Ask Mr. Know It All

November 13, 2011 at 12:00a.m.

Q. Whatever became of my teenage heartthrob, Fabian?

O.L., Dover, Del.

A. Fabiano Anthony Forte was born in 1943 in Philadelphia. He rose to prominence after making several singing appearances on the TV show “American Bandstand.” In the late 1950s and early 1960s, he was a teen idol. In later years, he joined Frankie Avalon and Bobby Rydell for reunion concerts. In more recent years, he has performed with several stars from his era in Branson, Mo.

Fabian, who has been married three times, had two children with his first wife and is now a grandfather. He and his current wife are actively involved in the American Diabetes Association and the American Heart Association. They live in southwestern Pennsylvania.

Q. Light we see from the moon is actually light from the sun being reflected to Earth. How long does it take light to travel from the moon to Earth?

J.M., Bellingham, Wash.

A. It takes about 11/4 seconds.

Q. I have long heard the story that Toll House cookies originated at the Toll House Inn. Is this true?

D.V., Yuba City, Calif.

A. It’s a true story. In the 1930s, the proprietor of the inn in Whitman, Mass., Ruth Wakefield, decided to add chocolate to her “butter drop” cookies and see how it tasted. Instead of melting the chocolate and pouring it into the batter, she broke a chocolate bar into little chunks and mixed the chunks into the batter. Inn patrons loved the result, and the Toll House Cookie was on its way to becoming the nation’s favorite.

Q. So, my bud and I were bored waiting for “our” game to begin on TV. There was an interview with a woman. I said she looked sleazy the way she was dressed. We then spent the next half hour thinking of different ways the word “sleaze” is used. We were no longer bored, and the discussion took us up to game time. During a break, I looked up the word to find the origin. The dictionary said it was unknown. We agreed there was one person who would know, so we are writing to you.

H.M. & L.F.G., Flagstaff, Ariz.

A. I checked several dictionaries and found the same answer that you don’t want to accept. There are several suggested possibilities. The one that makes the most sense to me follows:

In the 17th century, in what is now Poland, the region of Silesia produced some of the finest linen or cotton cloth. It was coveted all over Europe, and in England, this fine cloth was known as silesia. In time, the name was used to describe any high-quality cloth. According to some word historians, “silesia” was shortened to “sleazy.”

Unfortunately, unscrupulous merchants began selling lower-quality fabric as “sleazy cloth.” The ruse worked, and merchants all over began selling lesser-quality products with the high-quality name. In time, the word “sleazy” took on a negative connotation.

I do want to add that there are some who insist that Silesia never made high-quality fabric — that it was always flimsy and poorly made. They do agree that “sleazy” is a corruption of Silesia.

Q. I was watching a TV show and heard this line, “For those that believe no proof is necessary.” Who wrote this?

Z.K., Pottsville, Pa.

A. The full quote is: “For those who believe, no proof is necessary. For those who don’t believe, no proof is possible.” Most, but not all, sources say the quote was penned by Stuart Chase (1888-1985) an American writer, economist and engineer.

I like this quote from Chase also: “The Lord prefers common-looking people. That is why he made so many of them.”

DID YOU KNOW?

Mel Gibson was offered the role of Eliot Ness in “The Untouchables” (1987), but he had to decline because he already was working on “Lethal Weapon.” Kevin Costner was given the role.

Send your questions to Mr. Know-It-All at AskMrKIA@gmail.com or c/o Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.