# Trivia Dominoes: Play Off the Last Bit of Trivia **URL:** \ **Category:** Thread Games\ **Created:** [February 4, 2010, 8:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657 "2010-02-04T08:12:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2257
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2019, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45129 "2019-10-12T11:24:49Z")
The longest river in France, and the 171st longest in the world, is the Loire River. The Loire is over 600 miles long. Its source is in the Massif Central highland region near the commune of Sainte-Eulalie, Ardèche in southern France, and its mouth is at the commune of Saint-Nazaire in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France, in traditional Brittany, on the Atlantic Ocean. The Loire Valley between Sully-sur-Loire and Chalonnes is a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its cultural value. The Château d’Azay-le-Rideau, in the town of Azay-le-Rideau in the département of Indre-et-Loire, is considered one of the foremost examples of early French renaissance architecture. This picturesque château ([image here](https://images.app.goo.gl/GNMeMsy1yJnbuzkk9)) is set on an island in the middle of the Indre river and has become one of the most popular of the châteaux of the Loire valley. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2019, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45130 "2019-10-12T21:38:33Z")
Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger was an airline pilot for US Airways (and its predecessor airlines) from 1980 to 2010. In January, 2009, Sullenberger was the pilot of US Airways Flight 1549, which suffered a complete power loss to both engines due to striking a flock of geese shortly after takeoff from New York’s LaGuardia Airport. Sullenberger and his co-pilot, Jeffrey Skiles, were able to successfully land the airliner on the Hudson River without use of its engines, and save all 155 people aboard, in what became known as “The Miracle on the Hudson.” Sullenberger was played by actor Tom Hanks in the 2016 film _Sully_, which dramatized the incident, and the subsequent investigation. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2019, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45131 "2019-10-13T01:21:14Z")
I just returned from a week in Albuquerque where my in-laws and I attended the Balloon Fiesta. It was a great experience and one that should be on everybody’s bucket list! In play: US Airways began operations in 1939 as All American Aviation Inc. In 1949, the name was changed to All American Airways, and in 1953 the name changed again to Allegheny Airlines. The name was again changed in 1979 to US Air, and to US Airways in 1997. In 2015, the company was merged with American Airlines and the US Airways brand ceased to exist. ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2019, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45132 "2019-10-13T03:46:34Z")
Railer13, glad you enjoyed your trip! An Arizona/New Mexico trip is on my list for the hopefully not too distant future. In play: The three oldest continuously operating airlines in the world are the Netherlands’ KLM and Colombia’s Avianca, both operating since 1919, and Australia’s Qantas, founded in 1920. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2019, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45133 "2019-10-13T04:26:22Z")
At 4,863’ high, Spruce Knob in eastern West Virginia is the highest point in that state, the summit of Spruce Mountain, and is the highest peak in the Alleghenies. The Alleghenies are part of the Appalachian Mountain Range which extends from Newfoundland and Labrador at their northeast to Georgia and Alabama at their southwest. The Alleghenies extend from western Pennsylvania at their northeast to West Virginia at their southwest. The highest peak in the Appalachians is Mount Mitchell, at 6,864’. It is in western North Carolina. Colombia is in the northwest of South America. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2019, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45134 "2019-10-13T04:30:14Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > :: hands **Bullitt** an L :: I missed this before. Thanks **Elendil’s Heir** , you’re a L of a guy. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2019, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45135 "2019-10-13T04:34:32Z")
:: shrugs :: L, you’d do the same for me. In play: Sen. John F. Kennedy’s surprising victory in the West Virginia Democratic presidential primary in 1960 was an important early indicator that he could win even in states with small Catholic populations. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2019, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45136 "2019-10-13T06:51:36Z")
:: thumbs up:: The city of Romney, West Virginia, at the eastern end of the state, together with Mecklenberg (later renamed Shepherdstown), are the oldest cities in the state. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2019, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45137 "2019-10-13T15:52:36Z")
The song “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” was written about West Virginia. However, none of the three co-writers (then-husband-and-wife team Bill Danoff and Taffy Nivert, and John Denver) were actually from West Virginia – in fact, Danoff has admitted that he had never set foot in the state before writing the song. Danoff and Nivert began to write the song while on a road trip to participate in Danoff’s family reunion, and had intended to sell the song to Johnny Cash. At that time, the couple was working as John Denver’s opening act at a club in Washington, D.C.; when they shared the unfinished song with Denver, he insisted on recording it, and helped them to finish its composition. The song became a hit for Denver (and Danoff and Nivert sang backup on the recording), and continues to be seen as one of his signature songs. In 2014, the West Virginia state legislature adopted it as one of the state’s four official songs. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2019, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45138 "2019-10-13T18:14:21Z")
Denver, the capital of Colorado, has an elevation of 5,280 feet. It is actually the third highest capital city in the US. Cheyenne, Wyoming has an elevation of 6,062 feet, while Santa Fe, New Mexico has an elevation of 7,199 feet. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2019, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45139 "2019-10-13T18:45:06Z")
_Cheyenne_ was the name of the first hour-long western on US TV. Starring Clint Walker, it also was the first hour-long drama with continuing characters to last more than a season and the first American TV show to be produced by a Hollywood film studio (Warner Brothers). Previously, studios boycotted TV because it competed with them for audience. ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2019, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45140 "2019-10-14T01:33:02Z")
Christian, the oldest of Marlon Brando’s 11 children, shot and killed the boyfriend of his half-sister, Cheyenne, in their father’s L.A. mansion in 1991 after she said she was being abused. Christian was 32 at the time and Cheyenne was 20. She died (by suicide) at age 25. ---
**Author:** ![atimnie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atimnie/32/11_2.png) [@atimnie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/atimnie)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2019, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45141 "2019-10-14T01:36:56Z")
In his later years, Marlon became a parody of himself, so much so that Chris Elliot, on Late Night with David Letterman, often mocked him in parody sketches. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2019, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45142 "2019-10-14T14:09:13Z")
David Letterman hosted late night television talk shows for 33 years, beginning with the February 1, 1982, debut of ‘Late Night with David Letterman’ on NBC, and ending with the May 20, 2015, broadcast of ‘Late Show with David Letterman’ on CBS. In total, Letterman hosted 6,080 episodes of the two shows, surpassing Johnny Carson as the longest-serving late night talk show host in American television history. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2019, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45143 "2019-10-14T14:24:18Z")
David Letterman’s first network TV show was _The David Letterman Show_, a daytime comedy/talk show, which aired on NBC from June until October, 1980. Though the show was well-received by critics, it was too edgy and strange for daytime TV, and was cancelled due to poor ratings. Several of the team members who would go on to work on Letterman’s late night shows started out with him on the daytime show, including Hal Gurnee, Biff Henderson, and Merrill Markoe. The daytime show was also where some of Letterman’s signature bits originated, including “Stupid Pet Tricks” and “Small Town News.” After the cancellation of the show, NBC kept Letterman under contract, and gave him the late-night time slot in 1982. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2019, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45144 "2019-10-14T15:08:40Z")
Admiral Sir John “Sandy” Woodward kept his two irreplaceable aircraft carriers, HMS _Hermes_ and HMS _Invincible_, so far east during the 1982 Falklands War to keep them out of harm’s way from Argentine air attack that it was joked his sailors should receive the West Africa Campaign Medal. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2019, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45145 "2019-10-14T22:45:06Z")
The chemical symbol for silver is Ag, for Argentum, the Latin word for silver. In Italian, _Terra Argentina_ means “land of silver”. The country name Argentina was probably given by Italian explorers, possibly Giovanni Caboto (John Cabot). The country name was associated with a legend of silver mountains, where 15th century European explorers heard local native mythical stories of a mountain of silver. ---
**Author:** ![gkster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gkster/32/14107_2.png) [@gkster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gkster)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2019, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45146 "2019-10-14T23:55:39Z")
The town of Ajax, Ontario, established in 1941 as a base for factories contributing to the World War II effort, was named after _HMS Ajax_, one of 3 British ships involved in the Battle of the River Plate. Fought in 1939 in the estuary of the river off Uruguay and Argentina, this was the first naval battle of World War II, resulting in the scuttling of the German heavy battle cruiser, the\* Admiral Graf Spee\*. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2019, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45147 "2019-10-15T00:42:33Z")
Ajax is a brand of household cleaning products made by Colgate-Palmolive. The company introduced Ajax Powdered Cleanser in 1947 as one of the company’s first major brands. An early slogan was “Stronger than dirt!”, a reference to the muscular hero Ajax of Greek mythology. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2019, 10:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657/45148 "2019-10-15T10:48:43Z")
Hockey defenseman Brent Burns of the San Jose Sharks hails from Ajax, Ontario. Born in Barrie, Ontario, Burns played seven seasons with the Minnesota Wild before being traded to San Jose where he’s been for the last nine seasons including this season which just got started. Before entering the NHL, Burns played for the Barrie Icemen and Ajax Knights of the Ontario Minor Hockey Association (OMHA). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657.md?page=2256) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trivia-dominoes-play-off-the-last-bit-of-trivia/527657.md?page=2258)