Useless Trivia and Information

John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, both died on July 4, 1826. It was the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.

 

I made the mistake of searching for useless trivia in google...Came across more useless trivia than I imagined existed, but every page having a disclaimer saying this could be true or just a good story....

So that's my trivia

Pete

 

Doobie Brothers/Steely Dan guitarist, Jeff "Skunk" Baxter has a degree in physics and is often consulted by the Department of Defense as an expert on issues concerning missles.

 

Vatican City, weighing in at a mere 0.17 miles, it holds the title of being the smallest country in the world.

While Eleanor Abbott of San Diego, California was recuperating from polio in the 1940s, she occupied herself with devising games and activities for youngsters who had polio. One of her inventions was called "Candy Land." Her young friends liked the game so much, she submitted it to Milton Bradley Company where it was immediately accepted. Since then, Candy Land has been recognized internationally as a "child's first game."

The color combination with the strongest visual impact is black on yellow. Next to follow black on white, yellow on black, white on black, dark blue on white, and white on dark blue.

Four million tons of hydrogen dust are destroyed on the Sun every second.

Some names for groups of animals… a bale of turtles, a clowder of cats, a charm of goldfinches, a gam of whales, a knot of toads, a streak of tigers.

Albert Einstein never learned how to drive a car.

The average American will eat 35,000 cookies during an average life span.

Ferdinand Porsche, who later went on to build sports cars bearing his own name, designed the original 1936 Volkswagen.

Nearly half of all psychiatrists have been attacked by one of their patients.

The first Spanish vessels to reach the New World were commanded by the Italian Cristoforo Columbo (Christopher Columbus). The first English vessels to reach the New World were commanded by the Italian Giovanni Caboto (John Cabot). The first French vessels to reach the New World were commanded by the Italian Giovanni da Verrazano. No Italian vessels explored the New World.

There is no living descendant of William Shakespeare.

Matty, Felipe, and Jesus Alou are the only three brothers to start a baseball game in the outfield for the same major league team. The brothers accomplished this in 1963 with the San Francisco Giants.

Lightning hits the Empire State Building in New York about 500 times a year.

Inventor Hugh Moore's paper cup factory was located next door to the Dixie Doll Company in the same downtown loft building. The word Dixie printed on the company's door reminded Moore of the story he had heard as a boy about "dixies," the ten-dollar bank notes printed with the French word dix in big letters across the face of the bill by a New Orleans bank renowned for its strong currency in the early 1800s. The "dixies," Moore decided, had the qualities he wanted people to associate with his paper cups, and with permission from his neighbor, he used the name for his cups: "Dixie Cups."

 

Ironically, the word "palindrome" is not a palindrome.

 

Wow! That is a good one. I did not know that.

Sherrie</font>[/QUOTE]Yes, it's true. Our national security is left in the hands of men with names like "Skunk".

 

With 1477 stops, 33,112 pipes and a 365 horse-power engine, the Auditorium Organ in Atlantic City is the largest in the world.

Believe it or not, there's a debate about that in the organ world. Originally, it was claimed that this instrument had 455 ranks and 33,112 pipes. However, according to an article written in The American Organist c1990, these numbers had not been substantiated, and only 336 ranks had been found. This article also stated that due to many factors, including a flood, entire divisions sealed off because of asbestos in the chamber, etc., the organ had never been 100% operational.

Here's a list of the ten largest organs in the world, their specs, and their biilders:

1a - Wanamaker's (Lord & Taylor Department Store), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US
Murray M. Harris/Los Angeles Art Organ Co., 1904; Wanamaker Organ Shop, 1914-1917, 1924-1927
6 Manuals, 461 Ranks, 396 Registers, 416 Stops, 28,482 Pipes.

1b - Atlantic City Convention Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, US
Midmer-Losh, Opus 5550, 1929
7 Manuals, 449 Ranks, 337 Registers, 852 Stops, 33,114 Pipes (data disputed)

3 - First Congregational Church, Los Angeles, California, US
E. M. Skinner Opus 856, 1931; Schlicker, 1969; Meunch, 1994; Robert David, 1995
5 Manuals, 346 Ranks, 233 Registers 265 Stops, 20,000+ Pipes.
This instrument has the distinction of being the largest church organ in the world

4 - St. Stephen's Cathedral, Passau, Germany
Steinmeyer, 1928; Eisenbarth, 1978-1981
5 Manuals, 327 Ranks, 229 Registers, 229 Stops, 17,774 Pipes.
This instrument is the largest pipe organ outside the United States of America

5 - USMA Cadet Chapel West Point, New York, US
M. P. Möller, 1911, & others
4 Manuals, 325 Ranks, 576 Stops, 20,142 Pipes.

6 - Crystal Cathedral, Garden Grove, California, US
Aeolian-Skinner Opus 1388, 1959 (Philharmonic Hall, NYC)/Fratelli Ruffatti, 1977, 1980.
5 Manuals (two), 270 Ranks, 218 Registers, 284 Stops, 15,966 Pipes
Note: This organ also contains a number of digital voices. The totals with the digital additions are 293 pipe + digital ranks, 236 pipe + digital registers, 302 total pipe + digital stops. If one includes the digital voices, this would be the largest church organ in the world. Also of note: this organ houses two consoles (a rarity), allowing for the performance of organ duets. Lastly: this organ was a notable example of thrift. It is a combination of the old organ from New York City's Philharmonic Hall, the old Rufatti organ from Garden Grove Community Church, and a new Rufatti instrument.

7 - Auditorio Nacional, Mexico City, Mexico
Tamburini, 1957-1958
5 Manuals, 260 Ranks, 189 Registers, 198? Stops, 15,633 Pipes
This is the largest organ in Central America

8 - First Church of Christ, Scientist Boston, Massachusetts, US
Aeolian-Skinner Opus 1203, 1952
4 Manuals, 238 Ranks, 173 Stops, 13,483 Pipes

9 - St. Matthew Lutheran Church Hanover, Pennsylvania, US
Austin Opus 1215
4 Manuals, 231 Ranks, 234 Stops, 14,341 Pipes

10 - First Baptist Church Jackson, Mississippi, US
E. M. Skinner/Casavant/Keates-Geissler, 1990
5 Manuals, 231 Ranks, 178 Stops, 12,877 Pipes

See? There was bound to be a Baptist Church in there somewhere!!! Sadly, however, there are recordings available of all these instruments except for the First Baptist Church instrument.

Also of note are the organs of St Batholomew's Church and the Riverside Church in New York (# 11 and 12 respectively), The Mormon Tabernacle in Salt Lake City(#13), The Sydney Opera House in Australia (#15), The National Cathedral in Washington DC (#17), and the Cathedral of Notre Dame in France which was built in 1733(#28).

[ January 16, 2003, 02:58 PM: Message edited by: Johnv ]

 

If you've ever heard me play, you'd say I play neither .

I was a wierd kid. I loved going to organ concerts when I was in grade school. I still try to attend them at local churches and colleges whenever I can. The American Guild of Organists is very involved in my area, and several churches and universities sponsor AGO events. One of the reasons I love the church I attend is because it has a large organ and music department, with a fulltime Minister of Music who is also the organist and choir director.

I've been lucky to have seen performances on four of the ten instruments listed above.

[ January 15, 2003, 04:59 PM: Message edited by: Johnv ]

 

I wonder if that is where Lockheed came up with the term "Skunkworks"

 

You know Micheal Nesmith from the Monkees ? His mom or grandmom invented "White-out".

Brian Wilson is deaf in one ear. All the original Beach Boys recordings were in mono.

Electricity travels from negative to positive.

The car is the safest place to be in an electrical storm, but not because of the tires. It's because the car will conduct the electricity on the outside, to ground. Your tires will conduct most of the current, most likely blowing them out.

In 1943, when the Pentagon was completed, Virginia State Law required it to have segragated bathrooms.

 

I think it was his mom. And now he runs the company. I read that somewhere.</font>[/QUOTE]Not only is he the president, but he's a client.

 

I remember going there when I was a kid.

It was something.

I think they're in the process of decommissioning the organ now.

More on Papa Nes: He's widely considered to have invented the longform "concept video" (he didn't, by the way. Frank Zappa and the afforementioned Brian Wilson both experimented with it), thus leading to the invention of MTV.

He's also considered to have invented the three sided LP. He didn't invent that, either.

His mom, though, really did invent Liquid Paper.

 

Speaking of the Monkees, Mickey Dolenenz frequently sat in with Frank Zappa's Mothers and was asked to become a permanent part of the band.

Before his career as a singer/songwriter/actor, Kris Kristofferson was a Rhodes Scholar who taught English Lit at West point.

The Beach Boys' "20/20" includes the song "Never Learn Not to Love" which was originally titled "Cease To Exsist" and was written by...

 

I remember going there (Wanamaker's) when I was a kid....I think they're in the process of decommissioning the organ now.

I did some poking around. It turns out that the Wanamaker Organ is a designated National Historic Landmark (the first organ to be designated).

They're currently in the process of restoring the organ, much of which has been severely neglected. According to wanamakerorgan.com, the restoration of the Echo and Ethereal Divisions have been recently completed.

Amusingly, an upcoming concert will feature Fred Swann, organist emeritus of the Crystal Cathedral organ (#6 on the list) on Saturday April 5, 2003
at 2:30 pm. If it weren't on the other side of the continent, I'd be there.

[ January 16, 2003, 03:02 PM: Message edited by: Johnv ]