I just happened to be reading the Oxford Companion of Military History online this morning and was saddened to see that this week marks the anniversary of the death of an infamous emperor. But then I was cheered to remember that a very famous but very unlikely star of a movie adaptation of this conqueror’s life won a Golden Turkey award for his portrayal of said emperor in what is said to be one of the worst movies of the 1950’s.
Can you name the ancient emperor and his bizarre Hollywood counterpart? If you can please let me know.
At the risk of sounding too morbid last week I wanted to know the names of two famous men who both died in auto accidents on August 11th in different years. The one who made a splash is ‘Jack the Dripper’ or as he was more often referred to – Jackson Pollack. The other famous person was none other than St. Paul native and coach of the triumphant Olympic gold medal winning 1980 ice hockey team – Herb Brooks.
Those on campus who knew at least one half of the answer are –
Jan Pinkerton
Peter Erickson
Matt Altman
Ann Kenne
Thanks to all who played!
Monthly Archives
August 2008
The sad and untimely deaths of Bernie Mac and Isaac Hays got me thinking about the saying that bad things happening in three’s. While that is not always true, what is true is that on August 11th on different years two famous but very different people were both killed in auto accidents. Well, one of the men was probably much more famous in Minnesota than in the rest of the country, but he definitely had his day in the sun in the winter of 1980. The other person made a splash (or a drip) on the international scene in the 1940’s and 1950’s and was even the subject of a documentary in 2006.
I believe I have given you more than enough clues; can you name the two victims of what I will now call the August 11th curse? If you can please let me know.
Last time around I wanted to know the name of the author from Indiana who joins the rank of William Faulkner and John Updike for winning not one, but two Pulitzer prizes for fiction. However despite this fact he is better known by the general public for the film adaptations of his award winning books. The author? Booth Tarkington. The novels? The Magnificent Ambersons and Alice Adams, which aired on Turner Classic movies last weekend! How cool is that?
The campus hoosierphiles (yes that is a word) who knew the answer are –
Marianne Hageman
JoAnn Toussaint
Peter Erickson