Doubly Sad Days Trivia Quiz

Answer: Thomas Jefferson

Both Adams and Jefferson played major roles in creating the Declaration of Independence. Adams organized the committee that drafted the declaration and he convinced Jefferson to actually write it, although Adams contributed to completing it. Adams became the first vice President under George Washington and later the second President. Thomas Jefferson was the second vice President and the third President. Adams had something of a falling out with Jefferson when he lost the presidency to him, although they later reconciled and corresponded with each other for fourteen years.

Although Jefferson died about six hours before Adams, ironically, Adams' last words were, "Thomas Jefferson survives," as he had not been informed of Jefferson passing earlier that day.

Answer: Don Quixote

Acclaimed as England's greatest playwright, William Shakespeare hardly needs any introduction. He was extremely successful as an actor and a writer in his own time, co-owned first the Globe Theatre, and later the more exclusive Blackfriars Theatre, and was able to live off the proceeds of his writing. No contemporary source explains how or why he died at the age of 52, although fifty years later, John Ward, the vicar of Stratford, wrote in his notebook: "Shakespeare, Drayton, and Ben Jonson had a merry meeting and, it seems, drank too hard, for Shakespeare died of a fever there contracted." Although Cervantes is today considered the greatest writer in the Spanish language, and his masterpiece "Don Quixote" has been a bestseller for four centuries, unlike Shakespeare, he was never able to support himself with his writing, and had a military career, among various other enterprises. Cervantes wrote "Don Quixote" while in prison.

While it was extremely popular in his lifetime, he had sold the rights to the publisher for an unknown sum and thus did not receive royalties from the sales.

He died at the age of 68, possibly from diabetes. Although both Shakespeare and Cervantes were each recorded as dying on April 23, 1616, because of differences between the English and Spanish calendars at the time, this was not actually the same day, so Cervantes' death was actually 10 days after Shakespeare's.

Answer: Farrah Fawcett

Jackson was an extraordinarily talented musician who was recognised by Guinness Book of Records in 2006 as the "Most Successful Entertainer of All Time." He also gained considerable attention for his eccentric lifestyle and troubled personal affairs. Unfortunately, he became dependent on painkillers, which turned out to be his undoing as his death was caused by an overdose of the anaesthetic propofol that he used to help him sleep.

His personal physician, Conrad Murray, was later found guilty of involuntary manslaughter for allowing this to happen. Farrah Fawcett, who shot to fame in 1976 for her role as Jill Munroe in hit TV show "Charlie's Angels," died a few hours after Jackson after a long battle with anal cancer.

Although media coverage that day was dominated by news about Jackson, ABC aired an hour-long special episode of "20/20" about Fawcett's life. Fawcett was once married to "Six Million Dollar Man" actor Lee Majors, and appeared on several episodes of that show before becoming a big star in her own right and appeared in many TV shows and movies.

She helped produce a documentary about her struggle with cancer called "Farrah's Story," which was aired by NBC in May 2009.

Answer: Margaret Thatcher

Annette Funicello came into the public eye in 1955 when she became a Mouseketeer on "The Mickey Mouse Club" after being discovered by Walt Disney himself. She proved extremely popular in this role, and went on to have a successful singing and acting career, releasing several pop singles and starring in a series of "Beach Party" movies with Frankie Avalon in the 1960s.

In 1987, she became ill and her health gradually deteriorated over many years. She died from complications of multiple sclerosis at the age of 70, and her passing was announced on the Disney Web site.

While Funicello was well-loved by the public in her day, Margaret Thatcher's public image was polarized to say the least. While highly respected by some, she was intensely disliked by others, and these mixed sentiments were highly evident after she died of a stroke at the age of 87. On the one hand, she was publicly honoured with a ceremonial funeral in which her coffin was carried in a stately procession from the Houses of Parliament to St Paul's Cathedral.

Her funeral service was attended by none other than Queen Elizabeth II, which was only the second time in her reign that she attended the funeral of one of her prime ministers, the first time being that of Winston Churchill in 1965. On the other hand, many members of the public throughout Britain marked the occasion in a less dignified way, with reports of spontaneous street parties being held across the country. Anti-Thatcher sentiment was commonly expressed on social media and the song "Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead" charted at number 2 across the UK on 12 April 2013. Sometimes, people can be very unkind indeed.

Answer: Yul Brynner

Orson Welles produced innovative works in radio, theatre, and film. His debut movie "Citizen Kane" has been acclaimed as the greatest film ever made. He died suddenly in his home at the age of 70 from a heart attack. Yul Brynner also had an eventful career in stage and film.

Although he starred in many roles, he is best known for his portrayal of King Mongkut in the stage show "The King and I," which he performed in an extraordinary 4,625 times on stage. In addition, he reprised the role in a film adaptation for which won an Academy Award, as well as a TV series called "Anna and the King," which ran for 13 episodes. Brynner initially shaved his head for this role, and apparently, he liked this look so much he continued shaving his head for the rest of his life.

A heavy smoker from the age of 12, he eventually quit in 1971, but unfortunately was diagnosed with lung cancer in 1983. He arranged for his anti-smoking message to be released after his death, in which he states that he was convinced that if he had not smoked he would not have developed cancer, and therefore urged people not to smoke.

Answer: "La Dolce Vita" and "Stand by Me"

Fellini co-wrote and directed "La Dolce Vita," a 1960 comedy-drama that won the Palme d'Or at the 1960 Cannes Film Festival and is today regarded as one of the greatest films in world cinema. River Phoenix had his first notable role in the 1986 film "Stand by Me," which made him a household name. Fellini had a distinguished career over many decades and was regarded as one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers of all time. River Phoenix had a much shorter but still vibrant career, which began at the age of 10 and he garnered great praise and many awards for his acting.

His sudden death from drug intoxication outside a nightclub came as a great shock to the world, especially considering that he had up until then maintained a clean-cut image and had been a noted advocate of a vegan diet, having appeared on the cover of "Vegetarian Times."

Answer: C.S. Lewis and Aldous Huxley

C.S. Lewis and Aldous Huxley each wrote works of both fiction and non-fiction. Lewis was a deeply religious man, and this is reflected in "The Chronicles of Narnia" series of novels, and in several works of Christian apologetics, such as "Mere Christianity." He was a close friend of J.R.R. Tolkien, whose own faith inspired Lewis to re-convert to Christianity after a period of atheism. Huxley, on the other hand was a humanist who had an abiding interest in mysticism and Hindu meditation practices.

His spiritual interests led him to experiment with the psychedelic drug mescaline, and he wrote several books about his experiences, including "Heaven and Hell" and "The Doors of Perception." He is also famous for his dystopian science fiction novel, "Brave New World." Lewis' death from kidney failure and Huxley's from cancer were both completely overshadowed by the shocking news of the Kennedy assassination in Dealey Plaza, Texas, the same day.

This fact prompted an article in New York magazine titled "The Eclipsed Celebrity Death Club" that noted the bad timing of the two writers' deaths, and inspired Peter Kreeft to write a novel called, "Between Heaven and Hell: A Dialog Somewhere Beyond Death with John F. Kennedy, C. S. Lewis, & Aldous Huxley," in which the three discuss their respective religious views.

Answer: Edith Piaf

Piaf was a singer-songwriter who began her career performing in nightclubs in 1935 and went on to become internationally famous. Her diminutive height of only 142 centimetres inspired a nightclub owner to call her "the Little Sparrow," which name stuck with her throughout her career.

In 1940, she starred in a one-act play called "Le Bel Indifférent" that Jean Cocteau had written specifically for her and which was tremendously successful. She suffered from recurring health problems that were exacerbated by alcohol abuse and died of liver failure on October 10, 1963, although her death was not announced until the next day. Jean Cocteau was known for a wide range of works, including poetry, novels, plays, and avant-garde films in particular, which were highly successful and influential.

He died of a heart attack at the age of 74.

Answer: Mohandas

Orville and Wilbur Wright are today widely acknowledged as being the first to successfully achieve controlled, sustained flight of a powered, heavier-than-air aircraft, which occurred on December 17, 1903. At the time, however, many people regarded their claims with scepticism and several rival claimants asserted that they had achieved the first powered flight instead. Orville became involved in a decades-long dispute with the Smithsonian Institution, which claimed that Samuel Pierpont Langley, a former secretary of the institution had built the first heavier-than-air craft capable of powered flight, even though Langley's experiments had actually failed. Orville retaliated by loaning the restored 1903 Kitty Hawk Flyer to the London Science Museum in 1928 and refused to donate it to the Smithsonian. Wilbur Wright died of typhoid fever in 1912 at the age of 45, while Orville died of a heart attack 35 years later, aged 76. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, on the other hand, had a long running dispute with the British Empire, which inspired the Indian independence movement, which achieved its goal of liberation in 1947. Gandhi was noted for his advocacy of non-violent resistance.

He first became known as "Mahatma," Sanskrit for "great-souled," in 1914, and has been known by this title throughout the world ever since. Although widely admired, not everyone agreed with his message of peace and religious tolerance, and he was assassinated on 30 January 1948 while on his way to address a prayer meeting by a Hindu nationalist who objected to his "complacency" towards Muslims.

Answer: Milton Berle and Dudley Moore

Billy Wilder's career spanned more than five decades, and he was the first person to win Academy Awards as producer, director, and screenwriter for the same film ("The Apartment," a 1960 romantic comedy-drama). Amongst his many memorable films, were "The Seven Year Itch" and "Some Like It Hot," both of which starred Marilyn Monroe.

He died of pneumonia at the age of 95 after a long period of ill health. Milton Berle was an American comedian and actor whose career lasted over 80 years, first in silent films, then on the stage, then in radio, movies, and television.

He was the first major American television star as the host of NBC's "Texaco Star Theatre." His last acting role was as a guest star in the sitcom "Kenan & Kel," in 2000. He died of colon cancer at the age of 93. Dudley Moore was an English comedian and actor who came to prominence in the 1960s for his work in comedy and was notable for a long running double act with British actor Peter Cook.

He starred in a number of highly successful Hollywood films, including "10" with sex symbol Bo Derek, and in the title role of "Arthur" as a drunken billionaire.

He also had a successful musical career and composed the soundtracks for several films including "Bedazzled" (1967) and "The Hound of the Baskervilles" (1978). In 1999, he announced that he was suffering from a terminal degenerative brain disorder, from which he died in 2002 at age 66.