Movies Made In Maryland Trivia Quiz

Answer: "Hairspray" ( the second version)

Zadon/Meron released the musical version of "Hairspray" in the summer of 2007. Nikki Blonsky, who made her debut in this film in the role of of Tracy Turnblad, features in the opening scene. Against the background of Baltimore's formstone rowhouses, Blonsky sings "Good Morning, Baltimore".

Interestingly, this is the only scene in the film actually filmed in Baltimore, although all of the action takes place there. For technical reasons, the majority of the film was shot in Toronto, Canada. "Hairspray" takes place in Baltimore in 1962. Overweight teenager, Tracy Turnblad, competes with other teenagers to dance on the "Corny Collin Show", and takes a stand against racial segregation at the time. (information for this question came from Wikipedia)

Answer: Divine

John Waters directed the original version of "Hairspray", which was released in 1988. Ricki Lake played the lead role of Tracy Turnblad, the chubby teenager who wants to dance on the television dance program, "The Corny Collins Show". Her mother was played by the drag artist, Divine. Divine, (original name Harris Glen Milstead) was born in 1946 and went to school with director John Waters in Baltimore. Divine starred in many of Waters' early films, which delved into taboo subjects and were too offensive to be shown in main-stream movie theatres. "Hairspray" was the closest Divine ever came to Hollywood success; sadly, he died a month after the film was released, on March 10, 1988. Sonny Bono played the part of Mr. Von Russle, the father of Tracy's arch-rival, Amber. Ruth Brown was cast as Motormouth Maybelle, record-shop owner and hostess of "Negro Day" on the "Corny Collins Show". In the 2007 remake of "Hairspray", Adam Shackman continued the tradition of casting a man as Tracy's mother, and John Travolta played the part.

Answer: She is wearing white shoes after Labor Day.

John Water's returns to Baltimore with his 1994 film "Serial Mom", about a seemingly normal suburban housewife who is actually a serial killer. Beverly Sutphin kills people who do not conform to her social norms, like a neighbor who refuses to recycle trash, or people who offend her family, like a young man who stands up her daughter, (played by Waters' favorite, Ricki Lake). Sutphin is finally arrested and sent to trial, where her sensibilities are again offended, this time by a juror. Patty Hearst, who plays the role of the unlucky juror, is wearing white shoes after Labor Day. (According to American etiquette, white shoes should only be worn between Memorial Day, which is at the end of May, and Labor Day, which is at the beginning of September.) Sutphin is so incensed by the juror's ignorance of fashion norms that she kills her by hitting her over the head with a telephone receiver.

The movie features many Maryland scenes, including one scene at "Hammerjack's", a well-known Baltimore club, where Sutphin is finally arrested.

Answer: Bedroom Window

Directed by Curtis Hanson, "Bedroom Window" is a thriller set in Baltimore. Terry Lambert (Guttenberg) and Sylvia (Isabelle Hupert) are having an illicit affair. When Sylvia witnesses a brutal attack on a woman, Terry decides that he will give evidence to the police, in order to hide his relationship with Sylvia.

As a result, Terry becomes a prime suspect himself. "Bedroom Window" is based loosely on Alfred Hitchcock's films "Rear Window" and "The Man Who Knew Too Much". "The Witness" takes place in the Pennyslvania Dutch country, about an hour and a half from Baltimore.

Answer: Sleepless in Seattle

Nora Ephron wrote and directed "Sleepless in Seattle", which starred Tom Hanks as Sam Baldwin and Meg Ryan as Annie Reed. The film was released in 1993 and is loosely based in the 1957 classic "An Affair to Remember". Sam's son Jonah, (played by Ross Malinger) uses a radio call-in program to look for a new partner for his father, following the death of his mother. Impressed by a letter from Annie, an "Orioles" fan and Baltimore journalist, Jonah sets out to arrange a meeting between her and his father.

His attempts are beset with misunderstandings and problems.

Answer: Rain Man

Director Barry Levinson drew on his childhood in a Jewish home in Baltimore, in the fifties, for a number of his films. The first film Levinson directed, "Diner", takes place in 1959, and much of the action takes place in the Fell's Point Diner. "Avalon", which was released in 1990, tells the story of the fictional Krichinsky familiy, who have arrived in Baltimore from Eastern Europe. "Liberty Heights", which was released in 1999, is a coming of age story centering around a Jewish teenager and his African-American girlfriend, who share a mutual interest in music. "Rain Man", which was also directed by Levinson, takes place in a number of locations across the United States, but not in Baltimore.

Answer: Runaway Bride

"Runaway Bride" stars Julia Roberts and Richard Gere, as the bride with a tendancy towards developing cold feet, and the man determined to understand her. Maggie Carpenter, played by Roberts, has acquired a national reputation after leaving three men at the alter. Ike Graham (Richard Gere), a newspaper reporter from New York, comes to Hale to write an in-depth article about Maggie.

This being a romantic comedy, you can be sure that Roberts and Gere end up falling in love. The film takes place in the fictional town of Hale, Maryland, but was filmed in Berlin, Maryland, located in Wocester County on the Eastern Shore. Berlin's picturesque main street provided the setting not just for "Runaway Bride", but the the film "Tuck Everlasting", starring Sissy Spacek, Ben Kingsley and William Hurt. (information from the Berlin, Maryland Web page)

Answer: The Accidental Tourist

Novelist Ann Tyler makes her home in the Roland Park neighborhood of Baltimore. Almost all of her fiction takes place in the Baltimore area. "The Accidental Tourist" was made into a feature film in 1988, with an all-star cast. Macon and Sarah's marriage falls apart after the loss of their son, and Macon meets Muriel (played by Geena Davis), whom he hires to help train his dog. Along the way we are also introduced to Macon's unusual siblings.

The other books listed have been adapted to made-for-tv films.

Answer: The Blair Witch Project

"The Blair Witch Project" is an independent film released in 1999. It tells the story of three young filmmakers, who set out into the woods of Mongtomery County, Maryland, to make a movie about the legendary Blair Witch. While camping out in the woods, strange and horrifying things begin to happen to them, all of which are captured on their cameras. Using amatuer actors and many non-conventional techniques (in addition to being shot over eight days, the movie was largely unscripted), "The Blair Witch Project" developed a cult following, and became the basis for both a video game and a comic book.

Answer: The Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay

Jack Ryan, his wife and child are visiting London when an IRA terrorist attempts to assassinate Lord William Holmes, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. Ryan foils the plot by killing the terrorist. The dead man's brother, Sean Miller, is determined to wreck vengeance on Ryan, and follows him back to Maryland.

He makes an unsuccessful attempt to kill Ryan near the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, and then attacks his wife while she is driving with their child in the car. Both the wife and child are injured.

In the final scenes, Lord Holmes arrives in Maryland to thank Ryan for saving his life and to award him. However, Miller and his cohorts invade Ryan's Eastern Shore home, and...I won't tell you the rest in case you haven't seen the movie yet!