Mr. Write's Page

The Questions…

1. British novelist P. L. Travers, the author of Mary Poppins, reluctantly sold the story’s film rights to Walt Disney in 1964. But she despised the film, in part because Disney changed the nanny from stern and intimidating to cheery and sweet. How did Travers retaliate?

2. In the wine and whiskey business, what is the “angels’ share”?

3. How did Tonka Toys, Inc. get its name?

4. What popular TV chef once worked as a budget analyst in the White House specializing in nuclear policy?

5. During her reign over Egypt, Cleopatra decreed that certain animals were sacred because of their importance to agriculture. No one was allowed to touch them, lest the god of fertility be offended. The penalty for removing them from Egypt was death. What were the animals?

The Answers…

1. Travers changed her will to stipulate that no American would ever again be allowed to work on a film adaptation of one of her stories.

2. The portion of the product that evaporates as it ages in the cask. The loss is about two percent per year.

3. The company was founded in Mound, Minnesota, near Lake Minnetonka. Originally, the corporate logo included waves to symbolize the lake.

4. Ina Garten, the Food Network’s Barefoot Contessa. She left the Carter Administration in 1978 to go into the cooking business.

5. Earthworms.