Wikipedia:Reference desk/Entertainment: Difference between revisions

Welcome to the entertainment section
of the Wikipedia reference desk.

skip to bottom

Select a section:

• Computing
• Entertainment
• Humanities
• Language
• Mathematics
• Science
• Miscellaneous
• Archives

Want a faster answer?

Main page: Help searching Wikipedia

   

How can I get my question answered?

• Select the section of the desk that best fits the general topic of your question (see the navigation column to the right).
• Post your question to only one section, providing a short header that gives the topic of your question.
• Type '~~~~' (that is, four tilde characters) at the end – this signs and dates your contribution so we know who wrote what and when.
• Don't post personal contact information – it will be removed. Any answers will be provided here.
• Please be as specific as possible, and include all relevant context – the usefulness of answers may depend on the context.
• Note:
  • We don't answer (and may remove) questions that require medical diagnosis or legal advice.
  • We don't answer requests for opinions, predictions or debate.
  • We don't do your homework for you, though we'll help you past the stuck point.
  • We don't conduct original research or provide a free source of ideas, but we'll help you find information you need.

Ready? Ask a new question!

How do I answer a question?

Main page: Wikipedia:Reference desk/Guidelines

• The best answers address the question directly, and back up facts with wikilinks and links to sources. Do not edit others' comments and do not give any medical or legal advice.

See also:

• Teahouse
• Help desk
• Village pump
• Help manual

Nov 2

Summerland: Home media

Is the TV series Summerland released on DVD?31.54.250.172 (talk) 18:57, 2 November 2015 (UTC)

Type the words "Summerland TV series DVD" into Google and you'll answer your own question. --Jayron32 19:07, 2 November 2015 (UTC)

I would look it up on Google by typing in "Summerland TV series on DVD" and you should find your answer and if not look on different shopping websites.Stevenricci (talk) 05:31, 3 November 2015 (UTC)

here are some websites that have it http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0400037/

http://www.dvdinthebox.com/summerland-complete-seasons-12-dvds-boxset_p16911.html

http://www.hishows.com/product_609.htmlStevenricci (talk) 05:57, 3 November 2015 (UTC)

Gilmore Girls - Two questions: Abortion and similar shows

1. Was the word 'Abortion' mentioned in the TV series Gilmore Girls?31.54.250.172 (talk) 19:05, 2 November 2015 (UTC)

2. Is Gilmore Girls similar to or does it show similarities to other shows like - 7th Heaven, Beverly Hills, 90210, Summerland, Dawson's Creek, Party of Five, The Carrie Diaries, Everwood, The O.C., One Tree Hill and Opposite Sex.31.54.250.172 (talk) 19:05, 2 November 2015 (UTC)

1.Here is a list of transcripts of every episode of Gilmore Girls: [1] You can peruse these at your leisure to look for the words you want to find.

2. It is hard to quantify "similarlities". The best I can offer in terms of a reference is to look at the entry at IMDB. There's a section titled "People who liked this also liked... " Which is likely to generate shows that people found similar enough for our purposes. --Jayron32 19:10, 2 November 2015 (UTC)

1.::This Google search on the site Jayron cites finds "abortion" mentioned in transcripts of another show, but not in any Gilmore Girls transcripts. (It also produces sponsored links whose headlines ask if I'm interested in having an abortion, which would be unlikely as I'm neither pregnant nor, for that matter, female.) --70.49.170.168 (talk) 20:23, 2 November 2015 (UTC)

1.The word 'Abortion' was not mentioned in Gilmore girls. Especially, in the 1st season. Christopher Hayden's father, Straub, suggested that Lorelai Gilmore have an abortion when she got pregnant at age 16, but her mother, Emily, refused. Christopher's parents appeared in the season 1 episode 'Christopher Returns' but when his father argues, scolds and insults Lorelai for getting pregnant at such a young age, the word 'abortion' was not mentioned. I wonder why.5.81.235.234 (talk) 23:30, 2 November 2015 (UTC)

1.Why was 'abortion' not mentioned in the series? Especially, in the 1st season?5.81.235.234 (talk) 16:21, 3 November 2015 (UTC)

1.:As with all works of fiction, largely because that is how the writers chose to write it. Unless they specifically addressed this in an interview, we will not be able to answer this question. Mingmingla (talk) 20:52, 4 November 2015 (UTC)

1.::While I can't disagree with that statement, the literary tool of purposeful omission does come to mind (even if our article does not cover it well). To be interpreted at one's own discretion. ---Sluzzelin talk 21:51, 4 November 2015 (UTC)

1.:::You can't prove a negative, which is to say, one can assert that they left the word out on purpose, for some nefarious reason, but an equally probable reason is that they just didn't happen to use that one word, with out any reason why. If there is no record of their rationale, there's no way to make any claim that they had any reason to "leave the word out". The dictionary is filled with hundreds of thousands of words they ALSO didn't say in the first season... --Jayron32 00:06, 5 November 2015 (UTC)

1.::::Yes, as I said, to be interpreted at one's own discretion. ---Sluzzelin talk 00:31, 5 November 2015 (UTC)

1.:::::Agreed. In case it needs to be spelled out (and it apparently does), the word 'abortion' carries a lot of emotional baggage. It should not be surprising to anyone familiar with US society at the time that TV writers would use euphemisms or otherwise 'talk around' the subject. It was not so long ago that even the word pregnant was forbidden - and that was concerning a married couple! 64.235.97.146 (talk) 14:26, 5 November 2015 (UTC)

November 3

Public domain...but copyrighted on Web?

Under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998, all works from 1922 or older, including movies, are supposed to be in public domain. Yet I've tried to watch several movies from that period online, and they have been censored from YouTube because of the copyright scare, nor are they available on Internet Archive.

Why is their online availability such an issue if they're supposed to be public domain? Theskinnytypist (talk) 01:10, 3 November 2015 (UTC)

Your "scare" link pointed to a nonexistent section. I have corrected it to what I presume you meant. --70.49.170.168 (talk) 07:17, 3 November 2015 (UTC)

It is not only films, but public domain music and other content as well. After cases like Viacom International Inc. v. YouTube, Inc. and other such copyright infringement lawsuits, YouTube implemented this system called Content ID which is suppose to automatically detect copyright violations. But it is poor in verifying if the content is actually copyrighted or really in the public domain. An example can be found here, where someone used the ContentID system to "claim" the content of NASA public domain videos. The executive at YouTube/Google seem to be content that the Content ID works in most cases (if a YouTube user disagrees with a decision by Content ID, the can file an appeal), and seem to have no plans to have each and every video actually checked by a human. And as a result of these lawsuits, I think they have developed the habit to "shoot [take down the video] first, ask questions later". Zzyzx11 (talk) 10:17, 3 November 2015 (UTC)

hall and oates article

the list of musicians doesnt cover mike mccarty , who played bass on the hall oates album. he is credited on the album cover , but not in the wiki article. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.115.79.46 (talk) 16:08, 3 November 2015 (UTC)

You can add him yourself. --Viennese Waltz 16:16, 3 November 2015 (UTC)

November 4

Who?

Who is Weber and Neustadter by the way? Chandelia16 (talk) 09:20, 17 October 2015 (UTC)

See Michael H. Weber and Scott Neustadter. --Viennese Waltz 10:06, 4 November 2015 (UTC)

Hiatus?

Is it true that Taylor Swift will have a hiatus after her The 1989 World Tour? Chandelia16 (talk) 10:25, 4 November 2015 (UTC)

Well, that's what it says here and here, for example. On the other hand, other sites such as here and here and here interpret the same words to say that she's considering a hiatus, not that it's a definite plan. Take your pick. --70.49.170.168 (talk) 10:46, 4 November 2015 (UTC)

According to the http://perezhilton.com/2015-10-07-taylor-swift-break-1989-world-tour#.VjpcHDf786U it says that T-Swift may be taking some time off after the 1989, but they did not mention it was a fact. If you check out this website you can see some quotes Taylor confessed to saying which may lead people into believe she may go on a hiatus. Information found onhttp://www.express.co.uk/celebrity-news/610590/Taylor-Swift-hints-hiatus-after-1989-world-tour-people-need-break states that she is still unsure what her plan is going to be. After visiting the website http://tasteofcountry.com/taylor-swift-break-1989-tour/ I found that Taylor will be taking a break whether it is a vacation or spending time with eyer family. She thinks people always need a break and they need a break from her. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Abbyh2 (talk • contribs) 19:37, 4 November 2015 (UTC)

November 5

Help identify a band

My googling skills fail me. This band is a British quartet who opened for New Order in Paris on Wednesday night. They play in a style reminiscent - appropriately - of Joy Division, early Ultravox and Wire. They have a female keyboardist and wore identical black smocks with a name embroidered on the front (the two frontmen had "Taylor" and "Ward" written; the keyboardist was hunched over her instrument during the whole show, so I couldn't make out hers). In the back, there was something like "Bleich" written, although it did not sound like their name when they said it ("we're mumble from new mumble" is what the lead singer helpfully said). One of their songs seemed to be called "True Colours" (but thankfully not the Cyndi Lauper song). Can anyone identify these masters of self promotion ? --Xuxl (talk) 08:25, 5 November 2015 (UTC)

Hot Vestry. Ghmyrtle (talk) 09:07, 5 November 2015 (UTC)

Thanks. That is them indeed. --Xuxl (talk) 10:02, 5 November 2015 (UTC)

Resolved

A name

The name of the person who does the videos on animals around the world — Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.210.67.175 (talk) 13:43, 5 November 2015 (UTC)

David Attenborough? --Viennese Waltz 13:45, 5 November 2015 (UTC)

Marlin Perkins, Jack Hanna, Steve Irwin, and Jeff Corwin have all also done similar shows. If those don't work, try researching at Category:Television series about animals. That may help. --Jayron32 14:28, 5 November 2015 (UTC)

Also Jim Fowler and Joan Embery. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 21:10, 5 November 2015 (UTC)

November 6

Australian film featuring a deaf girl with a dog

There was this film from Australia and it was about a deaf girl with a pet dog and her parents wanted to get rid off it because it was too much trouble. What was the name of the film? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.31.18.190 (talk) 00:40, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

Any chance you are thinking of ITV Studios's 1997 production Sunny's Ears? -- ToE 02:45, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

Yes...It was a tv series? huh! interesting! — Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.31.18.190 (talk) 04:39, 9 November 2015 (UTC)

I found conflicting information about whether it was a TV series or a made-for-TV movie. This page at the studio site might tell the full story, but it requires logging in to a free (I think) account. Please let us know what you find there. -- ToE 07:01, 9 November 2015 (UTC)

2015 National Football League season schedule

Does anyone know of an "official" webpage listing the entire schedule? [2] is easy to find on the NFL's website, and it links to a set of week-by-week pages from which such a schedule can easily be constructed. However, I'd like to find a single page with everything (an official page, not some fan page) that would be good as an external link for the 2015 NFL season article. Nyttend (talk) 01:10, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

[3]. --Jayron32 01:32, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

Didn't think of checking ESPN. I've added a modified link, http://espn.go.com/nfl/schedulegrid/_/year/2015, to the article. Thanks! Nyttend (talk) 02:08, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

Here is the first site I found offering a printable full schedule for the NFL Season (http://www.advarsitysports.com/s/printable-2015-full-nfl-season-schedule/) I found this website (http://nflschedule2015.org) which allows you to select any team and view their entire schedule. Also I found this page (http://sportsglory.com/nfl/complete-2015-nfl-regular-season-schedule/40211) Which allows you to do the same thing but I believe this one is more "official". Rakn224 (talk) 02:05, 6 November 2015 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by Rakn224 (talk • contribs) 01:48, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

Grable's message

Betty Grable's handprint/signature in front of the Grauman's Chinese Theatre

This image is in our article on Betty Grable. Who's "Sid"? And why is she apparently saluting the US Navy and US Marine Corps? Is USA in this context the US Army? So what happened to the Air Force? Quite mysterious. --Dweller (talk) 09:49, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

"Sid" is most likely Sid Grauman. ---Sluzzelin talk 09:53, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

That sounds right, having clicked through. Any ideas about USA/USN/USMC? --Dweller (talk) 10:05, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

The slab is dated February 15, 1943, during World War II—it's more than likely that Miss Grable was registering her support for the U.S. troops, one of whose favorite pin-ups she was. And there was no Air Force at the time; the United States Army Air Forces were a branch of the U.S. Army. Deor (talk) 11:07, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

Interesting. So USA would stand for United States Army? --Dweller (talk) 12:07, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

Yes. Deor (talk) 15:30, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

Hayworth's hand and footprints

Rita Hayworth's legendary hand and footprints. July 1942.

Having done some clicking re the previous section, our article List_of_TCL_Chinese_Theatre_handprint_ceremonies has a photo caption, which refers to Rita Hayworth's "legendary" hand and foot prints. What's the legend? There's nothing in the text. --Dweller (talk) 10:06, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

I think the writer just means "the hand and foot prints of the legendary Rita Hayworth". If so, it's clearly a misuse of the word "legendary" and should be deleted. --Viennese Waltz 11:14, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

Thanks. I'll delete it. --Dweller (talk) 12:07, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

Note incidentally that this photo provides evidence supporting the answer to the original question! --70.49.170.168 (talk) 05:25, 7 November 2015 (UTC)

Looney Tunes series title

The films produced by Warner Bros. Cartoons are often collectively referred to as "Looney Tunes", although they actually encompass both the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series - see, for instance, the Looney Tunes Golden Collection DVDs, which contain cartoons from both series. Why did "Looney Tunes" rather than "Merrie Melodies" become the primary title used to refer to all Warner Bros. cartoons, and when did that title first begin to be used in this way? 131.202.114.139 (talk) —Preceding undated comment added 14:58, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

Merrie_Melodies#Background has some information on the two series. Originally, they were different series with different originss, but eventually they became merged; by 1942 the two series began significant character crossover, and by 1945 " the two series completely appeared indistinguishable" After 1945, there was no rhyme or reason as to which shorts were released under which title. Likely, Warner Brothers continued to maintain both titles to protect the trademark of both. Trademarks that go unused for a period of time may be considered to have lapsed. See Trademark#Maintaining_rights. --Jayron32 15:04, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

The most obvious reason would be that "Looney Tunes" sounds funnier than "Merrie Melodies". ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 15:47, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

The Looney Tunes article mentions that the name was influenced by Disney's Silly Symphony series. That sentence doesn't have a source though. MarnetteD|Talk 15:59, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

this could probably help source it. --Jayron32 16:16, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

(ec)I recall reading that factoid, long ago. It makes sense. Early sound cartoons were often primarily vehicles to promote songs - the song would be the centerpiece of the given cartoon. It probably helps that "toon" and "tune", though unrelated terms, are homophones in much of America. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 16:19, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

Well, all I can say is that it's just as well That Looney Tunes was the title that survived. Otherwise, when the loonie was followed by the toonie, one of the other less euphonious nicknames invented for it might have prevailed. --70.49.170.168 (talk) 05:29, 7 November 2015 (UTC)

As I recall, the Canadian dollar coin features a loon (a type of water bird), and Prime Minister Mulroney (pronounced "Mulrooney") came up with it, hence it was called a "Mulroney Loonie". Then came the two-dollar coin, and "Toonie" seemed a natural. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 23:24, 7 November 2015 (UTC)

Correct (except for the Mulroney reference; at least, I never heard that in my part of Canada), but my point is that Looney Tunes may have made "toonie" seem that much more natural when other nicknames were also invented. --70.49.170.168 (talk) 10:19, 8 November 2015 (UTC)

A Canadian colleague told me that. I expect once he left officem the "Mulroney" part faded away. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 22:48, 8 November 2015 (UTC)

I've never heard that Mulroney story either. Didn't he invent Rice-a-Mulroney, the "Tuktoyaktuk treat"? Clarityfiend (talk) 03:07, 9 November 2015 (UTC)

There are a number of references to it on Google. Here's one from 9 years ago.[4] ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 03:16, 9 November 2015 (UTC)

Not exactly the most R of S's. There's a loon on one side, that's all. Any other story is sheer bal(r)oney. Clarityfiend (talk) 12:17, 9 November 2015 (UTC)

That blog squares with what my Canadian colleague told me when the coin first came out. You haven't heard of it, but I and some others have. And there ya are. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 17:45, 9 November 2015 (UTC)

Well, what do you know. The CBC says "it was briefly called 'Mulroney's loonie' or the 'Mul-loonie'",[5] but they're so clumsy, they must have been discarded very quickly. Th-th-th-that's all folks! Clarityfiend (talk) 23:20, 9 November 2015 (UTC)

Surprise, surprise. I don't know what you mean about the "clumsy" part, but the victims of the loonie eventually discarded the guy who foisted it on them. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 01:01, 10 November 2015 (UTC)

Clumsy as in awkward to say. "I had so many Mulroney's loonies in my pocket, it ripped." Doesn't exactly flow off the tongue. Clarityfiend (talk) 06:53, 10 November 2015 (UTC)

No, it doesn't. It merely flows out of the torn pocket. :( ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 06:59, 10 November 2015 (UTC)

Paraphilias and Fetishes

When it comes to human sexual behavior, the word normal is quite unusual. However, why is it that men appear to have a more wild variety of sexual preferences than women, on general. I mean, I've never heard of women humping corpses, shagging sheep or engaging in golden showers or scat orgies. In general, women seem to be much more sedate. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.195.27.47 (talk) 22:58, 6 November 2015 (UTC)

Egad! A rather eyebrow raising set of enquiries old boy! Well old chap, I have been around a long time and I've seen a lot of odd things in my career so I might be able to shine a little ray of light on this. I would surmise that, not to put too fine a point on it, dead fellows can't "perform" so to speak, which would preclude your first scenario. As for the second, well Bodil Joensen was notorious for being very fond of animals and if are of a brave mindset a quick internet search (do make sure it's not illegal to view such things in your locale first!) would show that the other two activities are by no means a male only preserve. I would suggest that women are less likely to admit to any of the latter three activities, not that they are less inclined to indulge in them. Quintessential British Gentleman (talk) 01:44, 7 November 2015 (UTC)

If you really want your eyebrows raised, let me bring up a death erection. StuRat (talk) 07:24, 7 November 2015 (UTC)

Also, on everything the OP states regarding the depth and breadth of sexual interests of males vs. females. There, as far as I can find, has never been any serious study of human sexuality that states that man are more "wild" in their sexual interests. "I've never heard of..." is not a valid means of trying to understand all of humanity, as "I" is universally an insignificant proportion of "humanity". If the OP is genuinely interested in learning about human sexuality, the history of the study of human sexuality starts with the research done by Masters and Johnson and Alfred Kinsey in the early-to-middle 20th century. While their original research is somewhat dated, the work continues with modern researchers, the Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender, and Reproduction is still a place to get research from this subject, if the OP is interested in expanding their understanding, I would start there. --Jayron32 02:12, 8 November 2015 (UTC)

I think Krafft-Ebing and Havelock Ellis should be on the list, as well. Tevildo (talk) 02:35, 8 November 2015 (UTC)

It's possible the OP has never been with a woman, which would tend to limit his knowledge of what they might like or not like. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 02:36, 8 November 2015 (UTC)

Actually one of my girls had a thing about grabbing onto testicles all night and having sex is exotic locations. Although, she did have a damaged background so I consider her exceptional. But back OT, do a search for 'porn'. You'll find it overwhelmingly caters to MEN. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.195.27.47 (talk) 14:24, 8 November 2015 (UTC)

How do you know? ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 22:46, 8 November 2015 (UTC)

"Industry analysts say that more than 70% of all adult films made still cater to the tastes of men". -- Jack of Oz ^{[pleasantries]} 05:47, 9 November 2015 (UTC)

That 70 percent are assuming they know what men want and women don't want. It's not a safe assumption. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 06:20, 9 November 2015 (UTC)

Of course, the initial question was not about who porn film producers target their films at. The initial question was about what interests people, sexually, based on gender. Those are two different questions. --Jayron32 10:53, 9 November 2015 (UTC)

And with the example the OP gave of his own alleged experience, he contradicted his premise. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 17:43, 9 November 2015 (UTC)

November 7

the heywoods

I am looking for the song "There's a right way" from the late 70s they did on Gene Autry's Republic Records label. It was produced by Dale Wright with The Heywoods B.R.Co. Chadick Music. Co.(ASCAP) (RE-5000-I-H). Imprinted with RE-5000A-H. If I knew how to attach a picture, I would. This is the only thing I have not found on the internet. Thanks Ted Churchman (e-mail address & empty ref tags removed) have record signed by all the artists including Bo Donaldson. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 74.134.145.226 (talk) 09:00, 7 November 2015 (UTC)

Suspected hoax - "Vanta Sport"

Can anyone find any references proving the existence or notability of Vanta Sport? Hack (talk) 11:33, 7 November 2015 (UTC)

Seems suspicious:

"Juvenile Sports and Pastimes" is a popular title for many things, but apparently not a book written in 1548. Fredrik Reinfeldt is a Swedish politician, not a 16th-century Danish author.

"Vavila" is not the Latin word for happiness and "lanta" does not mean grass in Latin or French.

"Keretizein" is a real Greek game but it was something like field hockey.

The images are of a Romanian newspaper, and an American teenage cross-country runner.

So I would go with "hoax". Adam Bishop (talk) 11:47, 7 November 2015 (UTC)

I've PRODed the article and added the appropriate hoax tag. Not sure if it's a G2 candidate. Tevildo (talk) 14:23, 7 November 2015 (UTC)

Google translate says that vanta is Italian for boasts, FWIW. The picture supposedly illustrating the rules of the 'sport' is Romanian, which I can't read, but I don't see the word "Vanta" in there, nor is there anything that even looks like sports rules, nor was it tagged as such when it was uploaded. I think this is BS. 99.235.223.170 (talk) 15:14, 7 November 2015 (UTC)

November 9

Big league in italy

Big four are the highest sport league in North America, what are the highest sport league in taly?--95.235.210.209 (talk) 11:54, 9 November 2015 (UTC)

There doesn't seem to be an exact equivalent, but our article on Sport in Italy has some suggestions. Football, volleyball and basketball are the top 3 team sports given, and the respective top leagues for those three are Serie A, Italian Volleyball League and VTB United League. Buttons to Push Buttons (talk | contribs) 14:24, 9 November 2015 (UTC)

November 11

'Hazzard'ous and 'Fog'gy bling

In the earliest episodes of The Dukes of Hazzard, Rosco would wear a turquoise ring. In The Fog, Stevie Wayne would wear a silver ring. What has become of the bling items these days?2604:2000:712C:2900:DD7B:484B:A6C6:133C (talk) 05:04, 11 November 2015 (UTC)