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1992: Disney Opens Euro Disneyland

Release Date: 04/12/2017

Trivia People

Let’s start with salad, specifically salad dressing, even more specifically salad dressing names. We’ll start with the king of salad dressings in the United States: ranch. Ranch dressing was first created in 1954 by Steve Henson, who owned a dude ranch called Hidden Valley Ranch, near Santa Barbara, California. His customers liked the dressing so much that Henson started selling packets of dried mix so they could have it at home. Bottled, prepared ranch dressing was introduced in 1983. Thousand Island dressing’s origin story is not as clear, although it’s name refers to the Thousand...

570: WInter Olympics

Trivia People

Today is the 14th day of competition at the 23rd Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang, South Korea. Here are a few things you might not have known about these Olympics and the Olympic Winter Games in general. Ninety-two nations are competing in 102 events in 15 sports during the 19-day competition. The host South Koreans marched with their counterparts from North Korea under a unified Korean flag during the opening ceremony. The two countries combined to field a unified women’s ice hockey team, but otherwise participated separately. This is the third time the Winter Olympics have been held...

569: Disneyland

Trivia People

I hope you’re asking yourself, where has this guy been for the past eight months? Well, my wife and I moved from Yakima, Washington, to Los Angeles in a so-far successful attempt to avoid winter. Also, I’ve recently started a new job, because unlike other podcasters, we’re not rolling in Blue Apron or SquareSpace money yet. So, inspired by my new-ish surroundings, here are five things you may not have known about Disneyland: Walt Disney originally wanted to build an amusement park next to his studios in Burbank, California, north of downtown Los Angeles. However, the proposed site...

Taking a Break -- We Shall Return!

Trivia People

To my listeners: I hope you've noticed there has been a lack of "Trivia Minute" podcasts lately. I have quite a few exciting and positive things going on in my life right now, so I've had to put the podcast on the back burner until things settle down (likely sometime this autumn). My promise: The show will return, so please stay subscribed using whichever podcast service you use. Keep an eye on this space for updates. Thank you for listening! -- Marcus P.S.: All 550-plus episodes will also remain available on

567: Trivia Minute Update: May 5, 2017

Trivia People

We’ll start off with a question: What nation did Mexican forces defeat in the Battle of Puebla, which is marked by Cinco de Mayo celebrations? We’ll have the answer later in the show. Today is Cinco de Mayo, which is celebrated more in the United States than it is in Mexico. It’s also Children’s Day in Japan and South Korea and Constitution Day in Kyrgyzstan. It’s unofficially International Midwives’ Day, Cartoonists Day, and International Tuba Day. It’s the birthday of chef James Beard, who was born in 1903; actor Michael Palin, who is 74, and singer Adele, who is 29. Now,...

Trivia Minute Update: May 4, 2017

Trivia People

We’ll start off with a question: What was the only crime gangster Al Capone was ever convicted of? We’ll have the answer later in the show. Today is International Firefighters Day, Youth Day in Fiji, and Restoration of Independence Day in Latvia. It’s unofficially Star Wars Day, National Day of Prayer and National Orange Juice Day. It’s the birthday of actress Audrey Hepburn, who was born in 1929; actor Will Arnett, who is 47; and golfer Rory McIlroy, who is 28. Now, we’ll spin the wheel to pick a year at random. This week in 1961, the top song in the U.S. was “Runaway” by Del...

Trivia Minute Update: May 3, 2017

Trivia People

We’ll start off with a question: Who was the owner of the Dodgers when they moved from Brooklyn to Los Angeles? We’ll have the answer later in the show. Today is World Press Freedom Day, Constitution Day in Poland, and Constitution Memorial Day in Japan. It’s Public Radio Day, Wordsmith Day, and National Raspberry Popover Day. It’s the birthday of singer and actor Bing Crosby, who was born in 1903; musician James Brown, who was born in 1933; and magician Doug Henning, who was born in 1947. Now, we’ll spin the wheel to pick a year at random. This week in 1981, the top song in the U.S....

Trivia Minute Update: May 2, 2017

Trivia People

We’ll start off with a question: The maiden flight of the De Havilland Comet, the first jet airliner, traveled between which two cities? We’ll have the answer later in the show. Today is Flag Day in Poland, National Education Day in Indonesia, and Teachers’ Day in Iran. It’s unofficially National Play Your Ukulele Day, International Scurvy Awareness Day and World Asthma Day. It’s the birthday of Catherine the Great, who was born in 1729; singer Engelbert Humperdinck, who is 81; and soccer star David Beckham, who is 42. Now, we’ll spin the wheel to pick a year at random. This week...

Trivia Minute Update: May 1, 2017

Trivia People

Our T-shirt giveaway came to an end on Sunday. We only had one entry from Doug Barbeau, who wins a Trivia Minute T-Shirt. Thanks, Doug. We’ll start off with a question: Which two of the contiguous 48 states are not served by Amtrak rail service? Today is Constitution Day in Argentina, Latvia and the Marshall Islands. It’s International Workers’ Day, and it’s May Day. It’s unofficially Frequent Flyer Day, National Chocolate Parfait Day, and School Principals’ Day. It’s the birthday of author Joseph Heller, who was born in 1923; musician Judy Collins, who is 78; and film director...

Trivia Minute Update: April 28, 2017

Trivia People

Today's trivia question: Who was the captain of the HMS Bounty? Today is International Workplace Safety Day, National Heroes Day in Barbados, and National Day of Mourning in Canada. It’s unofficially National Cubicle Day, National Superhero Day, and National Blueberry Pie Day. It’s the birthday of author Harper Lee, who was born in 1926; Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan, who is 57; and actress Penelope Cruz, who is 43. Now, we’ll spin the wheel to pick a year at random. This week in 1986, the top song in the U.S. was “Addicted to Love” by Robert Palmer. The No. 1 movie was...

More Episodes

On this date in 1992, The Walt Disney Company opened Euro Disneyland.

Here are some things you may not have known about Disney parks.

Walt Disney originally wanted to build a theme park in Burbank, California, near his studios. Because of the limited size of the property, Disney chose instead to buy 160 acres of orange grove in Anaheim, about 30 miles south of Burbank. Initially, Disney planned to call the park “Disneylandia.”

Construction of Disneyland began in 1954 and the park opened the following year. When it opened, Disneyland had five distinct lands: Frontierland, Adventureland, Fantasyland, Tomorrowland, and Main Street USA. The original park has been expanded many times with the additions of New Orleans Square in 1966; Bear Country, which is now called Critter Country, in 1972; Mickey’s Toontown in 1993, and Star Wars Land, which is under construction and is set to open in 2019. A separate park, Disney’s California Adventure, opened in 2001.

The centerpiece of Disneyland is Sleeping Beauty’s castle.

More than 650 million people have visited Disneyland since it opened. In 2013 alone, more than 16 million people visited.

The Walt Disney World Resort’s Magic Kingdom opened in 1971 near Orlando, Florida. In 1982, the permanent World’s Fair known as Epcot opened. It was followed by Disney-MGM Studios and Typhoon Lagoon in 1989, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom in 1998. More than 20 million people visited the Magic Kingdom in 2015.

The centerpiece of the Magic Kingdom is Cinderella’s Castle.

Tokyo Disney Resort, originally called Tokyo Disneyland, opened in 1983. It was the first Disney theme park built outside of the United States. It’s the second most popular of the resorts, seeing about 17 million visitors per year. It’s centerpiece is also Cinderella’s Castle.

Euro Disneyland, now known as Disneyland Park, is located on the outskirts of Paris. Initially, it was not a financial success. But it now welcomes about 13 million visitors per year.

Hong Kong Disneyland Resort followed in 2005, and Shanghai Disney Resort opened in 2016.

Our question: What did the acronym EPCOT originally stand for?

Today is Children’s Day in Bolivia, National Redemption Day in Liberia, and Halifax Day in North Carolina.

It’s unofficially National Licorice Day, National Grilled Cheese Sandwich Day, and National Only Child Day.

It’s the birthday of author Beverly Cleary, who is 101, TV show host David Letterman, who is 70; and actress Claire Danes, who turns 38.

This week in 1992, the top song in the U.S. was “Save the Best for Last” by Vanessa Williams.

The No. 1 movie was “Sleepwalkers,” while the novel “The Pelican Brief” by John Grisham topped the New York Times Bestsellers list.

Weekly question: What is the nickname of the bell that surpassed Big Ben as the largest bell in Great Britain?

Submit your answer at triviapeople.com/test and we’ll add the name of the person with the first correct answer to our winner’s wall … at triviapeople.com. We'll have the correct answer on Friday’s episode.