Answers

Last week I put out a call for answers to fourteen hard-hitting questions. I was pleasantly surprised at the response that I received. I expected to get a few random answers to a couple of the questions. What I got was many answers! Some of you even answered all fourteen. I was overwhelmed by the response. So without further ado, here are the answers:


1. Could somebody please tell me why some people have a problem with athletes making millions of dollars and don’t seem to mind that entertainers earn similar amounts doing what they do?

• I don't mind the athletes earning high salaries…their shelf lives are much shorter than Hollywood types have…it's all supply and demand anyhow. – Michael

• . Actors and athletes both make too much money. But if I had to choose one of them I'd let the actors earn the money and give the athletes less. At least the actors can read when they get out of college. Well, most of them...maybe. – Mary

• Athletes AND actors make way too much money, but so do the franchises and movie studios. – Peter

• They both make way, way too more than me. That is the problem. – Greg

2. Could somebody please tell me why the Three Stooges were so misunderstood?

• My buddy and I once made a crank phone call (hell, we were adults with kids at the time so we had to be in our late 20s…so….circa 1978) to Larry Fine…anyhow, Larry was in some kind of Actor's Home for the disabled…long story…we told him he won "The Golden Age of Comedy Award" and we chatted a few minutes. He died waiting for the two first-class airlines tickets (he had to travel with a caretaker) and the $10,000 honorarium check we promised him. – Michael

• The Three Stooges. In my lifetime I've come to believe that you have to be male to get the Three Stooges. – Mary

• I think there are two schools of comedy: physical and conceptual, and they rarely meet ...although there are demented people who appreciate both (me). – Peter

• The Three Stooges are not about understanding. - Greg

3. Could somebody please tell me why the British don’t acknowledge the letter Z?

• I can tell you that Z is a bonafide letter in the Latin alphabet and it was known as zed first. We Americans actually changed it to "zee". Not sure why. Probably just doing our own thing. – Olive

• The English also eat Spotted Dick and Kidney Pie! Don’t try to understand it! – Mary

• I would say that some of the younger English people are starting to spell realisation with a 'z' or 'zee' as is said in some parts and Pizza is Pizza nothing else here in the UK! – Sue from the UK

• Pizza! – Bev, also from the UK

• As I recall (and you too) several characters evolved out of the original Roman-Anglo alphabet... I believe F/S was one of those as well. – Peter


4. Could somebody please tell me why baseball managers and coaches wear full uniforms?

• When I had season tickets to the BULLS back in 1970-71 one of the peripheral points of interest was seeing how stylish each head coach would be…it was right after the hippie movement and a lot of the coaches were trying to look "hip"…pretty funny to see. – Michael

• Because baseball is dignified. Especially those Cubbies! – Mary

• Soccer coaches are dressed to the nines-veritable fashionistas! I also never got the whole baseball coach/manager thing. Remember guys like Lombardi and Landry! – Peter

5. While we are on the subject of sports, could somebody please tell me why Robin Yount was named to only three All-Star games during his illustrious 20 year Hall of Fame career?

• YOUNT…strictly "class"…I loved it when the great players only wore one uniform throughout their entire career. – Michael

• Maybe if he had played for the Cubbies.... hee hee hee, ain't I a stinker? – Mary

• He was from a small-market team. – Peter

6. Could somebody please tell me if there were ever any TV shows better than The Wire, The Sopranos or Northern Exposure?

• SOPRANOS…so great that I watch the A & E reruns every Sunday morning…hearing "freaking" and "forget" substituted for the usual "F" word roots isn't as effective…I use my imagination a little. – Michael

• Twin Peaks...I was a TP geek!

• I like a bunch ...Six feet under, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Firefly, Dead Like Me, Pushing Daisies, Freaks and Geeks, My Boys, Trust Me...but them's just opinions. – Peter

• Twin Peaks, I agree. Also, The Prisoner -- remember that? – Greg


7. Could somebody please tell me why I cry every time I watch the movie Bang The Drum Slowly?

• It's a damn sad movie, that's why! – Mary

• Because its sad dude. Brian's Song too. – Peter


8. Could somebody please tell me why some people insist on pronouncing Italian – “Eye-talian”? You certainly don’t hear them saying “Gee-erman” or “Pee-olish”.

• Just try calling me Pee-olish...go ahead and try! – Mary

• When it comes to the “EYE-talian” pronunciation, many Americans are just not hooked on phonics. – Olive (Frustrated English teacher??)

• I think it’s from the diphthong to be honest. Down in the lower Midwest/high south they love to long-pronounce an initial vowel…EYE-ran and EYE-raq. My personal hates: china man, "oriental" yikes! – Peter 



9. Could somebody please tell me why people talking about professional wrestling feel it necessary to make it clear that they now it’s fake?

• Professional wrestling is fake???? What the.... man, no one told me that!!! – Mary

• No one wants to be a chump...even when that's the point...so they don't get it that they aren't supposed to. Huh? – Peter 



10. Could somebody please tell me why the only good radio shows on WGN are on after 11:00 pm?

• WGN…a dinosaur…the days of air personalities like Wally, Roy, Bobbie being "family members" are over…too much media competition out there now…and. people know how to get directions on the internet instead of calling a WGN deejay for it…although those calls were often thinly disguised maneuvers to get on the air so maybe Wally would give them a free dinner or pantyhose. – Michael

• Hmmm, I don't listen to radio so I'll have to take your word on this one. – Mary

• Internet radio. Broadcast TV and radio needs to 'up its game.' I now listen to HD or Internet radio most of the radio day that I am not listening to NPR shows like "This American Life" or "The Story." – Peter

11. Could somebody please tell me why so many chefs on reality cooking shows smoke cigarettes? You would think that it would mess up their palette.

• It does. But it also relieves the stress. And being a Top Chef is stressful! - Mary

• They are caffeine and nicotine junkies. Those that aren't have builds like me and/or alcohol habits. My food addiction is probably not a lot better though. – Peter

• I agree it is weird to see this season's Top Chef candidates smoking. Yes, it should screw up their taste buds; let's see if they get kicked out early. - Greg


12. Could somebody please tell me why someone with purple hair, a plethora of piercings and tattoos covering every inch of their exposed flesh would ask, “What are you looking at?”

• Oh come now, I'm sure at one time there some "look" or outfit you came up with that you thought looked super cool and you had the same reaction when someone looked at you! We all did that. It's being a teen. – Mary

• That's why they do it. It's the love/hate of attention seeking behavior. – Peter



13. Could somebody please tell me why most people from Illinois have such a problem with ketchup being put on a hot dog?

• People from Illinois annoy me…which is why I moved to Wisconsin…my business is still in Chicago (I'll still accept their money)…if Chicagoans think that the rest of the country admires and/or envies them...well, they'd be incorrect. – Michael


• Yeah...that's just plain weird. What's up with that? Ketchup goes with hot dogs!! Sheesh!!! – Mary

• Because it just ain't right unless you’re under 12. I likes my Maxwell street sa'sage as intended--wit' sweet yellow mustard, peppers and dem grilled onions. – Peter

• Good question. - Greg



14. And finally, could somebody please tell me why I liked Drew Carey on The Drew Carey Show, didn’t care for him as host of Whose Line Is It Anyway? and now enjoy him again on The Price Is Right?

• Drew Carey…loved him on his show…I have every season on DVD…his self-deprecation was quite endearing and the writing was fabulous. - Michael


• You're on your own with Drew. I can't stand him. Never could! - Mary

• He seemed out of his element on WLIA. It was yet another American cop of a British show, and they picked Carey because of his improv buddies and comedy background. - Peter

• Drew was better on "Whose Line" IMHO – Greg

There you have it – the answers! My thanks to Michael, Mary, Greg, Peter, Olive, Sue and Bev. Your contributions were greatly appreciated.

I really enjoyed the different opinions and I hope you did as well. It makes me want to do more opinion-oriented type blogs. Important, earth-shattering stuff like best pizza toppings, greatest musical acts, top all-time movie, etc. Until next time…from the booth.