On the day Brigitte Gerney's obituary appears in the NYT and we learn she was born in Vaduz, Liechtenstein, Liechtenstein figures into the Final Jeopardy question. If you knew about Vaduz, the capital, you won.
Brigitte of course is the "Crane Lady" who survived having a 35-ton crane falling on her as she walked back from the dentist on NYC's Third Avenue in 1985. Brigitte recovered, learned to walk again, and still led an already eventful life when her fiancé doctor, who had been treating her, was killed by a NYC firefighter who was pissed at being denied disability benefits. Dr. Peter Rizzo was on the fire department's medical board that rejected the application for benefits. Brigitte did not pass away young. She was 85, and lived in Southampton, NY.
Vaduz is the capital of Liechtenstein, by itself would be an appropriate Final Jeopardy question/answer. It's certainly obscure enough. But the folks at Jeopardy, those unseen, unheard of wonks who craft these clues, phrased yesterday's as:
Countries of the World
On this country's national day, August 15, all 39,000 residents are invited to Vaduz castle for festivities and drinks.
The answer was Liechtenstein. Not only did two of the contestants get it right (as I did as well) but they spelled Liechtenstein correctly, something I know I wouldn't have been able to do unless I saw it in print first.
Jeopardy of course is filmed waaay in advance of its airings, so there was nothing planned about the final question/answer being Liechtenstein appearing on the same day Brigitte's obituary hit the news.
One thing I absorbed when reading that book is that while these coincidences might seem cosmically driven, they are in fact the product of a set of odds that have been going on without your realizing it. While we are marveling at the "coincidence" we haven't taken into account all the negative times, or events when the coincidence didn't happen: how many Jeopardy questions have already been aired where the answer had nothing to do with he place of someone's birth that we've read about in that day's obituary. Lots. In other words: it had to happen some day.
As for the guest Jeopardy hosts who are in a bit of audition for the permanent replacement spot, I would put this cycle's Savannah Guthrie up there in ranked voting. I'd also add the lady whose name I don't remember, but she's a neuroscientist, as well as the fellow who wore thick glasses who I think had been a champion as decent prospects.
But perhaps getting back to Liechtenstein, inviting 39,000 people over for refreshments, even if they don't all come, tells us how homey Liechtenstein must be. Consider what they serve, and you don't even have to get a Covid shot.
On the country's national holiday all subjects are invited to the castle of the head of state. A significant portion of the population attends the national celebration at the castle where speeches are made and complimentary beer is served.
That's got to be a hoot. Free beer. I wonder what problems that creates. Our Capitol on January 6th had uninvited guests, no free beer, and it was a disaster for the ages. They haven't stopped showing the film footage yet. Maybe with a Coors Light offering things would have turned out different.
Since Liechtenstein is tiny, probably better behaved and only 62 square miles and looking like a European appendix, I'm sure a lot of the population can reach the castle via public transportation. Or have their chauffeurs drive them. The population's per capita GDP is $165,028, second only to Monaco's.
No drunk driving in Liechtenstein, but certainly bathroom availability needed for the trip home.
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