It's a Jungle Out There Trivia Quiz

Answer: Humphrey Bogart and Katharine Hepburn

With a script by Pulitzer Prize winner James Agee, and the direction of the legendary John Huston, this movie had a lot of star power. It yielded an Academy Award for Bogart and a nomination for Hepburn. Hepburn later wrote an autobiographical account of the making of the movie called "The Making of the African Queen or How I went to Africa with Bogart, Bacall, and Huston and Almost Lost My Mind" (1987). Clint Eastwood later made a fictionalized account in his film "White Hunter Black Heart" (1990). Bogart was rated by Entertainment Weekly in 1999 and by the American Film Institute as the number one male actor in film history.

Bogart was born on Christmas day 1899 to an upper middle class family. During the 1920s he developed a reputation as a skilled stage actor which led into his movement into films. Early in his film career Bogart was often saddled with minor parts in poor films. "The Petrified Forest" brought him into the forefront, With some exceptions many of his films are considered classics such as "Casablanca", "The Big Sleep", "The Maltese Falcon", and "The Caine Mutiny".

Katherine Hepburn was also selected as the best female star of film history by
the American Film Institute. Like Bogart, she was born to an upper middle class family. A college graduate who had skill and the persona, she was a natural for the movies. During her 73 year acting career she garnered four Academy Awards and numerous other awards. Her soul mate was Spencer Tracy with whom she not only had a long term affair but made nine movies with. They never married, due to Tracy's Catholic faith. Noted Hepburn films include "Alice Adams", "Lion in Winter","On Golden Pond", "Suddenly Last Summer", "Bringing Up Baby", and "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner".

Answer: Mel Gibson

In addition to his acting skills, Gibson is often a creative film director. "Apocalypto", for instance, is in a dead language believed spoken by Mayan or Aztec people of central America. In his film "Passion of the Christ" (2004) the language spoken is Aramaic. The latter film grossed 600 million dollars worldwide.

Although born in the United States, Gibson's formative years were spent in Australia. He first gained major recognition in the "Mad Max" and "Lethal Weapon" film series. He won an Acedemy Award for direction of his movie "Braveheart". His conservative religious views have been a explored in the press.

Answer: Clark Gable

Yes, Gable starred in both films, made 21 years apart. John Huston directed the remake which is more lavish than the original. "Mogambo" also yielded an Oscar for Grace Kelly, for supporting actress. Another film titled "Red Dust" came out in 2004, starring Hilary Swank but was unrelated to these two movies. Gable had little trouble making the two decade transition.

Gable's film career began as an extra with at least 13 appearances in silent films. Coming into the 'talkie' era, his career took an upswing resulting in an Academy award for "It Happened One Night". Established actresses often demanded that he co-star with them. He made eight movies with Joan Crawford, seven with Myrna Loy, six with Jean Harlow, four with Lana, and three with Norma Shearer. He will forever be identified with Rhett Butler in "Gone With the Wind". He died of a heart attack after the filming of "The Misfits", with Montgomery Clift and Marilyn Monroe, possibly due in part to exhaustion from making the movie.

Answer: Ernest Hemingway

Hemingway ranks as a major force in 20th century literature. He won a Pulitzer prize for one of his later novels "The Old Man and the Sea" and was an outstanding short story craftsman. He lived his life to the full and chose to ended it with suicide.

Answer: Spencer Tracy

David Livingstone was a humanitarian, physician, and explorer. He disappeared into the African jungle and had not been heard of for some time. Livingstone explored Lake Victoria and the Lower Nile. Sir Cedric Hardwicke played Livingstone in the film. Tracy played Stanley, a newspaper reporter, commissioned to find Livingstone for his paper.

He led an eight month trek to find him. Tracy received nine Academy Award nominations, winning twice for "Boy's Town" and "Captain Courageous". Early in his career he appeared in 25 films in five years.

He died shortly after his role in "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner", made with Sidney Poitier and his long time lover, Katharine Hepburn.

Answer: Romance Novels

"Romancing the Stone" was one of the most successful films of that year. It was followed in 1985 with a sequel "Jewel of the Nile", which took place in the desert rather than a jungle. Both films contained a sequence based on Joan Wilder's romance novels.

A romance novel is a genre where two people develop a romantic relationship. These books tend to have a short shelf life and are often replaced on a regular basis. Although there are serious novels of this genre, many of the paperback romance novels are ephemeral at best. Samuel Richardson is credited with the earliest romance novel "Pamela". Jane Austin set a high standard for subsequent writers. In 2004 romance novels comprised 55% of paperback book sales.

Answer: Paul Hogan

"Crocodile Dundee" (1986) was probably the most successful Australian film of all time. It was followed by "Crocodile Dundee II" (1988) and "Crocodile Dundee in Los Angles" (2001). Hogan won a Golden Globe award for best comic performance. He later married his co-star Linda Kozlowski. For many years he could not return to Australia because he was accused of owing 300 million dollars in taxes.

The suit was settled in 10/2008 with Hogan the winner.

Answer: Joseph Conrad

Several attempts had been made to transform Joseph Conrad's "Heart of Darkness" into a script. Up-dating and relocating to Vietnam, the film was a labor of love for Francis Ford Coppola, as the filming was a drama all it own. Coppola afterward compiled a documentary to tell the story, ironically named "Heart of Darkness". "Apocalypse Now" is cited as one of the most powerful of anti-war movies.

Joseph Conrad was Polish and spent many years as a merchant seaman. He did not learn English until he was an adult. Although he wrote masterfully in English, he never lost his heavy Polish accent. Many of his novels and short stories reflected his love for the sea.

Answer: Was a dedicated anti-communist

Robeson was a true Renaissance man. He excelled in athleticism, singing, acting and social activism. In the mid-1930s he visited Russia and believed that nation was on the right path. His belief in Communism, particularly when such beliefs were no longer fashionable, damaged his career in the United States.

He spent much of his time in Europe. The United States finally cancelled his passport. His name was stricken from the football All-American team of 1918. In addition to Emperor Jones, Robeson appeared as Othello, and as Porgy in "Porgy and Bess".

In "Showboat" (1936) he gave the classic performance of "Old Man River".

Answer: Sabu

Sabu, in his time, was extremely popular in adventure films. His real name was Sabu Dastagir but was known always as just Sabu in his film career. His initial appearance was in "Elephant Boy" (1937). Rudyard Kipings' "Jungle Book" (1942) was his most recognized film. His career was interrupted by WWII where he served as a tail-gunner. As he aged, roles became less available. He and his brother started a furniture store but it failed after his brother was killed in a robbery. Sabu died at 39 from a heart attack. His last film was a Disney production. "A Tiger Walks" (1964).

An aside: his son, known as Paul Sabu, is a highly successful music producer, having helped to create upwards of 14 platinum records and eight golden records.