• In opera, singers must be heard in the back rows of the opera house. Occasionally, this striving after volume results in a spray of saliva that can drench an innocent co-star. The tenor Pasquale Brignoli was known for his spraying. While on stage co-starring with Brignoli in Mozart's Don Giovanni, contralto Emily Lablache asked him loudly, "See here, my good friend, can't you for once spit on Donna Elvira's dress?"
• The Russian Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Modest Altschuler, was playing Beethoven's "Leonore No. 3" at an outdoor park. Just as the first trumpeter, stationed away from the orchestra, raised his horn to his lips to play the offstage fanfare, a park policeman ran over to him and grabbed the trumpet away from him, saying, "You can't do that here! Don't you know there's a concert going on?"
• One of Frank Cottrell Boyce's friends visited a pub where he heard a band playing an expert version of Eddie and the Hot Rods' "Anything You Wanna Do." When the band took a break, he bought them all drinks and advised them to form an Eddie and the Hot Rods tribute band. The band's singer replied, "Nice idea. The only problem with it is that I am Eddie. And these are my Hot Rods."
• Chubby Wise played fiddle for country singer Hank Snow. During a concert, Mr. Wise's bow caught Mr. Snow's toupee and flung it out into the audience. Someone in the audience went home with a very unusual celebrity memento. (Once, Mr. Snow got too close to the edge of the stage and fell off. He said, "Godd*mn it, Chubby. Why don't you watch where I'm going?")
• Fanny Brice was persistent. Once she was singing her big number in a show when her voice cracked - something no one could believe. She made the orchestra begin the song again, and she sang again, and her voice cracked again. So she told the audience, "Just stay in your seats. We'll get it this time." And she did get it, and she received a huge ovation from the audience.
• Bobby Jax played in his junior high school marching band in Paragould, Arkansas, where his most memorable exploit was falling on his rear end during a halftime performance. Because of this exploit, his fellow band members implemented the annual "Bobby Jax I've Fallen and I Can't Get Up Award." Bobby good-naturedly became the recipient of the first award.
• Ernestine Schumann-Heink was rehearsing Wagner's Das Rheingold, in which she played a nymph. She and the other women playing nymphs were connected to wires that raised and lowered them to simulate diving and swimming. Unfortunately, she disliked the motion and screamed, "For Heaven's sake, let me down! I'm the mother of eight children!"
• After retiring from opera and movies, Geraldine Farrar began giving musical concerts. Mishaps sometimes occurred at these concerts. At one concert, a storm knocked out the electric power. Therefore, Ms. Farrar gave the concert by the light of candles. She held one in front of her, while her pianist played by the light of two candles stuck in potatoes.
• Opera singers sometimes have very tight travel schedules. On her way to London to perform, soprano Eva Turner stopped at Las Palmas to sing the part of Leonora in Trovatore. Her ship sailed just a half-hour after the final curtain, so her fellow travelers were treated to the sight of Ms. Turner in full costume climbing up a ladder to get on board.
Pong is a table tennis sports game featuring simple two-dimensional graphics, manufactured by Atari and originally released in 1972. It was one of the earliest arcade video games and created by Allan Alcorn as a training exercise assigned to him by Atari co-founder Nolan Bushnell. Bushnell based the game's concept on an electronic ping-pong game included in the Magnavox Odyssey, the first home video game console. In response, Magnavox later sued Atari for patent infringement. Bushnell and Atari co-founder Ted Dabney were surprised by the quality of Alcorn's work and decided to manufacture the game.
Pong was the first commercially successful video game, and it helped to establish the video game industry along with the Magnavox Odyssey. Soon after its release, several companies began producing games that closely mimicked its gameplay. Eventually, Atari's competitors released new types of video games that deviated from Pong's original format to varying degrees, and this, in turn, led Atari to encourage its staff to move beyond Pong, as well and to produce more innovative games themselves.
Atari has released several sequels to Pong that built upon the original's gameplay by adding new features. During the 1975 Christmas season, Atari released a home version of Pong exclusively through Sears retail stores. The home version was also a commercial success and led to numerous clones. The game has been remade on numerous home and portable platforms following its release. Pong is part of the permanent collection of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., due to its cultural impact.
Source
Jacqueline was first, and correct, with:
Guessing it was Pong?
Mark. said:
Pong.
Dave wrote:
Pong. One of my younger brothers squandered his first paycheck on that purchase. Pong was kind of entertaining for an hour or so. It was soon put away and never thought of again. I missed yesterday's trivia question because we were busy babysitting our 2 month old granddaughter, Maeve. I'm getting too old for that sh*t.
Alan J answered:
Pong.
Billy in Cypress U$A responded:
Pong without the ping.
Roy, the Snowflake, still socially distant in Tyler, TX replied:
I'm not even gonna look this one up, 'cause I logged a lot of hours on this sucker back in the '70s. It's gotta be Pong, am I right?
Jim from CA, retired to ID, responded:
My buddies and i spent many hours playing this......PONG
zorch replied:
Pong.
Harry M. said:
Pong
Dave in Tucson wrote:
The first successful video game was Pong.
Mac Mac answered:
Pong
Deborah, the Master Gardener, responded:
I'm thinking Pong, but I wasn't aware of video games until 1978 or so, when Pac-Man came out. My then-boyfriend, now-husband, and I would go an hour early to the movies so we could play Pac-Man. I really like Mario Bros. better.
Windy and cool, just right for a long dog walk and some yard work. What day is this again?
Daniel in The City replied:
Pong. We had one in our house.
DJ Useo said:
It was "Pong", the game named after a bad smell. Hahaha. Personally, I preferred pinball.
I used to play "Hercules", the world's largest pinball game. It was so big, it took two people to push the flipper buttons.
& the pinball was almost as big as a bowling ball.
BttbBob wrote:
I first played a version of it, '73-'74 maybe, on an IBM computer that I used to record and analyze cardiac data for research while a technician at Brooke Army Medical Center, Fort Sam Houston, TX (the Country Club of the Army). Being a teaching and research department we had the best of everything and the cardiologist I worked for, a Major, also had a degree in electrical engineering. Because of him we were doing cardiac cath procedures with equipment that no one else anywhere had... But, guy also liked to party with his crew, hoo ha... You should've heard the sound system at his house off post... M*A*S*H at a medical center, it was...
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Music: "Waiting on the Wind" from the album WAITING
Artist: Megan Bee
Location: Athens, Ohio
Info: "Singer-songwriter Megan Bee writes with an unquenchable wanderlust and a raw love for the land. In the summer of 2020 she released her third studio album, Waiting. Recorded on the brink of a global pandemic in a humble basement studio, intimate vocals and soulful lyrics are supported by a simple production that pulls you in to the closeness and warmth of these songs."
Price: $1 (USD) for track; $10 (USD) for nine-track album
CBS opens the night with a RERUN'The Neighborhood', followed by a RERUN'Bob Hearts Abishola', then a RERUN'All Rise', followed by a RERUN'Bull'.
On a RERUNStephen Colbert (from 6/4/20) are Sen. Cory Booker and Brian Wilson.
On a RERUNJames Corden, OBE, (from 6/11/20) are Mayor Muriel Bowser, and Brandy Clark.
NBC begins the night with a FRESH'The Titan Games', followed by a FRESH'The Wall', then a FRESH'Cannonball'.
On a RERUNJimmy Fallon (from 4/27/20) are Kate Hudson and Alessia Cara.
On a RERUNSeth Meyers (from 4/13/20) is John Oliver.
On a RERUNLilly Singh (from 2/11/20) are Nico Santos and Sabrina Jalees.
ABC fills the night with a FRESH'The Bachelor'.
On a RERUNJimmy Kimmel (from 6/16/20) is Mark Ruffalo.
The CW offers a FRESH'Whose Line Is It Anyway?', followed by a RERUN'Whose Line Is It Anyway?', then a FRESH'Penn & Teller: Fool Us'.
Faux has a RERUN'9-1-1', followed by a RERUN'9-1-1: Lone Star'.
MY fills the night with Rupert's social disinformercials.
AMC offers the movie 'Ocean's Eleven', followed by the movie 'Ocean's Twelve', then the movie 'Ocean's Thirteen'.
BBC -
[6:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - In the Cards
[7:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - Call to Arms
[8:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - A Time to Stand
[9:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - Sons and Daughters
[10:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - Rocks and Shoals
[11:00AM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - Behind the Lines
[12:00PM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - Favor the Bold
[1:00PM] STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE - The Sacrifice of Angels
[2:00PM] ROBIN HOOD
[5:00PM] ROBIN HOOD: PRINCE OF THIEVES
[8:00PM] THE PRINCESS BRIDE
[10:00PM] ROBIN HOOD: PRINCE OF THIEVES
[1:00AM] THE PRINCESS BRIDE
[3:00AM] ROBIN HOOD (ALL TIMES EST)
Bravo has 'Below Deck Mediterranean', followed by a FRESH'Below Deck Mediterranean', then another 'Below Deck Mediterranean', and another 'Below Deck Mediterranean'.
FX has the movie 'Mechanic: Resurrection', followed by the movie 'Ride Along 2'.
History has 'American Pickers', another 'American Pickers', followed by a FRESH'American Pickers', then a FRESH'Pawn Stars'.
IFC -
[6:00A] The Three Stooges - All Gummed Up
[6:30A] Varsity Blues
[9:00A] Zoolander
[11:00A] The Wolf of Wall Street
[3:00P] That '70s Show
[3:30P] That '70s Show
[4:00P] That '70s Show
[4:30P] That '70s Show
[5:00P] That '70s Show
[5:30P] That '70s Show
[6:00P] Two and a Half Men
[6:30P] Two and a Half Men
[7:00P] Two and a Half Men
[7:30P] Two and a Half Men
[8:00P] Two and a Half Men
[8:30P] Two and a Half Men
[9:00P] Two and a Half Men
[9:30P] Two and a Half Men
[10:00P] Two and a Half Men
[10:30P] Two and a Half Men
[11:00P] Two and a Half Men
[11:30P] Two and a Half Men
[12:00A] Two and a Half Men
[12:30A] Two and a Half Men
[1:00A] That '70s Show
[1:30A] That '70s Show
[2:00A] That '70s Show
[2:30A] That '70s Show
[3:00A] That '70s Show
[3:30A] That '70s Show
[4:00A] Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (ALL TIMES EST)
Sundance -
[6:00am] hogan's heroes
[6:30am] hogan's heroes
[7:00am] hogan's heroes
[7:30am] hogan's heroes
[8:00am] hogan's heroes
[8:30am] hogan's heroes
[9:00am] hogan's heroes
[9:30am] hogan's heroes
[10:00am] hogan's heroes
[10:30am] hogan's heroes
[11:00am] hogan's heroes
[11:30am] hogan's heroes
[12:00pm] perry mason
[1:00pm] perry mason
[2:00pm] perry mason
[3:00pm] perry mason
[4:00pm] perry mason
[5:00pm] the karate kid part ii
[7:30pm] the karate kid
[10:30pm] the karate kid
[12:00am] the karate kid
[3:00am] the karate kid part iii
[5:30am] gomer pyle, u.s.m.c. (ALL TIMES EST)
SyFy has the movie 'Underworld: Blood Wars', followed by the movie 'The Fifth Element'.
TBS:
On a RERUNConan (from 4/23/20) is Kaley Cuoco.
Sacha Baron Cohen is at it again. On Saturday, the comedian crashed a meeting of the Washington State Three Percenters in Olympia, Washington, leading a sing-along and generally disrupting things.
It is unclear if the appearance was yet another installment of his Who Is America? Showtime program. Cohen's reps and Showtime have been contacted for details but have not yet responded.
The "March For Our Rights 3" event, which counters a 2018 student-led "March For Our Lives" demonstration in the wake of the Parkland High School shooting in Florida, is pro-gun and staunchly conservative. Which is why Baron's sing-along efforts were all the more absurd.
Before a crowd estimated at about 500 people, Cohen sang an untitled song urging listeners to attack liberals, CNN, The World Health Organization, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Dr. Anthony Fauci, Bill Gates and "mask-wearers."
The proposed vectors of attack were either injecting them with "the Wuhan Flu" or "chopping them up like the Saudis do." The crowd cheered the lyrics and Cohen's anti-Semitic taunts (the "you-know-whos") and anti-Asian jabs ("nuke 'em up like we used to do").
Israeli regulators on Sunday announced they ordered a U.S.-based evangelical broadcaster taken off the air, saying the channel hid its missionary agenda when it applied for a license.
In his decision, Asher Biton, the chairman of the Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Council, said he had informed "GOD TV" on Thursday that it had seven days to stop broadcasting.
"The channel appeals to Jews with Christian content," he wrote. "Its original request," he said, stated that it was a "station targeting the Christian population."
The controversy over GOD TV's "Shelanu" station has put Israel and its evangelical Christian supporters in an awkward position, exposing tensions the two sides have long papered over.
Evangelical Christians, particularly in the United States, are among the strongest supporters of Israel, viewing it as the fulfillment of biblical prophecy. Some see it as the harbinger of a second coming of Jesus Christ and the end of days.
Hulu has removed an episode of "The Golden Girls" containing a scene with characters in blackface.
"Mixed Blessings," episode 23 in season 3 of the sitcom, aired in 1988. In the episode, Michael (Scott Jacoby), the son of Dorothy (Beatrice Author), plans to wed a much older Black woman, Lorraine (Rosalind Cash). Dorothy is critical of their age difference and Lorraine's family disapproves of their daughter marrying a white man, so the two families attempt to stop the marriage.
Lorraine's family arrives as Rose (Betty White) and Blanche (Rue McClanahan) are testing out a new mud face treatment. The two greet the family with their masks still on, saying to them "This is mud on our faces, we're not really Black."
Hulu's removal of the episode of "The Golden Girls" is the latest in a string of shows that have had episodes taken down from their catalogues due to blackface.
Leaning on the aft deck of the Ocean Viking, the humanitarian ship that picked them up in the Mediterranean on Thursday, a group of Pakistanis look back to watch the Libyan coast receding behind them.
And with it, the nightmare of torture, ill-treatment and kidnappings that they have witnessed or suffered.
"For them, we are not human beings," said Imran, one of 31 Pakistanis in the group of 51 migrants whose wooden boat was rescued on Thursday off the Italian island of Lampedusa, during an operation by the SOS Mediterranean ambulance boat.
"All the Pakistanis here (on the boat) were captive during their passage in Libya," said the 30-year-old bricklayer who left the north African country after a year trapped there.
Like Imran, who passed through Dubai before coming to work in construction near Tripoli, all of them told stories of the beatings and kidnappings. For him, it was "from the airport".
Chesapeake Energy, a shale drilling pioneer that helped to turn the United States into a global energy powerhouse, has filed for bankruptcy protection.
The Oklahoma City-based company said Sunday that it was a necessary decision given its debt. Its debt load is currently nearing $9 billion. It has entered a plan with lenders to cut $7 billion of its debt and said it will continue to operate as usual during the bankruptcy process.
The oil and gas company was a leader in the fracking boom, using unconventional techniques to extract oil and gas from the ground, a method that has come under scrutiny because of its environmental impact.
Other wildcatters followed in Chesapeake's path, racking up huge debts to find oil and gas in fields spanning New Mexico, Texas, the Dakotas and Pennsylvania. A reckoning is now coming due with those massive debts needing to be serviced by Chesapeake and those that followed its path.
More than 200 oil producers have filed for bankruptcy protection in the past five years, a trend that's expected to continue as a global pandemic saps demand for energy and depresses prices further.
France's oldest nuclear power plant will shut down on Tuesday after four decades in operation, to the delight of environmental activists who have long warned of contamination risks, but stoking worry for the local economy.
The Fessenheim plant, opened in 1977 and already three years over its projected 40-year life span, became a target for anti-nuclear campaigners after the catastrophic meltdown at Fukushima in Japan in 2011.
Despite a pledge by then-president Francois Hollande just months after the Fukushima disaster to close Fessenheim -- on the Rhine river near France's eastern border with Germany and Switzerland -- it was not until 2018 that his successor Emmanuel Macron gave the final green light.
Run by state-owned energy company EDF, one of Fessenheim's two reactors was disconnected in February.
The second is to be taken off line early Tuesday, but it will be several months before the reactors have cooled enough for the used fuel to be removed.
The Moon may be Earth's closest cosmic neighbour - and the only extraterrestrial body humans have ever set foot on - but there's a lot about it we don't understand. And one of the biggest mysteries is why its two sides are so significantly different.
The Moon is tidally locked, which means one side - the near side - is always facing Earth. When you look up at it, you can see it's covered in dark splotches: the lunar maria, wide plains of dark basalt from ancient volcanic activity inside the Moon.
The far side, facing away from Earth, is a different story. The crust, for a start, is thicker, with a different composition from the near side. The surface is also far paler, with fewer basalt splotches, and covered in craters.
This is interpreted to mean that the basalt flows on the near side covered up a large number of the Moon's craters, but why the near side had more volcanic activity than the far side has been a pretty huge mystery that lunar scientists have been keen to solve.
And there is something else peculiar about the near side of the Moon, a geochemically weird region called the Procellarum KREEP Terrane.
More than 99.9% of seasonal coronaviruses present in airborne droplets were killed when exposed to a particular wavelength of ultraviolet light that is safe to use around humans, a new study at Columbia University Irving Medical Center has found.
"Based on our results, continuous airborne disinfection with far-UVC light at the current regulatory limit could greatly reduce the level of airborne virus in indoor environments occupied by people," says the study's lead author David Brenner, PhD, Higgins Professor of Radiation Biophysics at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons and director of the Center for Radiological Research at Columbia University Irving Medical Center.
The research was published on June 24, 2020, in Scientific Reports.
Conventional germicidal UVC light (254 nm wavelength) can be used to disinfect unoccupied spaces such as empty hospital rooms or empty subway cars, but direct exposure to these conventional UV lamps is not possible in occupied public spaces, as this could be a health hazard.
The researchers had previously shown that far-UVC light can safely kill airborne influenza viruses.
A London-born "computer genius" who died in Italy from leukemia at 15 is one step closer to becoming a saint, now that the Vatican has attributed a miracle to him.
Carlo Acutis, who died in Milan in 2006, was credited with healing a Brazilian boy who recovered from a rare illness after praying to him, asking him to communicate with God. Carlo will be beatified in Assisi, Italy, in October this year - the final step before sainthood.
Beatification - recognition by the church that a person has entered heaven and has the capacity to intercede on behalf of those who pray in his or her name - is the final step before sainthood.
Carlo's mother, Antonia Salzano, said that, in many ways, her son was a normal teenager who liked playing video games, but one who also had "a special spiritual life and gifts on the internet."
Using the family's small, old computer, Carlo taught himself how to program and built a website cataloging miracles around the world.
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