Friday, July 17, 2009

leitmotif \LYT-moh-teef\, noun:

1. In music drama, a marked melodic phrase or short passage which always accompanies the reappearance of a certain person, situation, abstract idea, or allusion in the course of the play; a sort of musical label.
2. A dominant and recurring theme.

Leitmotif (also spelled leitmotiv) is from German Leitmotiv, "leading motif," from leiten, "to lead" (from Old High German leitan) + Motiv, "motif," from the French. It is especially associated with the operas of German composer Richard Wagner.

Bachelor Wash

• A quick soap-free rinse of a plate, cup, or utensil which had recently been used. This is most useful for low-oil, water based, or dry foods. Wiping with a paper towel will usually remove residual food particles missed by the bachelor wash.

1. Since we were out of coffee cups, I bachelor washed the ones from breakfast and filled them up.

2. After a quick bachelor wash, the drinking glass went back in the cupboard.

3. I didn't want my date to think I was a pig, so I bachelor washed the dishes and tossed them in the cupboard.

Trivia
Who was the first female entertainer to have a No. 1 album and No. 1 movie in the same week?

• Jennifer Lopez, in 2001. The album was J. Lo; the movie, The Wedding Planner.

Today in History:

• Spanish-American War: ended when Spanish troops surrendered to US in Santiago, Cuba (1898)
• House of Windsor: in the wake of anti-German sentiment, British royal family changed its name from Saxe-Coburg Gotha (1917)
• Potsdam Conference: world leaders Truman, Stalin and Churchill begin the final Allied summit of WWII (1945)
• Disneyland: theme park opened in Anaheim, California; overcrowding, heat and lack of running water caused a bad opening day (1955)
• Apollo-Soyuz Test Project: for the first time, an Apollo spaceship docked with a Soyuz spacecraft in orbit; it marked the warming US-USSR relationship (1975)

Today's Birthdays:

• S.Y. Agnon (1888-1970): Nobel-winning Israeli novelist
• Donald Sutherland (74): Hawkeye Pierce in M*A*S*H, most recently on TV in Dirty Sexy Money; also, entertainers James Cagney (1899-1986), Art Linkletter (97), Phyllis Diller (92), Diahann Carroll (74), Lucie Arnaz (58), David Hasselhoff (57) and Bitty Schram and Andre Royo (both 41)
• Camilla Parker-Bowles (62): Duchess of Cornwall and wife of Prince Charles
• Phoebe Snow (57): R&B singer; musician Spencer Davis (67) shares this birth date
• Angela Merkel (55): Chancellor of Germany