unknown
This quote was frequently used in America several years ago when there were many more men than women at college. In some, it was as high as 6 to 1!
Basically it meant the odds of women finding love on campus were good, but the goods or men available are odd - not necessarily unattractive but perhaps peculiar in behaviour or otherwise unusual.
It doesn't seem to be the case here though. In all higher education, even going back to 1997, the figures are consistently 55/45 in favour of women. You hearing me single fellas? Bone up...on textbooks.
On the subject of gender relations, a non-scientific study was done several years ago about the male/female balance of the computer geek filled Silicon Valley - it suggested the split was 62/38 to men.
Time to lay my geek credentials on the line - I used to have a Commodore 64 on which I would sometimes play the very geeky game Chip's Challenge. I used to hate it because it was so damn hard.
"The premise of the game is that high-school nerd Chip McCallahan has met Melinda The Mental Marvel in the school science laboratory and must navigate through Melinda's "Clubhouse" (a series of increasingly difficult puzzles) in order to prove himself and gain membership to the very exclusive Bit Buster Club." - Wikipedia
I didn't notice the co-incidences until years later when I heard that Bill Gates' wife was named Melinda. She met Bill in 1987 and the game was released in 1989.
But wait there's more! Melinda has a degree in computer science and economics - yes she's a mental marvel but I'll continue.
I've seen the animation that comes up when you finish Chip's Challenge (not because I actually finished it or anything). It's a closer view of Chip and let's just say he shares Bill's hair and glasses...
You know Bill was actually once arrested in the 70's for a traffic violation? I've seen his mugshot!
William Henry Gates III is one smart cookie. It's said his SAT score indicates an IQ of about 170 but strangely he doesn't seem to have ever joined Mensa. Famous Mensans (it makes them sound like aliens doesn't it) include General "Stormin'" Norman Schwarzkopf and actress Geena Davis.
Greet Geena with a "Hej!" and she'll know straight away you're saying hello in Swedish. She happened to become fluent while on exchange. Does this make her a cunning linguist?
Her IQ rates about 140 and aside from using it to remember all her lines, she gives her brain a work out going for bullseye.
"(She) was one of 300 women competing in July 1999 for a semifinals berth in the US Olympic team for archery, to participate in the Sydney Olympics. She placed 24th of 300 and did not qualify for the team, but participated as a wild-card entry in the Sydney International Golden Arrow competition" - Wikipedia
I won't be standing between Geena and a target anytime soon, certainly not with an apple on my head!
And in this week's award for "Too bad, so sad, you turned it down and I made it a hit", it goes to Geena and Susan Sarandon for Thelma & Louise. Geena was 4th choice for her part and Susan was somewhere near 10th! Head to the Wikipedia article and you'll see what I mean. As a teaser, I'll tell you that Cher was first pick to play Thelma but wanted too much moolah after the success of Moonstruck...
Keep an eye out for the next undoubtedly thrilling episode of Trivia Tragic...
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Sunday, November 22, 2009
The Man Who Knew Too Much
On the set of The Man Who Knew Too Much:
"Many of the Moroccan extras had been mistakenly informed that they would only be paid if they were actually visible in the film. This led to a lot of pushing and shoving to get close to the camera until the crew explained to them that they would be paid no matter what." - IMDB
Ah yes, welcome to the world of useless trivia.
Now I'll admit I've never seen a Hitchcock movie, but he seemed to have a thing for cameo roles in his own films:
"His appearances became so popular that he began to make them earlier in his films, so as not to distract the audience from the plot." - Wikipedia
Heaven forbid we actually distract the audience from the plot, or in some cases lack thereof. There are movies out there which are so dull they could've used a director's cameo to maintain interest!
Speaking of useless but highly entertaining cameos...
Imagine Bernie Fraser, the king of superannuation ads, popping up in Weekend At Bernie's - it wouldn't require much character acting for Bernie to appear comatose!
Can you imagine the two cult heroes of Australian deadpan comedy (deliberately not including Elliot Goblet), wandering the streets of Surfers Paradise urging teens bursting with hormonal desire, various substances and freedom from school to always read their bank statements? Always invest any windfall gains? Always contribute to the super of the future? Try a bit harder, Glenn Stevens.
Besides Glenn, you've already done your bit for saving. For those who prefer to know him as a faceless bureaucrat, I'll tell you he's got a chromedome. Along the lines of Sterlo if you're a league follower or Yaaablett the 2nd for AFL types.
"Stevens is a committed Christian, and plays the guitar at his local Baptist Church." - Wikipedia
This screams out to me: celebrity chromedomes band. Peter Garrett on lead vocals and mad dance moves, Glenn Stevens and Billy Corgan on guitars (I have no idea if either can play bass - maybe they can duke it out), Sterlo ("I say yeah yeah") and former Be Sharp Homer Simpson on backing vocals although Homer J does have to lose those remaining 3 strands of hair with Phil Collins rounding out a six piece chromedome delight on drums.
"(Stevens) is also a recreational pilot with Commercial Pilot License (CPL) and Command Instrument Rating (CIR). He owns a Piper PA-34 Seneca." - Wikipedia
I reckon maybe Glenn could jump out front for a rendition of Come Fly With Me.
Wikipedia says that a mid 1970's model of his plane can travel up to 360km/h at the right altitude. I think Glenn has secret fantasies to be the next "Maverick".
And where would we be if Bryan Adams had sung Danger Zone?
"(Giorgio) Moroder originally asked Bryan Adams to record this song, but he was said to have rejected it because he had disliked the jingoism expressed in Top Gun.
The rock group Toto was also supposed to perform the song, but due to legal matters, it was passed to Loggins." - Wikipedia
Oh and if you get a chance, check out the single cover of Danger Zone - Kenny with a full beard, not quite ZZ Top but not bad, and a little bit of a pineapple thing happening with his hair. Make sure you notice his clothes as well...
So the band known for their technical skill from their experience as session musicians (4 of the band members played on the Boz Scaggs classic album Silk Degrees) missed out on one of the biggest hits of the 80's - good thing they already had Africa!
Toto are also linked with two of the more famous people to have died this year.
On the video of Rosanna, a young Patrick Swayze appeared as one of the dancers - this was 5 years before Dirty Dancing! Mum, I hope you're reading this...free chance to check out Patrick!
But the biggest celebrity death this year was Michael Jackson.
Toto member Steve Porcaro was the inspiration for the Thriller track Human Nature. Basically he and bandmate David Paich had recorded a tape of some bits and pieces and sent it to Michael's producer, Quincy Jones, in the hope they'd make it onto the album.
"Jones explained, "All of a sudden, at the end, there was all this silence, there was: 'why, why, dah dah da-dum dah dah, why, why'. Just a dummy lyric and a very skeletal thing - I get goosebumps talking about it. I said, 'This is where we wanna go, because it's got such a wonderful flavour" - Wikipedia
Well I did warn you we were entering the world of useless trivia.
Keep an eye out for the next undoubtedly thrilling episode of Trivia Tragic...
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