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Any Questions? #30

WAMC's Ian Pickus and resident quizzer Mike Nothnagel somehow waited until the 30th week for their initial show.

Last week's challenge

Start with the phrase THE IDES OF MARCH. Drop one letter, then rearrange the remaining 13 letters to spell a place that baseball players want to get to, and a phrase describing how they might arrive there. What is the place and what is the phrase?

Answer: Baseball players want to get HOME, and they might get there HEAD FIRST.

THIS WEEK'S CATEGORY: TWO-INITIAL PEOPLE
On-air questions: This week back in 1980, the "Who shot J.R.?" episode of Dallas aired. In honor of that famous broadcast, each correct answer is a famous person who is known by their first and middle initials.

1. Graphic artist whose works, including "Relativity" and "Drawing Hands," often feature impossible figures
2. Author whose most famous book series includes "Prince Caspian" and "The Magician's Nephew"
3. Singer who performed Leonard Cohen's "hallelujah" during the opening ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver
4. Architect who designed the east building of the National Gallery of Art and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
5. Infamous hijacker who parachuted out of a plane with a $200,000 ransom, then mysteriously disappeared with the money

Extra credit
1. Namesake of a company founded in 1912 and based in Freeport, ME, whose first product was a waterproof boot
2. Psychologist whose work focused shaping behavior through positive and negative reinforcement, and how conditioning affected future behavior

This week's challenge
Take the name of an author commonly known by his first and middle initials. Drop the E from his name, then rearrange the result to name a type of character that frequently appears in his books. Who is the author and what is the type of character?
 

ANSWERS
On-air questions
1. M.C. Escher
2. C.S. Lewis
3. k.d. lang
4. I.M. Pei
5. D.B. Cooper

Extra credit
1. L.L. Bean
2. B.F. Skinner

A lifelong resident of the Capital Region, Ian joined WAMC in late 2008 and became news director in 2013. He began working on Morning Edition and has produced The Capitol Connection, Congressional Corner, and several other WAMC programs. Ian can also be heard as the host of the WAMC News Podcast and on The Roundtable and various newscasts. Ian holds a BA in English and journalism and an MA in English, both from the University at Albany, where he has taught journalism since 2013.