# Lateral Thinking Puzzles. Let's do it again! **URL:** \ **Category:** Thread Games\ **Created:** [October 23, 2019, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193 "2019-10-23T21:32:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 211
**Author:** ![Ana\_Byrd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ana\_Byrd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ana_Byrd)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4203 "2020-10-23T14:57:51Z")
> Is the world Al reveals himself to also fictional? **Yes** > Are the people contemplating Al’s existence fictional? **Yes** ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4204 "2020-10-23T15:53:02Z")
Is fictional Al best known from literature? television? movies? other? ---
**Author:** ![Ana\_Byrd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ana\_Byrd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ana_Byrd)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4205 "2020-10-23T15:55:16Z")
> [@](#): > > Is fictional Al best known from literature? > television? > movies? > other? **Television** ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4206 "2020-10-23T16:01:09Z")
was it on a tv show or commercial? had this program or commercial theme been running for 16 years or more at the time of reveal? ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4207 "2020-10-23T16:02:18Z")
Was Al best known for being someone’s friend? ---
**Author:** ![Ana\_Byrd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ana\_Byrd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ana_Byrd)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4208 "2020-10-23T16:02:58Z")
> was it on a tv show or **TV show** > commercial? > had this program or commercial theme been running for 16 years or more at the time of reveal? **Yes** ---
**Author:** ![Ana\_Byrd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ana\_Byrd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ana_Byrd)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4209 "2020-10-23T16:03:19Z")
> Was Al best known for being someone’s friend? **Yes** ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4210 "2020-10-23T16:04:16Z")
Was that someone big? and a bird? ---
**Author:** ![Ana\_Byrd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ana\_Byrd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ana_Byrd)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4211 "2020-10-23T16:07:19Z")
> Was that someone big? and a bird? **Yes** I knew I was too quick with that clue… Now, if you could just tell me what “a series of scandals” had to do with it (preferably without googling). ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4212 "2020-10-23T16:24:23Z")
The Sesame Street executives were afraid that child predators would use Alphonzo Snuffalufagus as a precedent for “I’ll be your friend that only you know about”. Which is silly, because Big Bird doesn’t try to keep Snuffy’s existence secret. He tells everyone he can about him. ---
**Author:** ![Ana\_Byrd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ana\_Byrd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ana_Byrd)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4213 "2020-10-23T16:30:39Z")
That’s close enough to close this one. It was more that they were worried about giving kids the impression that adults won’t believe them if they have something important to say, such as if they’re being abused. Anyone else got a new one? ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4214 "2020-10-23T16:48:08Z")
> [@Ana\_Byrd](#): > > Was Al the sound a dripping faucet makes? (It’s from a book I read. Had to be sure.) **No, but now I’m curious, What book was this?** It was _Drowned Hopes_, one of the Dortmunder books by Donald Westlake. A former cellmate named Tom came back into his life, wanting his help to recover a cache he left buried that’s now underwater, due to a dam having been let out. Tom was psycho, and kept calling Dortmunder “Al.” By the end of the book, Tom had met his end, but Dortmunder kept seeing reminders of him. He thought the dripping faucet was saying “Al, Al, Al…” ---
**Author:** ![Hoopy\_Frood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hoopy_frood/32/8452_2.png) [@Hoopy\_Frood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hoopy_Frood)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4215 "2020-10-23T17:42:33Z")
> [@Ana\_Byrd](#): > > That’s close enough to close this one. It was more that they were worried about giving kids the impression that adults won’t believe them if they have something important to say, such as if they’re being abused. An additional point of information that it was mostly prompted by a 60 Minutes episode that profiled child abuse. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2020, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4216 "2020-10-23T20:16:42Z")
Is Al ALF (ne Gordon Shumway)? ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2020, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4217 "2020-10-25T06:44:51Z")
More timely(?) politics: The election was unexpectedly thrown into turmoil because of a hygiene product. Why? ---
**Author:** ![Ana\_Byrd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Ana\_Byrd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ana_Byrd)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2020, 11:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4218 "2020-10-25T11:54:54Z")
Did Covid-19 have anything to do with it? Was there controversy over one of the candidates using this product? Over them not using it? Does the specific brand matter? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2020, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4219 "2020-10-25T12:31:19Z")
Was the product a menstrual hygiene product? (I’m picturing some stupid man who’s proud of his ignorance of all things female) ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2020, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4220 "2020-10-25T14:55:05Z")
reply to Ana\_Byrd: Did Covid-19 have anything to do with it? No Was there controversy over one of the candidates using this product? No Over them not using it? No Does the specific brand matter?Yes ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2020, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4221 "2020-10-25T14:56:39Z")
reply to Chronos: Was the product a menstrual hygiene product? No (I’m picturing some stupid man who’s proud of his ignorance of all things female) ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2020, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/4222 "2020-10-25T15:06:44Z")
Was the product a sponsor of one of the candidates? Did one of the candidates have a name that was similar to the product’s? Was the product made primarily for use by senior citizens? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193.md?page=210) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193.md?page=212)