Round 3 at the Old Pequliar on July 1, 2008.
Average score: 6.41/10 (17 teams)

Triangulation is my tip of the hat to Wikipedia’s disambiguation pages and those seldom-used tertiary and sub-tertiary definitions in the dictionary. I’ll give you three definitions, you tell me the word or phrase that fits them all.

Example: A Canadian music award, a Roman goddess, and Roger Ebert’s favorite film of 2007: Juno

1) a kind of wrench, something you can make from socks, and something you spank
2) a novel by Irvine Welsh, a byproduct of horses, and the opposite of rubber
3) a documentary by Diane Keaton, a place where nothing ever happens, and a place on earth
4) the author of The Bonesetter’s Daughter, a key on a calculator, and a George Hamilton accessory
5) the shipboard computer in a science fiction classic, a John Lennon song, and something that turns wine to vinegar
6) one third of a popular hip-hop trio, a product formed by the neutralization of an acid by a base, and what we talked about when we talked about nukes
7) something you’d see on a slot machine, a U2 song, and a name you’ll hear on Must-See Thursday
8) an Edith Wharton novel, a lake in Oregon, and a lifeguard on Baywatch
9) Christopher Martin’s hip-hop alias, the NY Times’ online sports magazine, and “the work of children”
10) a celebritot, a unit of Smurf measurement, and a Newtown Pippin

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Round 7 at the Old Pequliar on Feb. 5, 2008
Average score: 4/10 (8 teams)

1) What 1997 comedy, which shares its name with a fast food restaurant, includes an Academy Awards ceremony where the Best Actor nominees include Paul Newman in “Coot”, Clint Eastwood in “Codger”, Michael Douglas in “Primary Urges” and Steven Seagal in “Snowball in Hell”?
2) What 2005 satire, which takes its name from an early REM song, did David Denby describe as a “dirty-minded poison-pen letter to a country swollen with self-esteem” and compare to Election, Heathers, and Mean Girls?
3) What 2005 horror film, a remake of a John Carpenter movie, concerns the fate of the crew of the Elizabeth Dane?
4) In Ocean’s Twelve, Topher Grace says he “totally phoned in that Dennis Quaid movie.” What 2004 movie is he talking about?
5) What 2004 film featuring a raunchy version of the hokey pokey was director John Waters’ first film rated NC-17?
6) What 2001 comedy was adapted into a musical starring Laura Bell Bundy, which debuted last year in San Francisco before opening at the Palace Theater on Broadway?
7) What 2002 Cameron Diaz comedy, which shares its name with a U2 song, did film critic Charles Taylor declare “one of the flattest, stupidest, unfunniest sex comedies — as well as one of the worst all-round pictures — I’ve ever seen”?
8) Indie pop band Belle & Sebastian composed the soundtrack for what 2001 Todd Solondz film?
9) What 2004 film based on a comic book character did Guillermo del Toro direct between Blade II and Pan’s Labyrinth?
10) Who appeared in all nine of these movies?

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Round 2 at the Old Pequliar on April 1, 2008
Average score: 6.48/10 (21 teams)

1) When members of U2 and R.E.M. played at Clinton’s inaugural festivities as Automatic Baby, what U2 song did they play?
2) China discovered it had a population of about 60 million people when its first-ever census concluded in what year? (Julian calendar)
3) According to the Greek poet Hesiod, how many gorgons were there before Medusa got her head lopped off?
4) In English, what’s the only number with a name spelled with exactly as many letters as the number itself?
5) How many pillars of Islam are there?
6) According to musical superstition, a composer will die shortly after completing how many symphonies?
7) What song was the biggest hit from Prince’s “love symbol” album?
8) If you’re raised Mormon, how old are you when you hit the age of accountability, when you know the difference between right and wrong in the eyes of God?
9) What Jimi Hendrix song, which turns a couple of numerals upside-down, was featured on the Easy Rider soundtrack?
10) What risqué 1979 comedy was marketed as “a temptingly tasteful comedy for adults who can count”?

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“At This Moment” (Billy Vera and the Beaters) , “Baby Got Back” (Sir Mix-A-Lot), “Because I Love You (The Postman Song)” (Stevie B), “Creep” (TLC) , “Doesn’t Really Matter” (Janet Jackson), “Glory of Love” (Peter Cetera), “Greatest Love of All” (Whitney Houston), “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” (U2) , “Nothing Compares 2 U (Sinead O’Connor), “Out of Touch” (Hall & Oates), “She Drives Me Crazy” (Fine Young Cannibals), “We Are the World” (USA for Africa)

All questions start with “I.”

1) What 10-part documentary series shown on VH1 featured regular appearances by Lionel Richie, Traci Lords, Andrew Dice Clay, and Soleil Moon Frye?
2) In 2006, Greg Vaughan replaced Fabio as the spokesman for what popular condiment, which comes in regular and Mediterranean blends?
3) What #1 Billboard single debuted during the opening credits of the film Stand Up and Be Counted and was eventually used in a commercial for the Oxygen network?
4) What tourism slogan, created in 1977, replaced “Fun City”?
5) In 1964, when he agreed that the French film The Lovers was not pornography, Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart coined what 7-word pseudo-definition of obscenity?
6) What Cole Porter song, introduced in 1936, did Frank Sinatra first record on his album Songs for Swinging Lovers and eventually record as a duet with U2’s Bono?
7) The Google home page features two buttons under a search box: Google Search on the left, and what on the right?
8) What 1969 autobiographical memoir, which takes its name from the Paul Laurence Dunbar poem “Sympathy,” was followed by Gather Together in My Name, The Heart of a Woman, and All God’s Children Need Travelling Shoes?
9) What new wave song, featured in the movie Valley Girl, has been featured in commercials for Burger King and Ritz Crackers?
10) What six-word spelling rule doesn’t cover exceptions such as science, weird, neighbor and weigh?

Average score, 17 teams: 7.24

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Note: All answers contain the word “red.”

1) What Neil Diamond song became a #1 hit for UB40 in 1983 and 1988? Bonus hint: this may be my least favorite song in the history of recorded music.
2) On TV, her name was Heather, but Charles Schulz never named her in Peanuts. Who was the unrequited object of Charlie Brown’s affection?
3) What song was Prince’s first top-10 hit in the United States?
4) What city, known as the “bicycle capital of the Northwest,” is home to the only velodrome in Washington State?
5) What future sitcom star was a dishwasher in the 1940s at the speakeasy where Malcolm X waited tables?
6) What 1990s Showtime series featured David Duchovny running a personal ad asking for “stories of love, passion, or betrayal”?
7) The 1920s Yankees were Murderers’ Row. The 1930s Cardinals were the Gashouse Gang. What were the 1970s Cincinnati Reds?
8) What 1983 U2 album became the United Kingdom’s best-selling live recording ever?
9) What 1994 song by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, which takes its name from the epic poem Paradise Lost, was featured in all three Scream movies?
10) Sam’s Tavern near the University District [in Seattle, out of towners] eventually became what restaurant, the first in a chain of 307 nationwide?

Average score, 17 teams: 8.00

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