Q: I have gotten hooked on the old "Match Game" with Gene Rayburn. Do you know how many of the panelists, besides Betty White, are still living?
A: Rayburn, long the host of the game show, passed away in 1999. What I think of as the Big Three of the panelists — Charles Nelson Reilly, Brett Somers and Richard Dawson — are also gone. So are such frequent participants as Marcia Wallace, Dick Martin and Bill Daily. On the other hand, besides White, Fannie Flagg, Elaine Joyce, Jo Ann Pflug and Joyce Bulifant are among the panelists who are still with us at this writing.
Giving genealogy the shaft
Q: I seem to recall that in the 2000 "Shaft" movie, Samuel L. Jackson's character, John Shaft, was the nephew of Richard Roundtree's Shaft, not his son as he is in the 2019 version. Why the change?
A: Samuel L. Jackson told CinemaBlend the film wanted to deal with three direct generations — grandfather, father and son. Since a large part of the movie involves what kind of a father Jackson's Shaft was to his son (played by Jessie T. Usher), it makes sense to show Jackson dealing with his father. And the new film does acknowledge the 2000 version, with dialogue saying Roundtree had pretended to be Jackson's uncle.
A farthing for your thoughts
Q: We have seen the TV ad with George Clooney as a knight and are unable to figure out what he says to the barista to get a cup of Nespresso.
A: He says, "Do you break a farthing?" From what I've read the old English coin wasn't worth much, so it might not get you a Nespresso. But that's me being joke-killingly literal.
'Leno's Garage' roaring back
Q: Are any new episodes of "Jay Leno's Garage" being filmed? This is the time of year when they are usually aired, but I have not seen anything yet this season.
A: The fifth season of the Leno-hosted series will begin Aug. 28 on CNBC.
