Transcript 11/07/2008 - Brad Olson (carryover contestant)

[BBTranscriptTeam]

Brad Olson
Minneapolis, MN
High school teacher

Topic tree:
- Chill Out
- Men in Black
- Harry Potter
- Fossils
- Fancy Words
- Home on the Range
- Go Natural
- What Time Is It?
- Crowded Places
- Opera Made Easy
- Shortcuts
- In Memoriam
- Mascots
- Healthy Living
- For Openers

Brad is here with his wife Mary Kate and he's playing for one big reason. He has two children, Eli, who's almost three, and Ella, who's 16 months. When she was 8 months old she was diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder. She's had four surgeries (the last just a week ago) [the screen shows a photo of the family] so they have medical bills and would like to get a bigger house.

$500 - In 2008, the Heath Ledger Scholarship Fund was established to commemorate a world-famous what?
A - pro athlete
B - movie star
C - fashion designer
D - anthropologist

Spoiler

B - movie star (8)

$1K - On the Internet, the abbreviation "LOL" typically denotes which of these emotional states?
A - pity
B - heartbreak
C - amusement
D - terror

Spoiler

C - amusement (10)

Now that Brad's made it to the $1K level he earns the Double Dip. Ken Jennings is the expert.

$2K - A crossbow, an arrow and an apple are common props used in which of these classic operas?
A - Aida
B - William Tell
C - Fidelio
D - Rigoletto

Brad doesn't take long to decide that he wants to ask the audience.

Spoiler

With 21 seconds left he uses the ATA:
ATA results:
A - 1%
B - 95%
C - 5%
D - 2%

Brad goes with the "smart New York crowd.

B- William Tell (17)

$4K - What is the most populous city in the world's most populous country?
A - Moscow
B - Shanghai
C - Rio de Janiero
D - Mumbai

Spoiler

B - Shanghai(21)

$8K - What rapper is known for wearing a large clock around his neck?
A - Snoop Dogg
B - Dr. Dre
C - Eminem
D - Flavor Flav

Brad likes to rap for his students from time to time.

Spoiler

D - Flavor Flav (18)

commercial break

$16K - Ginko biloba is a species of what?
A - shrub
B - grass
C - tree
D - moss

Brad's heard of it but can't decide what the right answer is, so he decides to "Skype the expert".

Spoiler

With 13 seconds left he uses his ATE. Ken says he's pretty sure that ginko biloba is just ginko and his parents have a ginko tree in their backyard. Assuming it's not some kind of ginko he's never heard of, Ken is pretty sure that it's a tree. Brad asks if he's sure and Ken says that if he were sitting in the seat he'd go for it. But it's pretty easy for Ken to say that. Brad decides to go with Ken's answer.

C - tree(10)

$25K - One of 2008's most controversial news stories involved a raid on a Texas religious compound known by what name?
A - Yearning for Zion
B - Order of Heaven
C - Kingdom of Utopia
D - New Jerusalem

Brad ponders the question and finally decides to phone a friend. On his list are Brad's brother-in-law Ray, his co-worker Ross and his brother-in-law Rick. He decides to call his brother-in-law Ray.

Spoiler

With 15 seconds left Brad uses his PAF. Brad paraphrases the question: "This year there was a raid on a Texas known by what name?"Brad then reads the answers. There's total silence on the other end of the call; Brad says what sounds like keywords and finally Ray comes back and says that he has no idea, not even a guess.

With 10 seconds left Brad decides to use the Double Dip. He makes "D" his first final answer, but that's not correct. The clock starts again and Brad makes "A" his other final answer.

A - Yearning for Zion (7)

commercial break

Meredith asks what prompted Brad to risk the guaranteed $16K. Brad replied that he and his wife had agreed that there would be no risk-taking at this level but he pays attention to current events and was sure he could narrow it down to two. But he confesses that he got lucky. He apologizes to his wife and says that he went with his gut. Meredith asks Brad's wife if she's OK with that decision. She says she still loves him.

$50K - "Diaphoresis" is a fancy metical term for what common condition, which might be triggered by a difficult trivia question?
A - nail biting
B - lightheadedness
C - teeth grinding
D - excessive sweating

Spoiler

Brad doesn't think it's "A" or "C". He makes "B" his final answer and ends up with $25K.

D - excessive sweating (19)

[NellyLunatic1980]

$16K: No clue. I would also ask Ken.

$25K: I know the story, but I have no clue on the name. PAF.

$50K - Onychophagia is nail biting. I remember that "onycho-" root from an SynBAM episode last season. I also remember from a past BAM show that bruxism is teeth grinding. I'll Double Dip on B and D.

[earendel]

Brad Olson
Minneapolis, MN
High school teacher

Brad is here with his wife Mary Kate and he's playing for one big reason. He has two children, Eli, who's almost three, and Ella, who's 16 months. When she was 8 months old she was diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder. She's had four surgeries (the last just a week ago) [the screen shows a photo of the family] so they have medical bills and would like to get a bigger house.

Another medical hook.

$25K - One of 2008's most controversial news stories involved a raid on a Texas religious compound known by what name?
A - Yearning for Zion
B - Order of Heaven
C - Kingdom of Utopia
D - New Jerusalem

Brad ponders the question and finally decides to phone a friend. On his list are Brad's brother-in-law Ray, his co-worker Ross and his brother-in-law Rick. He decides to call his brother-in-law Ray.

Spoiler

With 15 seconds left Brad uses his PAF. Brad paraphrases the question: "This year there was a raid on a Texas known by what name?"Brad then reads the answers. There's total silence on the other end of the call; Brad says what sounds like keywords and finally Ray comes back and says that he has no idea, not even a guess.

With 10 seconds left Brad decides to use the Double Dip. He makes "D" his first final answer, but that's not correct. The clock starts again and Brad makes "A" his other final answer.

A - Yearning for Zion (7)

I could eliminate "C" but after that it would be a guess. I don't think the audience will know, so it's either PAF or ATE. Ken might know this (the group was a breakaway Mormon sect) but I think I'll go with PAF.

$50K - "Diaphoresis" is a fancy metical term for what common condition, which might be triggered by a difficult trivia question?
A - nail biting
B - lightheadedness
C - teeth grinding
D - excessive sweating

Spoiler

Brad doesn't think it's "A" or "C". He makes "B" his final answer and ends up with $25K.

D - excessive sweating (19)

In high school I had a friend who had a problem with excessive sweating; his palms were always damp and clammy. He used this word to describe his condition, along with "hyperhydrosis".

[gsabc]

I probably would have used the exact same lifelines on the same questions as the contestant, except for the DD. No idea on that one, so the DD would only halve my odds. Probably still would have tried it at that level. If my PAF came through or I got lucky on the DD, I knew the $50K cold (Thanks, "Emergency" and Rampart General!). $100K with no lifelines, or at most the DD. Not a great stack for me.

[MarleysGh0st]

$8K - What rapper is known for wearing a large clock around his neck?
A - Snoop Dogg
B - Dr. Dre
C - Eminem
D - Flavor Flav

I confess that I would not have known this answer if some other BBs hadn't persuaded me to watch a couple minutes of a truly dreadful reality show that he hosts.

[earendel]

$8K - What rapper is known for wearing a large clock around his neck?
A - Snoop Dogg
B - Dr. Dre
C - Eminem
D - Flavor Flav

I confess that I wouldn not have known this answer if some other BBs hadn't persuaded me to watch a couple minutes of a truly dreadful reality show that he hosts.

I've never seen the show despite BB persuasion, but I've seen pictures of Flavor Flav.

[frogman042]

$8K - What rapper is known for wearing a large clock around his neck?
A - Snoop Dogg
B - Dr. Dre
C - Eminem
D - Flavor Flav

I confess that I wouldn not have known this answer if some other BBs hadn't persuaded me to watch a couple minutes of a truly dreadful reality show that he hosts.

I've never seen the show despite BB persuasion, but I've seen pictures of Flavor Flav.

I wouldn't have known this either with the exception that a few years back I was on a business trip to L.A. and when I was flying back from LAX and on the security line, Flavor FLav came through and everyone was all excited - there's Flavor Flav (I had now idea who he was)- he had his BIG CLOCK around his neck and a ton of jewlery and it took him forever to unload all of it to be able to go through the metal detector.

I was amused that he wore all that crap in public to the airport, knowing what a hassle it is to get past the screening. But that image with the big clock stuck with me - otherwise I would have been clueless on this one.

---Jay

[Kazoo65]

OK up to $16K. I remember the story. Either ATE or Double Dip.

$25K. Easy for me. Medical terms are one of my strong points.