June 2014 Flick Facts

July 04--Flick Fact 6/1/14

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QUESTION: True or false? Those gardens on the grounds of Ewing Manor and the Genevieve Green Gardens at Emerson and Towanda in Bloomington look gorgeous so early in the

season because the plants have actually been growing indoors for months, long before the outdoor growing season.

ANSWER: That's true. Much of the greenery, foliage and floral colors there were started inside the ISU greenhouse on campus and were then transplanted to the Manor and its grounds once warmth also arrived. Ewing gardener Heather Vozzella grows about 5,000 annuals for summer beds and about 1,000 mums and pansies for fall beds.

Flick Fact 6/2/14

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QUESTION: True or false? Mondays at banks in Bloomington-Normal show how big of a church-going community this is?

ANSWER: You could say that's true, as Mondays are considered the second busiest day at B-N banks, not only because it is the beginning of a week but also because it is when churches deposit all the previous day's offering plate residuals. Friday is, by the way, the biggest day for bank deposit transactions in B-N because it is the end of a work week and also a payday for a lot of folk.

Flick Fact 6/3/14

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QUESTION: Lilly is a tiny unincorporated village of Tazewell County, just east of Mackinaw, that sadly lost to fire last month the Lilly Inn. Can you name some of those who had stayed at the Lilly Inn?

ANSWER: Among others: Abraham Lincoln, of Springfield, who would become U.S. President, and Judge David Davis, of Bloomington, who would become a U.S. Supreme Court Justice and whose mansion in Bloomington is today a state museum. While riding the judicial circuit back in the 1840s and '50s, Lincoln and Davis are said to have stopped often at the Lilly Inn, especially when the judge was holding court in Tazewell County. The Lilly Inn Inn had stood since the 1830s before a fire leveled it in May.

Flick Fact 6/4/14

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QUESTION: When people like Abe Lincoln and David Davis were living in Central Illinois, train was a primary source of travel, the only hassle of which was that a train could only travel about 30 miles before needing more wood fuel and water. Can you name the area town that was founded because it was a "full-service stop between Springfield and Bloomington?"

ANSWER: Lincoln. The lawyer hired to help plat the town was, in fact, Abe himself, then an up-and-coming lawyer who also humbly and begrudgingly agreed to let Lincoln be named in his honor.

Flick Fact 6/5/14

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QUESTION: In the news lately has been the so-called "Mahomet Aquifer," a river of water that flows underground through Central Illinois and is the main source of water for the Town of Normal. Each day, in fact, do you know how much water Normal draws from the aquifer?

ANSWER: Amazingly, every day the town draws almost 4 million gallons of water from the aquifer, including 1 million gallons of water that supports Illinois State University.

Flick Fact 6/6/14

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QUESTION: Is there actually a Jason at Jason's Deli?

ANSWER: There may be Jasons who work there but there is no Jason as a founder. The deli was launched by Joe Tortorice, Jr., and Rusty Coco in Beaumont, Texas in 1976. Their fathers owned neighborhood grocery stores in Beaumont, both of which featured popular delis. The chain started franchising in 1988, and today has 225 U.S. locations in 28 states, including one that opened in May in Normal, near Vernon at Veterans. It had the highest grossing sales among all 225 Jason's the week it opened.

Flick Fact 6/7/14

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QUESTION: If you shopped last weekend at the Wal-Mart Supercenter in Normal, you weren't alone. How many shoppers pass through the store on an average Saturday?

ANSWER: About 7,600 shoppers, according to company statistics. It is one of the super-chains more popular stores.

Flick Fact 6/8/14

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QUESTION: Oblong is the rather oddly named Crawford County town of 1,500 people made even more famous by the headline that once appeared in this newspaper, "Oblong Man Marries Normal Woman." Even more humorous was Oblong's original name. Do you know what it was?

ANSWER: In the beginning, Oblong was Henpeck.

Flick Fact 6/9/14

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QUESTION: True or false? Of all the special amenities in a kitchen these days, at State Farm Insurance, one of the most worrisome is that "popcorn" button on your microwave?

ANSWER: That's true. That button isn't as smart as you think. A popcorn fire in a microwave -- caused when your corn is popping too long thanks to the "popcorn" button is a new leading cause of house fires handled by the insurance company.

Flick Fact 6/10/14

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QUESTION: Can you name the McLean County town named after a hymn? (a) Anchor; (b) Normal; (c) Holder; (d) Colfax.

ANSWER: It was (a) Anchor, the town in eastern McLean County. According to the book "Place Names of Illinois," it came from the hymn, "My Soul Is Anchored in the Cross."

Flick Fact 6/11/14

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QUESTION: A popular road to get to the Lake Bloomington area from Bloomington-Normal is Pipeline Road. Do you know why it is called that?

ANSWER: A city that does not sit on a natural body of water, Bloomington naturally needed some, which is why and how Lake Bloomington was created more than 100 years ago ago. The pipeline from the lake down to the city was laid and thus the corresponding road got its name.

Flick Fact 6/12/14

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QUESTION: True or false? Rainy days are the biggest days for Connect Transit buses in Bloomington-Normal because it's too yucky to walk?

ANSWER: That's false. Rainy days are actually the least busy of days for Connect Transit buses because people also don't want to stand in the rain and wait for a ride.

Flick Fact 6/13/14

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QUESTION: One hundred years ago this summer was an interesting one in Bloomington because (a) bars in town all quit serving alcohol; (b) the Chicago Cubs trained in Bloomington; (c) it never got above 85 degrees.

ANSWER: It was (a) the bars no longer serving beer because of the beginning of Prohibition. As The Pantagraph read the night before B-N went dry: "The last night of alcohol in city saloons turned noisy and disorderly. Some keepers sold liquor at bargain prices. But the later it got, men over 40 went home; police kept watch for rioters; and some keepers got out the soft drinks for the tomorrow."

Flick Fact 6/14/14

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QUESTION: True or false? Matt Potts is the chief brew master of Destihl, the successful brewery and gastrobrewpub in Normal, and has spent all of his life perfecting the art of making of a good beer.

ANSWER: That'd be false. Potts was a lawyer in Dunlap whose wife, Lyn, had given him one of those make-your-own-beer kits for Christmas years before. And, after 11 years of practicing law by day and fiddling with hops and barley on weekends, Potts discovered he especially liked the challenge of making a good beer. That's when he stepped out of his law practice and with two friends who worked at Biaggi's restaurant in Bloomington (Jason Bratcher and Troy Nelson) launched Destihl. It opened in 2007.

Flick Fact 6/15/14

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QUESTION: True or false? The runways at the Central Illinois Regional Airport are much thicker at the ends than in the middle?

ANSWER: That's tue. In fact, at each end where jetliners touch down countless times each day, the runways are nearly a yard thick (35 inches) to better absorb the impact of 850,00-pound jets bouncing onto the runway.

Flick Fact 6/16/14

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QUESTION: YouTube has become the planet's most used way to watch videos and is a multi-billion dollar company. Why should Champaign-Urbana be especially proud.

ANSWER: Because YouTube has its beginnings there. Its 36-year-old creator and founder, Steve Chen, is a former Urbana resident and a University of Illinois grad.

Flick Fact 6/17/14

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QUESTION: As video gaming, with money payouts, continues to grow in popularity after its recent legalization in Illinois, can you name what happened in Bloomington-Normal 75 years ago this summer that fully reflects just how times have changed?

ANSWER: At the orders of the Illinois attorney general, deputies of Sheriff Walter Nierstheimer removed all pinball machines from McLean County. In 1939, they were considered gambling devices because they cost a penny and sometimes even a nickel to play.

Flick Fact 6/18/14

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QUESTION: Can you name the Central Illinois city that has four Main Streets -- East Main, West Main, North Main and South Main?

ANSWER: It's Decatur.

Flick Fact 6/19/14

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QUESTION: Mackinaw is the name of a town in Central Illinois and also a river. Do you know what the word "Mackinaw" means?

ANSWER: "Mackinaw" is derived from an Ojibway Indian word meaning "many snapping turtles." The area around Mackinaw is said to have once been so rife with little snapping reptiles, it was difficult to walk around during spawning season.

Flick Fact 6/20/14

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QUESTION: In most cities, if a third of its population has a college degree, it's considered excellent. Can you name the percentage in Bloomington-Normal?

ANSWER: Incredibly, 43.5% of all Twin Citians have a college degree. That puts Bloomington-Normal as one of the 20 most educated metro areas in America.

Flick Fact 6/21/14

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QUESTION: Todd Andrlik is author of "Reporting the Revolutionary War: Before It Was History, It Was News" that was named one of the Best Books of 2012 by Barnes & Noble. How might this also interest American history-minded types at Illinois State University?

ANSWER: Andrlik is an ISU graduate.

Flick Fact 6/22/14

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QUESTION: During its heyday of the late '50s and '60s when Route 66 was so renowned there even was a top-rated TV show named after it, can you name the only stop in its long stretch from L.A. to Chicago where there was a 15-cent hamburger?

ANSWER: The History Channel says it was in Pontiac, Ill., at the former Mr. Quick there, situated along the expressway.

Flick Fact 6/23/14

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QUESTION: Chicago is easily Illinois' biggest city, with a population of nearly 2.7 million residents. But can you name the two smallest towns?

ANSWER: Valley City, just south of Quincy, is listed as the state's smallest incorporated town with 23 people. The town of Time, also in Pike County, is the second smallest, with an official population of 36.

Flick Fact 6/24/14

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QUESTION: In an entire year, which appliance in your home adds the most to your electricity bill, according to Ameren -- your desktop personal computer, your big-screen TV or your air conditioner during the summertime?

ANSWER: No contest. Although you probably only run your A.C. about three months of the year, it still costs you $1,241 a year in electricity costs, says Ameren. Your TV will add about $168 to your annual electricity bill and your personal computer only $42.05.

Flick Fact 6/25/14

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QUESTION: Springfield and Lincoln are two of the most popular names for cities in America, and Bloomington isn't too far behind. How many Bloomingtons are there in the U.S. and which other one is closest to Bloomington, Ill.?

ANSWER: There are 10 Bloomingtons in America as well as a Bloomington Springs (in Tennessee) and two Blooming Groves, the original name of our fair city. The closest other Bloomington is the one in Indiana although Bloomington, Wis., (southwest of Madison) isn't that far away, either.

Flick Fact 6/26/14

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QUESTION: Can you name the only street in Bloomington that's spelled in another language on the city street sign?

ANSWER: It's Vladimir Drive -- on Bloomington's east side, off Clearwater Drive -- a street that is named after the Twin Cities' sister city in Russia. The street sign is also written in Russian letters.

Flick Fact 6/27/14

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QUESTION: True or false? With places like Coffee Hound and Starbucks today wildly popular with "millenials" -- those between 18 and 34 -- coffee has never been more popular.

ANSWER: That's false if you believe the statistics. They indicate only 35 percent of today's 18-to-34 age group drink at least one cup of coffee in a two-week period. In the 35-to-54 age group, 51 percent have at least one coffee in two weeks while 65 percent of those over 55 do.

Flick Fact 6/28/14

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QUESTION: The University of Illinois is, of course, in Champaign-Urbana and has given that city notoriety around America. But can you name in which city was the university first proposed to be built? (a) Chicago; (b) Bloomington; (c) Dwight; (d) Springfield.

ANSWER: The U of I opened in 1867 -- 10 years after today's Illinois State University opened in Normal -- and Normal and ISU founder Jesse Fell made a bid for the U. of I. to be located in (b) Bloomington -- on 140 acres, near where Franklin Park is today. But state politics won out and the U. of I. was built in Urbana and Champaign instead.

Flick Fact 6/29/14

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QUESTION: Logically, Illinois is home to the most Illinois State University alumni live, work and reside. Can you name which state in America has the second most ISU alumni?

ANSWER: California, according to ISU statistics. Florida is then next.

Flick Fact 6/30/14

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QUESTION: There's weather radar and police radar and surveillance radar. Radar is a word you hear constantly today. But "radar" is an actual abbreviation and pseudonym for what words?

ANSWER: Radar stands for Radio Detection and Ranging.

Flick is at [email protected]

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(c)2014 The Pantagraph (Bloomington, Ill.)

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