Not Just Your Average Joe - Guys Named Joe Quiz | People

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Born April 7, 1929, mobster Joey Gallo was one of New York's most unsavory native sons. He started as an enforcer for Joe Profaci's crime syndicate and also oversaw many of their gambling enterprises. He spent time as a guest of the state in Attica, Green Haven and Auburn correctional facilities. As often happens in his line of work, he died young, in fact he on his 43rd birthday. How did "Crazy" Joe meet his demise?

Answer: He was gunned down in a restaurant.

On the evening of April 27, 1972, he was out celebrating his birthday. After leaving The Copa where he had just watched Don Rickles perform, Joey got the munchies. Off to Umberto's Clam House he went with a couple of friends and his hapless bodyguard, "Pete the Greek" Diapoulas. Shortly after their arrival, four gunslingers from the rival Columbo mob hit Joey and friends with a full frontal fusillade of firepower. A mortally wounded Gallo died a few hours later in Beekman-Downtown Hospital. Pete the Greek took one in the seat, but was otherwise uninjured. No one was ever charged with the murder. Another Cosa Nostra Don, Albert Anastasia, was in fact shot to death in a barber's chair. It happened in N.Y.'s Park Sheraton Hotel on October 25, 1957.

They didn't call him "Crazy Joe" for nothing. He had a little pet named Leo that he kept in his basement. Leo was a big, old intimidating lion!

2. On January 12, 1944, Smokin' Joe Frazier became the 12th child born into a Beaufort, S.C. family. The height of his pugilistic career ran from 1965-1976, and he compiled a record of 32 wins, four losses and one draw. His trilogy of bouts with Muhammad Ali lead many boxing experts to believe that Ali-Frazier was the greatest rivalry in ring history. He also won an Olympic Medal in 1964. In what city did Joe claim the Gold?

Answer: Tokyo

He defeated German Hans Huber in the Gold Medal match.
He turned pro in 1965 and in his first fight he TKO'd Woody Gross. He would go on to win his his first 29 fights before losing to George Foreman in a title bout on January 22, 1973. He became the heavyweight champ when he stopped Jimmy Ellis on February 16, 1970. Frazier and Ali went head to head three times with Ali winning twice. The first bout, billed as "The Fight of the Century" matched the two undefeated fighters and saw Frazier hand Ali the first loss of his career. Ali won the second fight by decision, but the bout that many think of as perhaps the greatest fight ever, was held October 1, 1975 in the Philippines. Dubbed by promoter Don King as the "Thrilla in Manila", Ali outlasted Joe in the blistering heat and humidity and was declared the winner when Frazier was unable to answer the bell for the 15th and final round.
Smokin' Joe lost his last fight with cancer and died November 7, 2011.
He is a member of the World Boxing Hall of Fame.

Joe got into the 1964 Olympics as a replacement for the injured Buster Mathis.

3. One of the most key Nazi leaders was Joseph Goebbels. He was born October 29, 1897 and for the first part of his life he acually seemed to be a regular Joe. He graduated from the University of Heidelberg and held jobs such as a bank clerk, journalist and even worked on the stock exchange. What important position did he hold for the Nazis during World War II?

Answer: Minister of Enlightenment and Propaganda

He held that post from March 13, 1933-April 30, 1945. An ardent anti-Semite, he had first joined the Nazi Party in 1924. He idolized Hitler and quickly became one of der Fuhrer's closest confidants in the madman's inner circle. He was with Hitler in the bunker right up to end, even serving as a witness when A.H. dictated his will shortly before blowing out what was left of his brains on April 30, 1945.

After Hitler's death, Goebbels became Chancellor of Germany, a position he would hold for some hours before killing himself on May 1, 1945.

4. American playwright, screenwriter and satirical novelist Joseph Heller was born May 1, 1923. He is best known for introducing us to Captain John Yossarian and Major Major Major in his first novel, "Catch-22". During WWII he flew 60 combat missions while stationed on Corsica for which he was awarded an Air Medal. He later wrote scripts for a military themed TV show. Can you name it?

Answer: McHale's Navy

He also did screenwriting for several movies including "Sex and the Single Girl" (1964) and "Casino Royale" (1967). In addition to authoring eight novels he also penned two autobiographies, "No Laughing Matter" (1986) which dealt with his struggles and recovery from Guillain-Barre Syndrome and "Now and Then: From Coney Island to Here" (1998). His last novel "Portrait of an Artist as an Old Man" was published posthumously (2000). Joe passed away December 12, 1999.

Ever since the publication of his first book the phrase "Catch-22" has come to have a special place in the English lexicon. Put simply, it refers to a no-win situation, especially when dealing with bureaucracy.

5. Actor, director, producer and writer Joe Montegna hails from the Windy City. He was born there November 13, 1947 and graduated from Chicago's DePaul University. He has appeared in over 50 Hollywood movies and made more than 20 TV films and even won a Tony Award. He has played the role of David Rossi in over 100 episodes of which TV crime series that debuted in 2005?

Answer: Criminal Minds

Montegna joined "Criminal Minds" in its third season, in the role of an F.B.I. Special Agent and profiler. Among his movies are "The Godfather III" (1990), "Forget Paris" (1995) and "Bugsy" (1997). His 20 TV films include three as Robert B. Parker's hardboiled "Spenser" in "Small Vices" (1999), "Thin Air" (2000) and "Walking Shadow" (2001). He has also appeared in over 40 episodes of the TV series "Joan of Arcadia". He won the Tony Award for Best Actor-Play for "Glengarry Glen Ross" (1984). Joe has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Joe was author R. B. Parker's choice for the role that eventually went to Robert Urich in the TV series adaptation of his novels "Spenser for Hire" (1985-1988).

6. One of the most controversial figures in the history of American politics was Joseph McCarthy. Born November 14, 1908, he is best remembered for his 1950s "witchhunts" when he claimed to have a list of State Department members who were either soft on Communism or downright spies. None of his claims were ever proven. From 1947-1957 he was a U.S. senator. What state did he represent?

Answer: Wisconsin

He defeated Democrat Howard McMurray in a landslide victory to gain the seat.
Joe graduated with a degree in law from Marquette University (1935). Six years later, at the tender young age of 33, he volunteered to join the U.S. Marines. He saw action in the Pacific Theater as a tail gunner and earned himself a Distinguished Flying Medal before leaving the Corp with the rank of Captain.
He began playing on the fears of "The Red Menace" in the early 1950s and even accused the popular TV newsman Edward R. Murrow of collusion in the growth of Communism in America. His once strong base of popularity now began to crumble and he was left virtually impotent in the senate.

To put it mildly, old Joe just didn't play well with others. In fact when his longtime foe, President Truman relieved Gen. Douglas MacArthur of his command during the Korean War, McCarthy called for Harry's impeachment.

7. Every once and a while it might be sensible to say, "Sorry, no", when someone asks you to help them out. That was a lesson learned the hard way by a Mr. Joseph Buttafuoco of Long Island N.Y. in 1991. It seems that a damsel in distress named Amy Fisher had the need of his professional services. In what occupation was Joey employed.

Answer: He owned an auto body repair shop.

It seems that the 16 year old lass had crashed her family vehicle and took it into Joey's shop. She asked him to please, please, please fix it up real nice so no one would ever be the wiser. Well, sometimes these negotiations have a way of working themselves out. Such was the case with the 35 year old Joey and Lil' Ms. Amy who was less than half his age (16). They began an affair which resulted in Ms. Fisher shooting Joey's wife in the face. For her actions she would earn a six year prison sentence and the nickname "The Long Island Lolita". As for our hero, Joey got just 4 months for statutory rape. The "Lolita" angle of the story made him into a minor (pun intended) celebrity and after his wife dumped him in CA, Joey tried his hand at boxing on Fox TV's "Celebrity Boxing" and he even made it onto an episode of the soap opera "As the World Turns".

Believe it or not, he somehow landed a bit part in a big movie "Finding Forrester" which starred Sean Connery and F. Murray Abraham (2000).

8. You can call him "Broadway Joe" or even "Joe Willie", but one thing you cannot call Joe Namath is just an average Joe. One of the earlier "glamour boys" in the National Football League (NFL) he will best be remembered for leading his 18 point underdog N.Y. Jets to a stunning upset of the Baltimore Colts to win Super Bowl III. Where did this star quarterback play his college ball.

Answer: University of Alabama

Joe played his college career under the legendary coach, Paul "Bear" Bryant.

He talked the talk by brashly guaranteeing a victory three days before the Super Bowl, but then he walked the walk as the Jets pulled off one of sports biggest upsets ever by winning 16-7 on January 12, 1969. Joe who was born May 31, 1943 in Beaver Falls, PA was the MVP of Super Bowl III, as he went 17-for 28 passing, good for over 200 yards. He was a Jet from 1965-1976, before finishing his career in 1977 with the L.A. Rams. In his career he threw 173 TD passes and completed 1,886 passes good for over 27,000 yards.
Joe was a five time All-Star and his number 12 jersey has been retired by the Jets. He was elected to the NFL Hall of Fame in 1985.

Joe did a few commercials back in the day. In one he was shown being shaved by a then unknown actress named Farrah Fawcett, for Noxema shaving cream. The one that (almost) everyone remembers however, is the spot he did promoting Hanes pantyhose! Definitely not your average Joe.

9. "Son of a Gun" that Joseph Gottlieb was a funny guy. Better known as Joey Bishop, he was born February 3, 1918, weighing in at a scrawny 2 lbs. 14 oz. During the 1950s he often quested on TV quiz shows, but his big break came when he got his own program. "The Joey Bishop Show" ran from 1961-1965. He also made over a dozen movies. Which of the following is NOT one of them?

Answer: Blazing Saddles

Mel Brook's 1974 hilarious western spoof starred Gene Wilder and Cleavon Little.
Joey served his country as a Special Service Sergeant in the Army during WWII.
In the '50s Joey frequently popped up on "What's My Line?", "Hollywood Squares" and "Password" and he was a regular on many of Dean Martin's celebrity roasts.
After being an opening act for Frank Sinatra early in his career, he later joined Frankie, Dean, Sammy Davis Jr. and Peter Lawford in the "Rat Pack". He was the last surviving "rat" when he died October 17, 1987, leaving behind his wife of 58 years, Sylvia.

Johnny Carson was kinda' well known for taking time off from his hosting of the "Tonight Show", and the guy who sat in the most as guest M.C. for him was Joey. He did it on 177 occasions!

10. When it comes to eating, Joey Chestnut takes the cake, no, make that the hot dogs. "Jaws" has won the annual "Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest" held every July 4th for six consecutive years, 2007-2012. He tasted defeat at the hands, no, make that the mouth, of the Oriental Overeater, Takeru Kobayashi in 2006, but got his revenge the next year. He won another eating contest April 16, 2011. What was the food item of choice that day?

Answer: Asparagus

He had no beef coming when he downed 9.52 pounds of the green goodies at the "World's Deep Fried Asparagus Eating Championship" in Stockton, CA.

His battles with Kobayashi are legendary. When he lost to him in '06 Joey could only mustard, no, make that muster, a mere 52 dogs to the chomp's, no, make that the champ's, 53.75. He won in 2007 by downing 66, while Takeru could only handle, no, make that stomach, 63. When he defended his title in 2012, he tied his own record of 68 dogs AND buns in 10 minutes. Kobayashi did not compete. In addition to winning the adulation of millions, he also won his coveted sixth "Mustard Belt", emblematic of his fantastic feasting fete. I can't even begin to hazard a guess as to the size of the belt.
To show that Joey knows the value of a balanced diet, please be aware that he has also set records for eating the most corned beef sandwiches, pork ribs, steak, chicken wings, pizza, macaroni and cheese, shrimp wontons, hamburgers and, oy vey, matzoh balls. I don't believe those records were all set on the same day, but who knows?

Rumor has it that he has been banned from every "all you can eat buffet" restaurant in the civilized world.

Source: Author paulmallon

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

Not Just Your Average Joe - Guys Named Joe Quiz

We all know a lot of famous (and some infamous) guys named Joe, Joey or Joseph. Grab yourself a nice hot cuppa Joe and see what you know about who these Joes are and what they did.

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