# Unanswered Questions from TV **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 22, 2000, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328 "2000-11-22T18:10:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![trose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f9ae1b/32.png) [@trose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/trose)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2001, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/61 "2001-05-09T00:00:16Z")
What was the significance of Coronet Blue? ---
**Author:** ![Mercutio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/51bf81/32.png) [@Mercutio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mercutio)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2001, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/62 "2001-05-09T00:03:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Max the Immortal \* > \*\*Why didn’t Peg and Al Bundy get divorced? \*\* As was the premise for more than one episode, they loved each other. ---
**Author:** ![MsRobyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90ced4/32.png) [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2001, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/63 "2001-05-09T00:47:04Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Number Six \* > \*\*5. What are the first names of Quincy and Columbo? > \*\* Quincy’s first initial was R. (seen on an episode where we see a business card he’s handing to Kim Cattrall.) He was never given his own first name. Can’t help you with Columbo. As for Tootie’s roller skates, Kim Fields (the actress who played the character), was significantly younger and shorter than the other girls. So the producers put her in roller skates (which were in vogue at the time) to even it out. Robin ---
**Author:** ![Jeannie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e480ec/32.png) [@Jeannie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeannie)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2001, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/64 "2001-05-09T02:04:04Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Number Six \* > \*\*5. What are the first names of Quincy and Columbo? > \*\* According to my mom, who just loves Columbo, his first name is James. ---
**Author:** ![Sparteye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Sparteye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sparteye)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2001, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/65 "2001-05-09T02:29:38Z")
> [@](#): > > Why didn’t Laura Petri move the coffee table after Dick tripped on it every night? Was she really that sadistic? It was an ottoman, and part way into the series, they changed the opening sequence to have DVD manuever around it instead of trip over it. My question: where did they find the no-maintenance kid, Richie, and how can I trade my heathens for one like him? ---
**Author:** ![Padeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@Padeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Padeye)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2001, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/66 "2001-05-09T02:54:57Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by pesch \* > \*\*And to paraphrase Russell Johnson, why could the Professor may anything he wants out of cocanuts and bamboo except a @!#%%%@ patch for the @$#%@%@@ boat? \*\* They did try to patch up the boat with glue made from tree sap but but the glue didn’t hold up and somehow it caused every single other plank on the boat to fall off. > [@](#): > > \*Wendell Wagner \* > **Pa and Hop Sing were gay lovers. They wanted to have kids…get three women in succession pregnant … killed each woman afterwards and passed off her death as being in childbirth.** And John Waters rewrote the story as [Pink Flamingos](http://us.imdb.com/Title?0069089) I heard a supposed Micheal Landon quote about the possible homosexuality of the Cartright boys, he is alleged to have said they weren’t, but it was a good thing Hop Sing was. Sounds like the “move that damn cat” quote from Carson. ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_Rhosis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@Sir\_Rhosis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_Rhosis)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2001, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/67 "2001-05-09T04:28:46Z")
Levinson and Link (can’t remember their first names, William and ??) have gone on record saying that Columbo had no first name, though Trivial Pursuit once mistakenly issued a card whereon the (incorrect) first name was given as Philip. I have heard that Peter Falk answers this question with “Lieutenant.” Sir ---
**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2001, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/68 "2001-05-14T13:39:49Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Conti \* > \*\*What was up with that little blonde hair cousin on the Brady Bunch?!?!?!?!?!? > > Conti \*\* Robbie Rist was only on two episodes of “The Brady Bunch”, even though [http://www.IMDB.COM](http://www.IMDB.COM) lists him as a regular character. He’s had much more success than his TV cousins. Besides 27 movies and TV series (as a regular), he’s also made 21 guest appearances, 3 as three different kids on “CHiPs” (they were never ones for continuity). ---
**Author:** ![Lyllyan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b2d939/32.png) [@Lyllyan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lyllyan)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2001, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/69 "2001-05-14T15:02:16Z")
On “Earth 2”… Did they ever make it back home, did they decide to stay on the planet, and what was up with the kid being in contact with the aliens of the planet? ---
**Author:** ![frock75](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ad7895/32.png) [@frock75](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/frock75)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2001, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/70 "2001-05-14T15:15:46Z")
* * * And was _Cupid_ really cupid? \*\* [/QUOTE] * * * I often wondered the same thing myself. I don’t think he was. I really enjoyed that show. ---
**Author:** ![nineiron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e56c9b/32.png) [@nineiron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nineiron)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2001, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/71 "2001-05-14T21:46:39Z")
> [@](#): > > Robbie Rist was only on two episodes of “The Brady Bunch”, According to this: [http://www.geocities.com/televisioncity/5283/episodes.html](http://www.geocities.com/televisioncity/5283/episodes.html) Oliver was on six episodes. He certainly can’t be considered a “regular,” though. ---
**Author:** ![dougie\_monty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@dougie\_monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougie_monty)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2001, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/72 "2001-09-06T20:14:12Z")
> [@](#): > > quote: > Why didn’t Laura Petrie move the coffee table after Dick tripped on it every night? Was she really that sadistic? > It was an ottoman, and part way into the series, they changed the opening sequence to have DVD manuever around it instead of trip over it. When our family watched that series on prime time, we always kept track of whether Van Dyke tripped over the ottoman (or hassock, as we call it), or sidestepped it. In fact one time he sidestepped it for six consecutive episodes; the next week he tripped over it. I think the producers used the openings interchangeably. ---
**Author:** ![NaSultainne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/8797f3/32.png) [@NaSultainne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NaSultainne)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2001, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/73 "2001-09-06T20:24:54Z")
Who is Number 1? (Patrick McGoohan) You are…Number 6 (Number 2) Does this answer the question, or create more? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Bitterdrunk\_Kid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/278dde/32.png) [@The\_Bitterdrunk\_Kid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Bitterdrunk_Kid)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2001, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/74 "2001-09-06T21:00:12Z")
How come Homer Simpson and his family aren’t all dead from cancer? In one episode, Mr. Burns made Homer eat about 12 barrels of radioactive waste, he took a nap in the core, their basement has a couple of leaking barrels of waste! Does Johny Bravo know he’s going to die alone? All women hate him! Why did Lloyd Bridges always swim alone on Sea Hunt, when no deep sea diver in his right mind would even think of doing that? How come the magazine on Just Shoot Me is run by five people? There are a whole bunch of other employees, but only five people show up at the meetings, and one of them is the boss’s secretary! ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2001, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/75 "2001-09-06T21:18:11Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Jeannie \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*Originally posted by Number Six \* > > \*\*5. What are the first names of Quincy and Columbo? > > \*\* > > According to my mom, who just loves Columbo, his first name is James. \*\* Columbo was never given a first name. Period. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2001, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/76 "2001-09-06T21:41:38Z")
On Fresh Prince, if Will Smith’s mother is Vi Smith and his father is Lou Smith, then how they refer to his mother and her three sisters as the “Smith sisters”? Was she a Smith who married a Smith? ---
**Author:** ![Esprix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/esprix/32/7899_2.png) [@Esprix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esprix)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2001, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/77 "2001-09-06T23:10:43Z")
What happened when Lyta and G’Kar went exploring the galaxy together? What happened during the Telepath War? Where did Sheridan actually go - to the Rim, to another level of existence, or did he just die? Esprix ---
**Author:** ![NutWrench](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nutwrench/32/20193_2.png) [@NutWrench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NutWrench)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2001, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/78 "2001-09-06T23:19:57Z")
Why does Fred Flintstone always order the extra-large brontosaurus ribs at the end of evey episode when he KNOWS it’s going to tip his car over? –Nut ---
**Author:** ![MrAtoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2001, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/79 "2001-09-06T23:31:36Z")
> [@](#): > > When our family watched that series on prime time, we always kept track of whether Van Dyke tripped over the ottoman (or hassock, as we call it), or sidestepped it. In fact one time he sidestepped it for six consecutive episodes; the next week he tripped over it. I think the producers used the openings interchangeably. According to **The Official Dick Van Dyke Show Book** , by Vince Waldron, this is true. Both opening sequences were filmed at the same time, and it was up to the editor to decide which one would air with a particular episode. Not even Dick Van Dyke knew whether he would trip or not at the beginning of a given show. It’s somewhat sad that I know this off the top of my head, isn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![Agrippina](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8797f3/32.png) [@Agrippina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Agrippina)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2001, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328/80 "2001-09-07T00:35:20Z")
On **Pearl** (anyone remember this from 5 years ago? I kind of liked it, even though it was on for only a season), did Rhea Pearlman take any other classes? And what made her English class better than the others, if she did take other classes? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unanswered-questions-from-tv/42328.md?page=5)