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Quiz about 1950 to 1955   the No Era era
Quiz about 1950 to 1955   the No Era era

1950 to 1955 - the "No Era" era Quiz


The big band era ended in the late 40's. The rock era began in 1955. What filled up the vacuum? Some mighty fine vocals and instrumentals! Let's reminisce a bit and have some fun.

A multiple-choice quiz by maddogrick16. Estimated time: 6 mins.
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Author
maddogrick16
Time
6 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
173,018
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
15
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
10 / 15
Plays
4681
Awards
Top 5% quiz!
Last 3 plays: Olderbison (11/15), joyland (13/15), Guest 172 (10/15).
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Question 1 of 15
1. Dean Martin had a big #2 hit in 1952 with "That's Amore". Throughout the song he's drawing descriptions about what it's like to be in love. One of the following descriptions is NOT in the song. Which one? Hint


Question 2 of 15
2. The biggest hit of 1952 was "You Belong To Me" by Jo Stafford. In this song, Jo tells her travelling lover that he can do several things on his travels but he had to remember that he belonged to her. Which of the following was NOT one of the pleasures he could indulge in? Hint


Question 3 of 15
3. Eddie Fisher was one the most popular singers of the 1950's and had four #1 hits between 1952 and 1954. Which of the following was NOT one of them? Hint


Question 4 of 15
4. A huge hit in 1950 was "The Third Man Theme" from the movie "The Third Man". The composer of the song was Anton Karas, appropriately enough from Austria since the movie was set in Vienna. This song, and almost all the soundtrack music, was performed solo by Karas on an unusual instrument. What was it? Hint


Question 5 of 15
5. Nat "King" Cole had a big hit in 1950. The last line of the song was "Or just a cold and lonely, lovely work of art?" What famous work of art was he singing about?

Hint


Question 6 of 15
6. Stan Freberg was one funny fellow and he had a long string of brilliant satirical recordings during the 1950's. One of his best parodies was "Try" in 1952, a take off of "Cry", a huge hit in 1951-2. Who was the object of Freberg's impersonation? That is, who sang "Cry"? Hint


Question 7 of 15
7. "Glow little _____ ______ fly of fire.
Glow like an incandescent wire.
Glow for the female of the species.
Turn on the AC and the DC."
This was a #1 hit for the Mills Brothers in 1952. What type of nematode were they singing about?

Answer: (Two Words - no punctuation)
Question 8 of 15
8. "Sometimes I live in the country, sometimes I live in town.
Sometimes I have a great notion, to jump in the river and drown."
What song are these lyrics from, a #1 in 1950?
Hint


Question 9 of 15
9. "I touch your lips and all at once the sparks go flying.
Those devil lips that know so well the art of lying.
And though I see the danger, still the flame grows higher.
I know I must surrender to your kiss of fire."
Who recorded the #1 version of this hit in 1952?

Hint


Question 10 of 15
10. Some silliness from 1951:
"Ab-a dab-a dab-a dab-a dab-a dab-a dab
said the chimpie to the monk.
Bab-a dab-a dab-a dab-a dab-a dab-a dab
said the monkey to the chimp."
Later:
"Then the big _______ one night in June
he married them and very soon
they went upon their ab-a dab-a honey moon."
Who married the chimp and the monkey?

Hint


Question 11 of 15
11. The Ames Brothers had three #1 songs during this period. Identify the one that wasn't theirs. Hint


Question 12 of 15
12. One of the great instrumentals of the era was "_____ Tango" by Leroy Anderson. Fill in the blank Hint


Question 13 of 15
13. The first #1 song for the 1950's was the old Christmas favorite "Rudolph, The Red Nosed Reindeer". What "singing cowboy" had this hit? Watch your spelling!

Answer: (Two Words - (hint) California Angels)
Question 14 of 15
14. "Oh, life could be a dream,
if I could take you up in paradise up above,
if you would tell me I'm the only one that you love,
life could be a dream sweetheart."
The title is?
Hint


Question 15 of 15
15. "I long to hold you near and kiss you just once more.
But you were on the ship and I was on the shore."
Identify this #1 from 1950.
Hint



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Most Recent Scores
Oct 30 2024 : Olderbison: 11/15
Oct 11 2024 : joyland: 13/15
Oct 03 2024 : Guest 172: 10/15
Sep 28 2024 : haydenspapa: 14/15
Sep 27 2024 : Guest 75: 15/15
Sep 17 2024 : Guest 174: 10/15
Sep 05 2024 : Guest 173: 11/15
Sep 04 2024 : Guest 97: 14/15

Score Distribution

quiz
Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. Dean Martin had a big #2 hit in 1952 with "That's Amore". Throughout the song he's drawing descriptions about what it's like to be in love. One of the following descriptions is NOT in the song. Which one?

Answer: "When the stars make you drool like a baby of two"

"When the stars make you drool just like pasta fazool" is the correct lyric. The clever music and lyrics were composed by Harry Warren and Jack Brooks. Dean's song appeared in a couple of movies. It was introduced in the Martin and Lewis movie "The Caddy" in 1952. Several other actors besides Dean sing parts of the song and really it wasn't very well performed. Listening to the whine of Jerry Lewis singing might have been funny but for all the wrong reasons! It was used to much greater effect in "Moonstruck" with Cher and Nicholas Cage in 1987.
2. The biggest hit of 1952 was "You Belong To Me" by Jo Stafford. In this song, Jo tells her travelling lover that he can do several things on his travels but he had to remember that he belonged to her. Which of the following was NOT one of the pleasures he could indulge in?

Answer: "Ride a rickshaw in old Hong Kong"

Jo Stafford's hit was #1 for twelve weeks despite stiff competition from Patti Page (#4) and Dean Martin (#12). It was also a #7 hit for the Duprees in 1962. The words and music were composed by Pee Wee King, Chilton Price, and Redd Stewart.
3. Eddie Fisher was one the most popular singers of the 1950's and had four #1 hits between 1952 and 1954. Which of the following was NOT one of them?

Answer: This Ole House

"This Ole House" was performed by Rosemary Clooney, George's aunt. Fisher's other #1 song was "Wish You Were Here". Fisher's career went into a tailspin when he ended his "made-in-heaven" marriage with Debbie Reynolds to take up with Liz Taylor in a sordid affair. That union didn't last long and his waning popularity was abetted by younger heart throbs like Tab Hunter and Fabian. Rock music also made crooners like Fisher seem passé.
4. A huge hit in 1950 was "The Third Man Theme" from the movie "The Third Man". The composer of the song was Anton Karas, appropriately enough from Austria since the movie was set in Vienna. This song, and almost all the soundtrack music, was performed solo by Karas on an unusual instrument. What was it?

Answer: Zither

Karas' version was #1 for eleven weeks on the "Bestseller" charts. A competing version by Guy Lombardo using traditional guitar instead of the zither was also #1 for eleven weeks on the "Juke Box" charts. Lombardo had 218 chart entries from 1927 until 1954. Karas had one!
5. Nat "King" Cole had a big hit in 1950. The last line of the song was "Or just a cold and lonely, lovely work of art?" What famous work of art was he singing about?

Answer: The Mona Lisa

"Are you warm, are you real, Mona Lisa?
Or just a cold and lonely, lovely work of art?"
Nat "King" Cole began his career as a jazz pianist side man in the 1930's and formed his own small combo in 1939. His first chart entry was in 1943 with "All For You" but his smooth voice and delivery soon catapulted him into stardom not only on vinyl but in movies and T.V. Now, I suppose he would be deemed the first great popular "black" entertainer. He died at the age of 47 in 1965 of cancer.
6. Stan Freberg was one funny fellow and he had a long string of brilliant satirical recordings during the 1950's. One of his best parodies was "Try" in 1952, a take off of "Cry", a huge hit in 1951-2. Who was the object of Freberg's impersonation? That is, who sang "Cry"?

Answer: Johnnie Ray

Johnnie Ray's hit was #1 for eleven weeks. He was very emotive (overly so to his critics) and would frequently open up the tear ducts when he sang this song, perfect for a send up. It was his only #1 hit and he was long forgotten after the mid-fifties until he started performing again in nostalgia tours during the '70's and '80's.

He died in 1990 at the age of 63. Freberg, meanwhile, dabbled in music for many years but eventually started an advertising business in the 1960's and has won at least 21 Clio Awards for outstanding achievements in the radio and T.V. industry.
7. "Glow little _____ ______ fly of fire. Glow like an incandescent wire. Glow for the female of the species. Turn on the AC and the DC." This was a #1 hit for the Mills Brothers in 1952. What type of nematode were they singing about?

Answer: Glow Worm

This song was an adaptation of a 1908 song from the German operetta "Lysistrata" and the Broadway musical "The Girl Behind the Counter". The music was written by Paul Lincke and the modern lyrics by Johnny Mercer, and clever lyrics they were. This song was #1 for three weeks and one of five #1's the brothers would have in the forty years of their recording career.
8. "Sometimes I live in the country, sometimes I live in town. Sometimes I have a great notion, to jump in the river and drown." What song are these lyrics from, a #1 in 1950?

Answer: Goodnight Irene

This song, a #1 for thirteen weeks, marked the first revival of folk music as a popular commercial entity. It was written by Hudie Leadbetter (Leadbelly) and John Lomax. The Weavers had the hit version in competition with many other artists such as Sinatra, Jo Stafford and Red Foley, all of whom had charting versions.

The Weavers, at that time, were Pete Seeger, Lee Hayes, Fred Hillerman and Ronnie Gilbert as the female voice. Woody Guthrie was a member in the 1940's. Political blacklisting curtailed their recording career during the era of "McCarthyism".
9. "I touch your lips and all at once the sparks go flying. Those devil lips that know so well the art of lying. And though I see the danger, still the flame grows higher. I know I must surrender to your kiss of fire." Who recorded the #1 version of this hit in 1952?

Answer: Georgia Gibbs

"Her Nibs, Miss Gibbs" as Garry Moore would later dub her, topped the charts for seven weeks with "Kiss Of Fire". Competing versions were recorded by Tony Martin (#6), Toni Arden (#14), Billy Eckstine (#16), Louis Armstrong (#20) and Guy Lombardo (#30). The music was based on a 1913 Argentinian tango "El Choclo" and English words were added by Lester Allen and Robert Hill. If you've ever watched the dance event in figure skating competitions, you've heard the music at least a thousand times!
10. Some silliness from 1951: "Ab-a dab-a dab-a dab-a dab-a dab-a dab said the chimpie to the monk. Bab-a dab-a dab-a dab-a dab-a dab-a dab said the monkey to the chimp." Later: "Then the big _______ one night in June he married them and very soon they went upon their ab-a dab-a honey moon." Who married the chimp and the monkey?

Answer: baboon

The rhyming scheme and meter should have given you this answer! "Aba Daba Honeymoon" was a #3 hit for Carleton Carpenter and Debbie Reynolds although several other artists recorded the song at the same time. It was featured in the movie "Two Weeks With Love" starring Jane Powell and Ricardo Montalban.

Originally, it was a #1 hit in 1914 for Arthur Collins and Byron Harlan, a famous comedy singing team of the era.
11. The Ames Brothers had three #1 songs during this period. Identify the one that wasn't theirs.

Answer: Don't Let The Stars Get In Your Eyes

Perry Como did it in 1953, just one of the five #1's he would have in the early 1950's. The others were "Hoop-Dee-Doo" (1950), "If" (1951), "No Other Love" (1953) and "Wanted" (1954).
12. One of the great instrumentals of the era was "_____ Tango" by Leroy Anderson. Fill in the blank

Answer: Blue

It was #1 for five weeks in the spring of 1952 and was on the top 30 charts for an amazing 38 weeks! Leroy primarily was the arranger for the Boston Pops for many years although he did conduct his own orchestra for recording purposes.
13. The first #1 song for the 1950's was the old Christmas favorite "Rudolph, The Red Nosed Reindeer". What "singing cowboy" had this hit? Watch your spelling!

Answer: Gene Autry

Gene, of course, owned the California Angels for many years prior to his death. In the pre-1955 era, this song sold over eight million copies, second only to "White Christmas" which sold an incredible thirty million plus!
14. "Oh, life could be a dream, if I could take you up in paradise up above, if you would tell me I'm the only one that you love, life could be a dream sweetheart." The title is?

Answer: Sh-Boom

Sh-Boom is considered by many to be the precurser to the rock era. It was a #1 hit for the Crew Cuts in 1954. The original version by the Chords reached #5.
15. "I long to hold you near and kiss you just once more. But you were on the ship and I was on the shore." Identify this #1 from 1950.

Answer: Harbor Lights

This was, essentially, the last #1 for any holdover big band of the 1940's - Sammy Kaye and his Orchestra. "Swing and Sway with Sammy Kaye". His first #1 was "Rosalie" in 1938 and he had six more throughout the '30's and '40's, the biggest being "Daddy", a #1 for eight weeks in 1941. Don Cornell was the lead singer of "Harbor Lights". An era was over! Incidentally, The Platters had a #8 hit with the song in 1960.
Source: Author maddogrick16

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor ralzzz before going online.
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Related Quizzes
This quiz is part of series Top Annual Hits from 1950 to 1959:

Quizzes featuring the biggest hits from the entire 1950s decade.

  1. 1950 to 1955 - the "No Era" era Average
  2. 1950 to1955 - Music, Music, Music Average
  3. The Top Hits Of 1956 Average
  4. The Top Hits Of 1957 Average
  5. The Top Hits Of 1958 Average
  6. The Top Hits of 1959 Average

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