Trivia Q&A: May 7

It was the first Thursday Night Trivia we've ever had (that I can think of) last night, and we had 9 teams take part. There wasn't a huge crowd (but there was an Emerson College get together before we started Trivia, but just a handful joined in) but I was pleased to see a few Trivia Night regulars make the transition to Thursday.

We had problems in the bar last night, as the lights above me didn't work, the table I work on was stored away and couldn't be taken out, and the mic was cutting out on me throughout the night. But we got through it, with thanks to Manny and Chris for their help.

We got going as the Red Sox were scoring a dozen runs in the sixth inning in their game against the Indians. The scores were generally pretty good throughout the night, but the team of I Just Came From a Musical at My High School wound up the winners, as they led for most of the night. But the team of 904, who missed the first round, put on a charge at the end and ran the table in IQ Trivia, but came up just two points short.

Please remember that we are doing Trivia next week on Wednesday night, May 13th at 9 PM, as we are bumped off Tuesday again due to playoff hockey and basketball.

Current Events
1. This actress, who had a recent battle with breast cancer, was chosen by People magazine as their Most Beautiful star for 2009.
2. It was revealed that this British superstar rocker has lost 26% of his massive wealth due to the ongoing global crisis, but he's still the 8th richest music star in the UK.
3. An assassin attempted to run down members of the royal family of this country last week during a national parade and wound up killing five spectators in the crowd.
4. This Supreme Court justice announced he will retire at the end of the current term or when his successor is confirmed by the Senate.
5. 12 people were injured when this pro football team's practice facility was torn apart by near-tornado strength winds last Saturday.
6. Ricardo Martinelli of Democratic Change was elected president of this Central American country earlier this week.
7. A South Korean Navy destroyer chased Somali pirates from a cargo ship from this nation off the African coast earlier this week.

Answers: 1. Christina Applegate; 2. Elton John; 3. Holland; 4. David Souter; 5. Dallas Cowboys; 6. Panama; 7. North Korea.

May 7th Trivia
1. In 1998, this automaker bought Chrysler for $40 billion and formed DaimlerChrysler, the largest industrial merger in history.
2. On this day in 1946, Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering was formed, but it became world famous under this current name.
3. This Southern US city was founded on this date in 1718 by Jean-Baptiste LeMoyne de Bienville.
4. On this day in 1992, a 203-year-old proposed amendment to the US Constitution was ratified by Michigan, and this number amendment became law.
5. This two-time Oscar-winning actor, of which one win was for the classic "Sergeant York," was born on this date in 1901.
6. Dick Williams, a Hall of Fame manager who won an AL pennant in his first year as a MLB manager with this team, was born on this date in 1929.
7. Bill Kreutzmann, the drummer for this legendary '60s and '70s rock band that dissolved in 1995, was born on this day in 1946.

Answers: 1. Mercedes-Benz; 2. Sony; 3. New Orleans; 4. twenty-seven; 5. Gary Cooper; 6. Boston Red Sox; 7. Grateful Dead.

True or False Trivia ("The Q Train")
1. The Roman god Janus had two faces.
2. The Caldecott Medal is awarded every year for picture book illustration.
3. Two-thirds of the earth's mass is made up of its core.
4. The smallest unit of soldiers in the US Army is a company.
5. Bronze and White Holland are varieties of turkeys.
6. The opera singer Andrea Bocelli is a baritone.
7. George Washington was first inaugurated president in Philadelphia.
8. "M" in FM stands for modulation.
9. Microsoft's headquarters are in the state of Oregon.
10. Litchi, a Chinese delicacy, is a type of fruit.

Answers: 1. true; 2. true; 3. false, mantle; 4. false, squad; 5. true; 6. false, he's a tenor; 7. false, it was in New York; 8. true; 9. false, it's in washington; 10. true.

General Knowledge
1. What TV network uses the slogan "Chime In?"
2. The Negev Desert is located in what country?
3. Who first recorded and popularized the hit 1961 song, "Hit the Road, Jack?"
4. What book's first sentence is "All Children, except one, grow up?"
5. What European country established the first permanent settlement in what is now the United States?
6. Historian Shelby Foote is famous for his three volume work on what subject?
7. In what US state did the Teapot Dome scandal of the 1920s take place?

Answers: 1. NBC; 2. Israel; 3. Ray Charles; 4. Peter Pan; 5. Spain; 6. The Civil War; 7. Wyoming.

IQ Trivia
1. Automysophobia is the fear of being what? ( 5 points)
2. What common everyday item was invented by Hungarian Laszlo Biro in 1938? ( 4 points)
3. Who is fourth in line to the US presidency after the Vice-President, the Speaker of the House and the president Pro Tem of the Senate? ( 3 points)
4. Which 1995 film has the record number of "F" words in a feature film, with 422? ( 4 points)
5. What was the claim to fame of Robert Wadlow, a man from Illinois who died in 1940? ( 4 points)

Answers: 1. dirty; 2. ballpoint pen; 3. Secretary of State; 4. "Casino;" 5. He was the tallest man who ever lived (8' 11").