Quiz Guy John Chaneski’s puzzle involves nominative determinism, the hypothesis that people tend to gravitate toward occupations that fit their names. For example, which handsome movie actor, who was twice voted People magazine’s...
Quiz Guy John Chaneski is dreaming up new plots for movies by changing one letter in an existing movie title. For example, if you change one vowel, what hilarious classic comedy becomes the tale of a rebellious, spiky-haired animal found in mosh...
The new Downton Abbey movie is a luscious treat for fans of the public-television period piece, but how accurate is the script when it comes to the vocabulary of the early 20th century? It may be jarring to hear the word swag, but it was already at...
Marian in Norfolk, Virginia, says a character in the new Downton Abbey movie uses the term swag meaning either “bunting” or “stuff,” and wonders if its use in the film is a linguistic anachronism. In fact, swag was used with...
Quiz Guy John Chaneski playfully ponders misheard movie quotes. For example, if Rhett Butler refuses to provide shellfish for Tara’s annual seafood night, his next line will be what? This is part of a complete episode.
Viewers of the movie First Man, about the Gemini space program, may be surprised to learn that within National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the name Gemini is pronounced more like JEM-i-nee. Gemini is the Latin word for twin, and the source...