Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Entertainment/2010 October 3

= October 3 =

What's the status?
Hi Wikipedia,

I had a number of questions about Andrea Martin, of Second City Fame. I meet a lady who looked a lot like her last year in St. Paul, Minnesota, over off of Highway 280 and University Avenue. She was working as a counselor at Quality Career Services and her relationship was remarkably similar to one of Andrea's characters. I'm referring to the nervous office worker who gets manipulated by all of her coworkers until she eventually commits suicide. Then the police come in and arrest everyone in the office for conspiracy.

My question was in the movie "Black Christmas", did Martin's character get injured? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 74.202.236.2 (talk) 01:35, 3 October 2010 (UTC)


 * According to our article, she is "mortally stabbed by a falling icicle". Adam Bishop (talk) 11:23, 3 October 2010 (UTC)

ATTENTION HALO PLAYERS: How do I win the Lone Wolf scenario on Halo: Reach?
It seems that no matter how hard I try, I always seem to lose on the Lone Wolf scene, and therefore, the "loser's end cutscene" begins to play.

What tactics should I use in order to win the Lone Wolf? --70.179.178.5 (talk) 04:33, 3 October 2010 (UTC)


 * According to GameFAQs.com, (The leading authority in game hints and walkthrough guides) there is no way to win. You fight as long as you can, and then you die.  APL (talk) 00:54, 4 October 2010 (UTC)

funny animal writers
Does anyone remember, more clearly than I do, a short slice of life story in Critters or some similar magazine, featuring two Jewish writers – I'm thinking Howard Chaykin and Harlan Ellison, but no guarantees – as funny animals? —Tamfang (talk) 12:37, 3 October 2010 (UTC)

Highest ranked actor
Following on from my previous question about the most decorated actor

I was curious, can anyone think of a candidate for the most military decorated actor? I don't know if there have been any Medal of Honor or Victoria Cross-winning actors or actresses. S.G.(GH) ping! 14:16, 26 September 2010 (UTC)
 * Audie Murphy comes to mind. --Onorem♠Dil 14:20, 26 September 2010 (UTC)
 * Ah yes. Perhaps I'll mask my idiocy by refining my question to include only Victoria Cross recipients. :D S.G.(GH) ping! 14:39, 26 September 2010 (UTC)
 * This claims that Frederick George Coppins acted in the 1930 film Journey's End, and this newspaper article (near the bottom) states he was in the classic All Quiet on the Western Front, but he's not listed in IMDb, TCM, or AMG. A Fred Coppins is listed under All Quiet in Princeton University Library's Film Stills Collection (p. 16). Clarityfiend (talk) 00:39, 27 September 2010 (UTC)


 * The IMDB biographies section has the words "Victoria Cross" appearing under 15 people. Of these 5 are incidental mentions and 10 are actual Victoria Cross winners.  Several of them appeared in movies as themselves and several of them are listed because they wrote books that movies were based on, or because they received "thanks" in the movie's credits, but none of them did any acting.  They are:
 * William George Barker
 * Billy Bishop
 * Bernard Freyberg
 * Emile Gauvreau
 * Guy Gibson
 * Cecil Merritt
 * William Reid
 * Frederick Roberts, 1st Earl Roberts
 * Ernest Alvia Smith
 * J.G. Smyth
 * --Anonymous, 19:47 UTC, September 28, 2010.


 * Have to disagree with you there. Billy Bishop played himself in Captains of the Clouds, but he was acting (James Cagney did not fly over his head in real life). Also scratch Emile Gauvreau; IMDb says his father won the VC. Clarityfiend (talk) 23:48, 28 September 2010 (UTC)


 * --Sorry about Gauvreau; I guess I read the bio item too fast. As to Bishop, whether "himself" appearances count as acting is a matter of interpretation.  --Anonymous, 00:40 UTC, September 29, 2010.
 * He was reacting to a fictional incident (annoyed bush pilot buzzing the airfield while he was delivering a scripted speech). Clarityfiend (talk) 01:45, 29 September 2010 (UTC)


 * Jimmy Stewart received a number of decorations, but nothing so exalted as the Medal of Honor. Deor (talk) 12:27, 27 September 2010 (UTC)


 * There were suggestions that George Formby received the Order of Lenin, but it might have been a piece of soviet propoganda. Discussion here and here.  Astronaut (talk) 11:18, 29 September 2010 (UTC)

I am wondering, would James Stewart be the highest-ranked military figure-turned serious actor or actress? S.G.(GH) ping! 15:09, 3 October 2010 (UTC)


 * I was googling names of famous military people who were actors and found this page which may of interest to you if you haven't already seen it. -- k a i n a w &trade; 15:17, 3 October 2010 (UTC)
 * Jimmy Stewart was an actor before as well as after WWII, so he's not really an example of a "military figure turned serious actor". He was, rather, an actor who served with distinction in the military. Deor (talk) 19:25, 3 October 2010 (UTC)
 * Peter J. Ortiz looks like a good candidate: a highly-decorated U.S. Marine major (later promoted to colonel) before turning to acting. However, he didn't take acting seriously. Clarityfiend (talk) 20:47, 3 October 2010 (UTC)


 * I don't know about decorated, but in terms of combining military and acting experience, I am not sure you can top R. Lee Ermey, who served 11 years, with distinction, in the U.S. Marines, rising to the rank of Staff Seargent. He has also appeared in dozens of films, some in military roles (such as his signature role in Full Metal Jacket), but others as varied as Nike, Inc. co-founder Bill Bowerman in Prefontaine and a trial judge in Murder in the First.  No list of military men later becoming actors should leave out Lee Ermey.  -- Jayron  32  04:20, 5 October 2010 (UTC)


 * My best guess is Audie Murphy. He was one of the most decorated soldiers in U.S. history, including being a recipient of the Medal of Honor. He rose to the rank of lieutenant in the U.S. Army (and later major in the Texas National Guard). He then became an actor who starred in more than 40 films, mostly westerns. — Michael J  13:20, 5 October 2010 (UTC)


 * The current question is about the highest ranked solder (most decorated was the prior query). Clarityfiend (talk) 21:10, 5 October 2010 (UTC)

name of actress in idiocracy
What is the name of the actress in the Stars and Stripes outfit in the rehabilitation scene in Idiocracy? She's seated next to President Camacho, to the viewer's left, and appears elsewhere as part of his entourage. I've looked up the cast details, but nothing's terribly clear. Thanks, 202.89.166.179 (talk) 16:09, 3 October 2010 (UTC)


 * I don't have my copy of Idiocracy to hand, but do you perhaps mean Sara Rue (img)? -- Finlay McWalter ☻ Talk 16:32, 3 October 2010 (UTC)

most hit singles for a musician
This is currently listed as Sir Paul McCartney. I believe this should be James Jamerson who played on the majority of motown records.

Would appreciate your thoughts on this as is quite an achivement when you look at the discography.

http://www.philbrodieband.com/muso_james_jamerson.htm

http://www.ricksuchow.com/press-group-224.html

Kind Regards

Mr Joel Bower —Preceding unsigned comment added by Andolini657 (talk • contribs) 17:12, 3 October 2010 (UTC)  I have slightly reformatted your question to remove those weird boxes. Matt Deres (talk) 17:14, 3 October 2010 (UTC)


 * I don't know which list you are referring to. Usually these lists feature the recording artists under whose name the hit was marketed, or categories such as singer or songwriter. See for example our list of Billboard Hot 100 chart achievements and milestones where Paul McCartney leads the list of "songwriters with the most number-one hits". It also depends on which charts you are looking at, and whether you only count number-one hits, or top 10 or top 40 or top 100 etc. Sadly, these lists rarely include studio musicians. I'd love to see such a list. I don't know whether James Jamerson would top it, but he certainly deserves all the credit he never got. And then some. ---Sluzzelin talk  17:40, 3 October 2010 (UTC)
 * Another bassist who would rank high on any list is Carol Kaye. Ghmyrtle (talk) 17:57, 3 October 2010 (UTC)
 * Major recording studios tended to keep a core group of session musicians handy, so when a studio or region developed a reputation for music making, you'd get the same sort of musicians appearing on a LOT of similar albums all recorded in the same area. Studio musicians who would rank up there with the above would be
 * any members of The Wrecking Crew (music), which included Kaye, which was the core group of L.A.-based session musicians in the 60's
 * Members of The Section (band), including Leland Sklar, another prolific studio bass player
 * Members of The Swampers from Muscle Shoals, who recorded with lots of southern soul artists (Aretha Franklin, Otis Reading, etc.)
 * Members of Booker T. & the M.G.'s which were the Stax/Memphis equivalent of The Swampers
 * Many of these musicians literally appeared on dozens of hit singles; some may have appeared on top-40 songs numbering in the triple digits. -- Jayron  32  21:16, 4 October 2010 (UTC)

iris
The song iris by the googo dolls. Why is it called iris, when the word isn't even mentioned in the song? where does Iris come in? Why didn't they include that word in the lyrics? what's with that? 204.112.104.172 (talk) 20:12, 3 October 2010 (UTC)
 * The song was written for the movie City of Angels, and concerns an angel who falls in love with a human woman and gives up his immortality in order to be with her.  I have found postings on a couple of forums suggesting that the title is a reference to Iris the rainbow-goddess and mythological messenger of the gods, since the angel himself is such a messenger.  Sounds plausible, but I have no reliable source to confirm it.   Ka renjc 20:42, 3 October 2010 (UTC)
 * The article on Iris DeMent states that she was the inspiration. Unreferenced. ---Sluzzelin talk  20:50, 3 October 2010 (UTC)
 * It doesn't say that any more. :-) The Hero of This Nation (talk) 17:36, 4 October 2010 (UTC)
 * May I also point out that many (many many many many) songs are titled something that is not mentionned in the song... It isn't unusual for it to be random in appearance, whether it has a deeper meaning or not... gaz hiley .co.uk  12:49, 7 October 2010 (UTC)

Macross, Gundams, and Armslaves
I want to know what a Virtual Fighter's cockpit (usually) looks like, how it is (usually) controlled, and where it is typically located; same thing with a Mobile Suit and an Armslave. Thanks. 64.75.158.193 (talk) 21:49, 3 October 2010 (UTC)