Sep 24, 2007
RAY: You may remember, years and years ago, we had a puzzler, called "A Haircut in Horsetown." And just to refresh our listeners' memories, it was about a fellow who was passing through a little town called One Horse, Nevada. And he found himself in urgent need of a haircut. And he had a dilemma because there were two barbers in the town, and he couldn't decide which one he should go to.
Enough about that old puzzler. Now we are going to fast forward to 2007.
There were so few customers in Horsetown that now there's only one barber left. And the town council has decreed that every man in town has to be clean shaven. No facial hair of any kind allowed. And, moreover, Horsetown's one and only barber must shave the faces of all those men who do not shave themselves, and only those men. The question is, who shaves the barber?
In other words the barber can only shave people who don't shave themselves. So if the preacher decides that he's going to shave himself, he will shave himself and the barber can't shave the preacher.
So the question very simply is, who shaves the barber?
Enough about that old puzzler. Now we are going to fast forward to 2007.
There were so few customers in Horsetown that now there's only one barber left. And the town council has decreed that every man in town has to be clean shaven. No facial hair of any kind allowed. And, moreover, Horsetown's one and only barber must shave the faces of all those men who do not shave themselves, and only those men. The question is, who shaves the barber?
In other words the barber can only shave people who don't shave themselves. So if the preacher decides that he's going to shave himself, he will shave himself and the barber can't shave the preacher.
So the question very simply is, who shaves the barber?
Answer:
RAY: Now my wife got the answer in one minute.
TOM: She did?
RAY: She did. And did any of your wives get the answer? Are you speaking to any of your wives?
TOM: No, but here's what just came to me. Nobody shaves the barber.
RAY: You got it. But why?
TOM: How the hell do I know?
RAY: Nobody shaves the barber, because the barber is a woman.
TOM: Get out! Wait a minute now, is a woman barber called a barberette?
RAY: The barberella. No, I don't know, I go to a woman barber and it's in a barbershop, so I think it's legit to call a woman who cuts men's hair a barber. Do we have a winner?
TOM: The winner this week is Carla Bowes from Alton, Missouri, and for having her answer selected at random from among all the correct answers that we got, Carla will get a 25-dollar gift certificate to the Shameless Commerce Division at cartalk.com, with which she can get our new four-CD collection called, Four Perfectly Good Hours. As in you've wasted four perfectly good hours. These are four actual shows as they originally aired that we picked as some of our favorites, and you can have them all, Carla, for winning the puzzler this week. Is this your lucky day or what?
RAY: Um, maybe.
TOM: She did?
RAY: She did. And did any of your wives get the answer? Are you speaking to any of your wives?
TOM: No, but here's what just came to me. Nobody shaves the barber.
RAY: You got it. But why?
TOM: How the hell do I know?
RAY: Nobody shaves the barber, because the barber is a woman.
TOM: Get out! Wait a minute now, is a woman barber called a barberette?
RAY: The barberella. No, I don't know, I go to a woman barber and it's in a barbershop, so I think it's legit to call a woman who cuts men's hair a barber. Do we have a winner?
TOM: The winner this week is Carla Bowes from Alton, Missouri, and for having her answer selected at random from among all the correct answers that we got, Carla will get a 25-dollar gift certificate to the Shameless Commerce Division at cartalk.com, with which she can get our new four-CD collection called, Four Perfectly Good Hours. As in you've wasted four perfectly good hours. These are four actual shows as they originally aired that we picked as some of our favorites, and you can have them all, Carla, for winning the puzzler this week. Is this your lucky day or what?
RAY: Um, maybe.
