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A: Australian actress Coral Browne played the role of Vera Charles in that 1958 movie, but she and Vincent Price were not married at the time (at least not to each other). Browne and Price met when she co-starred with him in “Theatre of Blood” in 1973; they wed the following year. The two remained together until her death at the age of 77 on May 29, 1991, two days after Vincent Price’s 80th birthday. Price passed away on Oct. 25, 1993.
Q: When John F. Kennedy was president, his favorite chair was a wooden rocker. Where is it today? — M.W. Fallon, Nev.
A: How about a bit of history on the chair first? Kennedy acquired the solid oak rocking chair with a woven rattan seat in 1955 when he was a Massachusetts senator, and he had it moved to the White House in 1961 after he was inaugurated. The chair was made by the P&P Chair Company in Asheboro, N.C., and is now part of the John F. Kennedy Library and Museum in Boston. Reproductions of the chair are available from the museum’s gift shop.
Q: What do the “A” and “W” in A&W Root Beer stand for? — P.L., Oak Ridge, Tenn.
A: Roy Allen purchased a formula for root beer from a pharmacist in Arizona. In June 1919 he opened his first root beer stand in Lodi, Calif. Later, he opened a second stand in Sacramento. In 1922, Frank Wright, an employee in the Lodi store, became Allen’s partner. They used the initials of their last names to give the root beer its new name.
Q: On the children’s TV show “Howdy Doody,” of which Indian tribe was Chief Thunderthud a member? — R.U., Waynesboro, Pa.
A: Chief Thunderthud, who was played by Bill LeCornec, was part of the Ooragnak tribe (that’s kangaroo spelled backwards).
Q: There was a cereal mascot back in the 1940s. Her first name was Cheeri. Do you know who I mean? — A.F., Van Buren, Ark.
A: I sure do. In 1941, General Mills introduced Cheerioats, the first ready-to-eat oat cereal. The following year, they put a cartoon mascot named Cheeri O’Leary on the package. In 1945, Cheerioats was renamed Cheerios, and Cheeri took an early retirement.
Q: During the War of 1812, when President James Madison and his wife Dolley returned to Washington, D.C., after the British burned much of the capital city, including the Executive Mansion, where did they live? — R.S., Quincy, Calif.
A: They moved a few blocks away into the Octagon House. The house was the winter home of wealthy Virginia planter Col. John Tayloe III. The most interesting feature of the Octagon House is that, despite its name, it has only six sides, a discrepancy never explained. The building, now owned by the American Architectural Foundation and called the Octagon Museum, is the oldest museum in the country devoted to architecture and design. The museum is open to the public.
Q: My grandfather often talked about Mines Field, an airport where he used to go and watch planes as a kid. I wish I had asked him more questions about the airport. Do you know where it was? — V.L., Salem, Ore.
A: In 1928, 640 acres of agricultural land were dedicated for an airport to be known as Mines Field, named after William W. Mines, the real estate agent who arranged the deal. The airport opened in 1930. The name of the airfield was changed to Los Angeles Airport in 1941, and then Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) in 1949.
Q: Francis Scott Key was detained aboard a British ship in Baltimore harbor, where he wrote “The Star Spangled Banner.” What was the name of the warship? — K.C., Gilbert, Ariz.
A: Key was confined aboard the HMS Minden on the evening of Sept. 13, 1814.
(Send your questions to Mr. Know-It-All at gclothier@readingeagle.com or c/o United Feature Syndicate, 200 Madison Ave., New York, NY 10016)