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Entertainment #eee #f5f5f5 #eee #aaa #aaa #aaa #00f #36b #000 #00f entertainment Wikipedia:Reference desk/Entertainment Entertainment WP:RD/E

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Contents 1 August 29 1.1 Translation 1.2 MythBusters filming location 2 September 1 2.1 Help Identifying/Locating TV Commercial 3 September 2 3.1 How is there normal speed and sped-up actions on Star Trek: TNG (especially with Lieutenant Commander Data?) 3.2 Horror Story 3.3 Crump Cup golf tournament at Pine Valley in New Jersey 4 September 3 4.1 1960's British Television 4.2 What's he sucking on? 4.3 How do you come up with the right chords for a bass line, given a simple melody? 4.4 Piano duet (Fiddler on the roof) 5 September 4 5.1 geography--where is Belize? 5.2 Teri Bryne Birthdate

August 29

Translation

When translating a film or TV show into another language, what happens if there is a scene in that film or TV show in which a character speaks that language in the English version? jc iindyysgvxc (my contributions) 08:36, 29 August 2010 (UTC)

Depends on the country and its habits, but I'd say they just let it be - the audience understands it. A special case is when the foreign language is supposed to mean something, but in fact the characters on the screen are saying something completely different - this happens sometimes, especially with "minor" languages that are used just as an exotic backdrop. In cases like that, the translator simply translates the intended meaning (they get a dialogue list) and lets the audience stare at disbelief into a scene where a familiar language is spoken, and the subtitles say something completely else than the characters onscreen. I'm talking about subtitling here, of course. TomorrowTime (talk) 11:08, 29 August 2010 (UTC)

Sometimes a different language is used. I'm afraid I can't remember my source - it was quite a long time ago that I heard this - but a TV show that had a brief section in German used a different language in that bit for the German dub...French, I think. I really wish I could remember the specifics, now... Vimescarrot (talk) 13:14, 29 August 2010 (UTC)

Perhaps you're thinking of the Futurama episode (A Clone of My Own?) where the professor is demonstrating his translating machine which will only translate to a dead language - French, except in the French dub when the dead language is German. Astronaut (talk) 19:11, 29 August 2010 (UTC)

I believe that was it, yes. Well done that man. Have a biscuit. Vimescarrot (talk) 00:26, 30 August 2010 (UTC)

One example: True Blood is shown on Swedish TV with subtitles (like virtually all foreign language content not intended for small children). When Eric Northman switches to Swedish, there simply are no subtitles. It is not unusual to initially not understand a word, since you're expecting English. Luckily the mind seems to keep a replay buffer so you can parse it again with the expectation of hearing Swedish. /Coffeeshivers (talk) 14:20, 29 August 2010 (UTC)

In the Italian dubbing, local dialects are sometimes used. For example, a Gangster is usually dubbed with a thick Sicilian accent. In the original version of A Fish Called Wanda, Otto seduces Anna using Italian phrases, while in the Italian translation it's switched to Spanish (which can have a "sensual" sound to Italian ears, unlike, for example, German or Russian). Having a similar culture and language, Italian and Spanish are often used for this purpose: in the Spanish version of Scrubs, Carla is not from Latin America, but from Italy. Sometimes a language change is not enough and a more radical adaptation has to be done: in the Simpsons episode The Last of the Red Hat Mamas Lisa is learning to speak Italian, while in the Italian version she's studying Italian history (a switch to other languages wouldn't have worked, because of the several scenes set in Italy). In the following episode, The Italian Bob, jokes about Italian words are changed to jokes about Italian culture. In the German version of Malcolm in the middle, the two German characters (Otto and Gretchen) are transformed into Danes. Also, in the German dubbed version of American Dad!, the German fish Klaus speaks in a Saxon dialect, which is seen as a stereotype for East Germans in general. His behavior in the German version is similar to that of an ex-Stasi agent and he hints that he was attached to the Stasi agency, which serves as an alternative to the hints that he has Nazi sympathies in the English version. Also, Frau Farbissina, a fictional German character from the Austin Powers series, speaks with an Upper Saxon dialect in the German translation. Üter, from The Simpsons is localized as a student from Switzerland, and not form Germany. --151.51.145.104 (talk) 15:12, 29 August 2010 (UTC)

Also, sometimes they simply put that in a different language. For example, sometimes on Scrubs one of the characters Elliot speaks German, and I believe in Germany they have her speak Swedish or such. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 134.126.191.109 (talk) 21:40, 29 August 2010 (UTC)

BBC Four have been showing the (excellent) Swedish version of Wallander with the Swedish dialogue subtitled in English. If characters speak other languages, that too is subtitled in English; unless they speak English, in which case so subtitles are shown. Astronaut (talk) 18:51, 29 August 2010 (UTC)

In bilingual kids shows, like Handy Manny or Dora the Explorer, they just swap the langauages; so when Dora speaks Spanish in the English version, she speaks English in the Spanish version. --Jayron32 05:18, 30 August 2010 (UTC)

In high school French class, we watched The Crepes of Wrath one day, with everything dubbed by French actors...except the parts that were already in French, which kept the American actors' terrible accents. Adam Bishop (talk) 15:28, 1 September 2010 (UTC)

This also occurred in the final scenes of the Life is Beautiful film. The film was done in Italian. One of the final scenes has an American soldier speaking in English to a young Italian child who only understands Italian. When they dubbed the film into English, I believe they had the soldier speak in Spanish (or some such). If they kept the soldier speaking in English, it would have destroyed the intent of the scene, whereby the confused and frightened child is not supposed to understand what the soldier is saying. (64.252.34.115 (talk) 01:42, 31 August 2010 (UTC))

When I saw the movie, the American on the tank at the end was speaking English. It's jarring enough after watching a whole film in Italian that it still works for English speakers. —D. Monack ^talk 03:35, 2 September 2010 (UTC)

MythBusters filming location

The other day I saw and episode of MythBusters that focused on MacGyver myths. The last couple of minutes of the episode had Adam and Jamie busting out of a locked structure and signalling a helicopter for rescue using a giant kite. I found a Youtube clip of the scene and I was wondering were it was filmed.

Americanfreedom (talk) 21:42, 29 August 2010 (UTC)

Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Entertainment/2010 August 30

Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Entertainment/2010 August 31

September 1

Help Identifying/Locating TV Commercial

(I know this is a stretch, but...) There was a TV commercial on from time to time 10 years ago or more-- mid to late 90's, early 00's. It may not have been national-- I was living in Utah at the time and it could have been an ad for a Utah or Salt Lake City business. (Sorry.) In the commercial, a somewhat dorky couple gets married. If I remember correctly, the bride was in a very modestly cut wedding dress (to the wrists, ankles, neck) and was wearing thick glasses, while the somewhat balding groom was wearing one of those awful baby-blue tuxedos with the huge lapels, bow tie, and ruffles in front. The minister pronounces them man and wife, or whatever, and there is a less-than-enthusiastic cheer from the onlookers. The commercial cuts to the honeymoon suite at a local motel, with the couple, still in dress and tuxedo, sitting at the foot of the bed, nervously looking at each other. Suddenly, the groom bursts out laughing but quickly squelches his laughter out of nervousness. The commercial then announces what it was meant to announce, something to the effect that some situations in life are awkward, but doing business with us doesn't have to be, etc., etc. The last line of the commercial is the bride telling the groom in (again) a slightly nasal, dorky voice: "You're fun to be married to." Anyway. I would love to see the commercial again. A Google search for "You're fun to be married to" yields 1 result, which is not it. Permutations of awkward, wedding, nervous, and commercial also don't seem to be much help. Did anyone else happen to see and remember this commercial, and know what company produced the ad? Thanks much! Kingsfold (Quack quack!) 15:21, 1 September 2010 (UTC)

I'm at work and can't do a proper search, but I've had luck in the past by going directly to YouTube and putting in as many keywords as I could recall. If you knew the company name or even what kind of store it might have been, that would certainly help. Something like TV commercial wedding (store name) might get you something. Sorry I can't try it myself to see what comes up, but maybe you'll have some luck if you play around with the keywords. I wouldn't bother with the spoken words when searching YouTube - unless nothing else helps. Matt Deres (talk) 17:25, 1 September 2010 (UTC)

September 2

How is there normal speed and sped-up actions on Star Trek: TNG (especially with Lieutenant Commander Data?)

Sometimes, there are scenes where Data does something extra, extra fast, which is characteristic of a superior-functioning android. He assembled a model temple together in front of a child. He listened to someone give a lecture in a Holodeck, on maximum speed (so the holographic lecturer sounded like a chipmunk on energy drinks.)

In the meantime, the observer of Data's temple assembly demonstrated body movements at normal speed. Data's sped-up effect couldn't just come from the speeding up of the camera reel.

Therefore, how was it made behind the scenes so that the observer wasn't sped up in his body movements as well as Data? What is the article on that particular special effect? --Let Us Update Wikipedia:Dusty Articles 01:21, 2 September 2010 (UTC)

I would guess that they would have filmed them seperately, filming Data building the temple, then speeding it up so it looks fast, after/before/at the same time filming the kiddo seperately, then pasting the kiddo on top of the section for Data. I think they do something similar to Data's building, filming a slow thing, then doing playback, sped up, with survailance vids, too.Jds500 (talk) 01:59, 2 September 2010 (UTC)

Brent Spiner plays three people in one scene in Brothers, and a later episode has part of the action moving backwards while Picard, Troi, and Geordi watch in regular motion. Obviously that stuff is filmed separately too. I guess that the article you want to look at is Compositing, and there are probably others. Adam Bishop (talk) 02:39, 2 September 2010 (UTC)

There's also Chroma key... --Jayron32 03:38, 2 September 2010 (UTC)

And if the one other human in the scene is motionless, we can guess they went on the cheap, avoided the expense of a special effect, and told the actor to just freeze for a couple minutes. Comet Tuttle (talk) 05:45, 2 September 2010 (UTC)

I have seen it done, in 'behind the scenes' style things, with some actors moving really slowly while others move at normal speed: this is then sped up. I'm guessing that's the cheaper option and, with decent actors, probably gives a more satisfying effect on low budgets, or before computer effects were as advanced. 86.161.108.172 (talk) 22:30, 2 September 2010 (UTC)

That general kind of trick is at least as old as Charlie Chaplin's silent films. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 19:38, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

More recent example, Avril Lavigne's I'm With You - when making the video, she mouthed along to the song being played at double speed. When slowed down, looks like she's singing normally, while her hair bounces and everyone dances really slowly --Saalstin (talk) 15:19, 4 September 2010 (UTC)

Horror Story

I read a horrible story but forgot it's name, and author's name, which I'd like to know. I am giving details here. I know such stuff is not entirely banned on Reference Desk but this is rather...

Details are given here but please read at you own risk, especially young and sensitive people.

The story is perhaps set in India (but not sure) One guy goes out for a walk at night. He sees a young boy at a distance which he finds curious. He'd like to know who the child is, he didn't see any kid here before, this is not a place for kids actually (graveyard nearby). So he calls the kid to stop, but the kid runs away from him. He gets more curious and runs after him. As he gains speed he notices that the kid is perfectly bald, but the real shock comes when he at last catches him and brings him close enough for inspection (he would regret doing this for the rest of his restless days ). The kid has no eyes, no nose, no mouth, no ears...all he has for a head is a plane spherical head-shape  Jon Ascton  (talk) 07:36, 2 September 2010 (UTC)

This story reminds me of a Japanese Yokai: Noppera-bō. It is described as: Noppera-bō are known primarily for frightening humans, but are usually otherwise harmless. They appear at first as ordinary human beings, sometimes impersonating someone familiar to the victim, before causing their features to disappear, leaving a blank, smooth sheet of skin where their face should be. Disturbing, but not as much as the Shirime ;-) --151.51.145.104 (talk) 08:48, 2 September 2010 (UTC)

How are the details disturbing? Seems rather tame to me. Googlemeister (talk) 13:52, 2 September 2010 (UTC)

Googlemeister, you must be a rather overtly brave man, I almost froze when I read this , but that's perhaps I was kid.  Jon Ascton  (talk) 23:30, 2 September 2010 (UTC)

Well, you have to be careful :-) Personally I didn't think it was too bad but people are affected in different ways. Chevymontecarlo 14:16, 2 September 2010 (UTC)

This is a long shot, but I'm wondering whether it might be the short story The Step by E. F. Benson. I found this very interesting page that lists instances of the trope of the faceless person in books, tv, movies etc., and the Benson story is mentioned with a brief comment that it contains an example. I like Benson very much but don't know this particular story; it's hard to find much about the plot online, except that it's set in Egypt and features an unpleasant bullying character who follows someone and gets a nasty come-uppance. I'm so intrigued that I've located and ordered a second-hand copy of an anthology of Benson's ghost stories, which is something I've always quite fancied owning. The Step is in it, so I'll report back when it arrives. (How's that for Refdesk devotion?) Karenjc 16:24, 2 September 2010 (UTC)

The OP's description doesn't sound like "The Step", in most of which the "unpleasant bullying character" is being pursued by, rather than pursuing, the not-yet-visible bogie. When it does appear, it's not in the form of a young boy. I think the OP was probably on target in connecting his/her story with the Noppera-bō; it sounds as though it was certainly influenced by Lafcadio Hearn's well-known "Mujina" in Kwaidan, which is described in that article. Genre authors are always stealing plots from one another. Deor (talk) 20:41, 2 September 2010 (UTC)

Never come across Hearn, despite his local connections to N E England, where I now live. He sounds fascinating; I must track his stuff down and have a look. Thanks Deor :) Karenjc 15:47, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

The story sounds familiar to me - maybe something by M.R. James? I've got a feeling I've seen this story on TV. The BBC had a tradition of ghost stories for Christmas, and it could have been one of those. DuncanHill (talk) 17:30, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

How scary something is depends on what nerves it hits within you, or doesn't. My reaction, as the protagonist in that story, would have been to say, "Wow! What happened to you?" And see if I get any response. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 19:40, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

I can say with confidence that it's not an M. R. James story. And that Buggsy may possibly be overstating his imperviousness. Deor (talk) 22:01, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

Crump Cup golf tournament at Pine Valley in New Jersey

This tournament is normally open to the public one day in September each year. What is the date it will be open to the public in 2010? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.230.244.37 (talk) 20:24, 2 September 2010 (UTC)

According to Crump Cup. "The 86th tournament will be held September 9 -12, 2010", and "Since at least the 1970s the public can, on the day of the final round, tour the golf course and view tournament play", so, although I can't find anything definite, the answer would appear to be September 12th. Neither the course nor the competition seem to have a website. Rojomoke (talk) 23:28, 2 September 2010 (UTC)

September 3

1960's British Television

Anyone remember the name of a British Tv show about a guy who was a private detective, and was helped by the ghost of his dead brother? The actor who played the ghost, was always dressed in white, ie; tie, shirt, jacket, pants, shoes etc. Only the detective brother could see or interact with this ghost.99.240.206.191 (talk) 02:27, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

GOT IT! Thank you. The show in Britain was called Randall and Hopkirk. In North America, it aired under the title "My partner the ghost" and starred Mike Pratt and Kenneth Cope. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 99.240.206.191 (talk) 03:05, 3 September 2010 (UTC)
It starred Mike Pratt and Kenneth Cope in the UK too.

It was remade in 1999-2001 by surreal comedians Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer. BTW just to quibble, they weren't brothers, just partners. One was Randall, the other was Hopkirk. Rojomoke (talk) 07:37, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

The full UK title was Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased). Ghmyrtle (talk) 08:09, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

What's he sucking on?

The fiddle player in this video has a stick or some such thing in his mouth. You can see it very plainly at about 1:40. What is it? Thanks, Dismas|^(talk) 04:05, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

Looks to me exactly like an unlit cigar. Sometimes, when people are quitting smoking, they will hold a cigarette or cigar in their mouths without lighting it, not to say that is why he is doing it. Without knowing why he is doing it, I can say that I am fairly certain it is just a cigar. --Jayron32 04:09, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

That was my first thought too but he has it tucked so far back in his mouth, judging by the bulge in his cheek, that I thought I must be wrong. I've never seen anyone suck on a cigar like that. Dismas|^(talk) 04:11, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

Looks like a cigar. I wonder if he's sucking on cigars so he can break his lollipop habit. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 19:35, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

Forgive me if I'm stating the obvious, but part of this band's Schtick is that they're humorously parodying the appearance of one style of (Texan?) bluegrass band (see Hayseed Dixie for another example of this Tongue-in-cheek bluegrass/rock genre), hence also the slightly exaggerated facial expressions apparent in that clip. The cigar is, I suggest, not real but a prop used as part of that player's costume and performance, and his use of it is consequently a deliberate distortion of how a real cigar would be employed. 87.81.230.195 (talk) 09:35, 4 September 2010 (UTC)

How do you come up with the right chords for a bass line, given a simple melody?

I'm only a beginner on the piano and I like to fool around the notes and certain scales. Sometimes I come up with some simple melodies for the right hand (no chords, very simple).

The thing is, I have no idea of how to come up with a matching bass line for the left hand. I don't know which chords to play with which notes, even though I know which timing seems right for the tune. I usually end up playing the same note, only on lower octaves, but that's just boring.

What's the trick for this? I'm having a hard time searching the web as I have no idea on what to search for, and everything I find is extremely vague, guitar-centric, or they brush it off saying it's easy. :( 189.15.212.245 (talk) 11:47, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

If you're beginner, this page covers the absolute basics. Also, if you click the banner at the end of the article, it takes you to a recording of the author explaining a bit more. (Then he offers to sell you the entire course for $97, but that's up to you.) There are a few other easy ways to figure out what works, and when you're familiar with these you'll be in a better position to start trying out more complicated chords. Hope this helps. Anonymous Bob (talk) 13:57, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

Hey, that was helpful! Thank you! :) 189.15.212.245 (talk) 21:10, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

Our article Circle of fifths may help you get to grips with "what goes with what" in terms of harmony. Karenjc 15:52, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

The thing that bothers me about these music theory articles over here is that they are too technical for a beginner, and the musical theory terminology is very obtuse, which doesn't help us much. I'm trying to understand the basics of what makes a chord work with a note or another chord, and what makes it "feel" right when put after another chord. This way I can make a mental tree of which options I have, and I can play with things in a more precise way. The way I understand these things at the moment, I just know all these chords exist, not what makes them work together. This hasn't been explained in a satisfying way to me yet. I can feel them working together if I hear it, but I want to understand WHY it does work. 189.15.212.245 (talk) 21:10, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

Typically, when composing, things would go in a rather different order than you're presented with. In general (and somewhat simplistically) you'd decide on the prevailing key, then decide what Chord progression and rhythm you're using, and only then write a melody within that rubric. At a very basic level (sic), bass instruments tend to play the chords - whether just banging on the tonic of each chord, playing each as an arpeggio, or playing a simplified melody that falls within that chord structure. As you're having to start with the melody, you need to reverse-engineer the key, the time signature, the rhythm, and the chords. Depending on the style of music, this might be easy, or blinking hard. The style of music often dictates the chord structure - rock is (frighteningly often ) I-IV-V (e.g. A-D-E) and blues (and often jazz) follow the patterns in Twelve-bar blues. In some music the melody starts each bar (or each phrase, maybe) with the tonic of the prevailing chord, so that might be a clue. -- Finlay McWalter ☻ Talk 22:55, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

Piano duet (Fiddler on the roof)

I'm looking for the names of two pianists famous for duets. I know they played during the 70's and recorded music from Fiddler on the Roof. Also, I'm fairly certain their names aren't normal American names. Help? PrincessofLlyr ^{royal court} 17:18, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

Ferrante & Teicher, no doubt. Deor (talk) 17:43, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

Exactly! Thanks so much! PrincessofLlyr ^{royal court} 18:16, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

September 4

geography--where is Belize?

may i see a map of Belize and surrounding area? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.133.76.59 (talk) 00:19, 4 September 2010 (UTC)

Have you tried Belize, or google? (also, the Miscellaneous desk would be the right place for this)--Saalstin (talk) 00:23, 4 September 2010 (UTC)

Teri Bryne Birthdate

I don't know who is changing this to say that her birth year is 1967 look into it it's 1972

I know but prove me wrong... —Preceding unsigned comment added by 99.153.20.13 (talk) 00:45, 4 September 2010 (UTC)

"Prove me wrong" is not how Wikipedia works. You've changed Teri Byrne to give one date, user:24.131.35.70 changed it to give another. Neither of you gave a reliable source, so both birthdates are utterly worthless until you can prove otherwise. -- Finlay McWalter ☻ Talk 01:32, 4 September 2010 (UTC)