Chicago quiz recap: Thursday, Feb 7

So, my friends in NYC and Boston, as we hunker down for the arrival of the supposed Storm of the Epoch (TM), know this: Chicago's seen it all before. In fact, they saw it last night: The mean streets of Chi-Town were plagued with abominable weather from 4pm on yesterday evening, which severely depressed turnout at the latest local edition of the BQT, at fabulously green restaurant/theater Uncommon Ground.

But our fine, fine Midwestern quizmistress, Katie Vagnino, was undeterred. She hustled in some folks from the bar, and a whopping FIVE TEAMS had an amazingly personal quiz-show experience (and lucrative—almost everyone got a sweet prize!) Disappointed that the legendary Bipolar Movie Challenge got such minor exposure in Chicago, but that's showbiz.

I was minorly concerned that the four-parter about Super Bowl ads (asking teams to ID the company/product based on the brief clip) would be harder than it was last Monday in Boston, since the memory was three days less fresh, but Katie tells me it was perfect scores all around. Meanwhile, as part of the TV Cliffhangers four-parter, nobody knew who shot J.R. (33 years ago!); "Batman" earned a Smart-Ass Point, though.

Speaking of which, Katie tells me it was a banner evening for SAPs. What A-list Hollywood star had his third divorce last year, each of his wives leaving him when she was 33 years old? Jesus. What did the Canadian government stop distributing this week? Alanis Morissette. And the biblical epithet an angry concertgoer shouted at Bob Dylan was "Praise the Lord and pass the biscuits!"

Some controversy over this question: Which was not a Mr. Men book? Mr. Chatterbox, Mr. Impossible, Mr. Sly, Mr. Topsy-Turvy. No one got it right (much to the consternation of Katie's Mr. Men–loving sidekick, Erica), and multiple teams claimed it was a trick question, arguing that there wasn't a Mr. Chatterbox, but a Little Miss Chatterbox. Au contraire…

The finale—it was the top three teams, so it wasn't hard to make it into it, was it? We had returning champs Grumblypants Skyscraper, the very confidently named $200 (another regular squad), and 2 Cats & a Dog…consisting of the two ladies Katie recruited at the bar. And what do you know? 2C&AD won, displaying sharp knowledge of the New Jersey resident that The New York Times called the “greatest benefactor to humanity of modern times." So nice to see a BQT winners' photo that's all women.

The standings:
1. 2 Cats & a Dog: Won $200! But will they return?
2. Grumblypants Skyscraper: Got an Uncommon Ground gift card and passes to the Second City
3. $200: Picked up passes to Writers' Theatre and the House Theater
4. Merry Death: Won some geek stuff (action figures, books…)
5. The Agnostic Theologians: Almost everyone wins!


NEXT: We are at Uncommon Ground every month, hopefully in more hospitable weather. Though the March show is a special Monday event, 3/4. Same major quiz action, same primo prizes, same indescribable fun. Miss and cry.