By Chloe Lindeman, Co-Editor-In-Chief
How often do you see the inventor of the Choco Taco and the comedian who voices Gene Belcher in Bob’s Burgers on the same stage within minutes of each other? If you were at the recording of NPR’s game show Ask Me Another on Friday, Nov. 4, you saw just that – and much, much more.
The show featured Host Ophira Eisenberg, In-House Musician Jonathan Coulton and Puzzle Guru Art Chung and included a variety of short wordplay- and- trivia-based quizzes. Haverford College students chosen to participate answered questions that ranged from naming breakfast cereals (with a twist) to guessing the beach item described by Coulton to the tune of DNCE’s “Cake by the Ocean.”
Though the show has been around since 2012, this episode was its first collegiate recording.
“Everybody in New York is ‘too cool for school,’” Coulton told The Bi-College News. He noted that it was nice to get out of the city and be reminded that the shows are not just live performances, but are also aired on national radio.
“It’s always really thrilling just to see that people come out and enjoy the show.”
And come out they did. An hour or so before the act began, a line was already forming in front of Marshall Auditorium.
It wasn’t just the contestants testing their smarts onstage. The hosts were up against a challenge of their own when they had to determine the identity of mystery guest Alan Drazen, inventor of the Choco Taco, by asking only yes or no questions. After they correctly guessed his identity, Drazen shared his experience with unlimited Choco Tacos for life and told the audience to look out for a new frozen treat, which will hit the aisles in 2018.
Minutes later, Eisenberg interviewed a second special guest: Eugene Mirman, the comedian who voices Gene in the television series Bob’s Burgers. He spoke about his latest album, a nine-volume work, which may not be exactly what you think. Although it includes stand-up comedy, Mirman emphasized that it also contains much more, like the sounds almost 200 orgasms and “over 45 minutes of crying.”
The experience was unlike that of most events at Haverford. Students see their fair share of comedy on campus, but the combination of trivia, interviews and music – not to mention the prospect of ending up on national radio – made this a unique experience.
There’s no telling if, or when, Haverford will get the chance to bring this kind of event to campus again. But, hey, at least we can look forward to that new ice cream novelty.
