The DC List (1 of 3): Meet Your Republican Congressional Members...........and, guess when they will turn 103

Greetings to our blog readers from Argentina, France and Malaysia.......we are coming to you live from the 9:30 Club in Washington, DC, well, actually, we just said that to get your attention!

At any rate as even yack herders in Mongolia now by now there were mid-term elections to determine which party gets control of the House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate, and alas (yes, we are biased), the Republicans won. But, after watching "The Partridge Family" reruns for five straight days and getting mopped and depressed, we thought of what Mel Brooks once said: "The best way to get even with your enemies is to make fun of them."

So, as gerrymandering will assure that Republicans will hold their seats for years and years on end even if they smoke pot on a ski trip to Colorado or run over an old woman's foot with their Hummer in a Target parking lot in Florida, we thought we'd let you the voter know when your Republican Congressional member is scheduled to turn 103! Oh, and of course, we forgot to add if you are playing Angry Birds as bills are being voted on in the floor; it is actually an addictive game, we'll give you that!

And, of course, we once again, choose to make fun of our own Republican Congressman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va) who was first elected to the House of Reps in 1992 during the infamous Newt Gingrich takeover of the house.

Here is when your rep turns 103 years old:

1) Cong. Virginia Foxx (R-NC, pictured top) 2046

2) Cong. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va, pictured center) 2055

3) Cong Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) 2070

4) Cong. Martha Roby (R-Ala) 2079 (she's a young one, especially for a Republican!)

5) Cong. Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla) 2066 (whew! We almost didn't spell his name right....)

6) Cong. Darrell Issa (R-Cal.) 2056

7) Cong. Tom Graves (R-Ga) 2073 (that's also the year I turn 103!)

8) Cong. Steve King (R-Iowa) 2052

9) Cong. Mike Coffman (R-Colo.) 2058

10) Cong. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho) 2053

http://goodlatte.house.gov/

http://foxx.house.gov/

http://chaffetz.house.gov/

http://www.c-span.org/

http://thehill.com/

http://www.rollcall.com/

http://www.theonion.com/section/politics/

http://www.politco.com

http://www.politicscultureandotherwastesoft.blogspot.com    (for more reps who turn 103)

The Rabbit Ear Test_ (5 out of 12) "The Partridge Family"

Today, we give out a new quiz on a tv show from our childhood years in the 1970s, and today the subject is "The Partridge Family." Unlike many tv shows, the sitcom about five children and their mother who sing together in a band, also featured many recordings with The Partridge Family name.

To my knowledge, I only saw the show one time as a kid and that was on a rerun which aired on a Hartford, Conn., tv channel (perhaps WFSB) in 1980 when my parents were visiting friends in the Nutmeg State.

Earlier this year, the show made news as David Cassidy, the teen heartthrob from the show, sued the producers of the show for bank royalties, some 37 years since the show, which ran for 96 episodes, originally aired.

Also this year, writer Allison Pearson wrote a book called "I Think I Love," in reference to a hit song from The Partridge Family, about her teenage crush on David Cassidy, and how it made her dream about America while watching the show on tv in Wales.

Amazingly enough, while researching this piece, we found out that '80s pop icon Rick Springfield was set to replace a burnt out Cassidy, but the show wasn't renewed for another season.

Other interesting facts about the show are that "The Partridge Family" was based on a real-life musical family called the Cowgills. The show's dog Simone only showed up in the program's first season.

Susan Dey, another member of the cast who would later star in "L.A. Law" had to live with a guardian on the set until she turned 18. The cast also included Shirley Jones and Danny Bonaduce. The show was also for its tour bus!

So, we are going to ask: "What is the original airdate of 'The Partridge Family?' (I guess I should inform our friends in Peru, thanks for checking us out today, that the show did air in Europe, but it is an American show, and we are going with the American broadcast here)

Is the answer:

A) Sept. 25, 1970

B) May 28, 1972

C) March 1, 1973

D) Jan. 17, 1974

For more information on The Partridge Family, one can check out the web sites partridgefamilypartybus.com or partridgefamilytemple.com

Friday Geo Quiz (July2010 Only)

As a casual listener to the NPR series "The World" which had a great segment on Turkish immigrant families who have now spent several generations in Germany since a guest worker program was introduced in the late 1960s, I thought I would dedicate a series of "Geo Quiz" segments (which are featured on the news show broadcasts).

These particular entries are only going to focus on countries in the World Cup, and yes we know all six countries have officially been eliminated as of today (Editorial Comment: Go Holland!).

But, nevertheless, we thought this might help ninth grade geography students at Walt Whitman High School in Bethesda, Md. (an actual place) particularly those who are taking the class over again in summer school. It should be pointed out that there was a heatwave in the region this week, and reportedly Richmond, Va., was (yikes!) reportedly 102 degrees at one point in mid-week.

So, here is the question kids:

Which one of these four World Cup countries (pictured above) is NOT landlocked:

A) Slovakia
B) Paraguay
C) Switzerland
D) Slovenia

If you get the answer right, I may have to send you a Partridge Family record I got at Happy's Flea Market in Roanoke, Va., a few years ago. Alas, you will have to pay for the postage!

Happy Hannukah from The Partridge Family

And, you can check out the blog for "The Partridge Family" on our link. Even though I have not put the series from the 1970s on my Netflix que, it is one of my favorite guilty pleasures.

I did not actually watch it until I saw a rerun on a local station out of Hartford, Conn., when we were visiting some family friends in the Nutmeg State.

Merry Christmas from The Partridge Family!