“Major Major’s father ... was a longlimbed farmer, a God-fearing, freedom-loving, law-abiding rugged individualist who held that federal aid to anyone but farmers was creeping socialism. He advocated thrift and hard work and disapproved of loose women who turned him down. His specialty was alfalfa, and he made a…

The intersection between BBC podcasts and Jeopardy! is the Radio 4 Quiz, which rotates between three competitions: Brain of Britain (general knowledge), Counterpoint (music), and the Round Britain Quiz (puzzle / allusions). Right now only the Round Britain Quiz is available; for an example of the type of questions…

When I first tried out for the college tournament 2+ decades ago, I made it to the mock game / interview. I wasn’t sure how I did, but I knew that even though I did better than some people in my session — the college tournament in those days had four sessions each at four different sites — one guy there did better…

To be clear, Kentucky is two states and a solid 1,000 miles away from the Mexico border.

I think this article has engendered more enthusiasm than the new MacGyver — which I will point out is still on the air, in its third season — has. I mean, The Simpsons, even in their most desperate levels, hasn’t even referenced the new MacGyver for a cheap / meta Patty and Selma joke. (If they have, I’ve forgotten…

The concept is more than a little reminiscent of the ‘70s Marvel comic Skull the Slayer, in which a Vietnam vet disappears into the Bermuda triangle on a plane with a few others; he gets a magic belt, fights dinosaurs and aliens and ancient Egyptians and all sorts of crap, and it all adds up to nothing. There’s also a…

And what about Roy Green, who was also a defensive back?

When the Blues Brothers hijack a band’s gig at a bar, they ask what kind of music the bar usually features. The bartender answers, “Oh, we got both kinds — we got country and western.”

When will Donald Trump use the PotUS Twitter account to dredge up the video of him sexually harassing Rudy Giuliani in drag?

Probably my fondest food memory of childhood — certainly the fondest that I haven’t tried to recreate — was my mother mixing chocolate almond bark, mini-marshmallows, and peanuts, and then dropping blobs of the concoction onto wax paper to cool. The results were not elegant or attractive, but I loved those things,…

According to Erle Stanley Gardner, Hammett was even trickier than that. To trick an editor who disliked vulgarisms and dirty slang, Hammett used both gunsel and “gooseberry lay” in The Maltese Falcon, and the editor pounced on the latter term — even though “gooseberry lay” isn’t a dirty term at all. It’s just a hobos’…

After busting through the Dragonlance Chronicles trilogy last month (as bad as I expected, although it still had its moments, and not as bad as I feared), I’m reading two books now:

No, no, let me explain the concept: That’s Nick Nolte, cosplaying George R.R. Martin ... as The Prisoner.

I’ve stuck with Allison’s work, and although I don’t think Bad Machinery is is best, I’m still enjoying it. I’m also looking forward to the first collection of his new Boom! series, By Night.

There are a couple of Hallmark Christmas movies that star Katrina Law, better known as Nyssa al Ghul, a member of the League of Assassins, on Arrow.

When Darcy goes home for the holidays

[*Editing - because I can for a change - to say that nearly every Spidey villain created by Stan goes on a favorites list too: Vulture, Doc Ock, Rhino, Kangaroo, Gibbon, Kingpin... Man Mountain Marko.... I mean. Dozens just from Amazing Spider-man’s first couple years.*]

Given the spread of the fingers, I’m guessing it’s in imitation of a trident, which is usually held by Arizona State’s Sun Devil mascot.

I just finished The Traitor Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson, and next I’m going to re-read the Dragonlance Chronicles.

Why is there only one polling place in a city of 27,000 people? I grew up in a township of less than 600 people, with a population density of less than 16 people per square mile. Because the township had half of a town (split down the middle with the neighboring county) with a total population of 63, we had two…