The Straight Dope is a popular question and answer newspaper column published in the Chicago Reader (an alternative weekly), syndicated in thirty newspapers in the United States and Canada, and available online. A Columnist is a journalist who produces a specific form of writing for publication called a column. ... The Chicago Reader is an alternative newsweekly in Chicago, Illinois. ... Recent cover of Portland, Oregons Willamette Week An alternative weekly is a type of weekly newspaper that eschews comprehensive coverage of general news in favor of opinionated reviews and columns, investigations into edgy topics and magazine-style feature stories highlighting local people and culture. ...

The column, first published by the 'Reader' in 1973, is written by Cecil Adams, whose real identity is unknown ("Cecil Adams" is generally assumed to be a pen name). The Chicago Reader applied to register Cecil Adams as a trademark in 1986, stating in their application that “Cecil Adams does not identify any particular individual but was devised as a fanciful name.” The trademark application also notes that it was first used in 1973, i.e., when the column began. (The trademark registration was refused for unknown reasons, despite an appeal.) Thus, it seems likely that the pseudonym is applied to a group or series of writers, much like Carolyn Keene is used as the putative author of the Nancy Drew book series. Cecil Adams is a pseudonym identifying the unknown authors of The Straight Dope, a popular question and answer column published in The Chicago Reader since 1973, which has since been syndicated in thirty newspapers in the United States and Canada, and available online. ... A pen name or nom de plume is a pseudonym adopted by an author. ...

The Cecil Adams persona ranges from pedantic to profane. Editor Ed Zotti is widely believed to be the current writer of the column, though the column has a staff that assists in its production, known as the "Straight Dope Science Advisory Board". Prior editors were Mike Lenehan, now Executive Editor at the Reader, and Dave Kehr, now film critic for The New York Times. Ed Zotti is credited as being the editor and confidant of Cecil Adams, the pseudonym of the writer of the nationally syndicated column The Straight Dope. ... Dave Kehr is an American film critic currently writing for The New York Times. ... The New York Times is a newspaper published in New York City by Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr. ...

The columns are known to cover practically any subject, frequently dissecting old wives' tales and urban legends. History, science, and inventions are the most frequently recurring topics. The column derives its name from the American idiom meaning roughly "the honest truth". This article or section may contain original research or unverified claims. ... An urban legend is a kind of modern folklore consisting of stories often thought to be factual by those circulating them. ... An idiom is an expression (i. ...

The columns are archived at the Straight Dope website, which also hosts the Straight Dope Message Board, a popular internet forum. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Books

To date, Adams has published five collections of his columns, and his "assistant" published a children's collection in the Adams style, Know It All. He has also published several collections of material from the column into paperback books.

TV

In 1996, the A&E Network briefly aired a show hosted by comedian Mike Lukas called The Straight Dope, which was based on the column. 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... Biography is one of A&Es longest-running and most popular programs. ...

Straight Dope Message Board

The Straight Dope Message Board (abbreviated SDMB) is a vBulletin forum on the Straight Dope website. It has more than 61,000 registered members, of which about 3,500 are paid subscribers as of August 2005. vBulletin (abbreviated as vB) is a commercial Internet forum package produced by Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Notes

External links

• The Straight Dope Home Page
• The Straight Dope Message Board