1.29.15 Rivershore Teams/Trivia/Tunes Recape

1.29.15 Rivershore Bar & Grill - Trivia

A month ago, deep in the heart of Clackamas County, on the banks of the Willamette River, a Trivia show and a Trivia Jockey hooked up for a magical night neither would soon forget. A week later, each reluctantly returned to the site of their first encounter, desperate for more, but knowing they could wake up any moment and realize it had all been a dream. A month later, here we are, frolicking and playing Trivia like we've been together forever. I don't know about you, but Dice has quite the crush on the Trivia show at the Rivershore Bar & Grill in Oregon City.

TEAMS: Discovering that the drive is indeed worth it, BRICK (75) easily won the "Chariots of Fire" race to the finish, before putting the competition away for good with a solid league score. DEATH BY MISADVENTURE (65) was like water and filled the room with correct answers. SCHWING (63) knows that Trivia is a (slow motion) marathon, so they waited for just the right moment to make their move...the final round! Rivershore regulars and trivia aficionados VAN OWLS (54) were feeling good going into the final round...some scores should never be messed with. Dice isn't the only one that enjoys baking desserts and drinking wine out of a trophy, the STANLEY CUPCAKES (52) found a dozen ways to make Dice's night extra special!

MORE-E discovered Dice's secret to scoring on date-night...Trivia! VICTORIOUS SECRET fills everything out beautifully! The in-famous ¡THREE AMIGOS! had a plethora of right answers. A plethora? A plethora.

TRIVIA: In a nation obsessed with beauty, who would have thought Harvard's $36B would make it America's most well-endowed university? Dice would have thought it would take at least a D-cup...wait, what?

Harvard leads America's list of endowments for colleges and universities with over $36 billion invested. Yale, Stanford, Princeton, and MIT round out the top five private school endowments. With more than $20 billion invested, the entire University of Texas system has the third largest endowment of any school, while the Texas A&M University System and the University of Michigan have each put away more than $8 billion making them the top three public institutions with the largest endowments.

The earliest example of endowment comes from the Roman Empire, when Emperor Marcus Aurelius created one endowed chair for each of the four major schools of philosophy. In 1502, the first collegiate endowments were established when Lady Margaret Beaufort, grandmother of Henry VIII, established "endowed chairs" of divinity at Oxford and Cambridge Universities. Henry VIII would go on to create the Regius Professorships at both universities. The endowed Lucasian Chair of Mathematics at Cambridge was held in 1669 by Isaac Newton and more recently by by physicist Stephen Hawking.

Speaking of endowments...the United States is only ranked #6 in the world for highest percentage of the population to opt for some kind of plastic surgery. South Korea wins the top honor with 1-in-5 women from Seoul having undergone elective cosmetic surgery. The most common procedures in South Korea are liposuction and nose jobs, but belpharoplasty, or double-eyelid surgery, is growing in popularity to give South Koreans more Western-looking eyes. A bit surprising given the country's noted financial troubles, Greece is second on the plastic surgery list, with the majority of surgeries augmenting breast size, however Greek penile enlargements have occurred at a pace 10X greater than that of other countries on the list...It must be tough trying to overcome ancient stereotypes. Italy, Brazil, and Colombia round out the top five most nip/tuck countries in the world.

TUNES: Classic tunes rule at the Rivershore, so in honor of next week's anniversary of "The Day The Music Died," Dice spun Ritchie Valens, Buddy Holly, and The Big Bopper for the final round. Dice also dropped "Sleepwalk" by Santo & Johnny, which many will remember from the closing scene of La Bamba.

Kenny Rogers & The First Edition, one of the best Trivia songs ever by The Beatles, Fleetwood Mac featuring the Spirit of Troy marching band, Steve Miller Band, Wild Cherry, Three Dog Night, Steely Dan, and even some Elvis rocked the Rivershore.

Thanks for an amazing night of Trivia Rivershore! Let's rendezvous next Thursday and do it again!

-Dice

1.28.15 On Deck Teams/Trivia/Tunes Recap

1.28.15 On Deck Sports Bar & Grill - Trivia

WE DID IT!! On Deck Sports Bar & Grill and Dice's Last Call are pleased to announce that the amazing crowd at last night's show set a new Trivia World Record for the Most "Hadouken" Performances at a Trivia Show! Incredible! God Bless America!

TEAMS: Fantasy met reality for the WET DREAM CATCHERS (90) who slept through halftime, but never let go once they grabbed the lead. No duh, GIRLS NIGHT OUT (85) like, totally know their awesome 80's music Trivia. BAR TOP (79) are the only ones that can help you with your cellphone SIM card. Last week's champs, PRESTIGE WORLDWIDE (76) thought they missed the money, but Dice likes to keep teams guessing, even after the show.

JEFF GOLDBLUM IS WATCHING YOU POOP (70), so there's that. F YOUR I (66), FYI...Jeff freaking Goldblum is watching you poop. GOOEY DUCKS (60) missed the final after playing a near perfect contest. MY COUCH SMELLS LIKE SKITTLES (57) went Beast Mode with their brilliant "Hadouken" demonstration. Dice's celebrity friends, BATMAN & ROBIN LOPEZ, MATT DAMON, and TOM BRADY & THE DEFLATABLES all watched as Jeff Goldblum took the coveted "First-Place (Celebrity)" award.

TRIVIA/TUNES: Dice loves the mash-up, so it seems only fitting that on a show without any, the recap should. Our 80's themed final question, was a treat to watch unfold as teams tried to recollect when and where they were when they heard those four awesome 80's hits.

Blondie's "Call Me" might never have been if it weren't for a record label contract conflict. Originally offered to Fleetwood Mac's Stevie Nicks by the producer of American Gigolo, Nicks declined and Debbie Harry and Blondie were given a rough instrumental track to compose the lyrics and medley of what is arguably their greatest hit. Released in 1980, the track spent 6 consecutive weeks at #1 and was Billboard's #1 hit of the year.

Wham! featuring George Michael's literally Epic Record "Careless Whisper" was Michael's first solo single, but also was included on Wham!'s album Make It Big. Released in 1984 and peaking at #1 in 25 countries, "Careless Whisper" was the fifth best selling record of 1984 in the UK, behind two Frankie Goes To Hollywood songs, Stevie Wonder, and the Band-Aid "...Christmas?" song.

"Physical" from Australian singer, songwriter, and actress Olivia Newton-John was the single biggest selling single in the United States for the entire decade. Released in 1981, the song was originally intended for Rod Stewart, but Newton-John's version quickly rose to #1, holding the spot for 10 consecutive weeks. Billboard listed the song as #1 for the year 1982. Interestingly, the single replaced and was replaced by two hits from Hall & Oates, "Private Eyes" and "I Can't Go For That (No Can Do)."

Dionne Warwick and her friends, Elton John, Gladys Knight, and Stevie Wonder collaborated on her 1985 hit song "That's What Friends Are For." Recorded as a benefit for AIDS research and raising over $3 million for the cause, Warwick's version is actually a cover of a 1982 Rod Stewart song from the Night Shift soundtrack. The song spent four weeks at #1 and was named #61 on Billboard's Greatest Songs of All Time.

Every night is a great one at On Deck, but like those 4 hit songs from the final, this one will go down as one of the greatest! Thank you!

HADOUKEN!

-Dice

1.27.15 Cider Mill Teams/Trivia/Tunes Recap

1.27.15 Cider Mill - Trivia

TEAMS: Answering the final 15 questions perfectly, FEMBOTS HAVE FEELINGS TOO (84) added another impressive Trivia victory to their resume. PUP N' SUDS (82) fetched the right answers in the final round, nearly digging out the win. Cider Mill regulars, TRIGGER HAPPY BUNNIES (77) would like to have a few shots back, but grabbed the last gift certificate in this incredibly close competition. The Trivia team with a soccer problem, GOAL DIGGERS (75) warmed up with Trivia, scoring points from everywhere, but their final shot missed wide. CHIMP N' IT (75) got on a roll in the second-half, but were left barehanded when the roll ran out of paper late in the game. SCRATCH N' SNIFF (69) obviously had more fun than the rest of us. "O" FACE (51) reached in regulation, but forgot that high score wins.

TRIVIA: Dice prefers his toilet paper soft, two-ply, and over-the-roll...don't mess with my system. Apparently, Dice isn't the only one with "rules" about TP, although it's looking like I wouldn't have enjoyed my daily constitutional as much in history.

The first documented use of TP was noted by a Chinese scholar who presumably wrote on something other than toilet paper stating, "Paper on which there are quotations or commentaries from the Five Classics or the names of sages, I dare not use for toilet purposes..." Dice doesn't agree, as he actually finds some embossing to be both effective and somewhat enjoyable. The ancient Greeks preferred using a smooth stone...Dice says rocks, uh-uh, no way. The ancient Romans and Bill O'Reilly like a sponge on a stick...Dice says falafel is delicious and should never be used for that Bill. The Japanese just used a stick...Dice puckers at the thought. The left-hand method preferred by early Native Americans and many other cultures doesn't work for lefties...Dice happens to be sinistral, so that isn't going to work. Henry VIII had the highly respected and feared "Groom of the Stool" to keep him clean...Dice wonders if he resembles the piss boy, "It's good to be the king!"

Today, the toilet paper industry is massive, with more than 7 billion rolls of paper consumed annually by Americans. On average, each of us Americans use 57 sheets of toilet paper every day, accounting for about 27,000 trees being flushed away each and every day. Think about that next time you send your filthy paper waste on a wasted 1.6 to 3.5+ gallon freshwater journey through your septic system.

TUNES: RIP Robin Williams, thank you for the "Elmer Springsteen" impression. Air Supply, Toto, and El De Barge took us back to the 80's, and Billy Joel gave us a history lesson...in how not to rap. A pair from Dice's favorite cover band, Postmodern Jukebox, got the crowd swinging. Dice enjoyed finding old and new fan favorites with "Islands In The Stream," and "Blurred Bartman."

Dice's favorite of the night..."Wicked Ones" by Dorothy. Enjoy that video!

-Dice

1.26.15 Malone's Cafe Teams/Trivia/Tunes Recap

1.26.15 Malone's Cafe - Trivia

Dice thinks of Malone's as "Trivia's Dirty Little Secret" here in Portland. The crowd is always ready for everything Dice has to offer and then some. As usual, the Trivia at Malone's was awesome, and, as usual, Dice had a few tricks up his sleeve for those that really want to get down and dirty with their TJ!

TEAMS: (Hey Oh) listen what I say, oh...POOP CHUTE RIOT (88) knows a thing or two about getting dirty. MY DRINKING TEAM HAS A TRIVIA PROBLEM (80) admitted they had a problem or two and were cured by Dice's musical prescriptions. JV TEAM (79) aren't second-string to anyone in Trivia. SIT UBU SIT (75) knows more than most, but didn't know there's a song written about him. Falling in love with Trivia on date night, 365 (66) scored all night. BJ'S RIGHT BOOB (62) were huge, but couldn't support the weight in the end. GUACAMOLE IS A $1.95 EXTRA (61) dipped in the second half, but chipped in a bunch of 7-layers point wagers to keep it close.

TRIVIA: How many pinches in a cup? If Dice had a nickel for every time he has to call his mom to find out the answer to this question, I'd probably still be your Trivia Jockey. If you really want to impress your mom, give her a call and tell her there are 768 pinches in a cup, she'll appreciate it.

As you may have guessed by looking at me, Dice enjoys working in the kitchen. A few years ago, I found my grandma's and great-grandma's recipe boxes and embarked on the task of deciphering their handwriting, but more often their measurements. How much is a tad? A smidgen? I needed a hint, but I didn't know that a hint is a half a drop. Wait. What's a drop? HERE's a handy link to bookmark should you ever get the urge to try your great-grandmother's scrumdillyupmtious peanut butter cookie recipe like Dice did.

TUNES: Black Sabbath's "Evil Woman" didn't play games with any of our teams, but most would let her. Neil Diamond, "Crystal Blue Persuasion," and The Crystal Method classed up the joint. "Jerk It Out" from the Caesars had a few people dancing while "Cha Cha Cha" from the Ocean's 11 soundtrack made a few people guess 12, missing by a lot. Dice's advice, don't over think the music.

Dice's favorite of the night takes him back "Home" from the band Black Happy.

Until next week Malone's...

 -Dice

1.25.15 Old Barn Teams/Trivia/Tunes Recap

1.25.15 Old Barn - Trivia

There's nothing awkward about subbing at the Old Barn. Last Call's only Trivia show on Sundays brings out some of the finest teams in all of Portland for the weekly gig with Jeremiah. Dice gladly picked up the show for the week, knowing the Old Barn crowd would impress!

TEAMS: An octet of Last Call league teams dropped by the Old Barn for Sundays show, but only BRICK (80) was able to stay up late enough Saturday night to figure out the final round. KOI CLAMS (79) put some extra brainpower into finding imaginary theme rounds, despite finally working through the actual theme round! DISNEY DIRTY (74) followed up their Friday win with another solid performance by the half-sinistral team. JEHOVAHS WITNESS PROTECTION PROGRAM (72) posted another solid league score, but couldn't recover from a tumultuous fifth round. As usual, JV TEAM (71) found inspiration from Dice's music!

Possibly carrying too much confidence going in to the final round, ALLIANCE OF THAI GUYS IN BARS, had a near-perfect second half, but followed with big bet on their incorrect final. STATUS APPARATUS had three perfect rounds, but they couldn't recover from a stretch of tough questions around halftime. SIT UBU IT went for it with big points on the final, but came up short.

TRIVIA: In 1963, the Federal Bureau of Investigation were tasked with investigating the Portland, Oregon band The Kingsmen and their song, "Louie, Louie" for obscenity. Due to the immense popularity of the song among young people and the inaudible lyrics, Indiana's governor banned the song from playing and the FBI launched an investigation into the many misheard lyrics of The Kingsmen's biggest hit. Lasting for nearly two years, the investigation eventually cleared the band of the charge of interstate transport of obscene material and cemented their song's legacy as one of the greatest songs of the jukebox era.

TUNES: Kanye West vs. Weeezer sounds like a bad court case, but when mashed up, sounds amazing. Dice also dropped two songs titled "Rich Girl" and even Sir Paul's first songwriting credit, "I Lost My Little Girl" performed by The Beatles. Garth has friends in low places, they must have wagered too much on the final round. INXS, Iz, and Imagine Dragons each helped with our I-inspired halftime. Dice agrees with "The Bruce Dickinson" in thinking most songs need more cowbell. Dice's fav of the night..."Holdin' On To Black Metal" from My Morning Jacket's 2011 Circuital album.

Thanks for the sub opportunity Jeremiah...the crowd and venue were great!

-Dice

1.22.15 Rivershore Teams/Trivia/Tunes Recap

1.22.15 Rivershore Bar & Grill - Trivia

It may seem out of character for Dice, jumping into a relationship after only three weeks, but I'm excited to officially announce a change in my relationship status. Thursdays at the Rivershore is where you can catch Dice staring dreamily at his new sweetheart of a show...

TEAMS: Aiming perfectly on their halftime and final rounds, STRAIGHT SHOOTERS (83) edged the competition on a night where a mere 2 points separated the first and last place teams going into the final. F YOUR I (82) also swept the haltime and final rounds, but F'd themselves in the third round. More than eye candy, VICTORIOUS SECRET (67) showed off a new team name and their humongous IQs!

Last week's champs, STANLEY CUPCAKES (66) colored outside the lines at halftime, joining the double-dating foursome SCHWINGS (66) one point out of the money in a tie for fourth. Rivershore denizens VAN OWLS (53), flying to the tune of "Moon River" in their heads, blew their lead on the final round, but it was totally worth it. The ITTY WITTY TRIVIA TEAM (53) would like to have the third round back...and possibly their final round wager.

TRIVIA: Note to our Trivia-writers...the people that answer Lord of the Rings questions also keep replicas of the Elven sword Glamdring in their trunks, so let's work together to keep our Tolkeinites happy and your TJ alive! Don't believe me? See here...

Did you know Coors wasn't sold in Indiana until 1991? Strange cause that's about the time Dice had his first (and last) Banquet Beer. Dice loves the Bridgeport Trilogy being served at the Rivershore right now!

TUNES: The Rivershore crowd like the tunes nostalgic, and tonight Dice delivered, spinning classics like "Ob La Di..." by The Beatles, James Brown's "Papa's Got A Brand New Bag," ABBA's "Mamma Mia" for the final round, as well as hits from Led Zeppelin, and Pink Floyd. The 80's were represented by Michael McDonald, Huey Lewis & The News, Was (Not Was), and Bruce Hornsby & The Range because that's just "The Way It Is."

Dice's favorite...the Shake a Hamster Band's parody of Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire" called "In the Shire."

Dice can't wait for next Thursday's show at the Rivershore! See you there at 7pm for another incredible night of Trivia with Last Call!

Have a great week Trivia teams!

-Dice

1.21.15 On Deck Teams/Trivia/Tunes Recap

1.21.15 On Deck Sports Bar & Grill - Trivia

Seattle making the SuperBowl again is kinda a big deal for a lot of people here in the Northwest. Although officially a 49er fan (been some 'Niner love this week on some of our questions...), when my team isn't playing, I typically root for my favorite former-AFC team, the Seahawks. Especially when they're playing New England, who need to find a new team name because they're embarrassing true Patriots everywhere.

In honor of Seattle's renowned "12th Man" and the best sports bar in Portland, On Deck, I present Dice's special 12th-Man Edition of the Teams/Trivia/Tunes recap!

12 - 12th Man...12 Trivia teams. Coincidence? Dice thinks not! PRESTIGE WORLDWIDE (73) continued their On Deck success, landing the top spot in tonight's difficult Trivia contest. WET DREAM CATCHERS (72) returned to Last Call with a new team name but the same purpose...to be a Trivia nightmare to the competition. 5-SPOT (71) only missed three questions through regulation, but couldn't find the words for the art they needed in the halftime and final rounds. Falling flat at the finish, the C*** CUPCAKES (68) were looking sweet for awhile.

11 - "Crank It To 15!" is Dice's version of "Go Big or Go Home" and several teams took a page out of Dice's final round playbook tonight with max wagers. True to their name, the GOOEY DUCKS went "Omnia Extares" on the Final and slipped back into the murky Trivia waters. FARMERS ONLY DATE NIGHT would've had an easier time scoring in the barn than they did tonight. TBA never did figure out their team name, or did they? There is definitely NO SHAME in playing Trivia by yourself, but it starts to feel that way when you name your team that.

10 - Celebrity look-a-like MATT DAMON gambled away any chance of glory. CHODE TO JOY wins Dice's coveted "Best Team Name" honor. T'ES BÊTE OU QUOI? got lost in translation but Dice fancied the French! Possibly jinxing their namesake, DAME TIME left after they didn't come through in regulation.

9 - Question 9, our final first-round answer before the half, Nantucket, was also our Last Call "Hint of the Week." Be sure to visit www.lastcallusa.com every week for your hints...one of those is gonna be an answer. Dice was rather amused with his song selection... "New Age Girl" by Deadeye Dick.

8 - Jalousie windows are also known as louvre windows and consist of parallel glass panes mounted in a track system that allows the windows to be open or shut in unison maximising airflow. The design was popular in milder climates through the mid-20th Century, but was replaced by air conditioning and the more common sash and sliding windows seen today.

7 - Dice dropped The 5.6.7.8's "Woo Hoo" for our candy question. Kit Kat is wildly popular in Japan, in part due to it's name being similar to the Japanese phrase, "kitto katsu," which translates to "you'll surely win." Available in several flavors, click HERE to read an awesome review of a $68+ Japanese Kit Kat Sampler Pack! No seriously...click HERE for that review...before you drop the $150 on all the Japanese candy you'll order!

6 - A Trivial Pursuit question at Trivia?!? "The Warrior" from Scandal featuring Patty Smyth?!? So much yes. 

5 -  "Europa" by Globus.

4 - Did you know that tetraphobia is the fear of the number 4? Most common in China and Asia, the superstition is due to the similarity of the Chinese words for the number four and death. Tetraphobia far surpasses the Western "triskaidekaphobia" (fear of the number 13), so much so that even mentioning the number four is discouraged. Buildings and elevators in Asia are frequently designed skipping the fourth floor. As you may have guessed, April 4th is the equivalent of our Friday the 13th if we had a 13th month. 

3 - Inspired by the question, our halftime menage-a-tois of songs were each inspired by a painting. Coldplay's "Viva la Vida" drew inspiration from Frida Kahlo, a Mexican artist who's life and work inspired the Salma Hayek movie Frida. Green Day's "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" was inspired by Gottfried Helnwein's painting of the same name. OMD's "Night Cafe" takes inspiration from the painting that inspired Helnwein's, Edward Hopper's 1942 masterpiece "Nighthawks," and references seven of Hopper's other works as well.

2 - Led Zeppelin vs. Black Sabbath mashup? Yeah.

1 - "No More Words."

There you have it...Dice's first 12th Man recap...I like it! Can't wait for next Wednesday! Thanks for another wonderful night of Trivia On Deck!

-Dice