The man who photographed snowflakes
Q: My 8-year-old daughter is fascinated with snowflakes. She has an extensive collection of pictures and several books. I recently purchased a book of snowflake pictures by W.A. Bentley. There was no explanation of who Bentley is. Do you know? ‘ G.H., Bangor, Maine
A: Wilson Alwyn Bentley (1865-1931) was born on a farm in Jericho, Vt. He was home-schooled by his mother, while his father taught him farming. For his 15th birthday, he was given a microscope, and it didn’t take him long to look at a snow crystal using his birthday gift. Unable to draw the intricate patterns, he attached a bellows camera to his microscope and began experimenting. In January 1885, he became the first person to photograph a snowflake. In time, he amassed a collection of more than 5,000 photos of snowflakes, achieving worldwide recognition for his work.
Q: This is a super-trivia question, but I have a feeling you’ll know it. What is June Cleaver’s maiden name? ‘ S.D., Dayton, Ohio
A: June Cleaver, of course, is the fictional character of the TV sitcom ‘Leave It to Beaver,’ played by Barbara Billingsley. According to the character’s biography, she was born June Evelyn Bronson before marrying Ward Cleaver (Hugh Beaumont).
Q: What is the shortest war ever fought? ‘ N.B., Bennington, Vt.
A: On Aug. 27, 1896, at 9:02 a.m., hostilities between the African nation of Zanzibar and England commenced. Zanzibar surrendered after 38 minutes at 9:40 a.m. What was the war about? The British wanted to impose a puppet regime after the Sultan of Zanzibar died. However, the dead Sultan’s nephew saw it differently and seized power. So the Brits removed him from office and then demanded reimbursement for the shells used in the bombardment of the Sultan’s palace during the war.
Q: A few years back, my sister and I had the unpleasant responsibility of cleaning out our parents’ home. After 50 years, that big old house had a lot of stuff and memories. My dad was a sports nut. I was surprised to come across several shirts marked ‘Buccaneers.’ The shirts were red, white and blue, not the colors of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. By any chance did the football team once play in New Orleans? ‘ B.H.L., New Orleans, La.
A: Because of the color combinations of the shirts, I have a feeling your father was a fan of the New Orleans Buccaneers of the American Basketball Association. They only played in New Orleans for three seasons, between 1967 and 1970. Unable to find a suitable home court in the Crescent City, the Bucs moved to Tennessee and became the Memphis Pros.
Q: Your question about the 1959 epic film ‘Ben-Hur’ reminded me of a long-sought-after question. Who played the role of Jesus? As I recall, his face was never shown. ‘ J.B.J., Port Huron, Mich.
A: According to the director William Wyler, out of respect, the face of Jesus is never shown. He was played by a friend of Wyler’s, Claude Heater, an American opera singer who did not receive a credit for his only film role.
Q: Is there anything special about a Tootsie Pop wrapper with the image of a star on it? Can I send it in for something? ‘ R.T., Elmira, N.Y.
A: Here is the answer about this urban legend from the Tootsie Pop people: ‘Many years ago, a rumor surfaced that said if the wrapper of a Tootsie Pop with a star was found and returned to the company, a free Tootsie Pop or any number of things would be sent to the lucky person. We truly don’t know why or where this rumor started, as our records do not indicate that our company ever sponsored any type of promotion surrounding images on the wrapper.’
(Send your questions to Mr. Know-It-All at [email protected] or c/o United Feature Syndicate, 200 Madison Ave., New York, NY 10016)