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December 10

Has J. Michael Straczynski ever revealed the meanings of names in Babylon 5?

I like to read the various series wikias and guides as I go through a series I'd seen before, to pick up on stuff I may have missed. I ran across this on The Lurker's Guide to Babylon 5 for A Voice in the Wilderness, Part 1:

I tried to develop a basic language structure for each of the races on B5. There are certain commonalities to the structure of names. I came up with some prefixes and suffixes, and assigned meanings to them, the same as real names. For instance, Rathenn (referred to by Delenn in "Voices") and Delenn have the same suffix, which has a specific meaning. You can break it down; Ner-oon (Legacies), Del-enn, Rath-enn, Der-onn, and so forth. The various parts do have specific meanings, but I generally keep that to myself, just for amusement.

Narn names follow a similar pattern, which I suspect has something to do with which Narn religion they/their parents followed. I remember thinking the G' in G'Kar's name may be because he's a follower of G'Quan, but it would also fit with G'Lan, so I'm no longer sure. (And if that were so, why would G'Quan and G'Lan's names follow the same pattern as modern Narn, anyway..?)

Has J. Michael Straczynski, the creator of Babylon 5 and who the quote above is from, ever revealed the meanings of all these prefixes/suffixes? Ram nareshji (talk) 08:20, 10 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

According to Chin, Bertha, and Matt Hills "Restricted Confessions? Blogging, Subcultural Celebrity And The Management Of Producer-Fan Proximity." Social Semiotics 18.2 (2008): 253-272. Academic Search Premier. Web. 10 Dec. 2014, "Straczynski posts and interacts with fans in the following newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated, rec.arts.comics.marvel.universe and rec.arts.sf.tv. These messages and responses to fans, dating back to 1991 are archived at http://www.jmsnews.com/. I did a quick search there for "names meanings," and a lot of results came up, but I don't know if any posts answer your particular question specifically. It seems like a good place to find such information if he's shared it, though. --some jerk on the Internet (talk) 13:09, 10 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Abducted Lifetime Movie About Prison

Since Jack's looking for Tim who is Still alive, did Tim steal someone's Identity to [Illegaly Stay] inside that other Person's house or did Tim purchase a New House?(50.173.3.170 (talk) 11:41, 10 December 2014 (UTC)).[reply]

Most. Enigmatic. Ref. Desk. Question. Ever. -- Jack of Oz ^{[pleasantries]} 19:05, 10 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Google to the rescue! Searching on "lifetime movie prison jack tim" reveals the existence of Abducted: Fugitive for Love. (Which I am amazed to discovery does not have its own Wikipedia article.) I will leave it to another to try and parse the plot summary for an answer to this question. - Eron^Talk 19:35, 10 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Question about Retaliation?

In my opinion, retaliation's wrong when the (Victim & Culprit) both have Families.

If the Culprit has no more Family, then the (Victim) or the (dead Victim's relative) has a Right to Retaliate against the Culprit by using the Process of Murder for example.

If we are not sure of the Culprit's guilt, then Retaliation's wrong even if the Culprit's an Orphan.

In the movie called Yevadu, after he pushed the Villian out of the window, how come the Girl didn't Call the Cops? It's becuz Retaliation's correct.

Is there any American Episode or Movie with my Appropriate Examples of Retaliation?(50.173.3.170 (talk) 11:46, 10 December 2014 (UTC)).[reply]

Are you VenusStar84 logged out? ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 13:13, 10 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Who is VenusStar84? What is VenusStar84?(50.173.3.162 (talk) 17:16, 10 December 2014 (UTC)).[reply]

He meant User:Venustar84. I don't see why he suggested that the IP was that particular editor editing logged out. If you are not a registered user editing logged out, you would do well to create an account, because your IP address has changed within six hours. Robert McClenon (talk) 17:24, 10 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

It just seems like the kind of question VenusStar84 would ask. And if Venus is editing while logged out, it gives away their IP address, or the range anyway. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 22:13, 10 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

The answer to your question, Questioner, is to move to someplace with the rule of law. In places where law rules, people do not have to spend much money making sure their homes are impossible to break into, people do not have to fear random murders, and on the other hand they don't have time to think about the need for retaliation. It just doesn't happen.

After you move to a society with a rule of law, you can always send a bit of money back, open a school or foundation, and otherwise try to help your own community become civilized. For now, your first step is to leave - and good luck. 212.96.61.236 (talk) 02:04, 11 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Another way to look at it is with the goal in mind of minimizing the amount of violence in a society. If there is never any retaliation/punishment for violence, then you can predict that there will be lots of violence. On the other hand, extreme retaliation/punishments, like killing the entire family of anyone who slaps someone, will also result in lots of violence. The typical ancient compromise was "an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth", but modern punishments seem to be less severe than the crime. Case in point is the 2011 Norway attacks, where a man murdered 77 people and was only sentenced to 21 years in prison.

I don't think the rule of law is all that important in preventing violence. You can have a dictator with total power, and as long as they are benevolent, that doesn't have to lead to violence. On the other hand, many places with the rule of law, like the USA, have lots of violence. StuRat (talk) 02:20, 11 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

"I don't think the rule of law is all that important in preventing violence" - Stu, boy have you lived a sheltered life. of course it is extremely important. if there's no rule of law, and somebody rapes your sister, there *is* no question of pressing charges. (Which requires the rule of law first). That isn't even on the table, there's no such thing. If you don't think this creates more violence in terms of vandettas, etc, you haven't seen any failed states. 212.96.61.236 (talk) 03:50, 11 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

I don't think you're clear on what "rule of law" means. It just means that individuals decide things on a case-by-case basis, as opposed to having it all written down as law (or if it is written down, those laws are ignored by all). So, they might very well haul the perp in front of a judge, but he is free to decide the punishment himself. Many communist nations lacked the rule of law, as the charges, guilt, and penalties were all determined by the Communist Party, and any trials were just for show. However, this doesn't mean that they would just let rapist or murderers go free, unless they happened to be Party members, but that's not all that much different from rich people going free in the US because they can afford enough lawyers to find all the flaws in the case.

What you seem to be talking about is anarchy, which never exists for long. Even in a failed state some type of authority soon takes control, whether it's tribal or religious leaders, local warlords, drug lords, an invading army, etc., and all of those have an interest in maintaining social order, too, so they would pursue charges against criminals. StuRat (talk) 04:28, 13 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

As for the lone Entertainment question, here are 358 answers. InedibleHulk (talk) 04:06, December 11, 2014 (UTC)

Questioner, you might benefit from reading our article Social contract. Pertinent to your concerns about retaliation, in a "civilized society" one agrees to relinquish one's rights to take retaliation in return for the assurance that Society, through the State's laws, will carry it out on your behalf to the degree agreed to be appropriate by Society. {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} 212.95.237.92 (talk) 14:40, 11 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

That applies if he's in a society that benefits from rule of law. His reference to the film Yevadu evoked for me that he may live in a culture where rule of law is not nearly powerful enough. I don't have a good solution for him, I'm afraid. He likes ethics, and asked about the ethics of vandettas. The ethics of vandettas are that they should not happen (an eye for an eye leaves the whole world blind), and that if he enjoys living in peace and unmolested, he needs to move to a society that enjoys better rule of law. I would add that he can then work from a distance to bring some of it back to his roots. Sorry I don't have a more positive outlook for you, Questioner. I just think that it's highly possible the social contract in your part of the world isn't worth the paper it's written on :/ Move someplace where it is, and adopt the ethical values from there. Send home what you can of them. 212.96.61.236 (talk) 00:36, 12 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

December 11

Does the Crusader skill Consecration stack?

Diablo 3 - The legendary flail Inviolable Faith casts Consecration under all my allies too.

If my allies and I are standing close together, so that the Consecration casts overlaps:

Will each receive bonus healing or just the normal amount from 1 cast?
For the Frozen Ground rune, will enemies be slowed beyond 60%?
For the Frozen Ground rune, will enemies have multiple chances to be frozen?
For the Shattered Ground rune, will enemies take additional fire damage?Ram nareshji (talk) 05:00, 11 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

You are apparently asking about some game. It might help to tell us what game it is. JIP | Talk 07:39, 11 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

It's Diablo III. I'm finally getting it tomorrow, will have to wait and see if I find this flail before I can be sure, but Reddit gets more into it than I ever will. Do they answer your question, Ram? InedibleHulk (talk) 07:49, December 11, 2014 (UTC)

Super Bowl LIII

Request has been discussed and dismissed previously
The following discussion has been closed. Please do not modify it.
Can you help me please. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.102.58.146 (talk) 21:44, 11 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

December 12

Ratmir's part in Glinka's Ruslan and Ludmila: Why sung by a woman?

Why is the role of the Khazar prince Ratmir in Glinka's Ruslan and Ludmila sung by a woman contralto? (And, incidentally, why are the WP articles for the poem and the opera spelled differently when the title is exactly the same in Russian?) Contact Basemetal here 11:28, 12 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

I dunno about the first one, but Ludmila and Lyudmila are both common transliterations (so is Ludmilla), so maybe one is more common for the opera and the other is for the poem, in which case WP:COMMONNAME would result in this inconsistency? But I'm not sure if this is actually the case. Double sharp (talk) 12:35, 12 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

See Breeches role for the tradition of having male opera characters portrayed by women (Cherubino from The Marriage of Figaro is one of the best-known examples) - the list in that article includes Ratmir. AndrewWTaylor (talk) 13:08, 12 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

(after edit conflict) Regarding the "why", it does seem to have been a "Russian thing" at that very period.

"Breeches parts or "trouser roles" (travesti in French) for women represented the last gasp of a tradition from eighteenth-century opera seria, opera buffa, and early Romantic opera. Central to early-nineteenth-century operas such as Rossini's Tancredi (1813), these roles were soon eclipsed by the rise of the Romantic tenor. The last truly major "trouser role" from Italian opera was Romeo in Bellini's I Capuleti e i Montecchi (1830). After that, the female singer specializing in trouser roles had to content herself with playing young boys marginal to the operatic plot, usually shepherds or pages. The two trouser roles from Glinka's operas, the orphan boy Vanya and the poet-prince Ratmir, gave the tradition a longer life, and a more central one, in Russia. Indeed, until Tchaikovskii re-conceived Pushkin's Tatiana Larina as an operatic heroine, Vanya, a youth who heroically gallops to Moscow to warn Russian troops of a threatened attack by Poles in 1612, very possibly represented the best-loved Russian operatic role for women. Perhaps Catherine the Great's fondness for donning male attire when traveling, reviewing military troops, or having her portrait painted retained its imaginative potency for early-neineteenth-century Russia."

(Julie A. Buckler, The Literary Lorgnette: Attending Opera in Imperial Russia, Stanford University Press, 2000, pp74f, ISBN 9780804732475) ---Sluzzelin talk 13:30, 12 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks. I had been wondering if there was something specific about Ratmir (in the poem or the legend) but apparently not: I hadn't noticed that both of Glinka's operas contain breeches roles so it seems his operas had to have at least one. In general you'd expect a young boy not a adult with a girlfriend (then there's Bellini's Romeo, who however is himself supposed to be very young). I sort of see why Glinka chose the Khazar Ratmir as his breeches part. There was really no other candidate. In the staging of the opera by the Mariinsky in 1995 (directed by Valery Gergiev) the stage director (Lotfi Mansouri) had the brilliant idea to go stick a fake beard on Larissa Diadkova's face. Made her look like a circus freak. Contact Basemetal here 14:39, 12 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Simpsons question

Lisa the Beauty Queen was just on and in the episode there is a line where Krusty the Clown, when referring to the pageant runner up taking the place of the winner, says something along the lines of "don't say it'll never happen. Remember what's her name...Click Click" whilst miming photography. Is this just a throwaway line or is it a reference to something in real life? I would have asked on the article talk page but feared being hit by a "not a forum" zealot. Keresaspa (talk) 19:27, 12 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

This is the proper place for a question like this K. If memory serves the line is referring to Vanessa L. Williams who resigned her Miss America title when Penthouse published nude photos of her taken when she was young. Now that occurred nine years before The Simpsons episode and I have a vague memory that the same sort of thing happened to another beauty contest winner closer to '92. Another editor may be able to confirm that. MarnetteD|Talk 20:01, 12 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Most likely it was a direct reference to Williams, as it was a national news story in the day (partly because Williams was also the first black Miss America winner). --McDoob AU93 20:18, 12 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Ah, I see. Wasn't reported in my neck of the woods as far as I know but it makes sense. Thanks all :) Keresaspa (talk) 20:45, 12 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

coffee skit

I think this brief audio skit is the one titled "My Husband" on Gold Turkey.

"My husband is very particular about his coffee ... I'm not saying he'd lock me in the basement or push me down the stairs if I didn't make a perfect cup of coffee ..."

Chevy Chase is the husband, according to my aural memory. Who's the wife? —Tamfang (talk) 22:48, 12 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

The only female artist listed on the article is Gilda Radner, so quite possibly her. --McDoob AU93 23:29, 12 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

I can't say it's not Radner; whoever it is, she's not using her normal voice. —Tamfang (talk) 00:33, 13 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

This page says that the sketch is performed by Chase and someone named Patti Maison. Deor (talk) 03:04, 13 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

December 13

Jimbo Wales

DEAR SIR- I am teacher of Sri Kamakshi Vidyalaya Matriculation Higher Secondary School in Thoothukudi in India. We invite Mr. Jim-bo Wales to give speech at our school about success and dreams. The major of Thoothukudi will be there and other local famous peoples.

Speech will be held at: School assembly hall on 7th March 2015 at 7pm. Please considor donation and give long speech for our students. Thank you SIR. --Pattaj Farachirti (talk) 17:44, 13 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

This RD is about entertainment, not for entertainment, even though we all agree Jimbo Wales is a great entertainer. Contact Basemetal here 17:46, 13 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

On a more serious note: you could leave a message for Jimbo Wales at his talk page (follow the link). Try picking another section name that "Jimbo Wales". Contact Basemetal here 17:48, 13 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

The page is protected, i can not post to him. Can you do it for me? --Pattaj Farachirti (talk) 17:58, 13 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

That page is semi-protected. You've got to be an autoconfirmed user to be able to edit it. If you wait for 4 days and make 10 edits here at Wikipedia, you will also be able to edit Jimbo Wales's page. I'm afraid I can't do it for you because that would defeat the very purpose of the restriction. This said I don't agree with the rationale of semi-protecting Jimbo Wales's page. Why should people even have to register to be able to leave a message for him? But that's the way it is unfortunately. There were probably practical reasons such as vandalism (?) for doing that. Contact Basemetal here 18:11, 13 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Note that other ways to contact him are described here. Contact Basemetal here 18:24, 13 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Detailed Motorcycle Grand Prix results for 1962 - 1964

I am writing a biography on an Australian motor cycle rider, Dennis Fry, who competed in the 350cc and 500cc Motorcycle Grand Prix events in 1962 to 1964. I would like to obtain the detailed results for the 350cc events. The 500cc events are covered by Wikipedia but there are not detailed results for the 350cc events beyond the point scorers. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 110.142.19.215 (talk) 23:21, 13 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Rhetorical device

Papa Was a Rollin' Stone contains the line

"Papa was a rollin' stone/wherever he laid his hat was his home/and when he died, all he left us was alone"

How do you call the rhetorical device used in the high-lighted sentence? GEEZER^{nil nisi bene} 23:35, 13 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

You might want to ask on the Language Desk. StuRat (talk) 00:07, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

(edit conflict) I'd call it an instance of zeugma—specifically, what's referred to as "type 2" in our article (though I can't say I've ever seen that particular anatomization into four types before)—based on a play of two senses of leave, "bequeath" and "abandon". Deor (talk) 00:10, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

I don't think this can strictly be called zeugma, because in a zeugma both meanings "bequeath" and "abandon" would have to be present side by side (hence the name). Here only the latter is present. It would have been zeugma if they had said "when he died, all he left us was a lousy coat and alone". What makes this device work is that he uses the less expected meaning. What makes a zeugma work is that the two meanings sort of clash. Contact Basemetal here 00:22, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Well, I disagree. The point is that that on hearing "all he left us was ..." the listener expects a conclusion corresponding to the "bequeath" meaning, but the final word alone shifts the sense of the sentence to "he left [abandoned] us alone" while at the same time allowing the sense that "he left [bequeathed] us nothing". That's a "sort of clash" in my book. Deor (talk) 00:39, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Compare with the following sentence from the paraprosdokian article (the article Sluzzelin referred to): "On his feet he wore…blisters." (Aristotle) Can this be called a zeugma? Does this work the same way as the OP's example? Contact Basemetal here 01:42, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Then, more generally perhaps paraprosdokian? ---Sluzzelin talk 00:32, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

This is very convincing. Thanks!

Can we exclude one more thing? That the formulation ist just "bad grammer/formulation" ?

There are other examples in the text: "Never heard nothin' but bad things", "some bad talk goin' round town", "Papa never was much on thinking". So - for a native speaker - does it sound "well constructed in this way" or rather "slang which happens to end up as paraprosdokian" ?

So far: Thanks for all the input! GEEZER^{nil nisi bene} 09:25, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

A sentence which is "just bad grammar" (perhaps deliberately) is an anacoluthon, but none of your three examples really come under this description. "Never heard nothin' but bad things" is a double negative (with a negative, rather than a positive, meaning), and the sentence is missing the subject ("[We] never heard [anything]" would be the "correct" wording). "Some bad talk goin' round town" is similarly missing the verb ("Some bad talk [was] going round town"), but otherwise fits all the conditions of prescriptive grammar. The third sentence is again grammatical, but "on thinking" is a fairly unconventional/demotic use of "on" in the sense of "engaged with/at"; compare "on vacation", "on fire", "on heroin". Tevildo (talk) 10:42, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

So you - as a native speaker - conclude that "and when he died, all he left us was alone" is clearly intended as a rhetorical device ? GEEZER^{nil nisi bene} 12:41, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Yes. I would say the writer has deliberately chosen the "depart" meaning of "leave", when the expected meaning is "bequeath". Tevildo (talk) 14:20, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks! Done - Case closed. GEEZER^{nil nisi bene} 16:26, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

December 14

A Game of Pool (1961) ?

In this episode of the original Twilight Zone, Jack Klugman and Jonathan Winters (in a rare serious role) play a form of pool I'm not familiar with. As far as I can determine, these are the rules:

1) A coin toss determines who breaks first.

2) Each player tries to sink every ball except the cue ball. Each ball sunk counts as a point. When a player misses a shot, the next player gets his turn.

3) When they are down to just one ball plus the cue ball, they re-rack all but that one ball, and play continues.

4) First player to 300 points wins.

So, what form of pool is this ? StuRat (talk) 00:04, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

See Straight pool. Deor (talk) 00:12, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Yep, that's it, thanks. Apparently it has gone out of fashion since then. StuRat (talk) 06:22, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Resolved

The song The Way You Look Tonight

I'm looking for a slow version with a male singer and (mostly?) a simple, effective piano accompaniment. Not recent, but not too old either. I probably heard it on a CD. Not much to go on, but that's about all I can remember. Never mind. I found it; it was done by the Jaguars. Clarityfiend (talk) 07:45, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Box office

Can anyone help me find box office data for The Kite? It says here that the film (Le cerf-volant in French) was a commercial success. Fitzcarmalan (talk) 14:40, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

looking for a comic cover blog :(

Hello, I remember i stumbled on this comic-cover blog, featuring FUNNY, COOL, BIZARRE OR ODD" comics(covers) (those were tags in the blog) and they featured only comic covers but not from a certain era I think, more like everything from the 40s-00s just anything with a cool, funny, odd or bizarre cover.. :( I've looked through all of the google links and I can't find it, it was a big blog with probably 100s of pages. (i tried the top results when looking for those tags and it didn't seem to be them)

any help appreciated 157.157.160.93 (talk) 15:16, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Superdickery.com, perhaps? Warning: apparently the original site has viruses, but a virus-free version reportedly is available. John M Baker (talk) 02:02, 16 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Rope magic trick

I was recently at a cabaret show, and there I saw a magic trick. A woman's hands are bound behind her back, and a rope is woven around her upper body through her armpits. Then a member of the audience wearing a jacket is asked to come on stage. He stands in front of the woman with his back to her and a curtain is pulled over them, enclosing them fully from all sides. When the curtain is drawn down a few seconds later, the woman is still bound, but is wearing the man's jacket underneath her ropes. Then the woman is freed from her ropes. How is this done? I suspect that the bondage is loose enough for the woman to free herself and tie herself up again without outside help. Is this true? JIP | Talk 16:45, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Who binds the woman's hands and so on? Where is he (or she) standing at the end of the trick when the curtain comes up again? Then I wonder what the purpose is of asking a supposed "member of the audience" to come on stage. The trick would seem to be the same if there was just a jacket hanging on a coat rack on stage next to the woman. Are we supposed to believe that "member of the audience" doesn't notice what happens to his jacket, that it is magically taken off his back by the woman behind the curtain without him noticing? That is probably just a distraction but it is not immediately clear to me what its purpose is. As to how the woman ends up wearing the jacket underneath the rope the simplest hypothesis is that there are two jackets and two women (and of course that the "member of the audience" is not a member of the audience at all). The weak point of this hypothesis is that this would require more than two salaries. Contact Basemetal here 17:27, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

The woman is bound by a stage performer, not by a member of the audience. When the curtain is drawn back, the woman and the man are standing in the same positions as they were when the curtain was originally pulled over them. Notice that the curtain is small enough to only cover the woman and the man. I'm not talking about the main stage curtain here, but a cylinder-shaped curtain only about a metre or two in diameter. The member of the audience is really just a member of the audience. I can verify this because he happened to be my work colleague. I don't think there are two identical women. There were only four women in the entire cabaret performance - the presenter, who also acted in tying the woman up, and three dancing girls, one of whom was tied up and the other two managed the curtain. JIP | Talk 17:32, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

How many seconds does the small curtain stay down? Contact Basemetal here 17:45, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

About twenty seconds, at the most. It's actually pulled up from the stage floor rather than down, but I think the effect is the same. JIP | Talk 17:48, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

If the man (the performer) is hidden with the bound woman during that time, why are you assuming that she frees herself and ties the rope back again over the jacket without outside help? And if I understand you correctly, the purpose of picking a member of the audience is to "prove" that there is only one jacket, that there was no jacket prepared in advance? Contact Basemetal here 17:57, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

The man who is hidden with the bound woman is the member of the audience, not a performer. The performer only ties the woman up before the small curtain is drawn up, and remains outside the curtain in full view at all times. You're right about the jacket. JIP | Talk 18:11, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

If you "can verify" that the man was not a performer "because he happened to be my work colleague", why not ask him what happened? --65.94.50.4 (talk) 18:54, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Apparently he had to stay with his back to the woman and not look and since he's a law abiding Finn he never thought of looking behind him anyway. Some of us of course would have done just that

. One further question to the JIP: Did the woman take the jacket off of him while they were hidden, i.e. was he still wearing his jacket at the moment the curtain hid them both from view, or did he hand over the jacket beforehand? Contact Basemetal here 20:00, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

The man was still wearing his jacket when they were hidden, the woman only took it off of him behind the curtain. I know that at least in this case, it was not a shill but a genuine member of the audience. I note that Wikipedia has no article about the gypsy rope mystery or gypsy mystery rope. Is there enough material available about it so I could use it as a reference for an article? JIP | Talk 17:12, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

It's called the gypsy mystery rope effect or something similar. At least one of the Google results should explain how it is done. In the two videos listed there both have the audience member help tie up the girl. In the Chinese one the audience member does a good job of being surprised that his jacket is gone. CambridgeBayWeather, Uqaqtuq (talk), Sunasuttuq 20:22, 14 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

In the YouTube video uploaded by user "gypsyrope", a bit of the trick is revealed in the way the woman wraps the rope around her right wrist. The rope is tied around the wrist and then she makes a flourish and the rope swings around and around that wrist. The rope is then tied to the left wrist. She keeps them close but they aren't actually bound that close. The rope can simply be unwrapped from the right wrist. This gives her about a foot of rope between the two wrists. The knots used aren't really inspected by anyone, so the ends could be knotted together but not actually binding her wrists at all. Once she has her wrists free (when the curtain is up) the man with the jacket (who I don't believe is an actual member of the audience) can help her get the jacket over her arms and then tuck the rest under the ropes. You'll see when the curtain comes down that it isn't tucked under the ropes on one side. Like they ran out of time and just had to go with what they had done instead of getting it exactly perfect.

Also, since the woman is behind the man while the curtain is still down, she could be getting her wrists free before the curtain even goes up. It would help if we could see the trick from the side but I doubt even the audience had that good of a view of her hands as she stood there before having the curtain raised. Dismas|^(talk) 00:30, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

December 15

sometimes, why free throws are reduced to 1 for shooting foul?

sometimes, why free throws are reduced to 1 for shooting foul? yesterday i am playing NBA 2K14, suddenly offensive team got shooting foul, then defending team got 2 free throws, again offensive team got shooting foul, then defending team got only one free throw, why only one free throw is given for second shooting foul? Ram nareshji (talk) 04:17, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

We have articles on Three-point play, Four-point play and Technical foul. In each instance only one free throw is usually taken. Hack (talk) 04:21, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

It can depend on whether your player made the shot while being fouled. If he missed then he gets two free throws - if he made his shot then he gets one. There are other variables that might apply but it is hard to say without having been there. Thanks goodness it was NBA because if it was NCAA we stray into "one and one" and that is trickier to explain. MarnetteD|Talk 04:27, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Hack provides good links. The only time you'll only get one free throw on a shooting foul is if the shot is made. If you're fouled making a shot, you can add 1 point to it. If you're fouled missing a shot, you get 2 or 3 (depending on whether you were attempting a 2 or 3 point shot) free throws. --Onorem (talk) 04:30, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Foul rules in basketball are a bit complex, and it depends on which level of play (HS, College, Professional American, Professional European, etc.) is being played. But generally the rules are as follows:

You get no shots (ball is instead inbounded) in the following situations

Any offensive foul
Defensive fouls if the fouled player was not in the act of shooting, AND if the team is not "in the bonus" (that is, over the maximum allowable team fouls, varies per level of play)

You get one shot if you are fouled in the act of shooting, and you make the shot
You get two shots in the following situations:

If fouled in the act of shooting and miss the shot
If fouled at any time while your team is "in the bonus" (the other team is over the maximum allowable team fouls)
In lower levels of play (HS and College), a special situation called a "one-and-one" is given for the first 3 bonus fouls, whereby a player only gets their second shot if they make the first. After that, it's two guaranteed shots. One-and-one does not exist at the NBA level.

You get three shots if fouled outside the three-point line AND were in the process of attempting a shot.

That's about all I can think of for personal fouls. --Jayron 32 05:23, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

actually i am asking about shooting foul, hack provided links for all fouls except shooting fouls Ram nareshji (talk) 05:39, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

I'm not familiar with the gameplay on NBA 2K15 but I'm guessing it's the and-one/bonus situation where the shot is scored and a single free throw awarded. Hack (talk) 05:44, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

This may not be relevant but it is possible to receive a technical foul for profane language. Hack (talk) 05:49, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

It most certainly is. Technical fouls are usually awarded for "unsportsmanlike conduct". ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 16:19, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

if team is in bonus, If the player is fouled while shooting and the shot goes in, then how many free throws are awarded? Ram nareshji (talk) 05:53, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

One. This becomes a potential three or four-point play depending on the location of the shooter. Hack (talk) 05:56, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

actually what i asking is if team is in bonus, then how free throws are awarded to team, the player is fouled while shooting and the shot goes in? & also i am not asking about what is four-point play? Ram nareshji (talk) 05:58, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

If it's a shooting foul, it wouldn't make any difference whether it's in bonus or not. It comes down to the location on the court. Hack (talk) 06:03, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

then what is the use of Bonus (basketball)? Ram nareshji (talk) 06:05, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

It's to stop teams racking up fouls that would not ordinarily be penalised with free throws. Hack (talk) 06:10, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

@Hack: ok! is there any benefits of Bonus (basketball) for a team? Ram nareshji (talk) 06:13, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Sure. They get a one-and-one instead of a single shot, so they have a chance to make 2 points instead of 1. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 16:18, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

The purpose of the bonus is to minimize fouls outside of shooting situations. If you keep racking up fouls, eventually you give the other team free throws for every foul, so that removes the incentive to foul as they come up the court, and opens up mid-court play; it makes things like a full court press (when fouls are more likely) a less attractive defense and tends to open up play. Unless you have someone on your own team which is terrible at shooting foul shots, then the bonus actually works against you. See Hack-a-Shaq. --Jayron 32 02:35, 16 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Why did the Separatists want to kill Padme?

In Star War Series, What was the reason that Viceroy Gunray and the Separatist leaders were trying to kill Padme?

It doesn't seem to make sense. She was leading an opposition to prevent the creation of an army for the Republic, which would be great to the Separatists, because they would have no one to oppose their droid army. Instead of supporting Padme, they are eager to kill her. Why? What's their motivation? What's their goal? Is it just revenge for her victory in the battle for Naboo, or is it something else? Ram nareshji (talk) 05:46, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

This question was asked verbatim at this site as well as this one which were both answered. If you have problems with those answers, I suggest taking it up with the people who provided the responses. Dismas|^(talk) 08:24, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

What is the NFL record for most receivers with a catch in a single game on the one team?

i am sorry that i forgot to mention source of this question: this site — Preceding unsigned comment added by Ram nareshji (talk • contribs) 06:49, 16 December 2014 (UTC) The Saints are up to ten unique receivers with at least one catch in tonight's game against the Ravens, and I can find a reference to the Packers having a franchise record of 12 that's been reached multiple times - but what's the overall record for most receivers with a catch in a single game on the one team? Ram nareshji (talk) 06:11, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

This question was asked verbatim at this site on November 25 and this site three days ago. Hack (talk) 06:16, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

what is meant by bonus in basketball?

Normally every foul in Basketball will get free throws, after team is in bonus, what will change in free throws system? Ram nareshji (talk) 08:14, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

See bonus (basketball). When you're not in the bonus, only some types of fouls result in free throws being awarded. That changes when you're in the bonus; then all fouls award free throws. It is a common tactic for a team to intentionally foul "with a foul to give" (i.e. not in the bonus situation) and force the other team to inbound the ball, not shoot free throws. Clarityfiend (talk) 12:44, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

After Bonus, if defensive team commit double dribble, so how many free throws will get?

After offensive team in Bonus, if defensive team commit double dribble, so how many free throws will get? Ram nareshji (talk) 08:52, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

None, regardless of whether a team is in the bonus situation or not. A double dribble isn't a foul. The other team is simply given possession of the ball. Clarityfiend (talk) 12:48, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Also, the defenders can't double dribble because they doesn't have the ball (unless they drool a lot). Clarityfiend (talk) 07:33, 16 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

After Bonus, if defensive team commit 5 second violation, so how many free throws will get?

After offensive team in Bonus, if defensive team commit 5 second violation, so how many free throws will get? Ram nareshji (talk) 08:54, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Again none. It's a violation, not a foul. See five-second rule (basketball). As above, the other team gets the ball. Clarityfiend (talk) 12:50, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Earliest known example of a remake cameo

Our article on cameo appearance has no earlier example of a remake cameo than the 1978 remake of Invasion of the Body Snatchers. As far as I could tell, TV Tropes' article on "Remake Cameo" has nothing older either (click on "Film" under "Examples" for film examples). Does anyone happen to know of (or can anyone dig up) anything like that before 1978. (It's the year of the remake that counts, not that of the original). ---Sluzzelin talk 10:53, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Some sources consider Alfred Hitchcock to have appeared in both versions of The Man Who Knew Too Much. I don't know if you would count that or not. See List of Alfred Hitchcock cameo appearances. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 11:38, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Clever find! Not quite what I meant, as the cameo in the second MWKTM was just one item on that long list, Hitchcock's entirely own thing, but (even if he did actually have a cameo in the first version, see Bugs's link) not an acknowledgement with a wink like Gregory Peck and Robert Mitchum in Cape Fear or Faye Dunaway in The Thomas Crown Affair, and so forth. Thanks though, I certainly hadn't thought of that! ---Sluzzelin talk 11:54, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Romuald Joubé played the same character (Jean Diaz) in J'accuse 1919 and 1938 versions, both directed by Abel Gance. Another cameo from 1978 is Noel Neill in Superman who plays Lois Lane's mother, and Lois Lane herself in the 1948 film and 1952 series. --TrogWoolley (talk) 16:25, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

There was Patty Duke who played both Helen Keller in one version, and Anne Sullivan in a later version of The Miracle Worker, though it was a year later than the 1978 date you give above. Still looking for others. --Jayron 32 17:08, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Jeff Conaway played Danny Zuko in the stage version of Grease, and Kenicke in the movie version, though a) I don't know if you'd count that being different media and b) the film came out in 1978, which still isn't earlier then the ones you've already found. --Jayron 32 17:11, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Maybe Ursula Andress in Casino Royale (1967 film), which was technically a remake of the earlier 1954 TV Film, Andress had played a Bond Girl in Dr. No. --Jayron 32 17:22, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

(OP typing here) Thank you very much, Trog & Jayron, those are some exemplary early instances and precursors! ---Sluzzelin talk 19:44, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Did some more research (slow day at work) and found J'accuse! (1938 film) which was a remake of the J'accuse (1919 film) and it seems that Romuald Joubé appeared in both films in different roles, though he's credited as a second Jean Diaz in the second film. This may be a mistake confusing the two films; though I don't know as I haven't seen any. The main role of Jean Diaz in the second film is played by Victor Francen, so I'm not sure how Joubé fits in. May need some more research, but if Joubé does appear in a different role in the second film, it would beat the previous record by some 40 years, based on what we found here. --Jayron 32 20:40, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

How movies are telecasted by T V Channels?

i have this doubt since my child hood, i don't know how T V channels telecast movies, they also insert DVD or Pen Drive if not then how? Ram nareshji (talk) 12:20, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

See Telecine. The core problem is that the frames-per-second between film and TV don't match, so they have to play some technological tricks to make it work. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 17:41, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

First broadcast of Appointment with Death (2008)

Hello! I was wondering what can be counted as the first broadcast of the 2008 Agatha Christie's Poirot episode Appointment with Death? The IMDb infos are quite confusing; the first date is Sweden, then there is listed a "(limited)" date for the UK (whereas the official UK date appears to have been one year later). Does anyone know what the "(limited)" means (I found the explanation "If a release was in more than one or two cities, but not wide enough to qualify as a wide (no attributes) release, then please use the attribute (limited) instead. In the USA, this usually implies 11-599 screens.", but it only talks about movies) and where (on which channel) the first broadcast (apparently in Sweden) has been? Thank you, XanonymusX (talk) 14:20, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Who was C Titsek?

Does anybody know anything about a composer called C Titsek? He (or she) wrote a rather jolly choral setting of Rorate Coeli, a text for Advent. That's all I know. Sounds rather Baroque (18th century) but may be later. Alansplodge (talk) 16:18, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

ChoralWiki puts him in category:romantic composers (here) but that's probably just some editor's guess as they don't have any information about him. The name seems, judging from Googling "titsek name", to be from Eastern Europe. Very mysterious composer. He seems to be known for this one work only. Contact Basemetal here 17:21, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

PS Could anyone with access to Grove online look if they have something about this guy? Contact Basemetal here 17:23, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

PPS Jerome Kohl, ever heard of this guy? Contact Basemetal here 17:24, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks. I wonder whether there's an alternative spelling that's throwing us off the scent, but I'm not finding anything at the moment. Alansplodge (talk) 17:38, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Since User:Basemetal asks, I've not heard of this composer, and there is no article in New Grove on a person of this name, or including an indexed reference to him/her. The spelling looks like a phonic transcription, possibly of a Russian name, such as Туцек (though I do not find this particular name linked to the Advent hymn). I notice a number of the Google hits are to Slavic-language sites (Slovak, Russian, Czech). That's the best I can do, sorry.—Jerome Kohl (talk) 17:50, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

I wonder if a Cyrillic spelling Тицек or Тыцек would not be more likely to be transcribed as Titsek than Туцек which would seem to correspond to Tutsek, etc.

Alan: Is this the recording of Rorate Coeli by C. Titsek that you heard? ~~(I hope not, for your ears' sake ).~~ (Sorry, I was listening simultaneously to the YouTube peformance and this MIDI performance. Sounds a bit better when they're listened to one after the other

).

Contact Basemetal here 18:20, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

I should have made it clear that my familiarity with Russian and the Cyrillic alphabet is limited, at best (almost as poor as my piano playing). I did try Тицек, with no result. Trying Тыцек just now does not look very promising, either. It was just a suggestion.—Jerome Kohl (talk) 18:44, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Then there is of course the Ukrainian spellings Тіцек (also Belarusian) and Тїцек...

. Don't worry about your Cyrillic. You can type(set) Cyrillic wearing mittens as far as I am concerned

. I am always very grateful for your help here and elsewhere. Contact Basemetal here 19:29, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

The right tune, but I sang it last night at my church's modest version of the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols. I suspect that it was selected because it is, rather unusually, scored for Soprano, Alto and Bass, and we don't have any tenors at the moment. I was just curious, because I'd never heard of him or her. It seems that nobody else has either. Many thanks for your efforts. Alansplodge (talk) 18:52, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

You're very welcome. I am curious too. Once in a while we get a brutal reminder that WHAAOE... NOT! Contact Basemetal here 19:29, 15 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

December 16

Can anyone explain Interstellar Questions?

At Climax, Coop lands on coop station at saturn, but why he returned to saturn instead of earth?
how Murph is at coop station at saturn, but murph actually stays on earth, but how she present on coop station which is at saturn?
how coop send Morse code through wrist watch just by clicking back side of library books, & also what is the use of sending Morse code to Murph? Ram nareshji (talk) 03:15, 16 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Medical Examiner

For any corpse, does it only take one day for a Medical Examiner to Determine if that particular Person was Raped against (his/her) will before the Victim (commits suicide or gets murdered)?

For example, If that Female Victim was actually raped against (her will) before Death, then does it only take 1 day for a Medical Examiner to have a Positive Report stating that Victim was automatically Raped against her Will?(50.173.3.162 (talk) 05:06, 16 December 2014 (UTC)).[reply]

A medical examiner cannot determine this. Consent cannot be determined in a medical examination. Britmax (talk) 09:14, 16 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

what does "foul to give" mean in basketball?

In NBA, Announcer says "foul to give" at the end of the game, please some one explain.

what i understand is if we foul at act of shooting other team will get free throws, but what does foul to give, even i download NBA official rules PDF, even that PDF also never explained, didn't even mention "foul to give" in that PDF, so i am trying reference desk.

i am not copying this question from other sites, i am asking this question from my heart. Ram nareshji (talk) 09:10, 16 December 2014 (UTC)[reply]

@@ Line 302: / Line 302: @@
 :Again none. It's a violation, not a foul. See [[five-second rule (basketball)]]. As above, the other team gets the ball. [[User:Clarityfiend|Clarityfiend]] ([[User talk:Clarityfiend|talk]]) 12:50, 15 December 2014 (UTC)
-== Why no one is answering my questions? ==
-i already posted three questions, none of them get replies, why so? [[User:Ram nareshji|Ram nareshji]] ([[User talk:Ram nareshji|talk]]) 09:35, 15 December 2014 (UTC)
-:You posted them all within the last hour or so.  That doesn't give a lot of time for people to have read them and reply.  Also, they are about rather specific rules of basketball.  Unless someone follows the sport, it's unlikely that they'd know the answers to such specific questions.  I know a bit about basketball but not enough to answer your questions.  To summarize, you have to give people more time.  We aren't paid to answer questions here, so it's just something that we do in our spare time.  And it's likely that nobody, with the knowledge that you seek, has had the time.  <span style="font-family:monospace;">[[User:Dismas|Dismas]]</span>|[[User talk:Dismas|<sup>(talk)</sup>]] 09:39, 15 December 2014 (UTC)
 == Earliest known example of a remake cameo ==