Tuesday, July 24, 2007

Trivia Q&A: July 23

We had 12 teams for Trivia Night on Monday. It was a late start, as the Red Sox-Indians game went on until 10:25 PM. We had a good crowd to see the return of Jon Lester to the majors, so we waited for the game to conclude. We had a good evening of trivia. Most teams did well in Hall of Fame Trivia, as well as General Knowledge. (We had to bump True or False Trivia to next week as the late start limited us to four categories.)

It was a four-team race going into the final round, as they were separated by just one point. The top two teams both ran the table in IQ Trivia, which is worth 25 points. So, for the first time in many months, the contest ended in a tie.

So I came up with a tie-breaker question, with help of my pal Jim: "How many seasons has The Simpsons been on the air?" Both teams came up with "18" and were correct. (I originally thought it was 17, but I was corrected.) So we had to go to a second tie-breaker question. (Double overtime!)

Since we did Hall of Fame Trivia, and the Red Sox game was on TV earlier that night, I came up with, "What was Ted Williams' last season in the majors?" One team said 1950, and the other said 1958. The answer of course is 1960, so I Wish This Microphone was crowned champion over I Once Killed a Drifter.

It was a terrific night of Trivia, and we'll be back next Monday at the usual time of 9 PM, as the Red Sox have an off day on July 30.

Current Events
1. The final book in the Harry Potter series was released last Friday. Within 1 million, how many copies did it sell in the US in the first 24 hours?
2. Tim Donaghy, an official in this sport, has been accused of being in a point-shaving scandal connected to the mob.
3. This film, which received less than stellar reviews, beat out the new Harry Potter film to become the number one film at box offoce last week.
4. 26 people were killed in this European country when a tour bus plunged off a mountain road and burst into flames.
5. Russell Feingold, Democratic senator from this state, says he will offer two resolutions in Congress to formally censure President Bush over the Iraq war.
6. Padraig Harrington, a golfer from this country, defeated Sergio Garcia in a playoff to win the British Open yesterday.
7. This televangelist died of colon cancer over the weekend, at the age of 65.
8. 200 people were trapped inside this monument on Saturday night when a power failure stopped everything for nearly three hours.
9. The Taliban in Afghanistan is currently holding 23 people hostage from this Asian country and are demanding the release of Taliban prisoners in exchange for their release.
10. A skyscaper in this Middle eastern city has now claimed the title of "World's Tallest Building" and will be over 2600 feet when it officially opens in September 2009.

Answers: 1. 8.3 million; 2. basketball; 3. "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry;" 4. France; 5. Wisconsin; 6. Ireland; 7. Tammy Faye Bakker; 8. Gateway Arch; 9. South Korea; 10. Dubai.

Hall of Fame Trivia
1. This player won eight batting titles, 5 Gold Gloves, was on 15 All-Star teams and hit .338 in his career.
2. This pitcher won a record 511 games, and is the all-time leader in innings pitched and complete games, and has an award named in his honor.
3. This player was AL MVP twice, AL Triple Crown winner in 1934, hit the most grand slams in MLB history, and is considered the best hitting first baseman of all-time.
4. This was the last man to hit .400, won 2 MVP awards, two Triple Crowns, and homered in his last at-bat.
5. This man is in the Hall of Fame as a manager, having won 7 World Series titles, but also managed one of the worst teams of all-time as well.
6. This player has been World Series MVP twice, four times AL home run champion, but also once hit 3 HRs in a World Series-clinching game.
7. This pitcher, called "The Franchise," won 311 games with four teams, but is best known for leading his first club to an improbable World Series win.
8. This player, a third baseman, won 5 AL batting titles, 2 Gold Gloves, was a 12-time All-Star and retired with 3010 hits in 1999.
9. This Brooklyn-born pitcher was the most dominant pitcher of the early 1960s, throwing four no-hitters and a perfect game, and holds the NL record for strikeouts in a season by a pitcher.
10. This player hit 586 career home runs, won a Triple Crown, was MVP twice and was also baseball's first full-time black manager.

Answers: 1. Tony Gwynn; 2. Cy Young; 3. Lou Gehrig; 4. Ted Williams; 5. Casey Stengel; 6. Reggie Jackson; 7. Tom Seaver; 8. Wade Boggs; 9. Sandy Koufax; 10. Frank Robinson.

General Knowledge
1. On the TV sitcom, "Frasier," was type of terrier was the dog "Eddie?"
2. Which legendary country singer had the nickname "The Man in Black?"
3. Which former Soviet premier initiated the program known as perestroika?
4. In the 1999 film, "The Blair Witch Project," the characters disappear in the woods of what state?
5. The 18-month-old child who was rescued from a Texas well shaft in October 1987 was known by what first name?
6. What tragic American literary character made his home in West Egg, Long Island?
7. What was Captain James Kirk's middle name in the TV series, "Star Trek?"
8. Which 1980s film featured the antics of a goofball named Frank Drebin?
9. What company traditionally awards Pink Cadillacs to its most successful salespeople?
10. What was the name of country music legend Tammy Wynette's signature song?

Answers: 1. Jack Russell; 2. Johnny Cash; 3. Mikhail Gorbachev; 4. Maryland; 5. Jessica; 6. Jay Gatsby; 7. Tiberius; 8. "The Naked Gun;" 9. Mary Kay Cosmetics; 10. "Stand By Your Man."

IQ Trivia
1. A diamond is rated a 10 in hardness on what scale? (5 points)
2. What book by Irma Rombauer has gone through six editions and sold over 15 million copies? (6 points)
3. Gutzon Borgium is famous for designing which national monument? (5 points)
4. In 1998, what did the American Film Institute vote the greatest US movie of all-time? (4 points)
5. The Fianna Fail is a major political party in which country? (5 points)

Answers: 1. Mohs Scale; 2. "The Joy of Cooking;" 3. Mount Rushmore; 4. "Citizen Kane;" 5. Ireland.

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