Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Trivia Q&A: April 29

We had another busy night at Thom's for Trivia, and an exciting and fast-moving Red Sox game on as well. 15 teams took part, and when the Red Sox pulled out the nailbiter, full attention was brought over to our Trivia Night festivities.

I had a number of comments from the Trivia players that this night's contest was particularly tough. The scores seemed to bare that out, as in the first two rounds there were no perfect scores (or in General Knowledge), but there were four in True or False.

The scores were generally very close throughout the night, with 10 of the 15 teams withing five points of the lead going into IQ Trivia. It turned out to be a tough round of IQ Trivia, as only one team got only four out of five correct, and that turned out to be the winners, Cheating Devices, who came from a third place tie to win the night by five points. My congratulations to them, especially as they were new players to our Trivia Night.

Current Events
1. This troubled pop star was arrested last Friday but not charged after slapping a man at a bar in London.
2. This one-time TV star and his wife of eight months will appear on the TV show "Divorce Court" in May to settle their divorce case.
3. This western US city was hit by dozens of minor earthquakes on Sunday, after it got a 4.7 magnitude quake on Friday.
4. This man's assassin, who has served over 40 years in prison, was denied parole for the 13th time last week.
5. A passenger train in this Asian country jumped the tracks and collided with another train, killing at least 70 people and injuring 400.
6. Mars Inc. announced that it will buy this company, the world's largest chewing gum manufacturer, in a deal worth $23 billion.
7. Buses, subways and streetcars in this North American city went on strike in this North American city on Saturday in a dispute over contracting out work.

Answers: 1. Amy Winehouse; 2. Gary Coleman; 3. Reno, NV; 4. Malcolm X; 5. China; 6. Wrigley; 7. Toronto.

Brooklyn Trivia
1. In which year did the Brooklyn Dodgers play their last game at Ebbets Field? a. 1955; b. 1957; c. 1959; d. 1960.
2. From which European country does the name Brooklyn come from? a. Netherlands; b. England; c. Germany; d. Belgium.
3. Which poet wrote the classic poem "Crossing Brooklyn Ferry?" a. Herman Melville; b. Allen Ginsburg; c. Walt Whitman; d. Dylan Thomas.
4. Which author wrote the famous book "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn?" a. Arthur Miller; b. William Styron; c. Hart Crane; d. Betty Smith.
5. Which of the following celebrities was actually born in Brooklyn? a. Jackie Robinson; b. Sylvester Stallone; c. Al Pacino; d. Joe Torre.
6. In what year did the Brooklyn Bridge open? a. 1869; b. 1876; c. 1883; d. 1889.
7. What is Brooklyn's nickname? a. "The City of Churches;" b. "City of the Strait;" c. "Monument City;" d. "The Emerald City."

Answers: 1. b; 2. a; 3. c; 4. d; 5. d; 6. c; 7. a.

True or False Trivia ("The Q Train")
1. At room temperature, a gallon of drinking water weighs approximately 4.5 pounds.
2. An omnisicient narrator uses the third person voice to tell a story.
3. Mononucleosis is also known as "the kissing disease."
4. Gloria Steinem co-founded Ms. magazine in 1972.
5. A dish with "fra diavolo" sauce has a tart and sweet kind of taste.
6. Dirty snow melts faster than clean, white snow.
7. The Great Wall of China took just 200 years to build.
8. Humphrey Bogart's father was a prominent surgeon.
9. The opposite sides of a dice cube always add up to seven.
10. A hippopotamus is normally born on land.

Answers: 1. false, it weighs 8.3 pounds; 2. true; 3. true; 4. true; 5. false, it is hot and spicy; 6. true; 7. false, it took 2,000 years; 8. true; 9. true; 10. false, they are born under water.

General Knowledge
1. Of the 50 states, how many of them were named for US presidents?
2. On what TV series was Norm Abram a co-host for over a quarter century?
3. In 1883, what industry led the movement to divide the US into four time zones?
4. What writer first called the mistaken reports of his death "an exaggeration?"
5. In 1989, Senator Jesse Helms targeted the work of what photographer as obscene?
6. The name of what element is derived from the Greek word meaning "hidden?"
7. The siege of Troy is the subject of what Greek classic?

Answers: 1. One (Washington); 2. "This Old House;" 3. railroad; 4. Mark Twain; 5. Robert Mapplethorpe; 6. krypton; 7. "The Iliad."

IQ Trivia
1. Who was the only actress to win an Academy Award for portraying a past Academy Award winner? ( 4 points)
2. "The Guerrilla Girls" is an activist group that was founded to protest sexism in what? ( 5 points)
3. Sargent Shriver was the first director of what organization? ( 4 points)
4. On a horse, where is the correct place to put a snaffle? ( 3 points)
5. The male and female of what animal are called "hob" and "jill?" ( 4 points)

Answers: 1. Cate Blanchett (for portraying Katherine Hepburn in "The Aviator"); 2. art world; 3. Peace Corps; 4. mouth; 5. ferret.

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