Quizmaster: Grafton Ale House

Pound that Quiz! Quiz Bowl Sunday!

2012-01-27T11:24:00.003-06:00

A final reminder that Quiz Bowl II, Milwaukee's sports and pop culture trivia tournament is this upcoming Sunday January 29th! Register your team now!

It was a ram-a-lammed at the Grafton Ale House last night, as the bar experienced it's busiest quiz night since 2009! Ninety (yes, 90) queeps were in the house, vying to get their hands on one of the three official prizes up for grabs.

Ultimately, it was the trivia stalwarts of Squad 666, that prevailed, as they topped the standings with 49 out of 51 points...

Shout out to @MadelineR21 and @Notorious_PLD.

Although they have the best overall score after four weeks of league play, they actually sit second in the standings after each team has had it's two "bye weeks" subtracted. Still a long way to go though!

Second on the night went to the outspoken To those who watched 'Touch' last night, who wanted Jack, I mean Kiefer Sutherland, to start calling for Chloe?, who may have some 24 fans on their team...

24: The Movie. You heard it here first.

Elsewhere, the Quizmaster had a little sing-song with Forever Blowing Bubbles, cause there's bubbles in the air. United, United! who were paying homage to the world's toughest football firm (that's a British word for gang, America)...

Anyone fancy a Chelsea smile?! We don't recommend it!

:-p

The coveted "people's prize" for best team name was, as ever, hotly contested. We'd like to give some honorable mentions to Fucking Tennis, Rush Limbaugh with the plastic bag in Cambodia. Clue bitch, Hugh Janus and I don't know how to put this but I'm kinda a big deal, who all had decent names.

But their were two finalists from among the bunch on the night...

Ultimately, the official team name prize ($10 y'all!) went to So Easy Even a Quizmaster Can Do It...

If by "easy" you mean rocket science, then fuck yes, you are correct.

That prize was determined after some back and forth chanting between them and team Why do people say "grow some balls?" Because balls are weak and sensitive. If you wanna get tough grow a vagina! Those things take a pounding!, who had also put forth a valiant team name effort.

And because the Quizmaster is such a lovely bloke, he bought the lovely ladies of the aforementioned team a pitcher of beer (front right) out of the kindness of his own heart...

Yes, by the time we got round to taken their photo, the pitcher was already empty!

Our type of ladies! ;)

And snap, that's @Nalissa (bottom left!)

Quizness as usual next Thursday! Quiz Bowl is Sunday!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday January 26th, 2012

49 Squad 666
47 To those who watched 'Touch' last night, who wanted Jack, I mean Kiefer Sutherland, to start calling for Chloe?
45 Rush Limbaugh with the plastic bag in Cambodia. Clue bitch
42 So easy even a Quizmaster can do it
42 I smoked blunts in Istanbul and my beauty turned into Baxter
41 I don't know how to put this but I'm kinda a big deal
41 Forever Blowing Bubbles, cause there's bubbles in the air. United, United!
40 Crazy Liquor Cheeseburger Party
40 A Sphincter Say "what"?!!
40 24-40
39 Hugh Janus
38 Daddy D's heart the Quizmaster
37 The told me to just write down anything and turn it in
35 Are we the only ones who don't use our cell phones to get answers!
35 Fucking tennis...
34 Random Answers
32 Why do people say "grow some balls?" Because balls are weak and sensitive. If you wanna get tough grow a vagina! Those things take a pounding!

Article of the Week - Nellie Bly

2012-01-26T00:01:00.000-06:00

Nellie Bly
Set a record by traveling around the
world in just 72 days back in 1890

Nellie Bly (May 5, 1864 – January 27, 1922) was the pen name of American pioneer female journalist Elizabeth Jane Cochran. She remains notable for two feats: a record-breaking trip around the world in emulation of Jules Verne's character Phileas Fogg, and an exposé in which she faked insanity to study a mental institution from within. In addition to her writing, she was also an industrialist and charity worker. Her name was meant to be Nelly Bly, but her editor wrote Nellie Bly and it stuck.

In 1888, Bly suggested to her editor at the New York World that she take a trip around the world, attempting to turn the fictional Around the World in Eighty Days into fact for the first time. A year later, at 9:40 a.m. on November 14, 1889, and with two days' notice, she boarded the Augusta Victoria, a steamer of the Hamburg America Line, and began her 24,899-mile journey.

She brought with her the dress she was wearing, a sturdy overcoat, several changes of underwear and a small travel bag carrying her toiletry essentials. She carried most of her money (£200 in English bank notes and gold in total as well as some American currency) in a bag tied around her neck.

The New York newspaper Cosmopolitan sponsored its own reporter, Elizabeth Bisland, to beat the time of both Phileas Fogg and Bly. Bisland would travel the opposite way around the world.

"Seventy-two days, six hours, eleven minutes and fourteen seconds after her Hoboken departure" Bly was back in New York. She had circumnavigated the globe almost unchaperoned. At the time, Bisland was still going around the world. Like Bly, she had missed a connection and had to board a slow, old ship (the Bothina) in the place of a fast ship (Etruria). Bly's journey, at the time, was a world record, though it was bettered a few months later by George Francis Train, who completed the journey in 67 days.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Nellie Bly"

FREE cupcakes and cheap beers.... yes please!! (Quiz Bowl Next Sunday)!

2012-01-21T11:17:00.004-06:00

Just a brief reminder that Quiz Bowl II, Milwaukee's sports and pop culture trivia tournament is next Sunday January 29th! Register your team now!

It was the busiest quiz in many, many moons at the Ale House, Grafton division, this Thursday as 13 teams and about 80 quizzers were involved for the evening's trivial festivities!

And the Ale House re-introduced it's ALL NIGHT HAPPY HOUR on the night, meaning all pints were just $3 all night long!

So that meant for a fairly lively quiz, and there were even free Quizmaster-colored-green cupcakes in the house...

They were a gift to Quizmaster Ryan on his twenty-something birthday, and he cordially shared them with the whole Ale House...

Made fresh by regular quizzers Squad 666! Thanks team!

As well as the $3 pints, the Ale House also welcomed back those mischievous Concordia kids, with the group known as Wolf Blitzer takes Faith Hill to O-Town sealing top spot in the end...

Poor Melissa, front and center, was nursing a rather sever injury, courtesy of a recent car wreck...

YIKES!!

That didn't stop her from coming out for quiz though! Don't text and drive next time, people!

:p

The best team name prize was as hotly contested as ever, as two teams battled it out for the $10, but officially it was I call my Dick Cheney b/c it shoots people in the face that took the money...

But because QM Ryan is such a good sport (and partly because the previous team stole their name from elsewhere!?!), team Is it strange that my doctor had both hands on my shoulders during my last prostate exam???.... got a free pitcher of beer, bought for them straight outta the Quizmaster's pocket...

The festivities continue next Thursday! Perhaps free cookies next time?!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday 19th January 2012, Scores:

58 Wolf Blitzer takes Faith Hill to O-Town
55 Random Answers: Victoria Beckham is such a slut we were going to go with "Yellow Cab Company" Beckham
52 BEER
51 The Real Housewives of Man U
50 Zac Efron can take me to O-Town
49 I call my Dick Cheney b/c it shoots people in the face
49 Squad 666
48 Is it strange that my doctor had both hands on my shoulders during my last prostate exam???....
48 The King Sharted
43 There hasn't been any more "shootings" in L.A. since they mandated condoms in porn
42 Burgernomics: 7c Today
39 The queen gave me a diamond jubilee!
34 "I don't eat my own dandruff"

Article of the Week - Big Mac Index

2012-01-19T00:01:00.000-06:00

Le Big Mac Index
Or would you prefer a Royale with Cheese...
motherfucker!!

The Big Mac Index is published by The Economist as an informal way of measuring the purchasing power parity (PPP) between two currencies and provides a test of the extent to which market exchange rates result in goods costing the same in different countries. It "seeks to make exchange-rate theory a bit more digestible".

The index takes its name from the Big Mac, a hamburger sold at McDonald's restaurants.

The Big Mac index was introduced in The Economist in September 1986 by Pam Woodall as a semi-humorous illustration and has been published by that paper annually since then. The index also gave rise to the word burgernomics.

UBS Wealth Management Research has expanded the idea of the Big Mac index to include the amount of time that an average worker in a given country must work to earn enough to buy a Big Mac. The working-time based Big Mac index might give a more realistic view of the purchasing power of the average worker, as it takes into account more factors, such as local wages.

For example, using figures in July 2008:

the price of a Big Mac was $3.57 in the United States (Varies by store)
the price of a Big Mac was £2.29 in the United Kingdom (Britain) (Varies by region)
the implied purchasing power parity was $1.56 to £1, that is $3.57/£2.29 = 1.56
this compares with an actual exchange rate of $2.00 to £1 at the time
[(2.00-1.56)/1.56]*100= +28%
the pound was thus overvalued against the dollar by 28%

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Big Mac Index"

It's snow joke!!

2012-01-15T21:52:00.001-06:00

With Quizmaster Ryan taking some time off to chase his true passion, volunteering his time to save baby seals from poachers and natural predators, QM John did his best to fill his shoes.

The evening saw a mix microphone use and going old school and simply shouting questions, however the night was saved with the bonus round……Disney music clips.

And per usual, the evening ended with an impromptu karaoke session. At the end of the evening team My Boyfriend Said I Only Need 2 Inches to Snowshoe…., took home best team name for simply being the only team mention the less than stellar weather in their name....

Second place went to Thank God For Multiple Choice Soccer Questions beating out Dick Cheney on a sudden death tiebreaker and the winner was the always angelic Squad 666...

With all poachers thwarted and predators running in fear, it looks like the baby seals are safe for now so El Gran Jefe Ryan will be back in action on Thursday. Come on in to the Ale House, partake in the best brew in town and get down with a lil Quizmaster action.

Until next time Grafton, Drink While You Think!

Thursday 12th January 2011, Scores:

47 Squad 666
46 Thank God For Multiple Choice Soccer Questions (Thank God It Wasn’t Twlight)
46 Dick Cheney Shot His Brokeback Buddy In The Face……Hunting Accident Or Crime Of Passion
45 Random Answers
43 Brokeback Mountain, The Story Of Rick Santorum
37 Keg In The Pants….Tap That
33 Victorious Secret
33 My Boyfriend Said I Only Need 2 Inches To Snowshoe, I Said I’d Need Way More Than That To Go

Article of the Week - 99 Luftballoons

2012-01-12T00:01:00.000-06:00

99 Luftballoons
A hit song in 1983 for German singer Nena

"99 Luftballons" (German for "99 balloons") is a protest song by the German pop-rock band Nena from their 1983 self-titled album. Originally sung in German, it was later re-recorded in English as "99 Red Balloons" for their album 99 Luftballons in 1984. Later Nena (without band) recorded a new version of the song.

While at a June 1982 concert by the Rolling Stones in West Berlin, Nena's guitarist Carlo Karges noticed that balloons were being released. As he watched them move toward the horizon, he noticed them shifting and changing shapes, where they looked like strange spacecraft (referred to in the German lyrics as a "UFO"). He thought about what might happen if they floated over the Berlin Wall to the Soviet sector.

Both the English and German versions tell about two children who buy 99 balloons at a toy shop and release them into the air, where faulty East German radar equipment registers the balloons as incoming weapons. The government immediately put their troops on red alert and scrambles fighter jets to intercept, which ultimately triggers a nuclear war between East and West. In the apocalyptic aftermath, the song's narrator stands in the rubble of the city and finds a single remaining balloon. Thinking of someone, he or she then lets the balloon go. The music was composed by Uwe Fahrenkrog-Petersen, the keyboardist of Nena's band, while Karges wrote the original German lyrics.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "99 Luftballoons"

Almost a Perfect Score! New Quiz League Kicks Off!

2012-01-06T11:01:00.005-06:00

It was a very bustlin' night of quizzin' at the Ale House's Grafton division this Thursday night, as the bar also kicked off it's latest trivia league on what was the first quiz of 2012!

And the quiz festivities for the new year got off to a rambunctious start, as those Squad 666 members aka Why is a Raven like a writing desk?, rolled into the new league with an oh-so-close-to-be-perfect-score of 50 points...

They insisted that they were only the sixth team in Quizmaster history to record a perfect score, but the quiz ended up being out of 51 points, no thanks to the Queen inability to visit the House of Commons. What a sucker... the Queen, that is!

The squad will be back to muster a perfect score next week!

Elsewhere, Grafton was graced by the presence of former league champions When you pull my Christmas cracker, stuff comes out too... who had on their Christmas Cracker party hats to take second place...

Will they return and make a surge to re-claim the league championship? It was certainly make it interesting if they did!?

And finally, the first best team name accolade of the year was another "chicks with Buscemi eyes" inspired one...

As the crew of One of the Olsen twins should just O.D. already so we can stop guessing which one probably guessed "Ashley Olsen," but at least it got them $10...

Yep, that'll buy you a whole pitcher of craft beer on a Thursday night!

And for those who don't know about "this whole league thingy-ma-jig," if you want to compete in the 8 week league, just show up most weeks and keep a regular name. If you change your team name, notify the Quizmaster so he can track your score! (More details in the sidebar --->)

Quiz is back next Thursday at 7pm!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday January 5th, 2011 scores:

50 Why is a Raven like a writing desk?
47 When you pull my Christmas cracker, stuff comes out too...
46 Thank god it wasn't Twilight
46 Random Answers
44 One of the Olsen twins should just O.D. already so we can stop guessing which one
43 So I tell the Swamp Donkey to sock it before I give her a trunky...
43 The Queefing Queeps
41 Ryan.... we think a lot of 8th grade girls would love you Ipod
39 My weeble can play with your lego
31 Bloomin' Idiots
29 Two Damsels

Article of the Week - 1902 Rose Bowl Game

2012-01-05T00:01:00.000-06:00

1901 Michigan Wolverines
The winners of the inaugural Rose Bowl in 1902
outscored their opponents 550 to 0 that season

Originally titled the "Tournament East-West football game," what is now known as the Rose Bowl Game was first played on January 1, 1902 in Pasadena, California, starting the tradition of New Year's Day bowl games.

The inaugural game featured Fielding H. Yost's dominating 1901 Michigan Wolverines football team, representing the East, who crushed a previously 3–1–2 team from Stanford University, representing the West, by a score of 49–0 after Stanford captain Ralph Fisher requested to quit with eight minutes remaining. Michigan finished the season 11–0 and was considered a national champion. Yost had been Stanford's coach the previous year.

The 1901 Michigan Wolverines football team represented the University of Michigan in the 1901 college football season. In their first year under new head coach Fielding H. Yost, Michigan finished the season undefeated with an 11–0 record, outscored their opponents by the unprecedented total of 550 to 0, and became known as the first of Yost's famed "Point-a-Minute" teams.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "1901 Rose Bowl"

Herpe New Year Edmond... You Giant D-Bag! Final Quiz of the Year!

2012-01-02T17:33:00.008-06:00

It was the final quiz of 2011 and the trivia league finale at the Milwaukee Ale House in Grafton this past Thursday night.

And Quizmaster Ryan returned from his Christmas stay in London to hold down the fort in the biggest trivia show down of the season, as 17 teams, and over 70 queeps, locked horns to take one of five prizes on offer.

Ultimately, it was the perennial trivia powerhouse that is Random Answers who's class shone through after the 8 weeks of league play, as they clinched their fourth championship by 9pm that night...

Their almost-perfect score of 49 was the icing on the fairy-cake in the end!

Second spot in the league went to regulars Blowing Bubbles, Dreaming Dreams, Scheming Schemes, who got some lovely Ted Baker body spray and shower gel as a belated Christmas present, courtesy of your fabulous Quizmaster...

And because no one team can win multiple prizes, that meant that Grafton stalwarts Squad 666 took the de-facto first place tab on the night...

They would finish in an honorable third place in the league, and we look forward to seeing them in 2012!

But the big drama on the night came as The Golden Snatches and Herpe New Year Ryan Braun would go head-to-head in a sudden death showdown to determine the night's second place spot, although ultimately it was the latter that walked away with the money...

Don't fear, that wasn't their full team (they only had 8 players during the quiz!)

And finally, the last people's prize of the year went to Edmond is a Douche Bag, who swallowed up the best team name prize after echoing the Quizmaster's sentiments about Narnia's crappiest young king...

Just give the kid some Turkish Delight, turn him to stone and be fuckin' done with it.

Our thoughts exactly.

The show continues with a fresh trivia league next year.... And by next year of course we mean next week!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday December 29th, 2011 scores:

49 Random Answers
47 Squad 666
45 Herpe New Year Ryan Braun
45 The Golden Snatches
45 Blowing Bubbles, Dreaming Dreams, Scheming Schemes
44 Our balls are dropping at the stroke of Midnight
43 Edmond is a Douche Bag
41 Kitten Party Meow Meow
41 The Golden Snitch
41 My wife can't wrestle but you should see her box
41 My couch pulls out, but I don't
38 Marilyn Says: this cool breeze is giving my chapped lips
38 Here for the beer
38 Clueless
37 Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy
36 Fellowship of the queefs
36 Braun's Secret Ingredient

Article of the Week - New Year's Eve

2011-12-29T00:01:00.000-06:00

New Year's Eve
As celebrated in Times Square; although Kiribati
is the first country to ring in the New Year

New Year's Eve is observed annually on December 31, the final day of any given year in the Gregorian calendar. In modern societies, New Year's Eve is often celebrated at social gatherings, during which participants dance, eat, consume alcoholic beverages, and watch or light fireworks to mark the incoming year. The observance of New Year's Eve generally extends through midnight of January 1 (New Year's Day).

New Year's Eve is an occasion celebrated with elegant formal parties and family-oriented activities; New Year's Day is a public holiday in the United States. Celebrations often center upon dropping or raising an item of worth during the countdown, especially in the East coast.

Since 1907 the "ball dropping" on top of One Times Square in New York City is a major component of the New Year celebration. The 11,875-pound (5,386 kg), 12-foot (3.7 m) diameter Waterford crystal ball located high above Times Square is lowered, starting at 11:59:00 pm and reaching the bottom of its tower sixty seconds later, at the stroke of midnight. (After fifty seconds has passed, the crowd will count down the final ten seconds along with the hosts of various New Year's Eve shows. Toshiba's Times Square advertising screen will also tell the viewers when the New Year officially starts, which debuted in the 2009-10 edition.) From 1981 to 1988, the city dropped a large apple in recognition of its nickname as "the Big Apple". Similar ball drops are performed in many towns and cities across the United States. The custom derives from the time signal that used to be given at noon in harbors.

Kiritimati (UTC+14), part of Kiribati, is the first location in the world to welcome the New Year.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "New Year's Eve"

Quizmas Comes Early! League Finale on Thursday

2011-12-26T14:21:00.001-06:00

It was an extra special week at the Ale House as Santa not only brought a Christmas themed trivia challenge but a guest Quizmaster as well. Man, that Santa is a swell dude.

There was almost a riot over Reverend Green Vs Mister Green and it was decided that since this is America, we'd use the American version of the game of Clue. We take Clue very seriously on this side of the pond, so don't fuck with us, or we'll send Mister Green over to beat someone's ass.

12 teams battled it out for the grand prize of my respect and the significantly less valuable Ale House tabs and ties were rampant as everyone stepped up their games. There were 7 total teams who were tied at some level of the competition, so every correct answer was valuable and needed.

The one man team Vas Deferens: A Tube Of Knowledge put up a competitive 23 and offered up some quality ideas on how to reduce possible cheating, they mostly involved kicking everyone out but himself, which would be an effective tactic for winning but not so great for repeat players.

Team My Wife Can't Wrestle but you Should See Her Box came in at 9th on 33 points, and while they just missed out on the top of the table, they were the crowd favorite and took home "Best team name" and all the accolades that come with that title. Well done gents.

Team We're All Getting Drunk Tonight….. Expect for the Pregnant People aka "the biggest trivia team ever" were a strong example of quality verses quantity coming in at 8th with 38 points, however, they were correct that New York is, in fact, not a town.

There was a massive 3 way (tie) for 7th place with Dirty Elves Toast Chests and Nuts, Dammit! Danube Waluigi…, and The Team Formerly Know As…. all scoring a respectable 41 points. However it just wasn't enough to overtake the leaders. Special shout out to Dirty Elves because I dig your team name, well played.

Moving into the top five, Dix n' Chix edged out of 7th by one point with 42 and once again proved that anything is cool with an "x"

The was another tie at 4th place with both Squad 666 and Santa and his Ho Ho Hoes on 43, a team cage match as suggested as a means to separate the two teams but due to time constraints, this idea had to be scraped, it's a shame…

Team Call 911! We got Sanduskied! missed out on the money by just one point on 45 which is really too bad because they could have used that money to pay for all the therapy they're going to need. Hit the showers, chaps… wait…. never mind…. maybe skip the showers this week.

Continuing with our theme of ties for the week, the top two spots were highly contested by Luckily, My Employer has no Herpes Test...

and Random Answers: You'll Shoot Your Eyes Out!

...both scoring a massive 46 points. We had to go to the tie breaker the settle this one and Random Answers showed that they were the best at randomly guessing the date of the opening of the first drive in movie theater, or maybe they had a team member who was actually there, you never know. Well done kids. Team Herpes Test… about last night, you should probably get tested...

Good Luck next week in the League Finale! Ryan returns to host!

Until next time Milwaukee, drink while you think...

Thursday December 22nd, 2011 scores:

46 Random Answers
46 Luckily, My Employer has No Herpes Test
45 Call 911, We Got Sanduskied
43 Squad 666
43 Santa and His Ho Ho Hoes
42 Dix n' Chix
41 Team formerly Known As
41 Dammit! Danube Waluigi
41 Dirty Elves Toast Chests and Nuts
38 We're All Getting Drunk Tonight… Except for the Pregnant People
33 My Wife Can't Wrestle, But you Should See Her Box
23 Vas Deferens: A Tube of Knowledge

Article of the Week - The Nightmare Before Christmas

2011-12-22T00:01:00.000-06:00

The Nightmare Before Christmas
Tells the story of Jack Skellington,
a being from "Halloween Town"

The Nightmare Before Christmas, often promoted as Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas, is a 1993 stop motion musical fantasy film directed by Henry Selick and produced/co-written by Tim Burton. It tells the story of Jack Skellington, a being from "Halloween Town" who opens a portal to "Christmas Town". Danny Elfman wrote the film score and provided the singing voice of Jack, as well as other minor characters. The remaining principal voice cast includes Chris Sarandon, Catherine O'Hara, William Hickey, Ken Page and Glenn Shadix.

The genesis of The Nightmare Before Christmas started with a poem written by Tim Burton when he was a Disney animator in the early 1980s. With the success of Vincent in 1982, Disney started to consider The Nightmare Before Christmas as either a short subject or 30-minute television special. Over the years, Burton's thoughts regularly returned to the project, and in 1990, Burton and Disney made a development deal. Production started in July 1991 in San Francisco. Walt Disney Pictures decided to release the film under their Touchstone Pictures banner because the tone was rather dark for children.^[2] The Nightmare Before Christmaswas met with critical and financial success. Disney has reissued the film annually under their Disney Digital 3-D format since 2006. Another stop-motion animated short, The Wrong Trousers was shown in theaters before the film.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "The Night Before Christmas"

It's almost Christmas... and you know what that means! (No quiz December 15th)

2011-12-09T19:00:00.005-06:00

It was an exciting night of trivia at the Grafton Ale House again on Thursday. The quiz saw a number of regular queeps back in action as well as some old veterans back in the fray.

Fat Guy in a little box, the quiz team formerly known as the J Plumbers and My Wife Shaved Her Legs & Wrecked 'Em were back after an all-too-long hiatus and took an admirable second place finish in the end...

Perhaps their return as a regular team for the early 2012 trivia league and re-assert their dominance in the Grafton trivia market!

Their near-perfect score of 48 points was only outdone by the even-nearer-perfect score of 49 from Pearl Necklace Productions...

Ultimately, with this being Quizmaster Ryan's last quiz before Christmas (there's no quiz next week - December 15th - and QM Ryan will be in London on the 22nd - a stand-in Quizmaster will host that night) it was a Christmas-inspired name that took the best team name gold.

The Christmas Queefs (cos we like how it sounds!) took $10 for their inventive name...

Yeah, Christmas, it's the best! ;)

The newbies walked out with a prize on their Quizmaster debut! Hope to see 'em back soon!

But, the QM also wanted to give a shout out to regulars ATM, Glory Hole... same thing (referencing the question about ATM's being called "a hole in the wall" in England), who came close once again to the team name prize...

Some of those ATM's can have ridiculous fees for sure!

As mentioned already, there will be no quiz on December 15th, although there will be a special Christmas edition of trivia on December 22nd at the Ale House. Hope to see all there!!

Until next time Milwaukee, drink while you think...

Thursday December 8th, 2011 scores:

49 Pearl Necklace Productions
48 Fat Guy in a little box
46 Random Answers
45 The reasons Albert Pujols went to the Angels...
43 ATM, Glory Hole... same thing
40 The Christmas Queefs
38 It's ok, #24 is the good guy, #8 is was the rapist
23 "My husband was no help"

Article of the Week - Traffic Lights

2011-12-08T00:01:00.000-06:00

The Traffic Light
Red and green gas lamps were first
introduced in London in 1868

On December 10, 1868, the first traffic lights were installed outside the British Houses of Parliament in London, by the railway engineer J. P. Knight. They resembled railway signals of the time, with semaphore arms and red and green gas lamps for night use. The gas lantern was turned with a lever at its base so that the appropriate light faced traffic. Unfortunately, it exploded on 2 January 1869, injuring or killing the policeman who was operating it.

The modern electric traffic light is an American invention. As early as 1912 in Salt Lake City, Utah, policeman Lester Wire invented the first red-green electric traffic lights. On August 5, 1914, the American Traffic Signal Company installed a traffic signal system on the corner of East 105th Street and Euclid Avenue in Cleveland, Ohio. It had two colors, red and green, and a buzzer, based on the design of James Hoge, to provide a warning for color changes. The design by James Hoge allowed police and fire stations to control the signals in case of emergency. The first four-way, three-color traffic light was created by police officer William Potts in Detroit, Michigan in 1920. In 1922, T.E. Hayes patented his "Combination traffic guide and traffic regulating signal" (Patent # 1447659). Ashville, Ohio claims to be the location of the oldest working traffic light in the United States, used at an intersection of public roads until 1982 when it was moved to a local museum.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Traffic Lights"

The English way - more girth! (Quiz continues next week)

2011-12-02T19:08:00.004-06:00

The trivia league rolled into the halfway stage this Thursday night at the Ale House in Grafton. A more subdued crowd got involved, as the usual three prizes were up for grabs again.

The night's top prize went to regulars Get off my Millennium Falcon or get me an MMMBop beer!, who now sit second in the table...

The evening's best team name accolade went to Is anyone else turned on my Velma's kneesocks? who peer-pressured the Quizmaster into giving them the bar tab...

And because here at Quizmaster we're all-inclusive we got a photo of Unlike you sofa, we don't pull out, who won absolutely nothing in the end...

Although they did have an interesting conversation with Quizmaster Ryan following the quiz about how English sausages (as in bangers people! - don't be rude!) are thicker. It's true - the English do have more girth on their meat!

And despite earlier reports of a cancellation, quiz night is on as usual next Thursday December 8th! Be there!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday December 1st, 2011 Scores:

48 Get off my Millennium Falcon or get me an MMMBop beer!
47 Randon Answers
45 Squad 666
44 Is anyone else turned on my Velma's kneesocks?
42 Two dicks, once chick, you do the math
40 Scoregasm
38 Unlike you sofa, we don't pull out
27 Golden Showers

Article of the Week - William R. King

2011-12-01T00:01:00.000-06:00

William R. King
The shortest-serving vice president, he is the
only U.S. executive official to take the oath
of office on foreign soil - in Cuba in 1853

William Rufus DeVane King (April 7, 1786 – April 18, 1853) was the 13th Vice President of the United States for about six weeks (1853), and earlier a U.S. Representative from North Carolina, Minister to France, and a Senator from Alabama. He was a Unionist and his contemporaries considered him to be a moderate on the issues of sectionalism, slavery, and westward expansion that would eventually lead to the American Civil War. He helped draft the Compromise of 1850. The only United States executive official to take the oath of office on foreign soil, King died of tuberculosis after only 45 days in office. With the exceptions of John Tyler and Andrew Johnson—both of whom succeeded to the Presidency—he remains the shortest-serving Vice President.

King was elected Vice President of the United States on the Democratic ticket with Franklin Pierce in 1852 and took the oath of office on March 24, 1853, in Cuba. He had gone to La Ariadne plantation, owned by John Chartrand, in Matanzas due to his ill health. This unusual inauguration took place because it was believed that King, who was terminally ill with tuberculosis, would not live much longer. The privilege of taking the oath on foreign soil was extended by a special act of Congress for his long and distinguished service to the government of the United States. Even though he took the oath 20 days after the inauguration day, he was still Vice President during those three weeks.

King was close friends with James Buchanan, and the two shared a house in Washington, D.C. for fifteen years prior to Buchanan's presidency. Buchanan and King's close relationship prompted Andrew Jackson to refer to King as "Miss Nancy" and "Aunt Fancy", while Aaron V. Brown spoke of the two as "Buchanan and his wife".

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "William R. King"

The Biggest and Wettest Lake in all the land! No Quiz Next Week!

2011-11-18T21:27:00.003-06:00

Quick reminder: Quiz Bowl II is coming this December:

Quiz night got a little rowdy this Thursday evening at the Grafton Ale House. $10 pitchers were flowing and there was a scare in the air, as sudden death round ensued to determine second place.

Grafton quiz veterans Squad 666 went head to head with Arnold Schwarzenegger put his Thunderballs inside Hilary Clinton, although the latter prevailed following the tie breaker question...

They teamed up with namesakes Hilary's Rod-ham for their post quiz pic.

In other news, it was Lake Michigan may be the biggest lake, but Lake Titicaca is the Wettest that took the best team name prize...

They were the week's people's champs!

And remember no quiz next Thursday due to Thanksgiving, but Wednesday 16th November the Grafton Ale House will have a DJ and $3 Miller Lite, craft beer and rail specials!

Quiz returns on December 1st!

Until next time Milwaukee, drink while you think...

Thurssday November 17th, 2011 Scores:

47 Random Answers
46 Arnold Schwarzenegger put his Thunderballs inside Hilary Clinton
46 Squad 666
41 Short Skirts, Long Hair, Mormons Flying Everywhere!
39 TEBOW: Great Quarterback or Greatest Quarterback!
38 Lake Michigan may be the biggest lake, but Lake Titicaca is the Wettest
33 No Namers
31 Hilary's Rod-ham
28 GNO or we really suck
27 Frozen Waffles
13 Point_Less

Article of the Week - Family Matters

2011-11-17T00:01:00.000-06:00

Family Matters
A spin-off of ABC's Perfect Strangers

Family Matters is an American sitcom about a middle-class African-American family living in Chicago, Illinois, which ran on national television for nine full seasons. The series was a spin-off of Perfect Strangers, but revolves around the Winslow family. Midway through the first season, the show introduced the Winslows' nerdy neighbor Steve Urkel (played by Jaleel White), who quickly became its breakout character and eventually a main character. Family Matters aired from September 22, 1989, to September 19, 1997, on ABC, and on CBS from September 19, 1997, to July 17, 1998.

With 215 episodes, Family Matters is the second-longest-running U.S. sitcom with a predominantly African-American cast, second only to The Jeffersons.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Family Matters"

We Beliebe in Samuel L.!!!

2011-11-14T10:35:00.003-06:00

It was another fun night of drinking and thinking at the Grafton Ale House this past Thursday, as queeps entered week two of the current trivia league.

And after a poor showing (by their standards) last week, Random Answers were back on top with a solid win this time out.

On the other end of the standings it was first timers The Beliebers who finished on 33 points...

The sad faces for their pic! Although we think they really did have fun and expect to see them back soon :)

Elsewhere, following the night's "Piranhas on an Escalator" picture question...

...it was Hatchling's on the Megabus! Starring Samuel L Jackson that took away the best team name prize...

If I were you, I'd just walk, or may be ride your bike.

The show rolls on as ever Thursday!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday November 10th 2011, scores:

48 Random Answers
45 Michell Duggar's Vagina is like Route 66 - Slippery When Wet
44 Squad 666
36 Hatchling's on the Megabus! Starring Samuel L Jackson
36 Who the Hell Cares?!
35 I looked on my phone and cheated, poop on you!
33 The Beliebers
33 Cubs Still Suck

Article of the Week - The Mayflower

2011-11-10T00:01:00.001-06:00

Mayflower
Departed from Plymouth England in 1620

The Mayflower was the ship that transported the English Separatists, better known as the Pilgrims, from a site near the Mayflower Steps in Plymouth, England, to Plymouth, Massachusetts, (which would become the capital of Plymouth Colony), in 1620. There were 102 passengers and a crew of 25–30.

The vessel left England on September 6, 1620 (Old Style)/September 16 (New Style), and after a grueling 66-day journey marked by disease, which claimed two lives, the ship dropped anchor inside the hook tip of Cape Cod (Provincetown Harbor) on November 11/November 21. The Mayflower was originally destined for the mouth of the Hudson River, near present-day New York City, at the northern edge of England's Virginia colony, which itself was established with the 1607 Jamestown Settlement. However, the Mayflower went off course as the winter approached, and remained in Cape Cod Bay. On March 21/31, 1621, all surviving passengers, who had inhabited the ship during the winter, moved ashore at Plymouth, and on April 5/15, the Mayflower, a privately commissioned vessel, returned to England. In 1623, a year after the death of captain Christopher Jones, the Mayflower was most likely dismantled for scrap timber in Rotherhithe, London.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "The Mayflower"

Kim, Kim, Kim! (QM Cup Next Sunday!)

2011-11-05T15:16:00.004-05:00

Just another heads up that Quizmaster Cup VI is next Sunday November 13th, and spots are limited! Register now to reserve your team's table!...

The beer and Kim Kardashian references were flowing in full force this Thursday night at the Ale House in Grafton.

The bar saw it's 21st trivia league kick off on the evening, with the previous league concluding last week.

And it turned out to be a tough night of quiz loving, as 43 points was all it took to secure the win for team Quizmaster Trivia's New Slogan: Come Horny, Leave Happ! (Mr. Wickens Come Here, We Want You). They defeated the formidable Squad 666 in sudden death.

But because we at Quizmaster don't discriminate, we got some photos of other on the night!

First up, Ka-Dash-Strophic (one of the many Kim references) rolled into a solid third place...

Quizmaster Ryan wants to see Sam wearing her Drink While You Think tee next time!

They outshone their friends on the adjacent table by just one point, as Did the Wrights Brother Fly Vermont into Kim Kardashian's Ass? finish with 39...

And the night's gong for best name went to the aptly named Kim Kardashian's a whore, who got a big shout from the crowd...

Good stuff!

The league continues next week! Sign up for the cup!

Until next time Milwaukee, drink while you think...

Thursday November 3rd, 2011 Scores:

43 Quizmaster Trivia's New Slogan: Come Horny, Leave Happ! (Mr. Wickens Come Here, We Want You)
43 Squad 666 - We demand more of Wickens' Inner Monologue -> Put yer dollars in his hat, bra!
40 Ka-Dash-Strophic
39 Did the Wrights Brother Fly Vermont into Kim Kardashian's Ass?
39 Random Answers: our favorite woodwind is the skin flute!
37 Kim Kardashian's a whore
37 We lost... shit
36 JEEP stole the slogan for my cock!!
33 Beer Induced Assumption of Intelligence
28 A&D Express

Article of the Week - Australia

2011-11-03T00:01:00.000-05:00

Australia
The world's sixth largest country is somehow
often confused by many Americans with England!

Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area. Neighbouring countries include Indonesia, East Timor, and Papua New Guinea to the north; the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and New Caledonia to the north-east; and New Zealand to the south-east.

For at least 40,000 years before European settlement in the late 18th century, Australia was inhabited by indigenous Australians, who belonged to one or more of roughly 250 language groups.^[14]^[15] After discovery by Dutch explorers in 1606, Australia's eastern half was claimed by Great Britain in 1770 and settled through penal transportation to the colony of New South Wales from 26 January 1788. The population grew steadily in subsequent decades; the continent was explored and an additional five self-governing Crown Colonies were established.

On 1 January 1901, the six colonies federated, forming the Commonwealth of Australia. Since Federation, Australia has maintained a stable liberal democratic political system which functions as a federal parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy. The federation comprises six states and several territories. The population of 22.7 million is heavily concentrated in the Eastern states and is highly urbanised.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Australia"

League Finale!! (Register for Quizmaster Cup VI NOW!)

2011-10-30T19:10:00.003-05:00

Just a quick reminder that Quizmaster Cup VI, Milwaukee's pub trivia tournament, is coming November 13th, with online registration now open!!!...

With Quizmaster Ryan out for the night (rumor has it he was volunteering his time at the local hospital saving babies, what a guy!), Quizmaster John took the reigns of the final night of league play at the Grafton Ale House this Thursday.

And after eight weeks of battling it out with Grafton's trivia elite, and coming in with a one point lead, Random Answers pulled off the overall league win....

They beat out Squad 666 by one point on the night and two points overall!

Congrats to both teams for being good sports throughout and taking it to the death once again! We know they'll be back to challenge for honors when the next league begins this Thursday!

And Ryan wants to see Madeline of Squad 666 sporting her "Quiz Me Gently" t-shirt next week!

Since it was a celebratory league finale evening third and fourth place also walked away with the honorary first and second place prizes. To their surprise, the crazy folks of Multiple Score-gasms (below) and the best lookin' team at the bar, Je Veux Coucher Avec Toi Ce Soir went home winners!

And then there was even a fifth prize (yes, 5 prizes on the night!) for best team name which went the way of Brew & Boobs Make Me Quiz In My Pants....

Although the majority of the masses went home winners, it was a somber evening without QM Ryan. But no need to worry kids!!! Ryan will be back next week!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday October 27th, 2011 Scores:

63 Random Answers: Tony LaRussa Is The Anti-Christ
62 Squad 666
57 Multiple Score-gasms
52 Je Veux Coucher Avec Toi Ce Soir - We Just Wanted You To Speak French
52 Fuck The Cardinals
52 Lets Go Trick Or Treating At Dustin Diamond's House
50 Show Me The MANet!!!
50 Flaming PuHoles
41 What Is This A Glee Marathon
41 Wolf Pack - GRRRRR
39 Brew & Boobs Make Me Quiz In My Pants
38 Screw Justin Bieber's Hair, I'm In Love With Is Eyes
24 Jackson

Article of the Week - Eva Perón

2011-10-27T00:01:00.000-05:00

Eva Perón
Affectionately known as Evita in Argentina

María Eva Duarte de Perón (Spanish: [maˈɾi.a ˈeβa ˈðwarte ðe peˈɾon]; 1919–1952) was the second wife of President Juan Perón (1895–1974) and served as the First Lady of Argentina from 1946 until her death in 1952. She is often referred to as simply Eva Perón, or by the affectionate Spanish language diminutive Evita.

She was born in the village of Los Toldos in rural Argentina in 1919, the fourth of five children. In 1934, at the age of 15, she went to the nation's capital of Buenos Aires, where she pursued a career as a stage, radio, and film actress. Eva met Colonel Juan Perón on January 22, 1944, in Buenos Aires during a charity event at the Luna Park Stadium to benefit the victims of an earthquake in San Juan, Argentina. The two were married the following year. In 1946, Juan Perón was elected President of Argentina. Over the course of the next six years, Eva Perón became powerful within the pro-Peronist trade unions, primarily for speaking on behalf of labor rights. She also ran the Ministries of Labor and Health, founded and ran the charitable Eva Perón Foundation, championed women's suffrage in Argentina, and founded and ran the nation's first large-scale female political party, the Female Peronist Party.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Eva Peron"

Happy Birthday Madeline! Legaue Finale Next Week! (QM Cup Tickets on Sale Monday!)

2011-10-22T13:04:00.005-05:00

Just a quick reminder that Quizmaster Cup VI, Milwaukee's pub trivia tournament, is coming November 13th, with online registration opening this Monday October 24th...

Another round of quizzin' got underway in the thriving metropolitan area of Grafton, Wisconsin this past Thursday, and it turned out to be interesting as ever.

And regulars Squad 666 celebrated a birthday on the night, although a win would have been a perfect gift for Maddie (left)...

They settled for second place in the end, and a Quizmaster "Quiz Me Gently" t-shirt for Maddy too!

Elsewhere, it was good to see the return of former Grafton trivia stalwarts Richard Stroke Me One More Time, who were back after a few weeks off...

Good times.

And newbies Bacon2 (that's squared), and Know it Ales had their own rivalry going on during the game, and teamed up for a massive post-quiz photo opp...

We hope to see them back soon!

And the "people's prize" for best team name was awarded to Pujols Takes Steroids in the Bathroom. Oh yeah, Fuck the Cardinals, who got the crowd vote upon the reading of their name...

And the current 8-week trivia league concludes next Thursday night! Two additional tabs will be up for grabs!

Until next time Milwaukee, drink while you think...

Thursday October 20th, 2011 Scores:

46 Random Answers
45 Squad 666
44 Pujols Takes Steroids in the Bathroom. Oh yeah, Fuck the Cardinals
40 Know It Ales
39 Richard Stroke Me One More Time
39 Bacon2
37 Go Rangers!
30 Godzilla Beermasters
28 We Don't Know Shit!

Article of the Week - Times Square

2011-10-20T00:01:00.000-05:00

Times Square
Formerly Longacre Square, was renamed in
1904 when the New York Times relocated there

Times Square is a major commercial intersection in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, at the junction of Broadway and Seventh Avenue and stretching from West 42nd to West 47th Streets. The extended Times Square area, also called the Theatre District, consists of the blocks between Sixth and Eighth Avenues from east to west, and West 40th and West 53rd Streets from south to north, making up the western part of the commercial area of Midtown Manhattan.

Formerly named Longacre Square, Times Square was renamed in April 1904 after The New York Times moved its headquarters to the newly erected Times Building, which is now called One Times Square and is the site of the annual ball drop on New Year's Eve. Times Square, nicknamed "The Crossroads of the World" and "The Great White Way," has achieved the status of an iconic world landmark and is a symbol of New York City and the United States.

The northern triangle of Times Square is technically Duffy Square, dedicated in 1937 to Chaplain Francis P. Duffy of New York City's "Fighting 69th" Infantry Regiment; a memorial to Duffy is located there, along with a statue of George M. Cohan, and the TKTS discount theatre tickets booth. The stepped red roof of the TKTS booth also provides seating for various events. The Duffy Statue and the square were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2001

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Times Square"

Randomly in #BeastMode Since 2008...

2011-10-15T13:45:00.003-05:00

It was an eventful trivia extravaganza this Thursday evening at the Milwaukee Ale House in Grafton. As well as the usual quizzin' festivities, the crowd was enjoying the Brewers decimate the Cardinals in game 4 of the 2011 NLCS, with frequent cheers ringing around the bar. We at Quizmaster would like to think that some of those cheers were quiz related too!

:)

And it was the fittingly-dressed crew of Random Answers that eventually took top spot, winning out in a sudden death round...

They busted out their best #BeastMode pose for their winning photo.

The sudden death round was actually a three-way (giggity) one in the end, with three teams tied for first, and ultimately league leaders Squad 666 took second after double-sudden death!

And the award for best team name went to Grafton trivia stalwarts I'd Put My Notorious B.I.G. in Lara's Croft, referencing a couple of the night's question in their name...

Raid that tomb baby!

Two weeks remain in the trivia league, with additional prizes to be awarded at the end!

Until next time Milwaukee, drink while you think...

Thursday October 13th, 2011 Scores:

45 Random Answers: AAAAHHHH Gotta Go!!
45 Squad 666
45 I Wonder if Marge Ever Gave Homer a Kwik E in the Leftorium
43 You're Just Jealous Because Americans Pronounce Words CORRECTLY!
42 He Fucked Roxanne, Which is Why It Stings When He Pees!
37 No Namers
34 Crash and Burn
32 I'd Put My Notorious B.I.G. in Lara's Croft
07 First Timers

Article of the Week - Ned Kelly

2011-10-13T00:01:00.000-05:00

Ned Kelly
The famed Australian outlaw was known
for his home-made suit of armor!

Edward "Ned" Kelly (June 1854/June 1855 – 11 November 1880) was an Irish Australian bushranger. He is considered by some to be merely a cold-blooded cop killer — others, however, consider him to be a folk hero and symbol of Irish Australian resistance against the Anglo-Australian ruling class.

Kelly was born in Victoria to an Irish convict father, and as a young man he clashed with the Victoria Police. Following an incident at his home in 1878, police parties searched for him in the bush. After he killed three policemen, the colony proclaimed Kelly and his gang wanted outlaws.

A final violent confrontation with police took place at Glenrowan on 28 June 1880. Kelly, dressed in home-made plate metal armour and helmet, was captured and sent to jail. He was convicted of three counts of capital murder and hanged at Old Melbourne Gaol in November 1880. His daring and notoriety made him an iconic figure in Australian history, folklore, literature, art and film.

In August 2011, anthropologists announced that a skeleton found in a mass grave in Pentridge Prison had been confirmed as Kelly's. Kelly's skull, however, remains at large.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Ned Kelly"

How Do You Like Your Quizmaster: British or Not?

2011-10-07T19:51:00.004-05:00

Another trivia spectacular got underway at 7 p.m. sharp at the Grafton Ale House Thursday night with some veteran and virgin faces turning out to drink some beer and win some beer.

It was a closely contested affair as usual, although on the evening twas the formidable Squad 666, who welcomed back their notorious soccer guru, that took top honor, only missing out on two points in the end. The Quizmaster opted to skip their photo opportunity as their faces have already flooded the QM photo archived from numerous previous wins!

The Quizmaster then turned his attention to second place, which resulted in sudden death following two teams tying on 46 points.

Ultimately, the league leaders (table in the sidebar) Random Answers would fall just short of second, with Who Cares If They Are Real or Fake? They are still MOTORBOAT-ABLE!! getting the closer guess to year that the World Series was first broadcast on the radio...

We believe the young ones came up with the name, which referenced the night's "real or fake boobs" picture question...

And again, that answered as a) Fake, b) Fake, c) Real, d) Real!!

A few new teams also joined the fray, with No Talent-Ass Clowns finishing on a credible 37 points on their first showing...

But as usual the queeps of Grafton fiercely contested the best team name award, with Buscemi eyes again a frequent topic of discussion. But ultimately it was newbies How Do You Like Your Eggs in the Morning? Scrambled or Fertilized? that took away the $10 tab via their creative team name thinking...

And although they got some help from the Quizmaster on the game, the name was all their thinking! Congrats to them, and we'll return next Thursday!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday October 6th, 2011 Scores:

47 Squad 666
46 Who Cares If They Are Real or Fake? They are still MOTORBOAT-ABLE!!
46 Random Answers
44 Big Tits McGee
41 How Do You Like Your Eggs in the Morning? Scrambled or Fertilized?
40 Hebrew Will Hammer the Diamonbacks
39 Chaz Bono's Angels
37 No Talent-Ass Clowns
35 No Namers
29 Buscemi's Parents Should Have Named Him Morpheus Cuz Those Eyes Are Dreamy

Article of the Week - One Thousand and One Nights

2011-10-06T00:01:00.000-05:00

One Thousand and One Nights
An Arabic manuscript from the folk tales;
known as Arabian Nights in English

One Thousand and One Nights is a collection of Middle Eastern and South Asian stories and folk tales compiled in Arabic during the Islamic Golden Age. It is often known in English as the Arabian Nights, from the first English language edition (1706), which rendered the title as The Arabian Nights' Entertainment.

The work as we have it was collected over many centuries by various authors, translators and scholars across the Middle East, Central Asia and North Africa. The tales themselves trace their roots back to ancient and medieval Arabic, Persian, Indian, Turkish, Egyptian and Mesopotamian folklore and literature. In particular, many tales were originally folk stories from the Caliphate era, while others, especially the frame story, are most probably drawn from the Pahlavi Persian work Hazār Afsān which in turn relied partly on Indian elements.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "One Thousand and One Nights"

Oops!! We Won Best Team Name Again!

2011-10-01T10:32:00.002-05:00

It was a night for newbies at the Grafton Ale House on Thursday as numerous Quizmaster virgins joined the fray to test their knowledge and win some moolah!

Among those were corner-huggers Ethan's Epic Bar Tab, who had a credible 39 points on their first ever outing...

We hope to see them back drinking and thinking next week!

They were joined by fellow newcomers Wildfish, who finished bottom of the pack but had fun nonetheless....

Happy to smile for a post quiz picture though!

Quizmaster also welcomed back the team known as Your Attitude Sucks! Hmmm... not you British dude :) who were full of banter on the night...

Always a good time when their in the (ale) house!

But, alas, none of those teams were able to snap up any prizes as first and second place were captured by old trivia stalwarts Random Answers and Squad 666 respectively.

Ultimately, the only other prize to be had on the night was the people's prize for best team name, which went to the always-impressively-named team known as Oops My Camel Toe is Showing Again...

That was in response to the Britney Spears picture questions, and was a real ringer during the team name reading at the end!

But seriously, if it's showing then cover that shit up!

;)

The league has hit the half way stage with only three points separating the top three teams!! It could be a nail bitter come the league finale on October 27th!

Until next time Milwaukee, drink while you think...

Thursday September 29th, 2011 Scores:

48 Random Answers
46 Squad 666
45 Whisper Sweet Nothing's of Birthday Sex into Alex's Ear at Midnight!
42 Oops! I Quiz It Again! Failed Trivia Theme Songs!
40 Oops My Camel Toe is Showing Again
39 Ethan's Epic Bar Tab
39 Sloan
38 Your Attitude Sucks! Hmmm... not you British dude :)
35 No Namers
30 Wildfish

Article of the Week - The Triple Crown

2011-09-29T00:01:00.000-05:00

The Triple Crown
11 horses have achieved the feat, with
Sir Barton (above) the first to do so in 1919

In the United States, the "Triple Crown" is usually the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, a series of three Thoroughbred horse races for three-year-old horses run in May and early June of each year consisting of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes.

While Daily Racing Form writer Charles Hatton is commonly credited with originating the term to reference these races in 1930, they were referred to by that name at least as early as 1923.

Only eleven horses have ever won the Triple Crown, none since 1978. Of the trainers of those eleven horses, Sunny Jim Fitzsimmons won the Triple Crown twice (the only trainer to do so), and another trainer, D. Wayne Lukas, scored a Triple Crown as a trainer in sweeping the 1995 races with different horses, the only individual to do so.

The three American Classic Races are collectively known as the U.S. Triple Crown. As of the completion of the 2008 season, the races have attracted 3,889 entrants (a figure that counts a given horse twice if it enters two of the races). Of these, 274 horses have won a single leg of the Triple Crown, 50 horses have won two of the races (21 the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes, 18 the Preakness and Belmont Stakes, and 11 the Derby and Belmont), and 11 horses have won all three races. The 11 Triple Crown winners are Sir Barton (1919), Gallant Fox (1930), Omaha (1935), War Admiral (1937), Whirlaway (1941), Count Fleet (1943), Assault (1946), Citation (1948), Secretariat (1973), Seattle Slew (1977), and Affirmed (1978).

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing"

Everybody Snuggle Now!! (Drink Specials Back!)

2011-09-23T19:43:00.005-05:00

Drink specials returned to the Grafton Ale House again this Thursday night ahead of last week's miscommunication which eliminated them for one week. $10 pitchers are now Thursday night's great deal for all queeps in G-Town!

And quizzers were out in full force, as regular Random Answers and Squad 666 took their customary spots for first and second place, respectively. But we have far too many photos of them so decided to move on....

:)

....Being defeated in sudden wasn't easy for the member of Let's Do This, who tied the too aforementioned teams on 46 points. But a few of their members jumped into the post-quiz picture of Vlad the Snuggler (referencing the night's question about Vlad the Impaler!)...

The QM requested a snuggle for the pic!

Being that we love to spread the love here at Quizmaster, we also snapped up Grafton stalwarts Shaken Not Stirred, who finished in the middle of the pack...

And newbies The Numerators rounded off the bunch with a score of 35...

We hope they return for another installment of drinkin' and thinkin' in Grafton next Thursday!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday September 22nd, 2011 Scores:

46 Random Answers
46 Squad 666
46 Let's Do This
44 Tomorrow You've Got 26 Chances to Get a Piece of a Crashing Satelitte... Good Luck!
42 Vlad the Snuggler
41 Shaken Not Stirred
39 Hot Moms
36 Two Guys and a Beer
35 The Numerators

Article of the Week - The Bay of Pigs Invasion

2011-09-22T00:01:00.000-05:00

The Bay of Pigs Invasion
A failed attempt by the CIA to
overthrow the Cuban government in 1961

The Bay of Pigs Invasion was an unsuccessful action by a CIA-trained force of Cuban exiles to invade southern Cuba, with support and encouragement from the US government, in an attempt to overthrow the Cuban government of Fidel Castro. The invasion was launched in April 1961, less than three months after John F. Kennedy assumed the presidency in the United States. The Cuban armed forces, trained and equipped by Eastern Bloc nations, defeated the invading combatants within three days.

The main invasion landing took place at a beach named Playa Girón, located at the mouth of the bay. The invasion is named after the Bay of Pigs, although that is only a modern translation of the Spanish Bahía de Cochinos. In Latin America, the conflict is often known as La Batalla de Girón, or just Playa Girón.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "The Bay of Pigs Invasion"

$10 pitchers are the new $2.50 pints! Quiz Recap!

2011-09-17T12:31:00.008-05:00

Well, it was by far the slowest night of quizzin' of the year at the Ale House in Grafton this Thursday night, as through some miscommunications the bar eliminated it's fantastic $2.50 pints specials...

HOWEVER, having spoken with the management and lobbied for the loyal quiz peeps of Grafton, the Ale House will now be offering $10 pitchers for all players on Thursday nights. And with about 3 1/2 to 4 beers per pitcher, it's virtually the same deal as before....

That works out (ounce-for-ounce) to be around $2.75 per pint, depending on how much head you like (giggity). And with quiz being such a fun group event, we have a feeling queeps will be more than happy with the new deal!!!

Anyway, the show went on, and the quiz league continued, with Squad 666 taking top honors on the night...

Top of the league table after two weeks!

Second place was more closely contested, but quiz veterans Random Answers (who had their own feeling about the specials on the night) took the honours after a tricky sudden death round.

And keeping with the theme, the night's best team name gong went to regulars - This Just In - Thursday nights no longer a recession buster at the Ale House. $5 pints are gone and so are the crowds!...

But, hey! That's about to change again as $10 pitchers get introduced this Thursday!

Join us again Grafton!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday September 15th, 2011 Scores:

46 Squad 666
43 Random Answers: $5 pints... you can not be serious!
43 $5 Beer? Feels Like We're Trapped in the Desert for 40 Years!
41 - This Just In - Thursday nights no longer a recession buster at the Ale House. $5 pints are gone and so are the crowds!
39 The No Names
38 English Lads Make Me Glad!
19 Cedar Beach Crazies

Article of the Week - Geri Halliwell

2011-09-15T00:01:00.000-05:00

Geraldine Halliwell
Better known as Ginger Spice!

Geraldine Estelle "Geri" Halliwell (born 6 August 1972) is an English pop singer-songwriter, author, actress and philanthropist. After coming to international prominence in the late 1990s as Ginger Spice, a member of the girl group the Spice Girls, Halliwell launched her solo career in 1998 and released her album Schizophonic.

Halliwell first found fame as one of the five members of the girl group the Spice Girls, and was dubbed "Ginger Spice" by Top of the Pops magazine in 1996. Geri became renowned for wearing outrageous stage costumes and often garnered extensive publicity. The group sold over 65 million records and are the best selling girl group of all time. Their debut single "Wannabe" became the first of nine number-ones in the United Kingdom and reached the top position in 41 countries around the globe, including Australia, Canada and the United States.

On 30 May 1998, Halliwell left the Spice Girls due to depression and differences between the group. The first official confirmation was an announcement to the media by her solicitor on 31 May. Her action aroused controversy, her former group being due to embark on a North American tour, which they eventually completed without her. Although she had already left the group, the Spice Girls released "Viva Forever", the final music video to feature Halliwell's likeness.

In 1999, she wrote an autobiography If Only, in which described her life as a Spice Girl.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Geri Halliwell"

Quiz League 20 Begins! No Quiz on Thursday (Packers game!)

2011-09-05T14:55:00.005-05:00

Note: Just a heads up that there will be no quiz at the Milwaukee Ale House in Grafton this upcoming Thursday September 8th, 2011 as the Packers vs Saints game will be taking over the entire state! We will return to trivia action on Thursday September 15th, 2011 at 7pm. See you all then!

It was the start of the 20th trivia league at the Milwaukee Ale House in Grafton this past Thursday. Since the bar's inception of Quizmaster in the summer of 2008, this past Thursday marked the beginning of league 20, at it was a rowdy show indeed!

That was marked mostly by the metropolis team of Whisper Sweet Nothing's of Birthday Sex in Melissa's Ear, who were really taking the drinking aspect of Quizmaster's motto very seriously...

We like their style! They also won the night's $10 tab prize for best team name!

Elsewhere, at the top of the standing it was the Anchorman-referencing San Diego of course means "Whale's Vagina" that took a (shock) win and $45 went their way....

So, they will sit top of the standings after one week of league play, but with seven weeks to go, remember it's a marathon not a sprint!

Just remember to keep a consistent team name throughout the league (or tell the QM when you change it) so we can track your team's score!

Until next week Grafton, drink while you think!

Thursday September 1st, 2011 Scores:

46 San Diego of course means "Whale's Vagina"
44 Squad 666
44 Random Answers
44 Whisper Sweet Nothing's of Birthday Sex in Melissa's Ear
41 S2, S3, S4 Keeps My Penis off the Floor
38 Eleanor Rigby was a Whore!
37 Scoregasming With Buscemi Eyes!
35 How Many Times Do You Think Tim Robbins Dropped the Soap During Filming!
33 No Namers
29 Quizinator XJ-9000x

Article of the Week - Kinetoscope

2011-09-01T00:01:00.002-05:00

Kinetoscope
On this day in 1897, Thomas Edison patents
the first movie projector.

The Kinetoscope is an early motion picture exhibition device. Though not a movie projector—it was designed for films to be viewed individually through the window of a cabinet housing its components—the Kinetoscope introduced the basic approach that would become the standard for all cinematic projection before the advent of video: it creates the illusion of movement by conveying a strip of perforated film bearing sequential images over a light source with a high-speed shutter.

First described in conceptual terms by U.S. inventor Thomas Edison in 1888, it was largely developed by his employee William Kennedy Laurie Dickson between 1889 and 1892. Dickson and his team at the Edison lab also devised the Kinetograph, an innovative motion picture camera with rapid intermittent, or stop-and-go, film movement, to photograph movies for in-house experiments and, eventually, commercial Kinetoscope presentations.

On April 14, 1894, the first commercial exhibition of motion pictures in history was given in New York City, using ten Kinetoscopes. Instrumental to the birth of American movie culture, the Kinetoscope also had a major impact in Europe; its influence abroad was magnified by Edison's decision not to seek international patents on the device, facilitating numerous imitations of and improvements on the technology. In 1895, Edison introduced the Kinetophone, which joined the Kinetoscope with a cylinder phonograph. Film projection, which Edison initially disdained as financially nonviable, soon superseded the Kinetoscope's individual exhibition model. Many of the projection systems developed by Edison's firm in later years would use the Kinetoscope name.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Kinetoscope"

A Perfect 65! (Pirate Cruise this Sunday!)

2011-08-26T09:52:00.003-05:00

Shiver Me Timbers! The Quizmaster Pirate Cruise be this Sunday at 2pm! We be still 'ccepting pirate who can sign up here! Aargh!

History was in the making at the Grafton Ale House this Thursday night. Since Quizmaster's inception in 2006 only three teams have ever recorded a perfect score. This Thursday, defending league champions and Grafton pub quiz veterans, Random Answers achieved the feat by scoring 65 from 65 points....

That score also propelled them to league glory on the night, successfully defending their title.

Congrats to them!

The race for second place in the league was more closely contested, but ultimately the lovely lads and lasses from Squad 666 gladly settled for the runners-up spot...

And with those top league finishers finishing first and second on the night, the nightly prizes were passed down to the next teams - spreading the wealth at the Ale House!

The best team name prize (aka the pity prize) was still out there though and last-place-finishing My Couch Might Pull Out, But I Don't were vying for the $10...

All they got in the end was lovely sideways picture on this blog...

And, by the way, you "might" pull out? You either pull out or you don't!

:)

The prize for best name in the end went to a team referencing a combination of the night's question topics in the shape and form of Ryan Has It His Way With Mary Poppins. Mm Mm Good...

Yes, "Mm Mm" is exactly how we'd describe it.

The Pirate Cruise is Sunday! Be aboard! Oh, and a new quiz league begins at the Ale House next Thursday!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday August 25th, 2011 Scores:

65 Random Answers: I Thought San Francisco Was the City of Brotherly Love
63 Squad 666
61 Quiz Ya - Failed Trivia Theme Songs: Final Edition
60 Wickens Without Looking at Watch, What time is it in London?
58 Mary's Poppin' My Thundercat...HOE!!!
55 Go Big or Go Home
52 Quench Your Thirst, Have It Your Way & Put a Tiger in Your Tank
50 Los Chingonas
49 Ryan Has It His Way With Mary Poppins. Mm Mm Good
44 My Couch Might Pull Out, But I Don't

Article of the Week - Otis Redding

2011-08-25T00:01:00.000-05:00

Otis Redding
(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay
was the first posthumous number one
single in U.S. chart history

Otis Ray Redding, Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American soul singer-songwriter and record producer. Born in Dawson and later moved to Macon, he began touring with blues guitarist Johnny Jenkins and served as the lead singer in the band Otis Redding and The Pinetoppers. He signed a contract with record label Stax Records and released his debut album Pain in My Heart in 1964. This album produced several successful singles, including "These Arms of Mine".

Although he was not very successful among white audiences in the United States, his concerts in Europe established the opposite. His performance at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967 was one of his last big concerts until his death in a plane crash at the age of 26, one month before the release of his biggest hit, "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay", which sold about 4 million copies worldwide.

Redding was survived by his wife Zelma, mother and father, his daughter Karla and his sons Dexter and Otis III. In 2007, a memorial plaque was placed on the lakeside deck of the Madison convention center, Monona Terrace. "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" was released (with the place-holding whistling intact) in January 1968 and became Redding's only number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100, and the first posthumous number one single in U.S. chart history.

Redding is seen to be one of the major figures in soul/R&B and this eventually resulted to the honorific nickname of "King of Soul", a title also given to American musicians James Brown and Sam Cooke.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Otis Redding"

Quizzers Can Read Good. Pirate Cruise Next Sunday, Spots Low!

2011-08-20T22:30:00.004-05:00

Aargh! The Quizmaster Pirate Cruise be just about a week away! Mateys be signin' up now, with only room for 150 pirates - 50 percent sold out already!....

What a night of trivia last night, as QM Kevin filled in once again for QM Ryan, and the teams did not disappoint as all but one team scored above 41 points! With a tie at the top of the table sudden death would be needed to determine the nightly winner. The question:

In which year did Rwanda declare its independence from Belgium?

What is this, a quiz for ants?! (referencing the Zoolander film quote question) answered 1976, but would fall just short as Random Answers would take the top honors with their answer of 1969, which was closest to the correct answer of 1962...

Congrats on the win!

But Quiz for Ants would not go home empty handed as they took second place and the $20 gift card...

The final prize to give away was the best team name and it was no contest as the sole member of Squad 666 would take the win with the biggest round of applause from the audience for his name, An Army of One...

41 points was a great job for a solo quiz!

Thanks to everyone who stopped out and QM Ryan will return next week!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday August 18th, 2011 Scores:

48 Random Answers: Clubber do you have a prediction for tonight's fight... "Prediction PAIN!!!"
48 What is this, a quiz for ants?!
45 Erin thinks they speak "American" in South America (failed trivia songs)
44 My favorite Motown group is Marvin Gaye and the Rainbow Gang
42 The Good, Bad, the Ugly
41 An Army of One (Squad 666)
39 Sacajawea meets the Fockers

Article of the Week - Harrison Ford

2011-08-18T00:01:00.000-05:00

Harrison Ford
Portrayed Tom Clancy's character Jack Ryan in
both Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger

Harrison Ford (born July 13, 1942) is an American film actor and producer. He is famous for his performances as Han Solo in the original Star Wars trilogy and as the title character of the Indiana Jones film series. Ford is also known for his roles as Rick Deckard in Blade Runner, John Book in Witness and Jack Ryan in Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger. His four-decade career also includes roles in several other Hollywood blockbusters, including Presumed Innocent, The Fugitive, Air Force One, and What Lies Beneath. At one point, three of the top five box-office hits of all time included one of his roles. Five of his films have been inducted into the National Film Registry.

In 1997, Ford was ranked No.1 in Empire's "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" list. As of July 2008, the United States domestic box office grosses of Ford's films total almost US$3.4 billion, with worldwide grosses surpassing $6 billion, making Ford the third highest grossing U.S. domestic box-office star. Ford is the husband of actress Calista Flockhart.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Harrison Ford"

Football Night in America! (Pirate Cruise on August 28!)

2011-08-16T11:57:00.002-05:00

Aargh! Me quiz hearties be invited to peer into the depths of Lake Michigan aboard the 1st annual Quizmaster Pirate Cruise. Mateys be signin' up now, with only room for 150 pirates....

With the NFL season officially underway, and the Brewers hitting their stride, the crowd came out to the Grafton Ale House to test their quiz knowledge this past Thursday night. QM Kevin was again filling in for QM Ryan and was witness to a very tough bonus round of Useless Knowledge with most teams scoring 4 out of 7 or fewer points.

That last round would set up sudden death as three teams were tied at 41 points. The sudden death question: How many stitches are there on a baseball? Now here's where there was some dispute. Some say (MLB included) that there are 108 double stitches, however, if one counts every individual stitch on a baseball, there are 216 (coincidentally double 108). But, since we're going with the official source, Major League Baseball, we went with the answer of 108. Phew!

So, with that explanation out of the way, the team with the closest answer to the correct answer of 108 was Look at her face, Isn't she cute with their answer of 84 stitches. Congratulations on your $40 gift card win!

In second place, taking a $20 gift card, was Squad 333 (who was half of their regular team) with their answer of 144...

As for best team name on the night, with the best laugh coming for the name Albert likes it in the Pujols, they would take the $10 gift card...

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday August 11th, 2011 Scores:

41 Look at her face, Isn't she cute 84
41 Squad 333 We take on all comers, and come on all takers 144
41 Barney & Betty Rubble named their kid after bedroom noises --- Bam! Bam! aka. Failed Trivia Theme Songs 280
40 3 Musket Beers
39 Remember when the Packers won the Superbowl?
38 Random Answers "My name is Zeus. Not Jesus. What do you think, I'm Puerto Rican?"
38 149 out of 150 students recommend Aruba for vacation
37 The stock market is soft like my stalker's dick
37 Albert likes it in the Pujols
31 Night's Watch

Article of the Week - At Last

2011-08-11T00:01:00.000-05:00

At Last
Originally written for the musical film
Orchestra Wives, it was covered by Etta James

"At Last" is a 1941 song written by Mack Gordon and Harry Warren for the musical film Orchestra Wives, starring George Montgomery and Ann Rutherford. It was performed in the film and on record by Glenn Miller and his orchestra, with vocals by Ray Eberle and Pat Friday. Unreleased recordings of the song, however, had been made in 1941 by Glenn Miller for possible inclusion in the film Sun Valley Serenade. A new version was recorded by Glenn Miller and His Orchestra in Chicago on May 20, 1942 and released by RCA Victor Records as a 78 single, catalogue number 27934-B, backed with the A side "(I've Got a Gal In) Kalamazoo". The song reached number 9 on the Billboard pop charts in 1942, staying on the charts for 9 weeks, and later became a standard. In 1960, it was covered by blues singer Etta James in an arrangement that improvised on Warren's melody. James' version was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999.

The song became James's signature song and was the third in a string of successful songs from her Chess Records debut album At Last!. In April 1961, it became her second number 2 R&B hit and crossed over to pop radio, reaching number 47 on the Billboard Hot 100. Despite its rather low pop chart standing, the song is well-known and is still played regularly on oldies radio stations.

In the decades since its release it has been covered by a number of artists. The Etta James version is perhaps the most famous, and is known to be performed at weddings and wedding receptions because of its romantic lyrics and sweeping orchestration.

On January 20, 2009, President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama danced to various renditions of the song at each of the 10 official balls honoring his inauguration.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "At Last"

Oh, It's Hillary!!

2011-08-08T23:53:00.004-05:00

It was a great night of quizzing at the Grafton Ale House as QM Kevin stepped in for QM Ryan this past Thursday. And with 7 of the 11 teams scoring 40 points or better, it was a very competitive quiz as well.

On the top of the table, with 48 points out of 50 possible points, it was That caricature isn't of Al Capone; we're pretty sure it's Hillary Clinton who would take the $45 top prize...

In second place, just one point behind the winners it was SQUAD 666 who would take the $20 second place prize...

Best team name on the night came down to the wire as well as QM Kevin put it to the audience to determine the winner between "Mercury is as poisonous as AIDS" and "Quiz" on me... A-ha -- See what we did there? who both got laughs and some groans from the audience. In the end, it would be "Mercury is as poisonous as AIDS" who would walk away with the $10 gift card...

Congratulations to the winning teams!

Until next time Milwaukee, drink while you think...

Thursday August 4th, 2011 Scores:

48 That caricature isn't of Al Capone; we're pretty sure it's Hillary Clinton
47 SQUAD 666
46 I'm so drunk, I feel retarded. Oh wait I am.
45 Random Answers
43 "Mercury is as poisonous as AIDS"
41 "Quiz" on me... A-ha -- See what we did there?
40 Captain Crunch and the Cereal Killers
37 "Neil! I wanna party with ya Neil!" (Saving Silverman)
39 You can Floyd my Mayweather around the world... in 80 days
33 Dangerous Duo
13 Wanda & Troy

Article of the Week - Skull and Bones

2011-08-04T00:01:00.000-05:00

Skull and Bones
Yale University's secret society

Skull and Bones is an undergraduate senior or secret society at Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut. It is a traditional peer society to Scroll and Key and Wolf's Head, as the three senior class 'landed societies' at Yale.

The society's alumni organization, which owns the society's real property and oversees the organization, is the Russell Trust Association, named for General William Huntington Russell, who co-founded Skull and Bones with classmate Alphonso Taft. The Russell Trust was founded by Russell and Daniel Coit Gilman, member of Skull and Bones and later president of the University of California, first president of Johns Hopkins University, and the founding president of the Carnegie Institution.

The society is known informally as "Bones", and members are known as "Bonesmen".

The Skull & Bones Hall is otherwise known as the "Tomb". The architectural attribution of the original hall is in dispute. The architect was possibly Alexander Jackson Davis (1803–1892) or Henry Austin (1804–1891). Architectural historian Patrick Pinnell includes an in-depth discussion of the dispute over the identity of the original architect in his 1999 history of Yale's campus.

The building was built in three phases: in 1856 the first wing was built, in 1903 the second wing, and in 1911, Davis-designed Neo-Gothic towers from a previous building were added at the rear garden. The front and side facades are of Portland brownstone and in an Egypto-Doric style.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the

Mamma Mia! It's Time to Grow Some Brains!!!

2011-08-01T22:46:00.004-05:00

It was an interesting night as ever at the Grafton Ale House again last Thursday night. The evening's quiz brought an almost perfect score of 49 points (from 51 on the night) from Random Answers, who are chasing another league championship.

Two points behind them was a new-look Squad 666 team, good enough for second place in the end...

The Chicks of Skillwaukee were anticipating a best team name win ('why not,' they said), but, alas, a picture on the Quizmaster website was as good as it would get for them...

:)

They were outdone by the ten-some of Gepetto Makes My Wood Grow, who despite all the Amy Winehouse and Anne Boleyn team name gags, stole the $10 tab for best name...

Last place but still a winner in the eyes of the trivia gods!

;)

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday July 28th, 2011 Scores:

49 Random Answers: Pump and Dump
47 Squad 666
46 Love Shack - It's a Little Old Place We Can Quiz Together... Failed Trivia Theme Songs
46 Steve Would You Please Stop Crop Dusting My Living Room With Your Pubes
44 I Didn't Know Anne Boleyn, But I Can Guess What She Did With That 11th Finger... It's an Anal Joke
44 Anne Boleyn Used Her 11th Finger While Giving My King Pin A Beefeater
44 Liz & Lindsey aka the C U Next Tuesdays
44 Our Mind is a blank... We Have No Team Name
43 While We Are Hitting Our Debt Ceiling, Amy Winehouse was Hitting the Floor
41 The Chicago Cubs Swallow
41 Is Arena Football Really a Sport?
41 The Chicks of Skillwaukee
37 Gepetto Makes My Wood Grow

Article of the Week - Trojan War

2011-07-28T00:01:00.000-05:00

Trojan War
Achilles tending the wounded Patroclus

In Greek mythology, the Trojan War was waged against the city of Troy by the Achaeans (Greeks) after Paris of Troy took Helen from her husband Menelaus, the king of Sparta. The war is among the most important events in Greek mythology and was narrated in many works of Greek literature, including the Iliad and the Odyssey by Homer. The Iliad relates a part of the last year of the siege of Troy, while the Odyssey describes the journey home of Odysseus, one of the Achaean leaders. Other parts of the war were told in a cycle of epic poems, which has only survived in fragments. Episodes from the war provided material for Greek tragedy and other works of Greek literature, and for Roman poets like Virgil and Ovid.

The war originated from a quarrel between the goddesses Athena, Hera, and Aphrodite, after Eris, the goddess of strife and discord, gave them a golden apple, sometimes known as the Apple of Discord, marked "for the fairest". Zeus sent the goddesses to Paris, who judged that Aphrodite, as the "fairest", should receive the apple. In exchange, Aphrodite made Helen, the most beautiful of all women and wife of Menelaus, fall in love with Paris, who took her to Troy. Agamemnon, king of Mycenae and the brother of Helen's husband Menelaus, led an expedition of Achaean troops to Troy and besieged the city for ten years because of Paris' insult. After the deaths of many heroes, including the Achaeans Achilles and Ajax, and the Trojans Hector and Paris, the city fell to the ruse of the Trojan Horse. The Achaeans slaughtered the Trojans (except for some of the women and children whom they kept or sold as slaves) and desecrated the temples, thus earning the gods' wrath. Few of the Achaeans returned safely to their homes and many founded colonies in distant shores.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the

Kansas, Nebraska, It's All the Same!

2011-07-22T11:55:00.003-05:00

It was a packed house upstairs at the Grafton Ale House this Thursday evening, as the quiz proved to be a lot easier this week than it was last time out.

And those regulars from Random Answers found themselves sitting at a table right next to the QM as their regular spot at the bar was occupied!...

It was good enough for a quiz win though!

The race for second place was eventually won by the team known as We Got Desperate. We Brought Dad...

The Quizmaster suggested that "Dad" pocket the entire $20 tab!

In other news, the people's prize for best team name went the way of Kansas or Nebraska... Who Gives a Shit?? following the night's question about Wichita...

The show continues next Thursday!

Until next time Milwaukee, drink while you think...

Thursday July 21st, 2011 Scores:

45 Random Answers
44 We Got Desperate. We Brought Dad
43 Squad 666 with Special Guest Quizmister Paul
41 I Got It From my Momma
40 Failed Trivia Theme Song Part III
40 Wyatt Earp Gives Great Mustache Rides
37 Shea Wants to See Your Privates Ryan (She's a Slut)
35 Jessica Simpson Isn't That Skinny... She Looks Like a Goomba
35 Who'd You Rather? Princess Peach or A Goomba With Steve Buscemi Eyes
34 Two Dudes With No Clue
34 Kansas or Nebraska... Who Gives a Shit??
33 Tonight Wasn't Our Night
25 I'm Fucking Matheeew Daaamaaaan

Article of the Week - Lars Ulrich

2011-07-21T00:01:00.000-05:00

Lars Ulrich
Originally came to the U.S. from Denmark
to train to become a professional tennis player

Lars Ulrich (born December 26, 1963) is a Danish drummer best known as the co-founder of the American heavy metal band Metallica. He was born in Gentofte, Denmark to an upper-middle class family. A tennis prodigy in his youth, Ulrich moved to Los Angeles, California at age sixteen to pursue his training, but instead of playing tennis, he ended up as a drummer. After publishing an advertisement in a local Los Angeles newspaper called The Recycler, he met James Hetfield and formed Metallica.

In April 2000, Ulrich became a vocal opponent of Napster and file sharing as Metallica sued the company for copyright infringement and racketeering. In July 2000, he testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee after Metallica's entire catalogue was found to be freely available for download on the service. The case was settled out-of-court, resulting in more than 300,000 Napster users being banned from the service. Due to his high profile role in Napster's legal troubles and subsequent demise, Ulrich faced significant criticism and ridicule from users of the service.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Lars Ulrich."

Digging for Gold at the Ale House...

2011-07-18T17:51:00.006-05:00

It was perhaps the toughest night of quizzin' ever at the Ale House in Grafton this past Thursday, as no team could score in the 40s in what proved to be a night of tough quiz love!

Although, as well as celebrating a birthday, it was Failed Trivia Theme Songs (aka "I Was Working as a Quizmaster in a Cocktail Bar -- Don't You Want Me Ryan?") that weren't complaining, as their measly 37 points was enough for victory...

Blurry picture, sorry!

The night's second place spot went to the usual suspects of Quizmisters & Quizmistresses, playing under the moniker of Jack Hoffman's Glory Hole....

And for those who may not know that name is reference to the following...

And it gets better...

In other news, it was the dynamic team of Dolphins Are Just Gay Sharks that stole home the prize for best team name, leaving $10 the richer!...

The show rolls on again on Thursday!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday July 14th, 2011 Scores:

37 "I Was Working as a Quizmaster in a Cocktail Bar -- Don't You Want Me Ryan?" - Failed Trivia Theme Songs
36 Jack Hoffman's Glory Hole (Quimisters)
35 Squad 666
34 Let's Hope, Hope Solo Takes It Off This Year!!!
31 Random Answers
29 Grizzly Adams DID Have a Beard!
28 We Like Being on the Bottom...
26 Is That Picture of Bill Clinton Distorted? Because I'm Pretty Sure that's His "O" Face?
26 Can't Remeber _ _ _ _!
22 Dolphins Are Just Gay Sharks
18 Casey Anthony Just Bottlenosed Us!
17 VQ2 = Virgin Quizzical Questers

Article of the Week - Eric the Eel

2011-07-14T00:01:00.000-05:00

Eric the Eel
Represented Equatorial Guinea in swimming
at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney

Eric Moussambani (born May 31, 1978) is a swimmer from Equatorial Guinea.

Eric Moussambani, nicknamed "Eric The Eel" by the media after the name first appeared in an article by Craig Lord in The Times newspaper in London, won brief international fame at the 2000 Summer Olympics when he swam his heat of the 100m freestyle in 1:52.72 and won, because the two other competitors were disqualified for taking a false start. So slow it was more than twice the time of his faster competitors, and outside even the 200m world record.

Moussambani gained entry to the Olympics without meeting the minimum qualification requirements via a wildcard draw designed to encourage developing countries without expensive training facilities to participate. While Pieter van den Hoogenband set a world record of 47.84 seconds to win the gold medal, Moussambani splashed his way to the finish to the cheers of the crowd in slightly more than twice that time. "The last 15 meters were very difficult," Moussambani said.

Before coming to the Olympics, Moussambani had never seen a 50m pool. He took up swimming only 8 months before the Olympics and had practiced in a mere 20m pool.

Moussambani was denied entry into the 2004 Olympic Games due to a visa bungle, despite the vast improvement in his swimming over the previous four years, with his personal best down to under 57 seconds.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Eric the Eel"

Nice Beaver! League Begins!

2011-07-12T00:08:00.009-05:00

It was another night of suggestive innuendos at the Milwaukee Ale House (Grafton division) this past Thursday as the bar's 19th trivia league got underway!

Despite the glories of Summerfest just several miles away, it was a full house upstairs and championship contenders Squad 666 (Your Truly, by the way) got their campaign off to a good start with a solid win on 55 points...

Second place was a tie between Never Gonna Quiz You Up! Trivia Theme Songs (referencing the musical talents of the man, the legend: Rick Astley) and Random Answers, defending league champs!

The unofficial gong for most fun and boisterous team went the way of front-row-seaters Your Jock Strap Still Stinks, although that award has no monetary value...

They were tearing up the quiz (literally) but also keeping the Quizmaster occupied!

And the people's prize for best team name (and a whole ten dollas, yo!) went to the aptly named Titanic Swim Team...

Too soon?

Nah!!

The show and quiz league rolls on Thursday!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday July 7th, 2011 Scores:

55 Squad 666
53 Never Gonna Quiz You Up! Trivia Theme Songs
53 Random Answers
51 Quizmisters & Quizmistresses
51 What the State of Minnie's Beaver
49 Big Ben Can Stick His Face in My Beaver!
45 The Big Kahunas
42 First Time Cheese Curds
40 Titanic Swim Team
35 Embarrassed We Don't Know the Last Answer!
33 Your Jock Strap Still Stinks
27 Why Are We So Bad at This?

Article of the Week - Minnie Mouse

2011-07-07T00:01:00.000-05:00

Minnie Mouse
Actual name "Minerva Mouse"

Minerva "Minnie" Mouse is an animated character created by Ub Iwerks and Walt Disney. The comic strip story "The Gleam" (published January 19-May 2, 1942) by Merrill De Maris and Floyd Gottfredson first gave her full name as Minerva Mouse. Minnie has since been a recurring alias for her. Minnie is currently voiced by actress Russi Taylor. Both Minnie and Mickey were first drawn in 1928 by Ub Iwerks.

The comic strip story "Mr. Slicker and the Egg Robbers" (published September 22 – December 26, 1930) introduced her father Marcus Mouse and her mother Margie Mouse, both farmers. The same story featured photographs of her grandparents Marshall Mouse and Matilda Mouse. Her best known relatives, however, remain her uncle Mortimer Mouse and her twin nieces, Millie and Melody Mouse, though most often a single niece, Melody, appears. In many appearances, Minnie is presented as the wife of Mickey Mouse, a close friend of Daisy Duck,^[3] Donald Duck's wife, and occasionally a friend to Clarabelle Cow. Minnie's sister, Mandie Mouse was a recurring character early on.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Nelson Rockefeller"

Ho, Ho, Ho! Quiz League concludes!

2011-07-05T11:27:00.006-05:00

It was an Urban Dictionary-inspired night of quiz at the Milwaukee Ale House last Thursday, as the bar's 8-week trivia league also came to conclusion on the night.

Yes, the Quizmaster debuted an Urban Dictionary bonus round that was asking questions about Santa's approval of your mother, sister and wife....

And after a near two month battle of titanic proportions, Grafton's trivial elite, and about 40 other regulars, were awaiting the conclusion of the quiz league, although in the end it was those vets from Random Answers that did enough to record another league championship...

SMILE!

Being the good sports they are, they gladly smiled for ANOTHER picture, and then quickly drank some more.

They were matched on the night with a score of 58 points by eventual league runners-up Quizmisters and Quizmistresses...

In the end, they were only three points back over the course of 8 weeks! The gap is narrowing!

And because both of those teams (top two in the league) also had the top score on the night, the weekly prize for first place was passed down to This Quiz Seemed to Have a British Slant... Good Thing I Wore My England Jacket!...

A default $45 bar tab goes down just as well as a regular one!

And the prize for best team name still remained, although the biggest and best chuckle went to What Do Cardinals Fans and Gay People Have in Common?... Both Love Pujols who recorded $10 for their efforts...

The show continues next Thursday with the start of a new league! A movie music bonus round is also expected!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday June 30th, 2011 Scores:

58 Quizmisters & Quizmistresses
58 Random Answers
55 This Quiz Seemed to Have a British Slant... Good Thing I Wore My England Jacket!
54 Squad 666
52 The Urban Dictionary...
49 We Picked Up a Dude at the Bar & He Answered All of The Questions For Us
46 Fanatics Refugees
43 I'd Rather Eat Pussy Cat Dolls...
42 We Put the Meat in Meat Loaf
40 It's My Birthday!!!
35 I'll Wiki Your Pedia
32 What Do Cardinals Fans and Gay People Have in Common?... Both Love Pujols
24 Newbies
20 My Dick is Better Than Your Female Sex Tool?
09 Would Have Won... But Kelsey Had to Poo

Article of the Week - Nelson Rockefeller

2011-06-30T00:01:00.000-05:00

Nelson Rockefeller
Was Vice President under Gerald Ford

Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller (July 8, 1908 – January 26, 1979) was the 41st Vice President of the United States (1974-1977), serving under President Gerald Ford, and the 49th Governor of New York (1959-1973), as well as serving the Roosevelt, Truman and Eisenhower administrations in a variety of positions. He was also a noted businessman, art collector, and philanthropist.

Rockefeller, a Republican, was relatively liberal and his views were often generally close to those of the opposing Democratic Party. In his time, moderates in Republican party were called "Rockefeller Republicans". As Governor of New York from 1959 to 1973 his achievements included the expansion of the State University of New York, efforts to protect the environment, the building of the Nelson A. Rockefeller Empire State Plaza in Albany, increased facilities and personnel for medical care, and creation of the New York State Council on the Arts. After unsuccessfully seeking the Republican presidential nomination in 1960, 1964, and 1968, he served as Vice President (under the 25th Amendment) from 1974 to 1977 under President Gerald R. Ford, but did not join the 1976 Republican national ticket with President Ford, marking his retirement from politics.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Nelson Rockefeller"

Apples! We Like 'Em! League Finale on Thursday!

2011-06-27T13:01:00.005-05:00

It was another rammed-house at the Ale House this Thursday night, as it was also the penultimate week of the bar's current trivia league.

The league will end this upcoming Thursday night with a special Urban Dictionary-style Urban Dictionary bonus round to feature!

On the night though it was those trivia troopers from Squad 666 that stole pole position, referencing a film quote from the night's bonus round, asking the rest of the crowd, how they like dem apples....

In best team name news it was the team named Are You the Quizmaster, Because I'm the Trivia Keeper! that got the QM's vote foe the $10 tab, and they were pleasantly surprised...

The show continues next week with the league finale. Five tabs up for grabs to five different teams!

Until next time Milwaukee, Drink while you think...

Thursday 23rd June, 2011 Scores:

47 Squad 666: How D'ya Like 'Dem Apples?
46 Quizmisters & Mistresses
45 Random Answers
43 Dear Wickens, Thanks for Bringing this Shit Weather Back With You From England
43 Right Said Fred: If I Have Enough Brutus, I'll Thump Your Tweety Bird
42 True Grit is Sex With Sand on Your Andy Roddick
39 Dick Diggler and the Rusty Trombone Quintet
37 Evil Knievel's Going in the Axis of Evil...
36 Mother Lovers
34 Better Luck Next Time!
34 Anthony Weiner's Photographs His Axis of Evil
32 Are You the Quizmaster, Because I'm the Trivia Keeper!
15 Cats Ass

Article of the Week - Les Miserables

2011-06-23T00:01:00.001-05:00

Les Miserables
The illustration on which the
musical's emblem is based.

Les Misérables, colloquially known as Les Mis or Les Miz, is a musical composed in 1980 by French composer Claude-Michel Schönberg, with a French-language libretto by Alain Boublil.

The English-language adaptation, with libretto by Herbert Kretzmer, opened at the Barbican Centre in London, England on 8 October 1985. As of 2010, it was in its twenty-sixth year making it the longest-running musical in the world. It is also the third longest-running show in Broadway history. In January 2010, it played its ten-thousandth performance in London, at Queen's Theatre in London's West End.

On 3 October 2010, the show had three productions running in the same city. The original show was running in London's West End; the Twenty-Fifth Anniversary touring production was running at the original home of the show, London's Barbican Centre; and the third version, the 25th Anniversary concert at London's O2 Arena.

Based on Victor Hugo's 1862 novel of the same name, set in early 19th-century France, the plot follows the stories of many characters as they struggle for redemption and revolution. An ensemble that includes prostitutes, student revolutionaries, factory workers, and others join the lead characters.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Les Miserables"

Buscemi Eyes? Yes, please!!

2011-06-19T16:46:00.002-05:00

Thursday night in Grafton meant Quizmaster at the Ale House again this week.

And Graftonites may be the most stylish quizzers or queeps (that's quiz+peeps) in all the land, epitomized by the fabulous boots of a certain member of team Squad 666...

Lovely jubbly!

The night's top honors went to the regulars of Quizmisters and Quizmistresses, who were asking Mr. Weiner "Where's the Beef..."

They took the $45 tab for first place courtesy of a win in sudden death!

Just missing out on the prizes with a third place finish in the end was We Keep Our Mustaches in Our Pants!...

A bit blurry (unlike their quizzing skills) but it was good to see them back in the quizzin' fold!

And the night's best team name accolades went the way of Is it Weird That the Picture of Princess Leia Turns Me On More With the Buscemi Eyes? who were referencing the night's Chicks With Buscemi Eyes picture question...

They spent precisely 31 minutes afterwards determining how to divide and spend the $10 bar tab between the 10 of them!

:)

Quizness continues as usual next Thursday!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday June 16th, 2011 Scores:

46 Quizmisters and Quimistresses
46 Peanut Butter May Be American... But That's What Makes Us Awesome
45 We Keep Our Mustaches in Our Pants!
41 Dick Dastardly's Mustache Makes Me Nut in Your Mouth, Not In Your Hand
41 Squad Dix Dix Dix, Weiner Pulled Out!
41 Right Said Fred: Obama Whacked the Weiner
40 Is it Weird That the Picture of Princess Leia Turns Me On More With the Buscemi Eyes?
39 Random Answers
37 Nixon Used His Ax Card to Buy Wendy's Burgers, M&Ms in Toronto and Needed Pepto the Next Day!
37 I'm Not Superstitious, Just a Little Stitious
35 I Think the Beef is Hidden in Ned Flanders's Mustache...

June's Poll Question...

2011-06-16T18:43:00.000-05:00

Would you be interested in a Quizmaster (boat) Cruise this summer?online surveys

Article of the Week - Trinity Test

2011-06-16T00:01:00.000-05:00

Trinity Test
Taking place in New Mexico, the Trinity explosion
seen here 0.016 seconds after detonation.

Trinity was the code name of the first nuclear weapons test of an atomic bomb. This test was conducted by the United States Army on July 16, 1945, in the Jornada del Muerto desert about 35 miles (56 km) southeast of Socorro, New Mexico, at the White Sands Proving Ground, now the White Sands Missile Range. The date of the test is usually considered to be the beginning of the Atomic Age.

Trinity was a test of an implosion-design plutonium device. The weapon's informal nickname was "The Gadget". Using the same conceptual design, the Fat Man device was detonated over Nagasaki, Japan, on August 9, 1945. The Trinity detonation produced an explosive power equivalent to the explosion of about 20 kilotons of TNT.

The creation of atomic weapons arose out of political and scientific developments of the late 1930s. The rise of fascist governments in Europe, new discoveries about the nature of atoms and the fear that Nazi Germany was working on developing atomic bombs converged in the plans of the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada to develop powerful weapons using nuclear fission as their primary source of energy. The Manhattan Project, as the American nuclear physics effort was called, culminated in the test of a nuclear weapon at what is now called the Trinity Site on July 16, 1945, and the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki just a few weeks later.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Trinity Test"

Who Wants A Wiener?

2011-06-11T06:07:00.003-05:00

There was a running theme with the team names last night, and I think we all know what type of sausage it was!! Quizmaster Kevin B. stepped in for regular QM Ryan who was off in jolly ol' England for the week!

Drunk Again & Looking to Score joined the trivia fun all the way from Colorado, while Suck It LeBron summed up the general feelings of the nations NBA fans!

Team Right Said Fred won the funniest team name prize with If Mr Nosey's Nose was Down Lower Would He Be Mr Wiener? They definitely got the biggest laugh from the house...

First and Second place went down to a tie breaker between Wiener Cut Short And Left Hanging and the Random Answers crew as they both finished tied on 41 points....

Wiener Cut Short And Left Hanging guessed closest on the question, taking home the 1st place prize while Random Answers took 2nd...

Quizmaster Ryan will be back next week!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday June 9th, 2011 Scores:

42 Wiener Cut Short And Left Hanging
42 Random Answers
41 Quizmaster & Quizmistresses
40 Squad 666
39 Howdah your golf balls fit in Mr Nosey's tee bag??
34 Right Said Fred: If Mr Nosey's Nose Was Down Lower Would He Be Mr Wiener?
33 Drunk Again & Looking To Score
31 My Monkey Paw
30 Suck It LeBron
29 The Survivors
28 Mortus Lente Ab Garo
19 B&J

Article of the Week - Pinkertons

2011-06-09T00:01:00.000-05:00

Pinkertons
Famous for foiling a plot to assassinate
president-elect Abrahama Lincoln

The Pinkerton National Detective Agency, usually shortened to the Pinkertons, is a private U.S. security guard and detective agency established by Allan Pinkerton in 1850. Pinkerton became famous when he claimed to have foiled a plot to assassinate president-elect Abraham Lincoln, who later hired Pinkerton agents for his personal security during the Civil War. Pinkerton's agents performed services ranging from security guarding to private military contracting work. At its height, the Pinkerton National Detective Agency employed more agents than there were members of the standing army of the United States of America, causing the state of Ohio to outlaw the agency due to fears it could be hired as a private army or militia. Pinkerton was the largest private law enforcement organization in the world at the height of its power.

During the labor unrest of the late 19th century and early 20th century, businessmen hired the Pinkerton Agency to provide agents that would infiltrate unions, to supply guards to keep strikers and suspected unionists out of factories, and sometimes to recruit goon squads to intimidate workers.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Pinkerton National Detective Agency"

Birthday Bash, Sudden Death Smash!

2011-06-04T13:16:00.003-05:00

It was a birthday-bashing night of pub trivia upstairs at the Grafton Ale House on Thursday. The QM was wishing a joyous happy birthday to Jim of The Dead Rabbits who were split into a few teams during the game but combined in the end for a big photo...

And they even provided FREE cake for the Quizmaster, although he didn't oblige with some free answers or a best team name tab. "Dead Rabbits" would have been a stretch for the latter...

:)

Speaking of best team name, it was the female duo of We Hate Sports Questions who got the best laughed from the crowd, and went away $10 the richer....

In big-money, top of the standings news it was those Squad 666 members (fans of Fernando Torres; we think not) that broke their duck of not winning for while with a solid 46 point-haul on the night...

Good enough for $45!

And second place went to sudden death as familiar faces Random Answers and the Quimisters went head-to-head after tying on 45 points. They had to simply get closest to the number of carats on the Hope Diamond. Those Random Answers thought 581 carats would suffice, but Quizmisters answer of 51 was closer to the actual answer of 46 carats and thus good enough for second place....

The show and league rolls on next Thursday with a different Quizmaster stepping in for Ryan who's off to London (L-to-tha-izzle) for a week!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday June 2nd, 2011 Scores:

46 Squad 666 (El Nino Like a Nice Toad in the Hole)
45 Quizmisters, Mistresses + the Mrs.
45 Random Answers
42 Wickens Must be Honored That Arctic Monkeys Used His Personal Motto for the New Album Title. "Suck It and See"
42 The Dead Rabbits
37 Vaffanculo!
35 We Hate Sports Questions!
31 The Bee-Otches
24 Weiner's Weiner
21 Reunited Friends of America
16 WINNING! (from a Goddess)

Article of the Week - Gene Simmons

2011-06-02T00:01:00.000-05:00

Gene Simmons
Was born Chaim Witz in Israel in 1949

Gene Simmons (born Chaim Witz; August 25, 1949) is an Israeli American rock bassist, singer, songwriter, musician, actor, and businessman. Known as "The Demon," he is the bassist/vocalist of Kiss, a hard rock band he co-founded in the early 1970s.

Chaim Witz (later Gene Simmons) was born in Tirat Carmel, Haifa, Israel in 1949. The family emigrated to Jackson Heights, Queens in New York City when he was eight years old. His mother Flóra Klein (was born in Jánd, Hungary). The German name Klein (means: small) translates to Hungarian as Kiss, that gave the rock band's name. Florence and her brother, Larry Klein, were the only members of the family to survive the Holocaust. His father, Feri Witz, also Hungarian-born remained in Israel. Simmons says the family was "dirt poor," scraping by on bread and milk. In the United States, Simmons changed his name to Eugene Klein (later Gene Klein), adopting his mother's maiden name. He attended Yeshiva Torah Vodaath in Williamsburg, Brooklyn as a child, from 7 in the morning up to 9:30 at night.

Simmons became involved with his first band, Lynx, then renamed The Missing Links, when he was a teenager. Eventually, he disbanded The Missing Links to form The Long Island Sounds, the name being a play on words relating to the estuary separating Long Island from Westchester County, New York, Connecticut and Rhode Island. While he played in these bands, he kept up odd jobs on the side to make more money, including trading used comic books. Simmons attended Sullivan County Community College in Loch Sheldrake, New York. He then joined a new band, Bullfrog Bheer, and the band recorded a demo, "Leeta"; this was later included on the Kiss box set.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Gene Simmons"

Flail Those Arms Grafton!

2011-05-28T18:03:00.007-05:00

It was Thursday night in Grafton, Wisconsin meaning another night of Quizmaster at the Ale House.

The quiz was joined by the antics of the Wacky Waving Inflatable Arm Flailing Tube Men, who finished second bottom in the end, but weren't afraid to demonstrate their team name in full...

The best team name prize went the way of What is Gaelic for "The Mile High Club?" Aer Lingus...

They were referencing the night's national airline carrier question.

Second on the evening was left to regulars Quizmisters & Quizmistresses...

They propped up a couple of spots in the league table after an impressive score on the night.

But again twas those Random Answers who took the big money and a first place finish to solidify their status at the table of the table...

Join us again next week for $2.50 pints!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think!

Thursday May 26th, 2011 Scores:

48 Random Answers
47 Quizmisters & Quizmistresses
46 Squad 666
44 What is Gaelic for "The Mile High Club?" Aer Lingus
44 Right Said Fred: Who the Hell is Alice?
39 Lincecum in My Posey
36 Trivia Titans
35 To Dumb Two
34 Wildcats Team
32 Wacky Waving Inflatable Arm Flailing Tube Men
28 Why Can't Americans Say "Craig?" They Say Creg? WTF... And Don't Even Get Me Started on "Jaguar..."

Article of the Week - Petronas Towers

2011-05-26T00:01:00.000-05:00

Petronas Towers
Located in Kuala Lumpur, they are
the world's tallest twin towers

The Petronas Towers (also known as the Petronas Twin Towers or, rather incorrectly, KLCC) are skyscrapers and twin towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. They were the tallest buildings in the world from 1998 to 2004 until surpassed by Taipei 101, but remain the tallest twin buildings in the world. The building is the landmark of Kuala Lumpur with nearby Kuala Lumpur Tower.

The Petronas Towers were the tallest buildings in the world for six years, until Taipei 101 was completed in 2004. The height of the towers is measured to the top of their structural components such as spires, but do not include antennas. Spires are considered actual integral parts of the architectural design of buildings, to which changes would substantially change the appearance and design of the building, whereas antennas may be added or removed without such consequences. The Petronas Towers still remain the tallest twin buildings in the world.

Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower) and the World Trade Center towers were each constructed with 110 occupied floors – 22 more than the 88 floors of the Petronas Towers. Willis Tower’s tallest antenna is 247.4 ft taller than those of the Petronas Towers, however, in accordance to CTBUH regulations and guidelines, the antennas of Willis Tower were not counted as part of its architectural features. The spires on the Petronas Towers are included in the height since they are not antenna masts. Therefore, the Petronas Towers exceed the official height of Willis Tower by 10 m.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Petronas Towers"

Always #Winning at the Ale House...

2011-05-20T18:52:00.004-05:00

Another Thursday, another fun quiz night at the Ale House, and another dolla (dolla bills, y'all) for the Quizmaster.

It was good again to see some fresh faces in the crowd with Not Witty Under Pressure mostly new to the game...

They were joined by Team Edward, also new to the QM's antics...

While it was regulars (Right Said Fred) Mr Pringle Wants to Know, Who's Up for a Mustache Ride?, cleverly referencing one of the food and drink round questions, that took home gold for best team name...

Next time grow a mustache before you decide to use it in your team name. WTF people.

:)

And second placed Quick and Fast Just the Way You Like It teamed up with last placed #BI-Winning for their post-quiz photo...

Random Answers won on the night, but we didn't grab their photo on the night as we take their picture way too much. So much so in fact that we have an entire folder in the QM photo database under their name.

The show rolls on next Thursday with $2.50 pints all night!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday May 19th, 2011 Scores:

48 Random Answers
44 Quick and Fast Just the Way You Like It
42 Squad 666... Just Chicks, No Dicks
41 Not Witty Under Pressure
40 Quizmisters and Quizmistresses Are Coming Thick and Fast!
39 Right Said Fred: Mr Pringle Wants to Know, Who's Up for a Mustache Ride?
38 The Maid Polished the Sperminators Knob (Giggity)
37 Team Edward
33 Alexander the Gay Scored More than the Caucasians in Basketball
31 La Chuleta
30 #BI-Winning

Article of the Week - Heath Ledger

2011-05-19T00:01:00.000-05:00

Heath Ledger
Besides Peter Finch's performance in Network,
he's the only actor to win an Oscar after death

Heath Andrew Ledger (4 April 1979 – 22 January 2008) was an Australian television and film actor. After performing roles in Australian television and film during the 1990s, Ledger moved to the United States in 1998 to develop his film career. His work encompassed nineteen films, including 10 Things I Hate About You (1999), The Patriot (2000), Monster's Ball (2001), A Knight's Tale (2001), Brokeback Mountain (2005), and The Dark Knight (2008).

Ledger was nominated and won awards for his portrayal of the Joker in The Dark Knight, including the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, and the 2009 BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actor.

He is the second person (after fellow Australian Peter Finch) to win as Oscar posthumously (after death). the He died at the age of 28, from an accidental "toxic combination of prescription drugs." A few months before his death, Ledger had finished filming his penultimate performance, as the Joker in The Dark Knight, his death coming during editing of the film and casting a shadow over the subsequent promotion of the $180 million production. At the time of his death, on 22 January 2008, he had completed about half of his work performing the role of Tony in Terry Gilliam's film The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Heath Ledger"

Cock Vs Willy (League Begins!)

2011-05-13T15:18:00.003-05:00

It was a thrillin' night of quiz upstairs at the Milwaukee Ale House in Grafton this Thursday night.

As always, it was good to see familiar faces turning out for trivia, but new faces are fun too, and Wanna See Our Genius? joined the pack for the first time...

The Quizmaster said he's try to be gentle during their first time but couldn't make any promises either! ;)

We hope to see them all back next week.

In top of the table news, there was a clash of trivial minds as I Could Have Sworn the World's Largest Thermometer Was Up My Arse Last Week at the Doctor's Office tied at the summit with 43 points...

Their name disputed the question about that massive thermometer in Baker, California, but ultimately they walked away with the $45 prize for first place.

They had battled it out in sudden death with Right Said Fred - Chuck Norris is the Reason Waldo is Hiding, with both teams having to calculate the cost of a Ford Model N (the first mass produced car in the United States) in 1906.

Although Right Said Fred were happy to settle for second spot and $20 in the end...

But the big news on the night came in the fiercely contested best team name prize. It went to the wire between Teddy Roosevelt's Cock Never Had Morning Wood! and Just When You Thought It Was Safe to Go Back in the Water: Free Willy 5.

Both teams cleverly referenced questions from the night's game in the form of Roosevelt's one-legged pet rooster, and the tag line from the Jaws movies.

After having the bar cheer (literally) between 'COCK' and 'WILLY' in the end the $10 award went the way of Just When You Thought It Was Safe to Go Back in the Water: Free Willy 5, who threw up a huge applause themselves upon being announced as the winning recipient...

Good times!

The latest trivia league also kicked off on the night, and Quizmaster Ryan encourages teams to stick with a similar team name each week so he can track your score. The league will run for an 8-week spell with two additional prizes awarded at the end!

Until next time Grafton, drink while you think...

Thursday May 12th, 2011 Scores:

43 I Could Have Sworn the World's Largest Thermometer Was Up My Arse Last Week at the Doctor's Office
43 Right Said Fred - Chuck Norris is the Reason Waldo is Hiding
42 Random Answers: Touching Wood Nightly Since...1979
40 Squad 666
39 Osama Has Been Chosen for the Next Dancing with the Stars
39 Just When You Thought It was Safe to Go Back in the Water: Free Willy 5!
36 Teddy Roosevelt's Cock Never Had Morning Wood!
36 Wanna See Our Genius?
36 Hey Derek, "Sprechen Sie Dick"
35 Blood Bath & Beyond
35 "Knock on Wood" by the Viagras
34 Quizmisters & Quizmistresses

Article of the Week - Mont Blanc

2011-05-12T00:01:00.000-05:00

Mont Blanc
Located on the border of France and Italy

Monte Bianco or Mont Blanc Italian and French, (respectively meaning "White Mountain") is the highest mountain in the Alps, Western Europe and the European Union. It rises 4,810.45 m (15,782 ft) above sea level and is ranked 11th in the world in topographic prominence. It is also sometimes known as "La Dame Blanche" (French for "The White Lady").

The mountain lies between the regions of Aosta Valley, Italy, and Haute-Savoie, France and the location of the summit is on the watershed line between the valleys of Ferret and Veny in Italy and the Arve Valley in France.

The two most famous towns near Mont Blanc are Courmayeur in Aosta Valley, Italy, and Chamonix in Haute-Savoie, France—the site of the first Winter Olympics. A cable car ascends and crosses the mountain from Courmayeur to Chamonix.

Begun in 1957 and completed in 1965, the 11.6 km (7¼ mi) Mont Blanc Tunnel runs beneath the mountain between these two countries and is one of the major trans-Alpine transport routes.

The Mont Blanc massif is popular for mountaineering, hiking, skiing and snowboarding.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Mont Blanc"

It's League Finale Time!!

2011-05-06T12:19:00.003-05:00

After a one-week hiatus due to beer fest, it was the trivia league finale at the Grafton Ale House this Thursday night, as ten teams locked horns to compete against each other for five bar tab prizes!

And going into the night's proceeding it was those Random Answers who were top of the league table with just one quiz to get through. Would they do enough to seal league victory..

It did seem like Déjà vu for them as they lead going into the last league finale a few months but coughed up the title after buckling under the pressure...

;)

Hot on their heals for league supremacy were Quizmisters & Quizmistresses, hoping to steal the title glory away from their friendly Grafton rivals...

And Squad 666, defending league champs who were second in the league before the night's event, were looking for back-to-back title...

But in the end there was no drama this time around as Random Answers (with the help of earth, fire, wind, water and unfortunately the sucky-ness that is heart) kept their nerve and held onto the top spot.

In a turn of fate, Quizmisters & Quizmistresses leapfroged Squad 666 and finished as league runners-up!

But elsewhere, there were still prizes on the line for the night's game, and with the top two league finishers taking first and second on the evening, the top prize of $45 was passed down to White Saffron...

So, by default, they took first on the evening, but hey, default beer tastes just as good as the regular stuff!

And finally, in best team name news it was Oh... Wager Round, Not Reach Around! (referencing the wager bonus round from the night) that took the gong for most creative name...

All-in-all a good night, with a fresh league starting up again next Thursday night at 7pm sharp! Expect all the usual banter and $2.50 pints all night long!

Until next time Milwaukee, drink while you think!

Thursday May 5th, 2011 Scores:

46 Random Answers: With Your Powers Combined I am Captain Planet!
46 Quizmisters & Quizmistresses
42 White Saffron: There's No Carpet Only Hardwood
41 Squad 666
41 Swimmy, Swammy, Swanson? OH, Samsonite, I was Way Off!
35 Rough Year for Oceans: B.P. Oil Spill, Tsunami, Radiation, and Now BIN F'ING Laden
31 Osama Whooo???
29 Oh... Wager Round, Not Reach Around!
16 Kellaberet
11 Awesomer