Quintessence

Thread Games
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Attend a parade, followed by watching a baseball game (where one consumes at least one hot dog), and end the evening by watching a fireworks display.

  • Apart from mom and apple pie, all elements of Americana are captured here
  • they’re all wholesome family activities. None of that ‘smoking spliff while reading old speeches by Malcolm X’ stuff involved
  • even folks that are jaded to all the patriotic jingoism can find these activities enjoyable on their own merits

Next Quintessential American invention

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Nuclear weapons.

  • Put us on the world stage as a — the? — superpower
  • Namely, as the only country ever to use them in combat
  • Invented by immigrants and the NYC-born children of immigrants
  • The effort to create them was, of course, “The Manhattan Project”
  • We apparently have ‘more than all other nuclear weapon states combined’

Quintessential college major

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Business degree

A good default major which can lead to many different careers
Teaches a variety of skills
Can be broken down into many specialties

(Sorry this isn’t very good, but this thread was in danger of falling to Page 2 again.)
Quintessential Doctor Who episode

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Genesis of the Daleks

  • Reintroduced the Daleks, one of the Doctor’s most popular villains
  • Introduced Davros, creator of the Daleks
  • Included themes of unethical science, Nazis, and the evils of war
  • Moral dilemma for the Doctor - does he have the right to destroy the Daleks?

Quintessential new Doctor Who episode (2005 - to present)

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The Zygon Inversion

This is not the best episode, but is a good example of a quintessential Doctor episode because it ends with one of the all time great TV speeches, delivered by the Doctor. It sends chills down my spine and represents a lot that the Doctor Who show means to me.

Here is the speech, which I recommend anyone curious watch.
Next up:

Quintessential PS3 game

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Grand Theft Auto V

  • one of the biggest selling console games ever
  • when released, it served as a benchmark in terms of open-world design and narrative
  • involves both essential gaming elements: senseless violence AND gratuitous sex

Next up:

Quintessential tortured artist

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Vincent Van Gogh

-Created over 2,000 art works
-Was a failure in his own lifetime
-Clearly had mental issues
-Whacked off his own ear
-Committed suicide
-Paintings sell for millions today

Next up: Quintessential Edgar Allen Poe work

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Quintessential Edgar Allen Poe work:

“The Raven”.

–The first one most anybody thinks of when they think of Poe
–Most people can quote, “Quoth the Raven, nevermore”
–Wrestler Scott Levy called himself Raven and made a whole gimmick out of it, winning several championships in ECW, WWF, and WCW

Next: Quintessential Star Trek film

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“Star Trek IV The Voyage Home”
-Star Trek was never supposed to be about violence but problem solving
-Perfect mix of drama, adventure, and humor, with a touch of romance
-A smidgen of obligatory sermonizing.

Next: The quintessential western

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“Stagecoach” (1939)

  • film directed by John Ford (and let’s be frank, the quintessential western MUST be directed by John Ford)
  • John Wayne is in the film
  • served as inspiration for scores of subsequent westerns

Next: Quintessential Greek god or goddess

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Aphrodite

-Goddess of love
-Romans renamed her Venus, most famous incarnation of a goddess
-Appeared as a character on Hercules and Xena

Next: Quintessential off beat comedy show

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Monty Python’s Flying Circus

-Absurdist
-Enduring
-Nerds quote
-Off beat yet has broad appeal

Next: Quintessential metaphorical “itch that you can’t scratch”.

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Wanting to pursue a very different career choice

  • nearly universal human experience at some point
  • the decision whether to attempt ‘scratching’ amounts to a major life decision
  • the ‘itch’ is equal parts regret and aspiration

Next: Quintessential historic figure associated with the 1960’s

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Bob Dylan

-His lyrics define the 1960’s better than anything else
-He won a Nobel Prize for his poetry.
-He is definitely the 1960’s individual figure who made the biggest cultural impact.
-For someone who can barely sing and play the guitar, he certainly made a good living doing it.

Next up: Quintessential US President

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Abraham Lincoln

-Actually made some history changing decisions
-Made one of the most famous speeches ever
-Never lost touch with the common people

Next: Quintessential Group Influenced by the Beatles.

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  1. The Byrds
  • They were called “The American Beatles”
  • Admit to copying “A Hard Day’s Night” sound
  • Gave Roger McGuinn the idea to mix folk songs with the Beatles’ beat
  • Also influenced McGuinn to write the group’s songs

Next up: Quintessential “drug song”

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Comfortably Numb - Pink Floyd

  • Lyrics and title allude to an altered state
  • Fans notoriously ingested controlled substances during live performances of the song
  • The Floyd’s light show enhanced the drug experience
  • Still played on nearly every classic rock station 40 years after release

Next: Quintessential 20th century natural disaster

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The Great Tangshan earthquake of 1976

  • Over a quarter of a million people died, making it the most deadly earthquake of the century
  • caused billions in damage
  • spurred changes to Chinese seismological prediction and warning procedures

Next: Quintessential romantic comedy

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When Harry Met Sally

-The two main characters start off indifferent to each other, start to like each other, lose each other and reconnect multiple times, fall in love, and get married.
-Billy Crystal is funny, as usual, and Meg Ryan is the unofficial Queen of the Rom-Coms
-It’s well written
-“I’ll have what she’s having.”

Next: Quintessential bar bet