The Quick Quirk Quiz: WORDS & PHRASES
Words are worth their weight in wonder, and the dictionary is full of discoveries. Can you guess these 28 common words and phrases after hearing their history? A “quirk” is defined as “an unexpected twist.” What could be more interesting than a twist in the plot of a story? Quick Quirks first tell a short story- a true tale- and then ask a question. The answer to the question is the quirk! Purchase this e-book for only 99 cents by clicking here.
Test yourself with this question:
A LAUDATORY PARAGRAPH: Around the turn of the century a humorist named Gelett Burgess kept America laughing. He’s best known for a ditty he wrote: “I’ve never seen a purple cow / I hope I never see one / But I can tell you anyhow / I’d rather see than be one.” In 1906, Gelett Burgess published a witty book entitled Are You a Bromide? The book was selling well when the American Booksellers Association annual banquet rolled around. It was customary to distribute free copies of popular new books to attendees, and it was customary to have those books covered in book jackets specially designed for the occasion. Also customary was the habit of American advertisers of using depictions of buxom young woman to sell everything from socks to shampoo. Nearly every novel published featured a jacket that displayed a languishing damsel. In designing a book jacket for this occasion, Burgess wanted to mock these social conventions. So he lifted the image of a gorgeous beauty from a toothpaste advertisement. He stuck her likeness on his book jacket, dubbing her with fictitious first and last names. Her first name was Belinda. Miss Belinda was quoted on the book jacket as saying all sorts of gushy and trite things about the book. At the banquet, 500 copies of this book with the spoof book jacket were distributed to the mucky-mucks of the publishing industry. Afterwards, Miss Belinda’s last name entered our language meaning a short piece of writing which generally praises or promotes something. What was Belinda’s last name?
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Test yourself with this question:
A LAUDATORY PARAGRAPH: Around the turn of the century a humorist named Gelett Burgess kept America laughing. He’s best known for a ditty he wrote: “I’ve never seen a purple cow / I hope I never see one / But I can tell you anyhow / I’d rather see than be one.” In 1906, Gelett Burgess published a witty book entitled Are You a Bromide? The book was selling well when the American Booksellers Association annual banquet rolled around. It was customary to distribute free copies of popular new books to attendees, and it was customary to have those books covered in book jackets specially designed for the occasion. Also customary was the habit of American advertisers of using depictions of buxom young woman to sell everything from socks to shampoo. Nearly every novel published featured a jacket that displayed a languishing damsel. In designing a book jacket for this occasion, Burgess wanted to mock these social conventions. So he lifted the image of a gorgeous beauty from a toothpaste advertisement. He stuck her likeness on his book jacket, dubbing her with fictitious first and last names. Her first name was Belinda. Miss Belinda was quoted on the book jacket as saying all sorts of gushy and trite things about the book. At the banquet, 500 copies of this book with the spoof book jacket were distributed to the mucky-mucks of the publishing industry. Afterwards, Miss Belinda’s last name entered our language meaning a short piece of writing which generally praises or promotes something. What was Belinda’s last name?
You must scroll to the very bottom of the page for the answer!
The Quick Quirk Quiz: DINNERTIME EDITION
You’ll never look at your dinner plate the same way again after reading the amazing origins behind the things we eat for supper. Your freezer is full of fascinating stories of the men, the women, and the miracles behind the invention of the items you stuff into your microwave and your mouth. 28 tales will whet your appetite for more. Can you match the product to the story of its creation? Purchase this e-book for only 99 cents by clicking here.
Test yourself with this question:
A TASTY SAUCE: Off the coast of Louisiana there's a place called Avery Island. A family named McIhenny owned the island and ran the nation's first successful salt mine there. In 1862 in the midst of the Civil War, Union troops invaded the area. The troops needed salt to preserve their meat, and soon overtook the island. Mr. McIhenny took his family and fled to Texas. When he returned after the war, he found the salt factory and his plantation ruined. All that was left was a crop of hot peppers, which the soldiers had no taste for. The peppers were particularly hot because the soil was so salty. McIhenny was determined to turn the peppers into profit and began experimenting. He devised a new sauce using his own peppers combined with the island's salt, along with vinegar and spices. After pouring it into empty cologne bottles, he sent off samples to wholesalers. In 1868 he sold 350 bottles of the sauce. In 1870 he sold over 1,000. Two years later demand was so great he had to open a London branch. Today McIhenny's factories on Avery Island produce 200,000 to 300,000 bottles of this sauce each day-- as well as a million and a half tons of salt annually. What sauce is it?
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Test yourself with this question:
A TASTY SAUCE: Off the coast of Louisiana there's a place called Avery Island. A family named McIhenny owned the island and ran the nation's first successful salt mine there. In 1862 in the midst of the Civil War, Union troops invaded the area. The troops needed salt to preserve their meat, and soon overtook the island. Mr. McIhenny took his family and fled to Texas. When he returned after the war, he found the salt factory and his plantation ruined. All that was left was a crop of hot peppers, which the soldiers had no taste for. The peppers were particularly hot because the soil was so salty. McIhenny was determined to turn the peppers into profit and began experimenting. He devised a new sauce using his own peppers combined with the island's salt, along with vinegar and spices. After pouring it into empty cologne bottles, he sent off samples to wholesalers. In 1868 he sold 350 bottles of the sauce. In 1870 he sold over 1,000. Two years later demand was so great he had to open a London branch. Today McIhenny's factories on Avery Island produce 200,000 to 300,000 bottles of this sauce each day-- as well as a million and a half tons of salt annually. What sauce is it?
You must scroll to the very bottom of the page for the answer!
The Quick Quirk Quiz: NAMES OF DRINKS
Next time you pour yourself something to drink, whether it’s juice, beer, or a soft drink, take the time to consider how that drink came to be. Here are 28 stories behind the creation of popular drinks. Can you match the drink to its story? Purchase this e-book for only 99 cents by clicking here
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A CHILDREN'S JUICE: In 1934 the Pacific Citrus Products Company wanted to add to their line-up of ice cream toppings, so they invented a fruity syrup. They marketed it to restaurants and soda fountains as a topping, and sold it to ice cream manufacturers as a base for sherbet. Soda jerks discovered that the syrup, when mixed with water, made a fruit-flavored drink their customers loved. The customers asked the soda jerks where they could buy the drink so they could have it at home, but it wasn’t commercially available. Seeing the demand, the company began to market the drink in quart bottles and 46-ounce cans. The product, made from seven flavors including pineapple, passion fruit, papaya, and guava, adopted a tropical theme and became increasingly popular. When sales slumped, the company hired a public relations firm who came up with a new ad campaign that consisted of a cartoon character offering people a drink and then punching them in the face. They wanted to air the new ad on TV but they couldn’t afford the advertising rates, so in 1962 they bought a single inexpensive spot on The Tonight Show. The fruit drink was a product geared towards mothers and children, not the late-night crowd, but the show’s host, Jack Paar, was so surprised by the cartoon hostility that he insisted the director run the ad a second time, for free, so he could make fun of it. This caused an unprecedented run on the product and sales never slowed from there. What’s the name of the drink?
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Test yourself with this question:
A CHILDREN'S JUICE: In 1934 the Pacific Citrus Products Company wanted to add to their line-up of ice cream toppings, so they invented a fruity syrup. They marketed it to restaurants and soda fountains as a topping, and sold it to ice cream manufacturers as a base for sherbet. Soda jerks discovered that the syrup, when mixed with water, made a fruit-flavored drink their customers loved. The customers asked the soda jerks where they could buy the drink so they could have it at home, but it wasn’t commercially available. Seeing the demand, the company began to market the drink in quart bottles and 46-ounce cans. The product, made from seven flavors including pineapple, passion fruit, papaya, and guava, adopted a tropical theme and became increasingly popular. When sales slumped, the company hired a public relations firm who came up with a new ad campaign that consisted of a cartoon character offering people a drink and then punching them in the face. They wanted to air the new ad on TV but they couldn’t afford the advertising rates, so in 1962 they bought a single inexpensive spot on The Tonight Show. The fruit drink was a product geared towards mothers and children, not the late-night crowd, but the show’s host, Jack Paar, was so surprised by the cartoon hostility that he insisted the director run the ad a second time, for free, so he could make fun of it. This caused an unprecedented run on the product and sales never slowed from there. What’s the name of the drink?
You must scroll to the very bottom of the page for the answer!
The Quick Quirk Quiz: NATIONAL CHAINS & NAME BRANDS
Behind every national chain and name brand lies the story of the people and the circumstances that turned an idea into a readily recognized icon. Try your hand at matching these 28 stories to the names that make America great. Purchase this e-book for only 99 cents by clicking here.
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FROZEN FOODS: Clarence was a naturalist who was on an Arctic expedition in the 1920s. One day he went ice fishing when it was 20 below zero. The fish he caught froze instantly when he removed them from the water. Back at camp, he tossed a fish into a bucket of warm water and was amazed to see it come to life again. He concluded it survived because it had been frozen so quickly. This gave him an idea. He tried flash-freezing food, with good success. Freezing food quickly prevents large ice crystals from forming, preventing damage to the cellular structure. When thawed, it tastes normal. In 1924, Clarence began marketing the first line of frozen food-- fish. They didn’t sell well, because people didn’t trust the product. Few people, including grocers, owned freezers. But one day Marjorie Post of the Post cereal fame was yachting with her husband E. F. Hutton when their chef served a goose dinner even though goose was out of season. She asked the chef where he’d gotten the goose and he introduced her to Clarence. She convinced her husband and the board of directors of Post to sign up Clarence and invest in this new technology. By 1930, they were selling 26 kinds of frozen foods. In the mid-1930s they introduced a freezer display case leased to grocers who couldn’t afford to buy one. By the time Clarence died in 1956, the company he started, named after himself, was one of the best known names in frozen foods. What was his last name?
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Test yourself with this question:
FROZEN FOODS: Clarence was a naturalist who was on an Arctic expedition in the 1920s. One day he went ice fishing when it was 20 below zero. The fish he caught froze instantly when he removed them from the water. Back at camp, he tossed a fish into a bucket of warm water and was amazed to see it come to life again. He concluded it survived because it had been frozen so quickly. This gave him an idea. He tried flash-freezing food, with good success. Freezing food quickly prevents large ice crystals from forming, preventing damage to the cellular structure. When thawed, it tastes normal. In 1924, Clarence began marketing the first line of frozen food-- fish. They didn’t sell well, because people didn’t trust the product. Few people, including grocers, owned freezers. But one day Marjorie Post of the Post cereal fame was yachting with her husband E. F. Hutton when their chef served a goose dinner even though goose was out of season. She asked the chef where he’d gotten the goose and he introduced her to Clarence. She convinced her husband and the board of directors of Post to sign up Clarence and invest in this new technology. By 1930, they were selling 26 kinds of frozen foods. In the mid-1930s they introduced a freezer display case leased to grocers who couldn’t afford to buy one. By the time Clarence died in 1956, the company he started, named after himself, was one of the best known names in frozen foods. What was his last name?
You must scroll to the bottom of the page for the answer!
The Quick Quirk Quiz: KITCHEN EDITION
Have you ever considered the items that are crammed into your kitchen cupboards and cabinets? Behind every box of cereal, every utensil, and every sauce a story waits to be told. Test your knowledge of common kitchen items with these 28 true tales of culinary origins. Purchase this e-book for 99 cents by clicking here.
Test yourself with this question:
A FOOD STORAGE SYSTEM: Earl’s landscaping business went bust during the Great Depression, so he took a job as a chemist for DuPont. DuPont was beginning to experiment with plastics, and this fascinated Earl. He asked his supervisor if he could purchase leftovers, and was given a large chunk of polyethylene slag, which was a waste product of the oil refining business. Experimenting at home, Earl purified it, transforming it into a tough, flexible, non-porous, non-greasy, translucent material. He used it to create an unbreakable bathroom tumbler. Then he designed bowls. Next he invented lids for the bowls based on the design of a paint can, only in reverse. The lids were liquid-proof and air-tight. He left DuPont and started his own company, naming it after himself, but the product never sold very well in stores. Customers were confused by the newfangled lids and didn’t know how they operated. Sales were dismal. Then a distributor suggested he pattern his business after several other products that were available only through home parties. Earl pulled his product off store shelves and hired the distributor to develop the home party idea, and things really started taking off in a hurry. Within three years there were over 9,000 dealers giving parties in living rooms from coast to coast. He sold the company to Rexall Drugs in 1958 for $16 million, after which he bought himself an island off the coast of Costa Rica where he lived till his death in 1983. What’s the name of the product line of food storage containers Earl invented and named after himself?
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Test yourself with this question:
A FOOD STORAGE SYSTEM: Earl’s landscaping business went bust during the Great Depression, so he took a job as a chemist for DuPont. DuPont was beginning to experiment with plastics, and this fascinated Earl. He asked his supervisor if he could purchase leftovers, and was given a large chunk of polyethylene slag, which was a waste product of the oil refining business. Experimenting at home, Earl purified it, transforming it into a tough, flexible, non-porous, non-greasy, translucent material. He used it to create an unbreakable bathroom tumbler. Then he designed bowls. Next he invented lids for the bowls based on the design of a paint can, only in reverse. The lids were liquid-proof and air-tight. He left DuPont and started his own company, naming it after himself, but the product never sold very well in stores. Customers were confused by the newfangled lids and didn’t know how they operated. Sales were dismal. Then a distributor suggested he pattern his business after several other products that were available only through home parties. Earl pulled his product off store shelves and hired the distributor to develop the home party idea, and things really started taking off in a hurry. Within three years there were over 9,000 dealers giving parties in living rooms from coast to coast. He sold the company to Rexall Drugs in 1958 for $16 million, after which he bought himself an island off the coast of Costa Rica where he lived till his death in 1983. What’s the name of the product line of food storage containers Earl invented and named after himself?
You must scroll to the bottom of the page for the answer!
The Quick Quirk Quiz: SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Test your knowledge of the things that make our lives easier in these 28 true tales behind researchers and their discoveries. Can you match the inventors to their inventions after hearing the story behind their development? Purchase this e-book for 99 cents by clicking here.
Test yourself with this sample question:
A DEADLY WEAPON: Henry was born in 1761 in Britain. At the age of 18, he joined the army and by the age of 22 he had achieved the rank of second lieutenant. At this time he started working independently on a new weapon. He devoted all his spare time and much of his money to the project. Twenty years later, due to his persistence, his new anti-personnel weapon was adopted by the British and Henry was subsequently promoted to lieutenant colonel. The weapon, called a Spherical Case Shot, was a shell filled with musket balls and a powder charge that was set off in mid-air, scattering the shot over a large area. Manufacture of the new weapon began in 1803 and over 75,000 were made before the end of the year. It helped defeat Napoleon at Waterloo. Henry was eventually promoted to lieutenant general and received a modest pension for his invention. He died in 1802 at age 41. Ten years after his death, the weapon was named after him after his family petitioned the government. His name has now come to mean any loose fragment that does great harm. What was Henry’s last name?
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Test yourself with this sample question:
A DEADLY WEAPON: Henry was born in 1761 in Britain. At the age of 18, he joined the army and by the age of 22 he had achieved the rank of second lieutenant. At this time he started working independently on a new weapon. He devoted all his spare time and much of his money to the project. Twenty years later, due to his persistence, his new anti-personnel weapon was adopted by the British and Henry was subsequently promoted to lieutenant colonel. The weapon, called a Spherical Case Shot, was a shell filled with musket balls and a powder charge that was set off in mid-air, scattering the shot over a large area. Manufacture of the new weapon began in 1803 and over 75,000 were made before the end of the year. It helped defeat Napoleon at Waterloo. Henry was eventually promoted to lieutenant general and received a modest pension for his invention. He died in 1802 at age 41. Ten years after his death, the weapon was named after him after his family petitioned the government. His name has now come to mean any loose fragment that does great harm. What was Henry’s last name?
You must scroll to the bottom of the page for the answer!
The Quick Quirk Quiz: SWEET TOOTH EDITION
Next time you’re hungry for something sweet, consider that behind every candy bar, there’s a story waiting to be told. These 28 tales reveal the secrets behind the invention of the candies, cakes, ice cream, and other goodies we all love to cram into our mouths. Will you be able to guess which dessert is under discussion when you hear the story of its discovery? To purchase this e-book for 99 cents, click here.
Test yourself with a sample question:
A SWEET ROOT: In warm climates in parts of Asia and the Mediterranean region, a shrubby weed-like plant grows in loamy river bottoms near water. It’s a perennial plant, meaning it comes back every year, and it has purple flowers. It’s a legume, meaning it’s related to beans and peas. But the unique part of this plant is its roots, which are sweet. Because of the sweet properties of the roots, the Greeks named the shrub Glycyrrhiza from their words glukos meaning ‘sweet’ (from which we get the word ‘glucose’) and riza meaning ‘root’ (which also gives us the word ‘rhizome’). The Greek name evolved as it passed into French and then into English to become the word we use today. The roots are tan or brown, but when boiled and condensed, the resulting syrup is black, and fifty times sweeter than sugar, with a very unique taste. The syrup has medicinal qualities, and has historically been used as a cough syrup, a laxative, and a topical anti-viral. It soothes ulcers and digestive ills. King Tut had a supply in his tomb and Napoleon used it so much it turned his teeth black. Today it’s used medicinally as lozenges and cough drops, but its primary use is in candy, particularly in the forms of string-like vines. What’s the name of this popular sweet root?
You must scroll to the bottom of the page for the answer!
Test yourself with a sample question:
A SWEET ROOT: In warm climates in parts of Asia and the Mediterranean region, a shrubby weed-like plant grows in loamy river bottoms near water. It’s a perennial plant, meaning it comes back every year, and it has purple flowers. It’s a legume, meaning it’s related to beans and peas. But the unique part of this plant is its roots, which are sweet. Because of the sweet properties of the roots, the Greeks named the shrub Glycyrrhiza from their words glukos meaning ‘sweet’ (from which we get the word ‘glucose’) and riza meaning ‘root’ (which also gives us the word ‘rhizome’). The Greek name evolved as it passed into French and then into English to become the word we use today. The roots are tan or brown, but when boiled and condensed, the resulting syrup is black, and fifty times sweeter than sugar, with a very unique taste. The syrup has medicinal qualities, and has historically been used as a cough syrup, a laxative, and a topical anti-viral. It soothes ulcers and digestive ills. King Tut had a supply in his tomb and Napoleon used it so much it turned his teeth black. Today it’s used medicinally as lozenges and cough drops, but its primary use is in candy, particularly in the forms of string-like vines. What’s the name of this popular sweet root?
You must scroll to the bottom of the page for the answer!
The Quick Quirk Quiz: THE BATHROOM
The stuff in your bathroom didn’t get their by accident. Long before you bought it, brought it home, and crammed it into your medicine chest, someone was wondering… experimenting… discovering… manufacturing… and marketing. Here are 28 tales behind the things you use when you’re in the bathroom. Can you guess the product after hearing the story behind its invention? Purchase this e-book for only 99 cents by clicking here.
Test yourself with a sample question:
A DISPOSABLE HANKY: During World War I, cotton was used for surgical dressings and as filters in gas masks. As the war progressed, demand outstripped supply and it became urgent to find a substitute material. The Kimberly-Clark company, a paper manufacturing firm based in Wisconsin, came up with a substitute called Cellucotton that was made from wood fibers. It made an excellent cotton substitute not only for gas masks but also for bandages. When the war ended, Kimberly-Clark had huge surpluses of Cellucotton on hand. Searching for a peace-time use for their product, in 1924 they came up with a tissue designed to remove cold cream make-up used by actors. It was a far better alternative than using towels and handkerchiefs to remove makeup. They called them Celluwipes at first, before settling on a new name. Advertisements using Hollywood movie stars convinced ladies that the tissues were the best way to remove makeup at the same time that Hollywood movie stars were convincing the American public that wearing makeup was acceptable. In 1928 the pop-up tissue dispenser was invented and the tissues began to be used as a disposable handkerchief, an idea proposed by a Kimberly Clark researcher who suffered from persistent hay fever. The company introduced the slogan, ‘Don’t carry a cold in your pocket’ while pushing the sanitary benefits of using the product. Today the product is used worldwide and the name has become a nearly generic term for tissue. What’s it called?
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Test yourself with a sample question:
A DISPOSABLE HANKY: During World War I, cotton was used for surgical dressings and as filters in gas masks. As the war progressed, demand outstripped supply and it became urgent to find a substitute material. The Kimberly-Clark company, a paper manufacturing firm based in Wisconsin, came up with a substitute called Cellucotton that was made from wood fibers. It made an excellent cotton substitute not only for gas masks but also for bandages. When the war ended, Kimberly-Clark had huge surpluses of Cellucotton on hand. Searching for a peace-time use for their product, in 1924 they came up with a tissue designed to remove cold cream make-up used by actors. It was a far better alternative than using towels and handkerchiefs to remove makeup. They called them Celluwipes at first, before settling on a new name. Advertisements using Hollywood movie stars convinced ladies that the tissues were the best way to remove makeup at the same time that Hollywood movie stars were convincing the American public that wearing makeup was acceptable. In 1928 the pop-up tissue dispenser was invented and the tissues began to be used as a disposable handkerchief, an idea proposed by a Kimberly Clark researcher who suffered from persistent hay fever. The company introduced the slogan, ‘Don’t carry a cold in your pocket’ while pushing the sanitary benefits of using the product. Today the product is used worldwide and the name has become a nearly generic term for tissue. What’s it called?
Scroll to the bottom of the page for the answer!
ANSWERS - ANSWERS - ANSWERS - ANSWERS
The laudatory paragraph is now known as a BLURB.
The tasty sauce is called TABASCO.
The children's drink is called HAWAIIAN PUNCH.
The frozen food company is called BIRDSEYE.
The plastic food containers are called TUPPERWARE.
The deadly weapon is called SHRAPNEL.
The sweet root is called LICORICE.
The disposable hanky is called KLEENEX.
The tasty sauce is called TABASCO.
The children's drink is called HAWAIIAN PUNCH.
The frozen food company is called BIRDSEYE.
The plastic food containers are called TUPPERWARE.
The deadly weapon is called SHRAPNEL.
The sweet root is called LICORICE.
The disposable hanky is called KLEENEX.
