OPHIRA EISENBERG, HOST:
Coming up, we'll play our second-favorite guessing game, This, That Or The Other. But first, let's check in with our contestants. Virginia Pasley, you're obsessed with "Bridget Jones's Diary."
VIRGINIA PASLEY: Yes, a little bit.
EISENBERG: So much so you've written articles for it, including some that have been published in The Atlantic?
PASLEY: Yeah, she'd written before that Bridget got pregnant by Daniel. But in the book, she's married and pregnant by Mark, who is then killed off. Then in the movie, Daniel was killed off instead of Mark.
EISENBERG: Yeah.
PASLEY: So these are things that bother me but maybe not anyone else. So I actually went to a book signing and asked her about these. (Laughter) I know, I tried not to be annoying. I really did.
(LAUGHTER)
JONATHAN COULTON: It doesn't sound like you tried that hard.
PASLEY: I did.
(LAUGHTER)
PASLEY: I really - I tried. I was so nice. But she looked at me like she had no idea what I was talking about.
EISENBERG: So are you planning on having more contact?
PASLEY: I really think I should stop.
EISENBERG: Yeah?
PASLEY: Yeah.
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: I understand. Dyan Flores, you are working on a musical adaptation of the Amanda Bynes teen comedy "She's The Man."
DYAN FLORES: True story.
(APPLAUSE)
EISENBERG: Why does this piece of entertainment need another life?
(LAUGHTER)
FLORES: Well, my writing partner pitched me on it. And I hadn't watched the movie since it came out in 2006.
EISENBERG: OK.
FLORES: And I had a faint recollection of it being entertaining. But I was like, that's a silly idea. And then I watched it, and it's funny and it's relevant and it kind of skirted around some things with gender and identity back then that now are in the forefront again.
EISENBERG: That's very exciting.
FLORES: It is exciting.
EISENBERG: Who are you going to cast as the lead, pie in the sky?
FLORES: If Amanda Bynes would come back, that would...
(LAUGHTER)
FLORES: She'd be too old, but let's give her another chance.
EISENBERG: Yeah, all right. Next we're going to play a game about whiskey, dogs and boats. It's a trivia version of an L.L.Bean catalog. So I'm going to give you the name of something, and you have to tell me which of three categories it belongs to. And today's categories are brands of whiskey, U.S. Navy ships and names of dogs who won Best in Show at Westminster.
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: So we're going to alternate back and forth, no need to buzz in. Virginia, you won the last game, so you win this and you go straight to the Final Round. And Dyan, you need to win this or you'll have to do a shot of moonshine that we made in the bathroom sink.
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: Here we go. Virginia, Boxwood Barkentine.
PASLEY: A dog.
EISENBERG: Yeah, that's a dog, yeah.
(APPLAUSE)
EISENBERG: Dyan, Grand Old Parr.
FLORES: Whiskey?
EISENBERG: Yes, that's a whiskey.
(APPLAUSE)
EISENBERG: Named after Old Tom Parr, an Englishman who died in the 17th century at the alleged age of 152 years old.
COULTON: That seems unlikely.
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: Yeah, it's like when his drunk friends just realized he was dead or something.
(LAUGHTER)
COULTON: Many years later - where's Old Tom Parr?
EISENBERG: (Laughter) He's right here.
COULTON: (Laughter).
EISENBERG: Virginia, Rock Ridge Night Rocket.
PASLEY: Whiskey.
EISENBERG: I'm sorry that is incorrect. Dyan, can you steal?
FLORES: Ship?
EISENBERG: Oh, I'm sorry, that is incorrect. Rock Ridge Night Rocket is a dog owned by the Rockefellers.
COULTON: It's got four names. It's a four-name dog.
EISENBERG: I like a Night Rocket.
COULTON: Yeah.
EISENBERG: Dyan, Special Times Just Right.
FLORES: I hope it's a whiskey.
EISENBERG: I'm sorry, that is incorrect. Virginia, what do you think it is, Special Times Just Right?
PASLEY: Well, now I hope it's a dog.
EISENBERG: Yeah, that's a dog.
(APPLAUSE)
EISENBERG: Yeah, it's a Bichon Frise - won in 2001. Virginia, Jefferson City.
PASLEY: Ship.
EISENBERG: Yeah, that's a ship. That's right.
(APPLAUSE)
EISENBERG: Dyan, Ole Smoky - O-L-E Smoky.
FLORES: Whiskey.
EISENBERG: Yeah, that's a whiskey.
(APPLAUSE)
EISENBERG: It's a moonshine whiskey. Have you ever had moonshine?
COULTON: Yeah, I don't care for the flavor of moonshine.
EISENBERG: What is the flavor?
COULTON: It just tastes like fire.
(LAUGHTER)
COULTON: It tastes like burning stinging. It's not nice.
EISENBERG: How did you feel?
COULTON: You know, drunk.
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: Sounds right. All right, this is your last clue. Virginia, Red Knight, as in K-N-I-G-H-T, knight, Red Knight.
PASLEY: Dog.
EISENBERG: Oh, I'm sorry, that is incorrect. I understand how you would think that. Dyan, Red Knight.
FLORES: Ship.
EISENBERG: Wrong.
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: It's an Indian whisky made in Bangalore. It supposedly is delicious. Dyan, Bonhomme Richard.
FLORES: Dog.
EISENBERG: You'd think so, wouldn't you? Sorry, that is incorrect. Virginia, can you steal? Bonhomme Richard.
PASLEY: A boat.
EISENBERG: (Laughter) It is a - I like your resignation. It's a boat.
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: It is a ship. Yes, that's right. Well done.
(APPLAUSE)
EISENBERG: What a game. Puzzle guru Greg Pliska, how did our contestants do?
GREG PLISKA: It was very, very tight battle, but, Virginia, you emerged victorious, which means that you have won two games and you'll be joining us for the Final Round. Dyan, thank you so much.
(APPLAUSE)
EISENBERG: Coming up, we'll find out who will face off against Virginia in our Final Round at the end of the show. And Jonathan Coulton gets to work exploring the careers of a famous Dreamhouse doll in a song from a real-life Dolly. So stick around. I'm Ophira Eisenberg, and you're listening to ASK ME ANOTHER from NPR.
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