Are You Smarter Than Morning Brew?

0:00Woo! Yeah, I have no idea what will happen. I know I'm scared. I'm going to get a lot of shit wrong. Yeah, I don't really know a lot of stuff, if I'm being honest. The point is to be entertaining. But feel free to banter, make jokes, or comment on questions. Just give you guys free content. I'm not looking at it like that.

0:22Good morning, Brew Daily Show. I'm Neil Freiman. And I'm Toby Howell. Today, an MBD game show. We'll quiz comedians and you in a President's Day trivia contest. It's Monday, February 16th. Let's ride.

0:41Happy President's Day. Hope you are enjoying the first three-day weekend of the year, if you have today off. Because of the federal holiday, today's episode is going to be a little different than usual. It's a game show. We asked three of our very funny friends from around Morning Brew to come on the podcast and answer trivia questions. MBD's first game show that aired last Christmas was a big hit, so we decided to run it back. This is the type of game show where you should play along. Be that person muttering to yourself in a car or on the train answering questions under your breath. You've listened to MBD.

1:14Let's see if you're smarter than a brew employee. Thinking caps on, lock in, and let's play some trivia after a quick word from our sponsor. Toby, are you trying to make gains this year? Yes, I am going to bench 225 this year. I will make it happen. What do you bench now? There's no need to ask such hurtful and rude questions, Neil. Well, to help you on your road to 225, you could always try FlavCity's all-in-one protein smoothies. They come in all sorts of flavors like peppermint shamrock, banana bread, brownie batter, and more. They have 25 grams of protein, only real ingredients, 10 grams of collagen, and don't taste like chalk.

1:49Well then, I guess head to go.shopflavcity.com slash MBDS to try any of their delicious flavors. That's go.shopflavcity.com slash MBDS. Now, let's play this game show. Joining us on the show today are three of the fiercest competitors we could find around the office. They'll play four rounds of trivia, and the person with the most points at the end will win the grand prize of... Toby, what is our prize? It's cake. I'm going to bake a cake and bring it to the office to present to the winner. I hope none of you have any dairy allergies. Also, you get to pick out the kind of cake if you win. All right, let's quickly get to know our contestants.

2:27First up is Molly Liebergall, a fantastic writer for the Morning Brew newsletter. Molly, what is the movie you have rewatched the most times? Oh, God. All right. Hotel for dogs. Hotel for dogs. Hotel for dogs. All right. Next is Meg Banowitz, who makes hilarious videos for Morning Brews social media. Meg, what song do you have completely memorized? Okay. You guys switched up the question. I was prepared to answer Molly. The happy birthday song. Seems like a cop out, but you have to remember the name. So I do like that. Finally, Dan Toomey, the star of the Good Work YouTube channel is here. Dan, I once went to one of your comedy shows where you describe yourself as a porcelain doll come to life.

3:09What is your skincare routine? Well, first off, I want to say thank you for having me. I would not have done this competition had I known that was the prize we were working for. But my skincare routine, I got nothing. I just towel it. Gosh dang it. Just slap a towel on that thing and I'm good to go. That's more than me and Toby, I think. Okay, let's move on to round one, which is news from 2026. If you get the question correct, you'll get one point. If you get the question wrong, the next player in line can steal your question by answering it correctly. If none of you got the question right, we'll call your parents to come pick you up.

3:46Okay, question one is to Molly. Molly, who did President Trump select to be the next chair of the Federal Reserve? Wouldn't it be fun if it was Vivek? It would be fun. That is not correct. Dan, do you know? I believe that's a man by the name of Kevin Warsh. Kevin Warsh. The Warsh-ing machine, as we're calling him. I'm trying to make it work. I also just want to say thank you, Neil and Toby, for dressing up for this podcast. You're welcome. It is mostly an audio product, so that's good commentary. Dan, we have a scoreboard. I forgot to mention that, so you do get a point. It is Kevin Warsh. You're up to a flying start.

4:20Kevin Warsh. Question two. Not Kevin two. Question two. For Dan. Does this go to Dan? Okay, Dan, in a major speech at Davos, which world leader said the middle powers must act together because if we're not at the table, we're on the menu? I'm going to toss that to a guy. We went to college together. He's a good friend of mine, so I hate to put him on blast here. I think that's Mark Carney of Canada. Mark Carney's right. Dan's off to, again, a flying start. He texted me after the speech, and I gave him some pointers on it. Mark Carney is about 30 to 40 years older than Dan, so I don't understand the timeline there, but I'm glad that you're close friends.

5:02All right, question three to Meg. Name the two teams Shane Hollander and Ilya Rosanoff play for in heated rivalry. You must get both teams. Oh, I know one is the Metros. Metros is correct. Shane Hollander plays for the Montreal Metros. And the other one's Boston. Raiders. Correct. Oh. You actually got there. By the way, it is the TV adaptation we're talking about because it is different in the books. Meg. Of course. Which all of us have. I've read that. What's it in the books? I don't remember. I have not read the books, but they're slightly different. That was well done, Meg. I didn't think people would get that.

5:37Yeah. All right. Question four. What band did Alex Honnold say he primarily listened to during his climb of Taipei 101? This is back to Molly, by the way. Metallica Metallica no Dan you may steal can I get a hint? Mmm, no, I have never heard of this band. Do you can you give a hint Neil? No? I mean we should have given a hit to Molly if you're gonna give one correct. This sounds like your fault by mine I feel like I'm in the game Toby may not have heard of this band, but others have Toby oh, no Toby hasn't heard someone might use this word to describe you it's alright white men the band alright Meg this is going to you I'll go ACDC wait can I guess yes audio slave no that's what Mark Zuckerberg was listening to when coding Facebook alright the answer is tool oh yes So no one gets that, and we're all losers because of it.

6:43Okay, here, this question is for Dan. What airline did Elon Musk threaten to buy after he and the CEO started beefing? Toby, did you just call me a tool in the last question? But I called myself a tool, too, see? So, like, it's kind of like that comedy thing where you don't punch up. You punch sideways. You punch straight. All right, I'm sorry. We're having simply too much fun, Neil. What was the question? The question is, what airline did Elon Musk threaten to buy after he and the CEO started beefing? I believe that's Ryanair. Correct. Dan, three points. I'm so proud of you. I feel like you're rooting for him.

7:17Well, I don't know. I like people to do well. Just a couple of tools punching sideways. That's us. All right, question six. This is to Meg. Name a Best Supporting Actor nominee in the upcoming Academy Awards. I'm not saying Jesse Plemons, but I think he should have been nominated. But I know it's not him. You are correct in all of that. It is not him. So we're not going to choose that answer. No. All right. Three seconds. All right. We're going to go to Molly. Fun police kneel. Is there is one of them an animal? Is one of them literally like a dog or cat? I don't believe so. OK. Maybe that was like a fake tweet.

7:58That was Shrek. I'm giving some hints out. Molly, what pictures have been nominated for best picture? And then maybe go back from there. Thank you, Toby. Polly, think of a movie Start right there I would start with a movie Toby's just trying to punch sideways right now You gotta let the man punch sideways It's his right Alright, I think we gotta move to Dan Not Mr. Wonderful No, not Mr. Wonderful I was just proud of you for saying a movie right there Thank you Dan? Neil, I'm gonna name Benicio Del Toro That is correct For one battle after another Well done, Dan Question seven Who are we on, Neil?

8:37Yeah, we're back to Molly. All right. Question seven. Rome installed a two euro fee for tourists, hoping to get close to what attraction? The Colosseum? Correct. I'm doing so. Correct? Not correct. Not correct. Sorry. It's a long game. It's a long game. But you did. I'm doing so bad. You did get a monument, so that's good. I don't mean. I know. Sorry. Sorry. I'll stop. I'm punching sideways. No, you're punching down. No, you're punching straight down. Sorry. Yeah. Dan, our leader with four points, it is on to you. It's either the fountain that I can't name. I don't know the name of the fountain.

9:12I'm pretty sure it's the fountain. But I'll say, are the Spanish steps there? Is it the Spanish steps? Which one are you going to say? Spanish steps. The fountain that can't be named or the Spanish steps, which may or may not be in Rome. Well, I don't know the name of the fountain. Would you count the name of the fountain if I said that? We'll count it if you just say fountain. Are you saying fountain or steps? Are you kidding me? You're going to count it? We're absolutely not going to count that, by the way. You cannot say fountain. That's like saying road or building. So fountain does not count.

9:43I just overruled that. Sorry. Okay. Spanish steps. Okay. Perfect. Wrong. Okay. Guys, I feel like we've... Meg knows. I think Meg knows. I know. Can I go? It's my turn. It's your turn. Call me Lizzie McGuire because I'm at the Trevi Fountain. Trevi Fountain. There we go. Correct. I don't think... I mean, Jeopardy rules. They would never accept the fountain. That's fair. Yeah, we are totally Jeopardy rules here. Neil, what is fountain? As the only person who's actually been on Jeopardy in this recording. Moving on. Question number eight. This one is to Dan. A social media trend encouraged people to post memories from 2016.

10:23So here's a question about that year. In a speech, then presidential candidate Hillary Clinton mentioned what mobile game that generated a frenzy that summer? First off, I was not alive in this year. So this is unfair. Second off, I believe she told us all to Pokemon Go to the polls. Correct. Well done, Dan. Fountain. Pokemon Go to the fountain. Dan, killing it. I'm proud of you. All right. Last question in this category to Meg. In which Super Bowl ad did Guy Fieri contrast being just a guy versus being Guy Fieri? We're looking for the brand. All those words are new to me. Also, what is this category called?

11:07This is news. This is just stuff that's happened of late. Do you remember seeing Guy Fieri? I actually don't remember seeing that. And I did. I did watch the Super Bowl. Men. Can I say, thank you. I'm going to just say hymns. That would actually, that's a pretty good guess because his name is Guy. That is incorrect, unfortunately. And Molly, I will give you a hint if you want. Can you give me a hint? And can you also repeat the question one more time? The question is, in which Super Bowl ad did Guy Fieri contrast being just a guy versus being Guy Fieri? We're looking for the brand. Okay. So the brand was obviously trying to be, like, relatable, just a guy.

11:48But it's also Guy Fieri. And I'm guessing it's not food because that would be too on the nose. I'm going to say, like, rocket mortgage. That's a good guess. Good guess. Not correct, unfortunately. Dan gets the opportunity to see it. Okay, fine. Toby, I believe that was Palantir Technologies. It is not Palantir Technologies. Thank you for giving the government name, though. It's Bosch. Bosch. What do they do? I don't think of them like that. They make, like, dishwashers. Okay. Apparently really badass dishwashers. All right. After the first round, we have Molly in third with zero points, Dan in first with five points, and Meg in second.

12:26Why did I go first to third? But second is Meg. Favorite to least favorite. With two points. Two points. So I think things can only go up from here. This is round two we're on to now. I thought I had more than four. Is this harder or is it just like they're separated? It's punching sideways. So it's at the same level of difficulty but in a different category. Yes, this category is the Winter Olympics, which entered their second full week in Northern Italy today. Hope you brushed up on your curling knowledge, then brushed again and again, furiously brushing until your knowledge settles nicely into the button.

13:02Little curling joke for you guys. Some rules before, same rules as before. If you answer correctly, you'll get one point. If you get the question wrong, the next player in line can steal your question. Who's up, Neil? Let's start with Molly again. All right, we're back to Molly. Question one. This country made its debut at the Winter Olympics in 1988, later inspiring a movie. Hmm. Can't. Russia. Hockey? Russia. Not Russia. Not correct. Nope. Dan, do you know? I believe that was Jamaica in the movie Cool Runnings. Dan. I knew it. Toby's so proud of you. I get so happy when people get the questions right.

13:40Okay. Okay. This one is again to Dan because he got the steal. What is the fastest of all winter Olympic sports where competitors can hit top speeds of over 90 miles per hour? I believe that is curling. Kidding. Kidding. I'm joking. We don't allow that. I'm going to give this to Skeleton. Oh. Not skeleton. Not skeleton. Meg, do you know? Is it the luge? It is the luge. It is the luge. I don't sound the same thing. Skeleton is face first and slightly slower because of just aerodynamic principles. Luge is faster feet first. Okay. And it seems very uncomfortable, honestly. Jerry Seinfeld has a great joke about it where he goes, it's like bobsled, but there's no sled.

14:24It's just Bob. Great joke, Jerry. Question number three. Who are we on to? Meg. Where did the 1980 miracle on ice in which the American men's hockey team defeated the Soviets take place? I feel like I should know this, which is the tough part. It's kind of a niche city and niche fact to know. All right, Meg's out. Molly, any idea? Pittsburgh. Kind of directionally right. I don't know. Dan? Am I allowed to Google? That is a great question. No. Is it Park City, Utah? It is not Park City. Can we just keep naming cities? That has hosted an Olympics. The answer is Lake Placid, New York. Oh, well, who lives there?

15:12Very few people. I'm kidding. I love Lake Placid. Lake Placid is gorgeous, actually. Should we give a point to Mari because she got closest with Pittsburgh? Please. Pittsburgh is not particularly close. Neil is such a brutal game master. Toby is actively trying to change the rules. Neil did try to give Fountain out. I didn't think that was. I think Fountain was much closer to the right answer than Pittsburgh is to Lake Placid. I'm just trying to throw Molly about it. I think everyone listening to that would probably agree with me. I just want to write something in Molly's column. Molly, this is for you.

15:42He holds the record for the most Winter Olympic medals won by an American accomplished across three games between 2002 and 2010. Sean White? Not Sean White. I'm sorry. You sound so confident. I really thought I had that one. Yeah, Dan. It's a man. Yes, man. Is this Apollo Oh No? Yes

16:06I was between Sean white and Apollo because let it be known Can we say this going into this no one had any confidence in Dan and I know I was hearing that People had confidence in me, which I think is really that's where we thought that was a little misplaced It's a long game, Molly. Can I give Molly a half a point for saying Sean White, which eliminated that guess for Dan? Would you have said Sean White? I actually would have. I was going to go with Apollo. Oh, no. I'm not going to lie. So that's like three points for Molly. Because didn't Sean White actually have full confidence? Molly can come back later this game.

16:38There's a lot more to go. I like it. All right. Question six. This is for Dan? Yeah. No, it's question five. Question five also for Dan. which North American city hosted the Winter Olympics in 2010? In 2010, North American city, I believe that was Vancouver. God damn, it's killing it. That is correct. I am so good at this. What the hell? It's very good. And he has, do you notice the cadence? He goes, I do believe. He commits to his process. He is a font of knowledge. I'm plugged in currently. Question six to Meg. Which European country has won more Winter Olympics medals than any other, and it's not particularly close?

17:18It's not particularly close to Russia. It's not Russia. I'm going quick now. Okay. First thought in my head going. Let's go Norway. Yes! Let's go! Let's go! The comeback has started. Thank goodness. Finally. Question seven. There are only three bobsled tracks in the entirety of North America. Name one of those places. Whose question is this? Molly again? Yeah. I have to name the name of the bobsled track? Well, just the city that it's in. Okay. Name one of them. One of them. I would say use the test to take the test What does that mean use the test to take the test Molly just use the time use the question being asked of me Lake Placid

18:09Begs at three you're at two so you're sniffing you know how like your dad pushes me better and your mom just wants to see you do right now. The other two bobsled tracks, because I know you're curious, is Park City. And the final one is up in Canada at Whistler. I think you knew. Question eight. Dan, biathlon is an event that combines which two sports? Skiing and shooting. Yes, Dan. The perfect race. Did you like that, Cadence? Yeah, he nailed that one. Okay, Meg, final question of this category. The movie I, Tanya, follows the career of Tanya Harding and her connection to the 1994 assault of which rival figure skater guys come on you it's like you you i'm thinking oh i know tanya harding i'm familiar with her and then i have to name another woman they they're often spoken about in the same i know and would you believe i don't know her name i'm gonna say sarah jessica jessica parker parker incorrect sorry Molly?

19:14I know. I can't remember her name, but I do. No, I can't. I can't remember her name, but I know she says that thing where she's like, why me? But I don't know her name. Correct. So that should count for something. Counts for nothing. I'm not being the fun dad anymore. Dan, anything? I believe it was Apollo owner. Incorrect. The answer is Nancy Kerrigan. Nancy Kerrigan. Does that ring the bell? That was my second round. Okay, that's the end of the second round. Toby, what's the scoreboard looking like? The scoreboard is looking... I want you to jump around. Don't go in order. All right. Well, it's tough to jump around.

19:51In second is Meg with three. Meg did not make up much ground there. In third is Molly with two. And then Dan has nine. He's like Norway out there. He is like Norway. I want to say Dan is from the most wintry place. I am from a wintry place. It's unfair that I had to go through Winter Olympics when I'm from the South. So you're from Texas. Dan is from Massachusetts. Yep. We'll dock Dan. Molly's from Connecticut. So I don't really know. Molly's from Connecticut. We'll dock Dan. Six points. I like that. All right. Let's move on to our next category. All right. We're going to take a quick break and come back with more Molly, Dan, and Meg right after this.

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22:29Vanguard has It's been in the game a long time and its scale allows it to invest across all kinds of sectors, maturities, and geographies, aka opportunities that others might miss. So if you're looking to give your clients consistent results year in and year out, go see the record for yourself at Vanguard.com slash audio. That's Vanguard.com slash audio. All investing is subject to risk Vanguard Marketing Corporation Distributor. February is the season of yearning so let's see how down bad you guys are with this next category which is love odes so listen closely we'll give you a sweet nothing someone said in a song a poem a DM a letter etc and you have to tell us who said it and then who they said it to for instance if I said but soft what light through yonder window breaks that would be Romeo that would be Drake to Kendrick that's Drizzy That would be Romeo to Juliet.

23:24So same rules as before. You get one point for the speaker and one point for the love interest they're talking to. A lot of points on the table. A lot of points. I believe that one was Neil to Toby. Frog to Toad. All right. Question one. Tamale. Tamale. Seems like me. Oh, whoops. I already messed that up. Seems to me that you and me, we make our own luck. New heights of manhood. I ain't got to knock on wood. Who is that? Who said that and who'd they say it to? Is this normally in a song? Correct. Can you sing it? No. Are you sure? A lot of these will be songs and we will not be singing them. Okay.

24:05Seems to me. Adam Lambert. I don't know. That is incorrect. Dan? I believe that was MGK to Marjorie Taylor Greene. Incorrect. Good guess. Not really. Okay, I have two thoughts. I'm going to go with Sabrina Carpenter. Nope, that is incorrect. Should have gone with a second thought. All right, so there's a few context clues here. One of them is New Heights. Yeah, that was my second guess. I'll give it to Meg. Come on. We didn't give a hint. We didn't give a hint. Why is New Heights Taylor Swift? That's her Travis Calcedon podcast called New Heights. I'm giving you one point for that. She name-dropped his podcast?

24:50It's Taylor Swift on her most recent album. Is the song called Wood? Yeah, I'm glad we're focusing on this because we shouldn't really focus on the other lyrics. What's going through this woman? New Heights of Manhood. I ain't got a knock on wood. All right, question two, Neil. To Dan, you're my downfall, you're my muse, my worst distraction, my rhythm and blues. I've never heard those words before, Neil. You almost certainly have. You haven't been loved. You're my downfall. somebody says on a first date you're my downfall you're my muse what was the rest of it my worst distraction my rhythm and blues is that not also Taylor Swift it is not Meg for the steal is this Katy Perry no it is not Katy Perry Molly I can't I can like hear the song in my head I know I thought Rihanna Grande it is not it is all of me by John Legend to Chrissy Teigen.

25:47I was thinking Katy Perry E.T. And I was just singing it in the E.T. rhythm. Imagine if you're my downfall, you're my muse, my worst distraction, my rhythm and blues was in E.T. You'd be perfect. All right, question at three. This is to Meg. It's a song called E.T. Yeah. Home in three days, don't wash. Wait. This was most certain from Neil to Toby. Yeah. Oh, my gosh. I actually can like I I'm no Kind of an internet Culture meme. Yeah, and it's I know it's a TV show or a movie incorrect. No, it's an old guy It's a really really old guy and I can't remember who We're on to Bali. I can't think of a single old English guy's name, but I know he's actually not English.