What U.S. government agency tried to wrestle control of manned space flight from NASA multiple times? And what fruit do humans share the most DNA with? Hear the Off Ramp Podcast. www.theofframp.show
Bob and Marcia discussed the government’s attempts to take control of manned space flight from NASA, with Marcia revealing that the Air Force has been involved. Bob questioned which government agency might have tried this, while Marcia provided historical context on the struggle for control of manned spaceflight in the US. They then shifted to discussing legal traditions and innovations, including the use of quill feather pens by Supreme Court justices, the first country to grant women voting rights through a national election, and the value of music catalogues belonging to legendary artists like Michael Jackson and the Beatles. Bob highlighted the business move of remixing and repackaging classic songs to generate new revenue streams, while Marcia questioned the relevance of such practices.
Outline
Government agency’s attempts to control NASA.
- Bob and Marcia discuss the surprising similarity between humans and bananas, sharing 50-60% of their DNA.
- A government agency, the Air Force, attempted to wrestle control of manned space flight from NASA multiple times, as revealed in the book “Mercury Rising.”
- Bob Smith discusses the history of NASA and the Air Force’s attempts to gain control of manned spaceflight, including three instances of the Air Force trying to wrestle control from NASA.
- John Glenn’s mission was scrubbed 10 times due to technical issues, but he eventually became the first American to enter space, marking a turning point for NASA’s civilian space program.
Figures of speech and legal traditions.
- Marcia and Bob discuss “para prosto” figure of speech, with examples from comedians and unexpected endings.
- Marcia Smith and Bob Smith discuss the history of the Supreme Court, including the tradition of quill feather pens and the handshake greeting between justices.
- In 1893, New Zealand became the first country in the world to grant national voting rights for women, a milestone that took the US 27 years to achieve.
Acronyms and their meanings.
- Marcia Smith explains acronyms “Taser” and “laser,” while Bob Smith is surprised and impressed.
- Bob Smith explains that Queen Elizabeth II is not the head of state for India, despite being a member of the Commonwealth of Nations and a former British colony.
- Marcia Smith asks about the meaning of WD 40, which stands for water displacement and was developed after 39 failed attempts by chemists in the lab.
- Rodgers and Hammerstein’s song catalog rakes in millions annually, 50-60 years after their deaths.
UK politics, history, and bird facts.
- Bob Smith discusses the value of music catalogs, particularly the Beatles’ catalog, which is worth $500 million and owned in part by Paul McCartney.
- Bob Smith and Marcia Smith discuss the UK Parliament, with the House of Lords being the upper house and mostly composed of appointed or hereditary members, while the House of Commons is the publicly elected legislative body responsible for deciding on financial bills.
- Bob Smith and Marcia Smith discuss the height and weight of pilgrims on the Mayflower, with Bob incorrectly stating that 13 of his ancestors had the same first name.
- Bob Smith shares a fascinating fact about chickens, revealing that they were once revered and celebrated in ancient civilizations, but were not eaten for thousands of years.
- Marcia Smith shares interesting facts about Casanova, including his vocation as a lover and libertine, and the two animals that can get leprosy (human beings and armadillos).
- Bob Smith asks questions about geography, including the state with the highest average elevation (Colorado), and the nearest competitor (Alaska).
Comic strips, movie stars, and trivia.
- Marcia and Bob discuss comic strips, including the introduction of Franklin, a black character in Peanuts, and Cary Grant’s identity crisis.
- Marcia and Bob Smith discuss trivia and share fun facts on their podcast.
Bob Smith 0:00
What government agency tried to wrestle control of manned space flight from NASA multiple times?
Marcia Smith 0:06
ago? No. And What fruit do humans share the most DNA with?
Bob Smith 0:12
Oh, that’s interesting! Answers to those and other questions coming up in this episode of the off ramp with Bob and Marsha
Marcia Smith 0:18
frutti Smith
Bob Smith 0:37
Welcome to the off ramp a chance to slow down steered clear of crazy. Take a side road to sanity and get some perspective on life with some fascinating facts and tantalizing trivia. Well, what fruits are we related to the most? Marcia? That is an interesting question.
Marcia Smith 0:55
I’ll give you a hint. You’ll like the answer. And we share DNA. Yes. With fruit different degrees. Okay, but this one has the most and I want you to guess which fruit that
Bob Smith 1:06
might be. That would be blueberries. Now my favorite fruit right now? Is it really? I don’t know. Let’s see what would be the fruit that would be most like us apples. Bananas because they have appeal. I’ll go with bananas because they have appeal and
Marcia Smith 1:21
what was your name when you were young banana? Ah, that’s right. And that’s the end?
Bob Smith 1:28
Oh, no,
Marcia Smith 1:29
it’s true. Bananas we share, depending on what study you read between 50 and 60% of our DNA with the banana no CUnit. Yes. And think about that the next time you have breakfast, but
Bob Smith 1:43
what kind of ramifications does that have?
Marcia Smith 1:45
Well think about this. We share 70% of our DNA with slugs. So what
Bob Smith 1:51
do you mean 70% of slugs. DNA is like ours or
Marcia Smith 1:55
70% of both of our DNA is identical. Oh my god. Okay, and 50 to 60% in bananas, so.
Bob Smith 2:06
Okay, where did this come from?
Marcia Smith 2:09
It came from the Genome Research Institute. Wow.
Bob Smith 2:13
Okay, it sounds impressive.
Marcia Smith 2:15
But very thought I made it up very, very
Bob Smith 2:18
disturbing on my dad. Okay. Well, this is a little disturbing, because this is hidden history. Most of us didn’t know about. Did you know that there was a government agency that tried to wrestle control of manned space flight from NASA not once, but multiple times? No, I did not. What do you think it might have been? FBI? The FBI wants to go in and understand. I
Marcia Smith 2:42
guess not. I guess not. It’s kind
Bob Smith 2:43
of the natural when you would think
Marcia Smith 2:46
that the Air Force the Oh, the military? Yes. The Air Force. Yes, it is obvious naturally thought
Bob Smith 2:53
it was natural. This comes from a book recently published called Mercury Rising. John Glenn John Kennedy and the new battleground of the Cold War. It’s by historian Jeff Shull. And he said that the Air Force wanted NASA they wanted manned spaceflight but neither Dwight Eisenhower nor John F. Kennedy would give it to them. They thought they were entitled to it after all, the Soviet military controlled Russia’s space program, but we ain’t Russia. That’s right. And President Eisenhower, who was a four star general in World War Two, they thought he would be a pushover. But he said no, he wanted it under civilian control. You remember he did later warn the world of the military industrial complex that so he was probably thinking that too. So he supported what was called the Space Act of 1958. They gave NASA jurisdiction that’s when NASA came into being and his policy was space for peace. And he said to the Air Force, you can go ahead and do those high speed supersonic jet planes like you’ve been doing. That’s okay. But the manned spaceflight is going to be over here. Well, the airforce didn’t like that behind the scenes. They saw that as a rebuke. And so how many times do you think they tried to wrestle control of the program from NASA? That’s number one. How many other times for men not that many? twice, twice? Twice? Just say that again? How many other times for no twice? Trying to get you to get the right answer this time? Yeah, I can edit out the mistakes. Nevermind. Anyway, twice more. They did it a second time. Well, Eisenhower was still president, this must have really ticked him off. JFK had just been elected. And the Air Force released a letter publicly expressing competence. JFK understood the need for military supremacy in space. Wow. But JFK, who also served in the military said no, he wanted the US to have a better image he thought that would be happening if they explored space for all mankind. And then the third time that the Air Force tried to do is when all those things were blowing up on the launching pad before we sent a man up at space. You know, the Soviets were Sending dogs they’d sent an astronaut we’re still blowing up things on your Garen was the first man in space and he was rushing right? NASA was doing so poorly that Kennedy’s advisor Jerome Weisner was in favor of either transferring Project Mercury to the military or canceling it altogether. And the big change, the recent John Glenn’s name is in the book’s title, because that’s what proved it was okay, let’s move forward with this. John Glenn entered the space. And from that point on NASA had manned spaceflight. But even John Glenn was concerned about not coming back, his mission was scrubbed 10 times due to technical problems. So he had even recorded a message to his sons to be played in the event that he died. But that’s the background on how the Air Force tried to wrestle control of manned spaceflight from NASA three times. I’m glad they didn’t win. Yeah, me too, because we wouldn’t have had the civilian space program we have now on all these companies doing things now. That would never have happened if the military retain control of it. Yeah.
Marcia Smith 6:00
Okay. But I have a question. You and I, we know lots of figures of speech. Don’t wait. Yes. But I’ve never heard of this one. Para perros, Tolkien. Para perros.
Bob Smith 6:09
Tolkien Yes, it’s a Greek word. Well, it sounds Russian to me.
Marcia Smith 6:15
Tolkien I believe it is Greek while a figure of speech, which I’ve never heard of, but
Bob Smith 6:20
Paris prosto Kia Paris, P A, RAs are parents a are a
Marcia Smith 6:24
para Pro. Okay, CRO s. And Tolkien. T Okay. i
Bob Smith 6:30
What does it stand for? What’s it mean?
Marcia Smith 6:32
It says something commonly used especially amongst comedians. It’s a figure of speech in which the latter part of the sentence phrase or larger discourse has a surprising or unexpected way to end it looks like a joke. Basically, it sort of is. Here’s one, Stephen King. I have the heart of a small boy in a glass jar on my desk. Right, right. Rodney Dangerfield when I was a kid, my parents moved a lot, but I always found them. Groucho Marx, I had a wonderful evening, but this wasn’t it. So it’s a totally unexpected ending to a first line, isn’t it? So
Bob Smith 7:15
we had to have that fancy word to explain it that those are all para prosto give
Marcia Smith 7:21
emo Philips I always remember my grandfather’s last words. A truck
Bob Smith 7:31
all right. Speaking of vehicles, I’ve got a vehicle question.
Marcia Smith 7:36
Let’s segue that we heard so much
Bob Smith 7:38
talk these days about electric vehicles. I mean, it’s everywhere. Right? Here’s a good question. How much market share do electric vehicles have? And this is a 2021 statistic.
Marcia Smith 7:49
Okay, I’ll say 1% It’s
Bob Smith 7:53
not much different. 3% 3% Yes, I thought it was more than I thought maybe was 10 Oh, really? Yeah. Oh, electric vehicles only accounted for 3% of the 15 million cars and trucks sold in the US in 2021. It
Marcia Smith 8:09
doesn’t make much sense to buy them yet. For one thing they’re ridiculously expensive. But to if you want to go for a trip Aren’t you gonna worry that there’s not a charging stations? I don’t know. I like what are those called hybrids? Yes. Makes sense to me. They do make sense. Okay, Bob? In what courtroom? Will you still find quill feather pins? Wow. Yeah, they still
Bob Smith 8:31
have quill feather pen somewhere? Uh huh. Is it the Museum of American courtrooms? No, he’s in the Supreme Court. Yes. No kidding. Well,
Marcia Smith 8:40
it this is cool. You’ll like this because it’s all about keeping history and tradition at the lawyer’s tables that they sit at when they come to you know, state their case to the judges. There’s a big lineup of quill feather pens the way it was when the Supreme Court started out in the early days. And as a little bonus, if you argue a case before the Supreme Court, you get to take that home. Oh, no kidding. Yeah. Yeah. Little pad of paper and a quill pen laying in front of you when you sit down.
Bob Smith 9:10
He’s still make these then apparently, because if they keep giving them away, yes, they do.
Marcia Smith 9:14
Oh, there’s another tradition that is still a holdover to the Supreme Court actually started in 1790. So it goes back a bit. But another old tradition is and they still do to this day when the court justices walk into the courtroom, they all shake each other’s hands. Whoa,
Bob Smith 9:30
not bad, not a bad thing. That you should be cordial with your
Marcia Smith 9:34
adversary to remember that you are a fellow human being. That’s what
Bob Smith 9:38
we should be thinking about these days. Okay, Marsha, in 1893, the country of New Zealand became the first country in the world to do what and I will give you some choices. So thank you. In 1893, New Zealand became the first country in the world to vote by mail, ratify a constitution. Grant women the right to vote to gain independence from Britain. We can eliminate the last one because they are not the first country to gain independence from Great Britain. We were Yeah.
Unknown Speaker 10:09
What about all the rest here?
Bob Smith 10:11
I’ll say number one vote by mail in 1893.
Marcia Smith 10:15
No, no, of course not. It was number two and B it was the electoral bill of 1893. A little guy on a horse coming dropping off here. That
Bob Smith 10:24
could have been the electoral bill of 18. A lesson though I know it wasn’t. It at 93 New Zealand became the first country in the world to grant national voting rights for women. Oh, the first con Yeah, after years of suffragettes struggles across the North Island and the South Island women finally went to the polls. For the first time that November in 1893. It would be another 27 years before the US did the same. Hmm. So New Zealand is the first country to grant women voting rights across the country.
Marcia Smith 10:56
Wow, you go girls, that’s great. All right, Bob acronyms. God knows we have enough of them and too many and here’s some that I didn’t even know were acronyms, so I want to know if you know what they stand for. Okay, taser.
Bob Smith 11:10
O taser, the Taser weapon like this. It’s something about laser something laser. I don’t know what the T stands for, though. Nope. You’re totally wrong. That’s what I thought.
Marcia Smith 11:22
It stands for Tom a swift electric rifle. Oh, no kidding. Yes. It was named after a 1911 young adult adventure novel that was much beloved by a NASA researcher Jack cover who invented the Taser in 1974. And he gave Taser the name after his Tom Swift electric rifle.
Bob Smith 11:44
I had no idea Tom Swift went that far back because they had the Tom Swift radio shows and stuff and so it was an old character then
Marcia Smith 11:53
when they Oh, yeah. On Radio 1911. Yeah. Wow. So I love that modern
Bob Smith 11:58
Tom a swift Thomas a swift what? Electric rifle? Electric rifle teaser?
Marcia Smith 12:06
Who knew? Isn’t that cool? That is how about laser?
Bob Smith 12:09
Well, laser is. Here we go. Laser. Okay, you can help me with that when
Marcia Smith 12:16
light amplification by the stimulated emission of radiation. I knew
Bob Smith 12:20
it had something to do with light but I didn’t know all those other words went together.
Marcia Smith 12:23
Just you know, just wrong off my tongue. Okay, l a ser Light Amplification by the stimulated emission of radiation stimulated emission of radiation of radiation. That sounds kind of funny to me as stimulated. I’m not gonna go there. Okay. Goodbye.
Bob Smith 12:43
Scuba lets you know that was an act. I knew it was an acronym, but you know, you caught me You caught me unawares. I didn’t have my acronym book
Marcia Smith 12:51
outside. No self contained underwater breathing apparatus. There
Bob Smith 12:54
you go. Now that one is the most logical one.
Marcia Smith 12:57
Yeah, and something you can actually understand. Okay. All right.
Bob Smith 13:01
Let me give you a question. Okay. Queen Elizabeth is not the head of state for which of these four countries is Queen Elizabeth the Second, not the head of state fork. This is like a technicality. We don’t understand. Okay, if we were in the Commonwealth, we would understand Okay, so there’s India, Canada, New Zealand or Jamaica. I will say Canada, Canada. No Queen Elizabeth is the head of state of Canada technically, yeah. But in India she isn’t. Even though India is related to Great Britain as a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, and a former British colony, it no longer recognizes Queen Elizabeth the Second as its head of state that was part of when they broke away from England, Canada, New Zealand and Jamaica, as well as a handful of other countries do consider the Queen to be their ceremonial Nadir ceremony. As such, they are known as Commonwealth realms. The title of though is just really for show but I thought that was interesting a distinction between all those countries that used to be you know, English that very related to England. India is the one that in which the queen is not recognized. I don’t even know who she is when she goes, Who is that lady? Who
Marcia Smith 14:11
is that woman with all that fancy? I
Bob Smith 14:13
don’t recognize her out. Okay.
Marcia Smith 14:15
Yes, I feel enlightened. Thank you, Bob. Good. Is it time for a break? It’s time for a break. All right, you’re listening
Bob Smith 14:21
to the off ramp with Bob and my shop Smith. We’ll be back in just a moment. Okay, we’re back again. You’re listening to the off ramp with Bob and Marsha Smith.
Marcia Smith 14:30
Two more acronyms. Okay. If you can remember back we had a discussion about this one’s WD 40.
Bob Smith 14:37
Yes, yes. I think it was the 40th compound or something that they had worked on for this company. Is the oil right? Isn’t it? WD 40?
Marcia Smith 14:48
Yes. What does it stand for?
Bob Smith 14:49
I don’t know. I don’t know. But it’s the 40th formula for the formula. Yes, absolutely.
Marcia Smith 14:53
Right. And the W D stands for water displacement. Those words WD 40 is straight out of the lab book of the chemists who got it right after 39 failed attempts. So Okay, last one. How about the musical group? Abba?
Bob Smith 15:10
That is an acronym? Yeah. Of the names of the performers. Excellent.
Marcia Smith 15:14
Did you guess that
Bob Smith 15:15
I knew that, but I couldn’t tell you what the names of the performers are. But I Agnetha beyond
Marcia Smith 15:20
Benny and Annie, Fred.
Bob Smith 15:23
There you go, there you go. Okay, speaking of music, how much money do good song catalogs bring in each year? Then I’m going to give you an example here. Rodgers and Hammerstein. How much money does their catalogue bring in every year?
Marcia Smith 15:42
Still, to this day? Yeah. He mean, in terms of dollars.
Bob Smith 15:45
I’ll give you some information here. Okay. Okay. Yep. Keep in mind that they died 41 and 60 years ago, respectively, Rodgers and Hammerstein? Yeah. The company that owns the 241 songs they wrote has been raking in millions since the family heirs sold the song rights in the mid 2000s. Five of their top 10 money making songs are from the sound of music, but 10 Other musical still generate money, including Oklahoma, The King and I in South Pacific, their songs and shows which collect fees and royalties from local theater groups. Companies like Volvo and Frito Lay that use them in commercials and artists like grande who repurpose their hooks and music. And then music streamers, like Spotify and Apple. They all brought in revenue of how much money recently?
Marcia Smith 16:29
How couches $1 million, $10
Bob Smith 16:34
million $10 million. For two people
Marcia Smith 16:37
who were gone. Wow, there were half a century ago,
Bob Smith 16:41
most of that work took place. 50, 60, 70 years ago, the family? Well, the family did get it for a long time. Even in the 21st century, family members were still getting checks of $100,000 a year in royalties, multiple family members, were still getting that much money. That’s amazing. Now their catalogue is assumed to be worth about $350 million. Which makes it the third most valuable behind Michael Jackson, who’s is worth 375 million and what’s the number one catalog? The Beatles, right? That’s worth 500 million. And Paul McCartney owns part of that. Now I don’t know how much but remember, he had to get back in? Well, he went back and had a settlement with Sony and they settled it without any kind of information. He was pretty cranky. He was cranky about it hired some pretty strong lawyers and they got some kind of a settlement there. So we don’t know how much Paul gets we know gets enough. Oh, you know,
Marcia Smith 17:35
always. Maybe he’ll stop bringing out those repackaged Beatle things that cost a fortune. And you always seem to need to get I
Bob Smith 17:41
need those. Well, he does though. I find this as a smart business move. He wasn’t getting the money from the original recordings anymore. Yeah, because Michael Jackson owned that for a while then Sony bought it and all that. So if he remixes the songs and makes him sound better, that money goes to the Four Families. Yeah, that’s how he set it up.
Marcia Smith 18:03
I thought that was brilliant is brilliant. So and they sounded pretty good. You seem to
Bob Smith 18:06
be there. Sounds wonderful. Okay, Mark, one more question on the United Kingdom here. Okay. Okay. The UK Parliament includes the House of Lords and the house of what? We have the house in the Senate. They have the House of Lords in the house of let me give you a hint. Okay, membership in the House of Lords. That’s the upper house of the English parliament is by appointment or hereditary? Oh, God, meaning most of those seats are held by barons or URLs or other title peoples fell into it. That’s the House of Lords. The other ones they have to be elected. That’s the house of
Marcia Smith 18:41
it’s not parliament, comments car House of Commons? Yes.
Bob Smith 18:44
That is the publicly elected legislative body. They’re members of parliament debate and propose laws and the Lords get I don’t know, but the commons alone is responsible for deciding on financial bills. So I don’t know what the House of Lords does.
Marcia Smith 19:00
Back. Yeah, just prances around.
Bob Smith 19:03
Well, somebody could tell us that’s not the case, Marsha? It’s not taking so flippantly as you are. Okay. Okay.
Marcia Smith 19:11
What is the largest living bird on Earth?
Bob Smith 19:15
The ostrich is the largest lift that is correct. Yes.
Marcia Smith 19:19
How big is it?
Bob Smith 19:20
How big is it? Yeah.
Marcia Smith 19:21
How big is it?
Bob Smith 19:23
I think it can be eight feet tall. Yeah,
Marcia Smith 19:25
it’s actually the boys can grow up to nine feet tall and weighed 280 pounds, almost 300 pound bird.
Bob Smith 19:35
So you don’t want them angry at you. Oh
Marcia Smith 19:36
my god chasing after you. Yeah, women are more petite. They grew up to six feet and weigh around 200 So they’re more dainty. All right. Of the 102 people Bob aboard the Mayflower your ancestors? 13 of them had the same first name. What was it?
Bob Smith 19:55
Really? No, really. That’s the name 13 had the same it wasn’t prudence Let me see 13 at the same wasn’t John was no kidding go?
Marcia Smith 20:06
Yes, it was in what was your ancestors name? It was George soul. It wasn’t charge but but Yes, John is correct. Okay.
Bob Smith 20:16
All right I have a bird question for you. What bird eaten regularly today was once revered, celebrated and not eaten for 1000s of years.
Marcia Smith 20:29
Say again,
Bob Smith 20:30
what bird eaten regularly today was once revered, celebrated and not eaten that check exactly. Think about this when you bite into your next chicken sandwich chickens were once celebrated, venerated and admired by civilizations, and may not have been eaten for 1000s of years. They descended from red jungle fowl in Asia and were first viewed by human beings as marvelous and exotic. So the birds were left alone to do as they please. And they know this because of some of the fossils they found. When they examined the remains of chickens and more than 600 sites around the world. They found chickens buried alone with no signs of butchery. In fact, some even had healed leg fractures, which seals did human hair.
Marcia Smith 21:15
Oh my goodness. Wow. They were revered guests who
Bob Smith 21:19
brought the idea of eating chickens to Great Britain. It was the Romans because when the Romans got there, they’ll people that live there, they didn’t eat chickens. They just thought chickens were sacred. Like they were in other parts of the world. Not the Romans we eat. We eat chicken. Yeah. So from 43 add on Britain started eating chickens. Yeah, we’re gonna eat chicken and the oldest forms of domesticated chickens they found is 3500 years old. But
Marcia Smith 21:43
investigate. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Okay. All right.
Bob Smith 21:48
I had no idea that chickens were considered that valuable. Yeah.
Marcia Smith 21:53
And they are kind of pretty. Some of them sometimes. Okay, I have two quickies. Okay. Before he discovered his real vocation as a lover and a libertine. Casanova was preparing for a job as what a priest that’s did you guess that? I
Bob Smith 22:10
knew that. He was gonna be a priest.
Marcia Smith 22:12
He was quite this. The scallion not the scallion what’s the word? scallywag that’s the word I was thinking okay. He was quite the scallywag he was a gambler and die he just at you know was sexing all over the place
Bob Smith 22:26
sexing all over the place? What the heck does that mean? Yeah.
Marcia Smith 22:30
And gambling and drinking. Yeah, he had quite an interesting life. Okay, next question. Sure. There are only two animals in the world that can get leprosy Who are they? Well, human beings. Yes, that’s one half right? Would it be?
Bob Smith 22:46
I’m just thinking along the lines of monkey pox. Would it be apes or No, no, no.
Marcia Smith 22:51
It seems so contrary but they just happen to have the same makeup needed to attract this disease and it’s armadillos are human beings.
Bob Smith 23:03
Oh my goodness. You think that that they can fend off leprosy if they’re armadillos with that showing
Marcia Smith 23:08
me? Did you know they can walk underwater? No.
Bob Smith 23:13
Really? Who knew? Oh, well, that but still get lepers? Yeah. What is wrong with?
Marcia Smith 23:18
It ain’t fair Life ain’t fair.
Bob Smith 23:21
But okay. Geography question. Yeah. What state has the highest average elevation I’ll give you four. average elevation, okay, Alaska, Colorado, Utah, or Wyoming. Which state has the highest average Alabama, Asa, Colorado. It is Colorado, I thought it would be Alaska because they boast the highest mountains in the United States. And the most mountains in the United States, you know, that are that far above sea level 20,000 feet or so. But the state with the highest average elevation is Colorado and the average elevation is 6800 feet there. So that’s a lot that makes sense when you consider Colorado is home to the big chunk of the Rocky Mountain Range. But Colorado is mean elevation is even higher than the capital of Denver because Denver is considered a mile high city. Yeah, 5280 feet, but the average height in Colorado is even higher at 6800 feet. No kidding. Who is their nearest competitor in average elevation,
Marcia Smith 24:25
Alaska.
Bob Smith 24:26
I would have thought that to know it’s Utah and Wyoming. Utah has 6100 feet Wyoming 6700 feet and they share borders with Colorado.
Marcia Smith 24:36
All right pop. What was the first major comic strip to feature on minority character first
Bob Smith 24:40
major comic strip
Marcia Smith 24:42
it’s in our time ceiling we all read to feature a
Bob Smith 24:45
minority character Let me see. Huh? Wasn’t Nancy and Sluggo
Marcia Smith 24:52
God they didn’t do anything.
Bob Smith 24:56
Is this Oh would be peanuts. Yes. Peanuts. Yes. You little black boy or a little black girl
Marcia Smith 25:02
was Franklin Franklin. Alright, then he was introduced in 1968 following the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Schultz, Charles Schultz received a letter from a woman asking him to add an African American character to the comic. And three months later, in July 1968, Franklin made his debut by picking up and returning a beach ball that Charlie Brown had lost. And he became part of the Peanuts gang after that, that’s great. Uh huh. I don’t know why I liked that introduction to a new character, you know, oh, here’s your beach ball. And he’s with the gang ever just
Bob Smith 25:39
happens to show up? Yeah, yeah. Well, that makes sense. That’s the way to do that kind of thing. Yeah, I like all right. All right.
Marcia Smith 25:45
Here’s my final quote. Okay. Cary Grant. I pretended to be somebody I wanted to be until finally I became that person, or he became me.
Bob Smith 25:55
I remember that. He kind of felt like he had a little bit of an identity crisis when it was all over. Yes.
Marcia Smith 26:01
Because he didn’t know where he was anymore. He was his demeanor, his presence. He wanted to be sophisticated and debonair. And God knows he was he did
Bob Smith 26:10
but you know, he started out as Archie Leach. Yeah. Well being like an acrobat and wearing sandwich boards. I mean, that’s nothing
Marcia Smith 26:17
like is nothing like his final persona. Oh, he
Bob Smith 26:21
was such a sophisticated man. He looked good every time he put on a suit. Yeah, man, that guy looks Yeah,
Marcia Smith 26:27
he does. And here’s one from an old movie star to Lulu Bankhead? Oh, yeah. He goes way back. Yeah. It’s the good girls who keep the diaries. The Bad Girls never have the time.
Bob Smith 26:42
Well, that’s kind of why I never kept the diary. The bad boy. Yeah,
Marcia Smith 26:46
boy. Yeah.
Bob Smith 26:49
Well, we hope you enjoyed our show today. And we hope you’ll consider sending us your trivia question. If you have something you’d like to stump us with, or stump one of us with, you can send it by going to our website, the off ramp dot show, scrolling all the way down to contact
Marcia Smith 27:03
us and do contact us. And we’ll use it on the show. Thank you for listening.
Bob Smith 27:09
That’s it. You’re just wrapping it up for me here. Okay.
Marcia Smith 27:11
All right. Can do your speech. Oh, that’s fine. Go. To always have the last word go. You go ahead. All right. That’s it. I’m Marcia. I’m Bob Smith.
Bob Smith 27:22
See you don’t know how to do it. No. Yes, Miss smarty pants. You can’t do it. Oh, you thought you knew how to do it, but you can. I’m Bob Smith.
Marcia Smith 27:31
I’m Marcia Smith. Join us again next
Bob Smith 27:33
time when we return with more fascinating facts and tantalizing trivia here on the off ramp. The off ramp is produced in association with CPL radio online and the Cedarbrook Public Library Cedarburg, Wisconsin.
Transcribed by https://otter.ai