Daily Trivia

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is a 1982 science fiction film produced and directed by Steven Spielberg. It tells the story of Elliott, a boy who befriends an extraterrestrial, dubbed "E.T.", who is stranded on Earth. The concept was based on an imaginary friend Spielberg created after his parents' divorce in 1960. Spielberg’s masterpiece was the highest grossing film of the 1980s bring in a whopping $435 million. E.T. even surpassed Star Wars to become the highest-grossing film of all time—a record it held for eleven years until Jurassic Park, another Spielberg-directed film, surpassed it in 1993.

 Everyone has the image of Santa Claus flying through the night on a sleigh driven by nine reindeer, but the picture of what Santa rides on in Finland is quite different. He does begin in his sleigh; however, at some point during the night, he stops his travels, parks his sleigh, and hops on another form of transportation. In Finland, Santa leaves his sleigh and climbs aboard a goat named Ukko! This tidbit of information might seen quite surprising to you, but if you lived in Finland, it would just be the norm. Finnish folklore has it that Ukko is made of straw, but is strong enough to carry Santa Claus anyway.

 "Do You Hear What I Hear?" is a song written in October 1962, with lyrics by Noël Regney and music by Gloria Shayne Baker. The pair, married at the time, wrote it as a plea for peace during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Regney had been invited by a record producer to write a Christmas song, but he was hesitant due to the commercialism of the Christmas holiday. “Do You Hear What I Hear?” carried a beautiful message close to people in all walks of life. It became a popular Christmas carol, “a song high above the tree, with a voice as big as the sea.” It s sold tens of millions of copies and has been covered by hundreds of artists.

In one of the most famous and decisive moments of the American Revolution, General George Washington led his army across the Delaware River to Trenton, New Jersey in a logistically challenging and dangerous operation. On the evening of December 25, 1776, they captured 1,000 Hessian soldiers in a surprise attack that raised morale in Washington's troops and turned the tide of the war. The unconventional attack came after several months of substantial defeats for Washington’s army that had resulted in the loss of New York City and other strategic points in the region. 

There is no Candy Cane, Alaska. But there should be! There are actually several places in the U.S. named after St. Nick, but only one of them is famous for the Santa Claus postmark. That’s Santa Claus, Indiana, a city of just under 2500 people located in the southwest portion of the state. And that’s not the only municipality with a December 25-inspired name. Christmas, Michigan is home to just 400 residents, and was named for the holiday gift factory once located there. There are 4 cities in the United States named North Pole. They are located in Alaska, Idaho, New York, and Oklahoma.

The song “Frosty the Snowman” was written by Jack Rollins and Steve Nelson in 1950 specifically as a means of capitalizing on the success of Gene Autry’s “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” which was released the previous year. The song recounts the fictional tale of Frosty, a snowman who is brought to life by a magical silk hat that a group of children find and place on his head. "Frosty the snowman was a jolly happy soul / With a corncob pipe and a button nose / And two eyes made out of coal." Like "Rudolph", "Frosty" was subsequently adapted to other media including a popular television special. 

The Christmas tune "Baby, It's Cold Outside" was banned by radio stations across the country -- and even in Canada -- for its lyrics that some said were inappropriate in the wake of the #MeToo movement. Written by Frank Loesser in 1944, "Baby, It's Cold Outside" was featured in the film Neptune's Daughter, winning the Oscar for best original song. The call and response duet has a female voice trying to tear herself away from her date in myriad ways: "I've got to go away ... Hey, what's in this drink?" And finally, "The answer is no." Following the controversy, the song has risen to the top 10 of Billboard's digital sales with a 70% increase in downloads.

 The objective of each Where's Waldo? book is simple: search through the crowds of people to find Waldo, who's always decked out in his trademark red and white striped shirt, bobble hat, and glasses. The book is the brainchild of English illustrator Martin Handford. His books have sold more than 50 million copies worldwide and have been translated into over 25 languages, and as a character, Waldo has become an icon, appearing on TV shows such as The Simpsons, Friends and Frasier. Waldo even made it onto the cover of Rolling Stone.

 On this day in 1888, Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh, suffering from severe depression, cut off the lower part of his left ear with a razor. He later documented the event in a painting titled Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear. The precise chain of events that led to the incident of slicing off his ear is not known reliably in detail. He allegedly wrapped up the ear and gave it to a prostitute at a nearby brothel before returning home and collapsing. He was found unconscious the next day by the police and taken to hospital. Vincent van Gogh died aged 37 from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

 On this day in 1968, Julie Nixon and David Eisenhower, both progeny of United States presidents, tied the knot in New York City. Julie Nixon was the daughter of Richard M. Nixon, who was running for president at the time of the wedding. Her groom was the grandson of Dwight D. Eisenhower, who served as America’s 34th president. Julie and David met at the Republican National Convention in 1956 while his grandfather was campaigning for re-election. They were both eight at the time. They are still married, have three children and live in Pennsylvania.

 On December 22, 1944, during the Battle of the Bulge, General Anthony McAuliffe received an ultimatum demanding surrender from the German commander. His official reply was brief and succinct: “NUTS!” The men of the 101st Airborne successfully defended their position for four days until reinforcements arrived. For his gallantry, General McAuliffe was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross by General Patton. His one word reply also earned him a new moniker: General McAuliffe was known as “Nuts” for the rest of his career.