Endless Questions

Beacon bars challenge with trivia

If you think you know it all, there are plenty of barstools in Beacon where you can prove it: At least seven taverns in the city and vicinity run weekly or monthly trivia nights. 

For the hosts, the currency lies in the questions. Some skew toward the familiar, such as: “What is the name of the popular Russian ballet that takes place during Christmas?” Others are more obscure: “Name Santa’s super sled engine in the film Elf.”

There can be no repeats, insists Eddie Daniels, who runs Connecticut-based Immodest Trivia and organizes a weekly event at Industrial Arts Brewing hosted by Janine Rodriguez.

“If I use a question from two years ago, my regulars will remember it, so they have to be fresh and well-written,” said Daniels. “People can see through uninspired questions.”

Test Your Metal

Eddie Daniels of Immodest Trivia agreed to share five trivia questions. The answers are at the bottom.

• Winston Churchill first used this term, describing a metaphorical political boundary that divided    Europe, in a 1945 telegraph to Harry Truman.
• In American football, this term describes any defensive alignment using five defensive backs.
• This 1989 comedy-drama film featured Academy Award winners Shirley McClaine, Sally Field and Olympia Dukakis.
• This classic Christmas song was originally written by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans for the 1951 film The Lemon Drop Kid.
• This North American snake, named for its distinctive color, accounts for roughly half of all snake bites treated in the U.S. each year.

While most hosts call out questions over a loudspeaker or distribute images of celebrities, paintings or famous buildings, Rodriquez displays her queries on a screen. One staple is to play a handful of songs to be identified by title and artist.

Mike Burdge and Bernadette Gorman-White of Story Screen host a monthly film- and video-oriented trivia contest at three locations: Obercreek Brewing in Wappinger’s Falls and Draught Industries and Pillow & Oats in Beacon. 

Making the Rounds

Here is a list of regularly scheduled trivia nights. Denning’s Point Distillery also holds an event hosted by drag queen Pissi Myles a few times each year.

TUESDAY
• Happy Valley Arcade Bar, 6:30 p.m.
• Draught Industries (last of month), 7 p.m.
• Max’s on Main, Tuesdays, 7 p.m.

THURSDAY
• Obercreek Brewing, 6 p.m.
• Two Way Brewing, 7:30 p.m.
• Pillow & Oats, 8 p.m.

SUNDAY
• Industrial Arts, 3 p.m.

Players form teams, usually with a limit of six, adopt funky names and try to win prizes. The teams write down and submit their responses after each round and groans usually accompany the announcement of the answers. Cellphone consults are forbidden.

Hosts take a break between rounds to score the answer sheets, like teachers grading an exam. Last month at Pillow & Oats, that gave beer-tender Alexa Akselband an opportunity to turn up the music as her husband, Erik Akselband, filled in for the regular host, Eric Newberger. One round centered on bestselling toys from 1995, such as: “If you do not cater to this toy, it will die.”

​Haldane Trivia

The Haldane School Foundation will hold its annual Trivia Night fundraiser at Industrial Arts on Jan. 27. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and the trivia begins at 8 p.m.

Tickets are $80, or $640 per table.

A bus will depart St. Mary’s Episcopal Church at 6:10 p.m. for $30 roundtrip. See haldaneschoolfoundation.org.

At Two Way Brewing, John Scelzo attracts a big following. He likes to make his questions progressively more difficult and gives extra credit during the tougher rounds. Each member of the winning team is rewarded with a crowler of beer (a 32-ounce can, filled from the tap).

“The questions are a grab bag, like video games, state capitals, action movies,” says Scelzo. “I like to mix up pop culture and more academic topics to try and be middle-of-the road so it’s fair for everyone, younger or older.” In Beacon, for the most part, it’s younger.

Happy Valley Arcade Bar got into the game after meeting the owners of Geeks Who Drink at a restaurant and bar trade show in Las Vegas. Based in Colorado, the trivia company hires local hosts and pays careful attention to wording, much like Daniels at Immodest Trivia. 

For example, instead of asking: “What new wave band did the song ‘Whip It’?” they frame it as: “‘Whip It’ was ‘a pep talk for President Carter,’ according to the founder of what new wave band?”

For many players, the reason to attend trivia nights is not to show off — it’s to socialize. “It’s something to do during the week and get out of the house,” says Christine Wightman, who was playing at Pillow & Oats with a team of six. “We could just have a conversation, but trivia is fun and it makes you think.” 

Answers: Iron Curtain, Nickel Defense, Steel Magnolias, Silver Bells, Copperhead