Secret Spot · Puzzle #32 · Saturday, October 31
Secret Spot: the answers
Seven prompts, one answer each, and the fewer surfers who said yours, the more it scored. Here are the prompts with the answers we expected to be most common, and the rarest. Play today's Secret Spot, or play this day as practice (never counted).
1. Name a snack food
Each snack counts once, by any of its names; brands count on their own (Doritos, Cheetos).
The answer sheet for this prompt accepts 335 different answers. The usual answers are Doritos, Popcorn and Potato chips, the party waves, worth 1.0 each. Watch out for Goldfish: however original that pick seems, the sheet marks it a kook move, worth 1.5. The big scores sit further out: Parle-G, Prawn cracker and Taralli are rated Locals only on the sheet, worth up to 8.5. One deep cut: a 2011 survey named Parle-G the best-selling biscuit brand in the world.
Most common
- Doritos
- Popcorn
- Potato chips
Rarest
- Coxinha: Coxinha means 'little thigh': the Brazilian chicken snack is shaped like a teardrop. Source: Wikipedia, “Coxinha” (CC BY-SA)
- Hydrox: Hydrox came first: Oreo was created in 1912 as an imitation of it. Source: Wikipedia, “Hydrox” (CC BY-SA)
- Pão de queijo: Pão de queijo, Brazil's cheese bread, gets its chewy stretch from cassava flour. Source: Wikipedia, “Pão de queijo” (CC BY-SA)
Before the crowd came in: the answers we expected to be most and least common, from how well known each one is.
2. Name a Batman villain
Each villain counts once, by name or alias (Oswald Cobblepot is the Penguin). Villain teams and gangs count too.
The answer sheet for this prompt accepts 120 different answers. The usual answers are Joker, Bane and Riddler, the party waves, worth 1.0 each. Watch out for Mr. Freeze and Mad Hatter: however original those picks seem, the sheet marks them as kook moves, worth 1.5. The big scores sit further out: Egghead, Kite Man and Cluemaster are rated Locals only on the sheet, worth up to 8.5. One deep cut: Egghead, played by Vincent Price on 1960s TV, called himself "the world's smartest criminal" and loved egg puns.
Most common
- Joker
- Bane
- Riddler
Rarest
- Humpty Dumpty: Humpty Dumpty isn't truly wicked like most of Batman's foes: he's usually the comic relief. Source: Wikipedia, “Humpty Dumpty (comics)” (CC BY-SA)
- Mr. Bloom: Mr. Bloom's creators, Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo, called him the "anti-Joker". Source: Wikipedia, “Mr. Bloom” (CC BY-SA)
- King Tut: Adam West called King Tut the only villain invented for the 1966 Batman show to be a real success. Source: Wikipedia, “King Tut (comics)” (CC BY-SA)
Before the crowd came in: the answers we expected to be most and least common, from how well known each one is.
3. Name a font
Named typefaces count, each family once (Helvetica Neue is Helvetica, Courier New is Courier). Styles such as serif, italic or blackletter don't count.
The answer sheet for this prompt accepts 298 different answers. The obvious picks are Helvetica, Times New Roman and Comic Sans: party waves on the sheet, worth 1.0 each. Wingdings and Papyrus look like clever picks, but the sheet marks them as kook moves, worth only 1.5. For a big score you need something like Transport, Zapfino and Cooper Black, which the sheet rates Locals only or Secret spot, worth up to 10.0. One deep cut: Transport, the lettering of UK road signs, was created by Jock Kinneir and Margaret Calvert.
Most common
- Helvetica
- Times New Roman
- Comic Sans
Rarest
- Comic Neue: Comic Neue, released in 2014, is a modern, refined take on Comic Sans. Source: Wikipedia, “Comic Neue” (CC BY-SA)
- Computer Modern: Computer Modern was the original typeface family of the TeX typesetting program. Source: Wikipedia, “Computer Modern” (CC BY-SA)
- OCR-A: OCR-A was made so that both early computers and people could read it. Source: Wikipedia, “OCR-A” (CC BY-SA)
Before the crowd came in: the answers we expected to be most and least common, from how well known each one is.
4. Name a soccer club
Each club counts once, from anywhere in the world, typed by its name, short name or nickname (the Red Devils are Manchester United). Men's and women's sides of one club are the same answer.
The answer sheet for this prompt accepts 689 different answers. The obvious picks are FC Barcelona, Liverpool and Manchester United: party waves on the sheet, worth 1.0 each. Wrexham looks like a clever pick, but the sheet marks it as a kook move, worth only 1.5. For a big score you need something like AFC Wimbledon, Santos and FK Bodø/Glimt, which the sheet rates Locals only, worth up to 8.5. One deep cut: Fan-founded AFC Wimbledon once went 78 league games in a row without losing, an English record.
Most common
- FC Barcelona
- Liverpool
- Manchester United
Rarest
- 1. FC Union Berlin: Union Berlin's stadium hosts a big Christmas carol singalong every year. Source: Wikipedia, “1. FC Union Berlin” (CC BY-SA)
- Venezia: Venezia, the club from Venice, won the Coppa Italia in 1941. Source: Wikipedia, “Venezia FC” (CC BY-SA)
- FC St. Pauli: FC St. Pauli isn't only soccer: the club also has chess, bowling, softball and roller derby teams. Source: Wikipedia, “FC St. Pauli” (CC BY-SA)
Before the crowd came in: the answers we expected to be most and least common, from how well known each one is.
5. Name a city in Canada
Each city or town counts once, however it's typed (Montréal is Montreal). Towns count too. A former city merged into a bigger one counts as it (Scarborough is Toronto). Places that share a name count once.
The answer sheet for this prompt accepts 462 different answers. The usual answers are Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver, the party waves, worth 1.0 each. Watch out for Yellowknife and Moose Jaw: however original those picks seem, the sheet marks them as kook moves, worth 1.5. The big scores sit further out: Drumheller, Flin Flon and Peggys Cove, Nova Scotia are rated Locals only on the sheet, worth up to 8.5. One deep cut: Drumheller sits in a stretch of the Red Deer River valley nicknamed Dinosaur Valley.
Most common
- Toronto
- Montreal
- Vancouver
Rarest
- Vulcan, Alberta: Vulcan, Alberta is the official Star Trek Capital of Canada, with a statue of the USS Enterprise in town. Source: Wikipedia, “Vulcan, Alberta” (CC BY-SA)
- Gimli, Manitoba: Gimli, Manitoba was settled by Icelanders and still throws a yearly Icelandic Festival. Source: Wikipedia, “Gimli, Manitoba” (CC BY-SA)
- Moosonee: Moosonee calls itself the Gateway to the Arctic and has Ontario's only saltwater port. Source: Wikipedia, “Moosonee” (CC BY-SA)
Before the crowd came in: the answers we expected to be most and least common, from how well known each one is.
6. Name a lizard
Each kind counts once, with or without "lizard". Species join their kind: any gecko is a gecko, any chameleon a chameleon, any iguana an iguana, any skink a skink, any anole an anole, any monitor a monitor lizard. The Komodo dragon, leopard gecko, crested gecko, marine iguana and blue-tongued skink count on their own.
The answer sheet for this prompt accepts 240 different answers. The usual answers are Monitor lizard, Komodo dragon and Gecko, the party waves, worth 1.0 each. Watch out for Gila monster and Frilled lizard: however original those picks seem, the sheet marks them as kook moves, worth 1.5. The big scores sit further out: Sheltopusik, Sand lizard and Perentie are rated Locals only or Secret spot on the sheet, worth up to 10.0. One deep cut: the sheltopusik has no legs, but it's a lizard, not a snake: it's also called the European glass lizard.
Most common
- Monitor lizard
- Komodo dragon
- Gecko
Rarest
- Land mullet: Australia's land mullet is one of the largest skinks in the world. Source: Wikipedia, “Land mullet” (CC BY-SA)
- Caiman lizard: Caiman lizards belong to the genus Dracaena, from the Ancient Greek for "female dragon". Source: Wikipedia, “Dracaena (lizard)” (CC BY-SA)
- Chinese crocodile lizard: The Chinese crocodile lizard is the only living member of a lizard lineage whose fossils go back over 120 million years. Source: Wikipedia, “Chinese crocodile lizard” (CC BY-SA)
Before the crowd came in: the answers we expected to be most and least common, from how well known each one is.
7. Name a motorcycle brand
Each motorcycle or scooter brand counts once, by its name: Triumph is Triumph however many times the company was refounded, and BMW counts for its motorcycles.
The answer sheet for this prompt accepts 244 different answers. The usual answers are Honda, Suzuki and Harley-Davidson, the party waves, worth 1.0 each. Watch out for Ducati: however original that pick seems, the sheet marks it a kook move, worth 1.5. The big scores sit further out: VéloSoleX, MZ Motorrad- und Zweiradwerk and Vincent Motorcycles are rated Locals only on the sheet, worth up to 8.5. One deep cut is VéloSoleX. Ads called the Solex moped 'the bicycle which drives itself'.
Most common
- Honda
- Suzuki
- Harley-Davidson
Rarest
- GasGas: GasGas was started in 1985 by two former Bultaco workers in Catalonia. Source: Wikipedia, “GasGas” (CC BY-SA)
- Lifan Group: Lifan's Chinese name means 'Power Sail'. Source: Wikipedia, “Lifan Group” (CC BY-SA)
- Tomos: Slovenia's Tomos had a hit with its 4L moped, built from 1969 to 1980. Source: Wikipedia, “Tomos” (CC BY-SA)
Before the crowd came in: the answers we expected to be most and least common, from how well known each one is.