All About Avalon Trivia Quiz

Answer: The magical island on which Excalibur was forged

From the 12th century, Avalon has been associated with King Arthur. Some legends hold that it was the place where his sword was forged. Others hold that it was where he was taken to be nursed after the Battle of Camlann. Still others hold that it was ruled by Morgan le Fay. One strain suggests it was an island of apple orchards and another that it was the home of the Holy Grail.

Answer: Al Jolson

The song was primarily written by Vincent Rose but with contributions by Al Jolson and Buddy DaSylva. Jolson recorded it and sang it in the musicals "Sinbad" and "Bombo." Cab Calloway covered it in 1934 as did the Benny Goodman Quartet when they played Carnegie Hall in 1938.

The song tells a sad story: "I found my love in Avalon beside the bay. I left my love in Avalon and sail'd away. I dream of her and Avalon from dusk 'til dawn. And so I think I'll travel on to Avalon." Just before Dooley Wilson plays "As Time Goes By" in the 1942 film "Casablanca," he improvises the tune to "Avalon" on his piano in Rick's Café Américain.

Answer: Roger Zelazny

Roger Joseph Zelazny (1937-1995) wrote poetry, science fiction and fantasy. "The Guns of Avalon" is the second in the "Chronicles of Amber." The first arc is the Amber: Corwyn series; the second is the Amber: Merlin series. Avalon refers to a shadow world, slightly less real than the land of Amber.

The title "Guns of Avalon" is a doubtless reference to Alistair MacLean's "The Guns of Navarone" made all the more apt by the fact that both Navarone and Avalon are fictional islands. Zelazny was nominated fourteen times for the Nebula Award and won thrice, fourteen times for the Hugo Award and won six times.

Answer: They were purchased, absorbed and extinguished.

Avalon Books was founded by Thomas Bouregy in 1950, published science fiction in the 50s and 60s when it switched to romance and mystery. It was situated in New York. Amazon.com purchased the press and its backlist in 2012 and it is deceased. The Avalon Publishing Group was founded in 1994 in New York. It was the parent of Avalon Travel Publishing, Black Square Editions, Blue Moon Books, Carroll & Graf Publishers, Four Walls Eight Windows, Thunder's Mouth Press, No Exit Press, and Shoemaker & Hoard Publishers, among others. It was absorbed by Perseus Books Group in 2007.

"Writers are essential. Readers are essential. Publishers are not." ~J. A. Konrath, author.

Answer: River cruising

Avalon Waterways is a brand of Globus, headquartered in Lugano, Switzerland and Littleton, Colorado, which offers high-end cruising on the rivers of Europe, as well as Asia, the USA and South America. Founded in 2004, the company grew quickly and expanded its fleet of cruise ships featuring larger-than-usual accommodations (including suites since 2011) and luxury special-interest cruises which focus on food, dancing, beer or literature. Its offerings include every major river in Europe, the Yangtze in China and the Amazon in Peru.

Answer: England

In 1983, some rather silly people launched an unauthorized radio state at the Glastonbury Festival near Glastonbury, England. The "studio" was a red Volkswagen bus. Radio Avalon played Grateful Dead albums and made useful announcements about the festival.

It became a legitimate radio station after seven years and acquired a Restricted Service Licence from the government. The station grew and become self-supporting until, in 2007, it was reorganized and replaced by Worthy FM (a reference to the 87.7 MHz on which it broadcasts) which is the "official" on-site radio station of The Glastonbury Festival.

Answer: Original documents relating to law, history, politics, and government

Yale University's Avalon Project seeks to assemble a searchable on-line data base of original documents touching upon "the fields of Law, History, Economics, Politics, Diplomacy and Government" (from its Statement of Purpose). The collection spans ancient documents to the most modern. It includes the Magna Carta, the Bill of Rights to the United States Constitution, James Madison's reports of the Federal Convention of 1787, and an extensive collection of materials pertaining to the Nuremberg Trials.

Answer: The Rio Grande

The original Avalon Dam (it has been rebuilt several times) was constructed by a company formed by local ranchers (including Pat Garrett, the sheriff who shot Billy the Kid) in 1888. It diverts water from the Pecos River, a tributary of the Rio Grande, into the Carlsbad Project, which is a major irrigation scheme. The headwaters of the Pecos River are in the mountains near Santa Fe. Carlsbad, New Mexico, is a destination because of Carlsbad Caverns National Park just 20 miles outside of town.

Answer: Toyota

Built on an assembly line in Georgetown, Kentucky, the Toyota Avalon replaced the Cressida. It is a front-wheel drive car powered by a V-6 engine. There have been five versions: 1994-1999, 1999-2004, 2004-2012, 2012-2018, 2018 on. The 208 model offers an hybrid with a NiMH battery pack (similar to the Camry). This version looks rather like a shark with its mouth wide open.

Answer: Rescue of submarine crews

In the wake of the loss of the US Submarine Thresher and its crew of 129 men in 1963, the US Navy set out to build a deep-sea submersible rescue vehicle (DSRV) which could bring crews up from the bottom. Two were launched: Mystic (DSRV-1) in 1970 and Avalon (DSRV-2) in 1971. Both were stationed in San Diego but had the capacity to be deployed anywhere. Demonstrating this capability, the 37-ton Avalon was transported aboard a Lockheed C-5 Galaxy strategic airlifter.

The vessels were capable of operating at depths up to 5000 feet and recovering up to 24 crew members from a sunken submarine. Neither ever performed an actual rescue before decommissioning in 2000.

The Avalon was given to the Naval Undersea Museum located in Moro Bay, California, where it remains on exhibition.

Answer: A concert- and dance-venue

The Avalon Ballroom was a musical Mecca from 1966 to 1969. Located at 1244 Sutter Street (or maybe 1268 Sutter Street, depending on which door you used), the stage, dance floor and light show was at the center of the counterculture. The 1911 building was originally the Colin Traver Academy of Dance.

The Avalon Ballroom was created by Robert E. Cohen and Cher Helms. In the day, many bands performed: Quicksilver Messenger Service, the Steve Miller Band, Moby Grape, The Doors, the Butterfield Blues Band, Big Brother and the Holding Company, and the Grateful Dead. Following a major renovation in 2013, the building was used as the residence for MTV's "The Real World: San Francisco (2014)."

Answer: Frankie Avalon

Born Francis Thomas Avallone in 1940, Frankie Avalon rose to great popularity as a soft-rock singer, bare-chested teen actor, and heartthrob actor opposite Annette Funicello. He had a role in (and sang the theme song for) "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea" (1961). He and Annette appeared in seven beach-party movies. Avalon is the father of eight children and published his own cookbook -- "Frankie Avalon's Italian Family Cookbook" -- in 2015.

Answer: Passengers

Waking up 90 years too soon was a major problem for the two principal characters in 2016's "Passengers." An accident along the way disrupted the perfect plan to keep everyone asleep until they arrived at their new home. Critics were less persuaded than were moviegoers; the film did well at the box office. Guy Hendrix Dyas won the Art Directors Guild Award for Excellence in Production Design for a Fantasy Film in 2017.

Answer: Newfoundland and Labrador

As early as 1497, Europeans occupied the Avalon Peninsula on Canada's eastern coast. In 1623 Sir George Calvert received a Royal Charter to colonize what was described as "the Province of Avalon" on the peninsula. The colony was located in Newfoundland.

In 1867, three provinces of British North America (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Canada) united in the Canadian Confederation, at which point the Province of Canada became the Provinces of Ontario and Quebec. From four provinces, Canada grew to its present ten provinces and three territories. Avalon is in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Answer: It is the only incorporated city on Santa Catalina Island.

The only incorporated city on Santa Catalina is Avalon; it is the southernmost city in Los Angeles County. The three-square-mile town curls around the harbour and beaches of Avalon Bay. William Wrigley Jr. (of chewing-gum fame) bought the island in 1919 and developed it for tourism. His professional baseball team, the Chicago Cubs, used Avalon for spring training from 1921 to 1951 when they moved to Mesa, Arizona.

The city at the highest altitude in California is Mammoth Lakes at 7920 feet. The headquarters of Avalon Industries is in Baltimore, Maryland. The Avalon string quartet is the quartet-in-residence at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Illinois.