Quiz John Chaneski’s brain teaser this week is much ado about nothing. For example, a TV series was originally pitched as a sitcom about how a comedian gets his material, but later an in-joke led people to believe the show was about nothing. Which show is it? This is part of a complete episode.
Transcript of “Much Ado About Nothing Brain Teaser”
You’re listening to A Way with Words, the show about language and how we use it. I’m Grant Barrett.
And I’m Martha Barnette. And joining us now from New York City is our quiz guy, John Chaneski. Hey, John.
Hey, Martha. Hello, Grant.
Hi, Bob.
Today’s quiz is very much a straightforward trivia quiz, but you don’t have to know much to do well.
You don’t have to know anything. You have to know nothing, because it seems nothing is everywhere.
For example, it was originally pitched as a sitcom about how a comedian gets his material, but a later in-joke in the show led many to believe that what show is about nothing?
Seinfeld.
Of course, Seinfeld, sure.
So this is all stuff about nothing, and it relates to words.
You’ll see.
Okay, yeah.
The name of what very early science fiction character from an 1870 novel is Latin for nobody? Modern listeners are perhaps much more familiar with the lost fish of the same name.
Nemo.
Oh, yes.
Captain Nemo.
Captain Nemo.
Literally nobody.
Now, Jules Verne cannot be accused of laziness in naming his submarine captain, though. It’s more likely he was inspired by Ootis, a pseudonym used by what title character to outwit a cyclops?
Odysseus.
Odysseus, yes.
In what work?
The Odyssey.
In the Odyssey, right.
Now, we’re going to move from people to places. Though it is only the third least densely populated, what U.S. State is the only one that can be accurately described as MT?
Montana?
Montana. Why would that be, Martha?
Because the abbreviation for it is MT.
MT, right.
Now, what band’s name literally means blowing out or quenching in Sanskrit? In the Buddhist context, it refers to the ultimate goal of non-self or emptiness attained by escaping the cycle of rebirth.
Is it nirvana?
It is nirvana, yes.
It means like blowing out a candle, nirvana.
Finally, we’ll bring this quiz about nothing back around into a big zero with a question about Seinfeld.
On the TV series Seinfeld, what quality is shared by the characters Bob Sacamano, Lomez, and Cousin Jeffrey?
Nothing.
They have nothing in common.
That’s a great answer.
But they do have something in common.
All played by the same actor.
Are they imaginary?
Do they never appear on screen?
They never appear on screen.
They are never seen.
I don’t know about imaginary.
It doesn’t quite make it, but they are referred to, but never seen.
Of course, the most famous unseen character in literature and plays and movies is…
Godot.
Godot. Big zero there.
He never shows up.
Well, that’s my big quiz about nothing.
You guys actually did better than nothing, so well done.
What a relief.
Finally, a quiz for us.
We’re delighted to take your quiz questions.
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