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unusual facts about The Contest


The Contest

"The Contest" is referenced in the "Shaq" episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm (S02E08), in which Larry David and Shaquille O'Neal watch "The Contest" together.



see also

Artimation

The judges (brought in from many companies in related fields to the categories of the contest such as Cartoon Network, High Voltage, Digital Domain, The Simpsons etc.) select winners and a handful of honorable mentions to be displayed at the festival.

Boom Bang-a-Bang

The song was the second consecutive entry with a nonsense title to win the contest (after Massiel's triumph in 1968 with "La La La"), and became infamous in the comedy world - most notably inspiring Monty Python's Flying Circus to parody it with "Bing Tiddle-Tiddle Bong" (Python precursor I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again had previously had Bill Oddie do something similar with a song for which the title was rendered entirely in sound effects).

Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Eurovision Song Contest 2010

It was revealed on 19 February 2010 that Bosnia and Herzegovina's participation in the Contest may be put in danger due to substantial debts owed to the EBU nearing 2.9 million Swiss francs (close to 2 million), with the EBU requesting a payment of 250,000CHF (€170,000) to be paid by 30 April or BHRT will not be allowed to take part at the contest.

Cathy Dingman

Unfortunately for BB, Val was tossed twice in the contest, and Triple H was there to make sure that she disrobed as he blocked the crowd's view of BB, making it so that he was the only person to see her topless.

Ceol an Ghrá

At the Contest, it was performed third on the night, following France's Betty Mars with "Comé-comédie" and preceding Spain's Jaime Morey with "Amanece".

The performance was also the first of only two occasions so far on which a Celtic language has been heard at the Contest, with France entering the Eurovision Song Contest 1996 with the Breton language song "Diwanit Bugale".

Chicago Cardinals–Toronto Argonauts exhibition game

Four Argos were injured in the contest, including star centre Norm Stoneburgh and Don Caraway, an anchor on the defensive line.

Debi Laszewski

She also admitted to doing no cardio for 6 weeks prior to the contest, a strong contrast to Nathalia Melo, the 2012 Bikini Olympia winner, who ran 10–12 miles a day for her competition.

Dublin Pride

Performers at the Part in the Park at the Civic Offices included DJ Jules in a Lady Gaga tribute act and Niamh Kavanagh, winner of Eurovision Song Contest 1993 who represented Ireland in the Contest again this year.

E' de' det här du kallar kärlek?

On the night of the contest, held on 3 May 1986, the song was performed 17th in the running order, following Austria's Timna Brauer with the song "Die Zeit ist einsam" and preceding Denmark's Lise Haavik with "Du er fuld af løgn".

Ein Lied kann eine Brücke sein

Sue and Sunny had been in the original line up of Brotherhood of Man (although they had left the group long before the band entered and won Eurovision in 1976) and had backed Lulu in Madrid on "Boom Bang-a-Bang" when she won the contest in 1969.

Eurosong 2013 – a MAD show

ERT announced on 15 January 2013 that it had reached an agreement with private music channel MAD TV to take on the organization and production of a national final to select a song to represent Greece in the contest.

Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest 1961

Aged 55 on the night of the contest, she was also the oldest, a record she would hold until 57 year-old Dado Topić took to the stage for Croatia in 2007.

Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008

As a "Big 4" member (the four biggest financial contributors of the contest), Germany qualifies directly for the final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2008 alongside last year's winner Serbia and the three other "Big 4" members France, Spain and the United Kingdom.

Gladys del Pilar

After the victory in the Melodifestivalen, Afro-dite appeared again in the contest, in 2003 with the song Aqua Playa.

Greasy pole

In the UK, contests to climb a greasy pole were held at numerous fairs including the Crab Fair in Egremont, Cumbria where the contest continues to this day - alongside the annual Gurning World Championships see Gurn.

Greece in the Eurovision Song Contest

Since Antique's third place in 2001, the contest has grown into one of the most popular events in Greece with an estimated five million viewers each year.

Gresham Poe

According to Harper's Weekly, "Poe's presence seemed to rejuvenate the Tigers, and for the last 10 minutes of the contest they fairly outplayed the weary Elis. The ball was twice carried half the length of the field, but the whistle blew before Princeton could score." he graduated from Princeton in 1902.

Hong Kong in the ABU TV Song Festival

The Hong Konger broadcaster, Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB), has been the organiser of the Hong Kong entry since the country's debut in the contest in 2012.

Hugh of Sleat

All of Hugh's sons died violent deaths in the contest over the Chiefship of Clan Donald of Sleat.

Humanahum

The song was the first in the history of the contest to open with a church organ, reminiscent of "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" by Iron Butterfly.

Iryna Zhuravska

Vitaliy Zhuravsky who later became a presidential adviser for Viktor Yanukovych often attends the contest.

John Covode

Covode contested with Henry D. Foster the election to the Forty-first Congress, neither being sworn pending the contest, as no credentials were issued by the Governor.

Kimberley Rew

Two of his better known compositions, both written for Katrina and the Waves, are "Walking on Sunshine" and "Love Shine a Light", performed by Katrina and the Waves as the United Kingdom's entry at the Eurovision Song Contest 1997, taking the country to its first victory in the contest since 1981.

Land Beneath the Ground!

Whichever group causes the biggest earthquake wins the contest and gets the prize, a piece of Ancient Greek pottery that fell down a crevice in Ancient Roman times in the year zero (i.e., the year 1 BCE translated into astronomical year numbering, which includes a year zero).

Language policies of Francoist Spain

Joan Manuel Serrat was not allowed to sing La La La in Catalan for the Eurovision Song Contest 1968 and, unwilling to sing it in Spanish, was replaced by Massiel, who won the contest.

Mikel Herzog

At the contest, held in Birmingham on 9 May, "¿Qué voy a hacer sin ti?" finished in 16th place of 25 entries.

Nancy Cassis

As a Michigan Senator who initially ran against Dick DeVos, she dropped out of the contest before Michigan's 2006 gubernatorial Republican primary.

No No Never

Written and composed by Australian-born band member Jane Comerford, the unusual choice of country as the genre resulted in BBC commentator Terry Wogan asking jokingly and with a rough approximation of the appropriate accent "are we in Athens, Georgia?" at the end of the performance (the Contest was held in Athens, Greece).

North–South All-American Game

NFL Network, which was scheduled to televise the contest if it was played in 2007, replaced the canceled game with a rebroadcast of Super Bowl XXXII.

OGAE Second Chance Contest 1988

The contest was held in Östersund in Sweden after OGAE Sweden won the 1987 contest with "Högt över havet" by Arja Saijonmaa.

Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak

It was established in 1983, by Datuk Amar (now Tan Sri) Leo Moggie Anak Irok, after seceding from Sarawak National Party (SNAP) following his loss in the contest for the SNAP's president post against Datuk Amar James Wong Kim Ming.

Peahi, Hawaii

Some of the known invitees to the contest include Jeff Rowley, Albee Layer, Greg Long, Shane Dorian, John John Florence, Kala Alexander.

Robert W. Bonynge

-- A grammar fix may be needed here. -->Contested the election to the Fifty-eighth Congress of John F. Shafroth, who in an address before the House of Representatives conceded his defeat and withdrew from the contest.

Roger Connah

In the competition, the best ideas, designs, descriptions, images, and videos for a new White House were selected by some of the world's most distinguished designers and critics and during October 2008 were on display at the Storefront for Art and Architecture, which, in association with Control Group, sponsored the contest.

RWD 8

It won the contest for the new Polish military trainer, against the PZL-5bis and Bartel BM-4h biplanes.

Şenay Yüzbaşıoğlu

The song Bigudi was sung by Füsun Önal in the contest and became the second after the song by Ayşegül Aldinç and the Modern Folk Üçlüsü.

Shooting at the 1936 Summer Olympics – Men's 50 metre rifle, prone

Willy Røgeberg won the contest with the maximum of 300 and set a new Olympic record.

Spivey's Corner, North Carolina

Contestants from the contest have appeared on Johnny Carson's The Tonight Show and the Late Show with David Letterman.

The Ultimate Fighter: Team GSP vs. Team Koscheck Finale

Leonard Garcia was set to fight Tyler Toner at this event, but withdrew from the contest, with Team Quest fighter & IFL veteran, Ian Loveland stepping in as Garcia's replacement.

Theodectes

He won the prize eight times, on one occasion with his tragedy, Mausolus, in the contest which the queen Artemisia of Caria had instituted in honor of her dead husband, Mausolus.

Todd Bertuzzi–Steve Moore incident

With NHL commissioner Gary Bettman in attendance, the contest was played to a 5–5 tie without incident.

Une chanson c'est une lettre

"Une chanson c'est une lettre" was composed by André Popp, who previously had written Vicky Leandros' 1967 entry "L'amour est bleu", which only finished 4th in the Contest but still went on to become a worldwide hit when covered by French band leader Paul Mauriat.

United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2012

After the contest there were calls by several media personalities for the United Kingdom to withdraw from the contest, with Phillip Schofield describing the competition as "political".

United States Senate election in Maryland, 2006

Ben Cardin, then a congressman since 1987, was the only other major candidate until September 2005, when Dennis F. Rasmussen, a former Baltimore County Executive, American University professor Allan Lichtman, and wealthy Potomac businessman Josh Rales entered the contest.

Viens l'oublier

It was the fifth song to be performed at the contest, following Yugoslavia's Eva Sršen with "Pridi, dala ti bom cvet" and preceding France's Guy Bonnet with "Marie-Blanche".

White and Black Blues

Composed by Georges Ougier de Moussac with lyrics by Serge Gainsbourg, the song was originally titled "Black Lolita Blues", however Ursull, the first black woman to represent France at the Contest, declined to perform it due to the pejorative connotations of the word.

Willy van Hemert

Van Hemert also wrote the lyrics for the Dutch entry the following year when the contest was staged in London (as The Netherlands had hosted the 1958 Edition).

Yuko Nakazawa

After the contest, musician and producer Tsunku offered Nakazawa and the four other runners-up (Natsumi Abe, Kaori Iida, Aya Ishiguro, and Asuka Fukuda) the chance to be taken under his wing under one condition: they must sell 50,000 CDs of their debut song "Ai no Tane" with five days of live promotion.