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Quiz about Weird Ways To Meet Your Maker Part 1

Weird Ways To Meet Your Maker: Part 1 Quiz

"When I die I want to go peacefully in my sleep, like my grandfather, not shouting and screaming like the passengers on his bus", or so joked the English comedian Des O'Connor. Here's a selection of those who died in bizarre ways.

A multiple-choice quiz by darksplash. Estimated time: 7 mins.

Author
darksplash

Time
7 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
306,904

Updated
Jul 23 22

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Difficult

Avg Score
4 / 10

Plays
1499

Awards
Top 20% Quiz

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. Li Po was one of the greatest poets in China's literary history, even if he was fond of a drink or two. How did he die? Hint

He drowned embracing the moon

He suffered gangrene after cutting his finger while sharpening his quill

He mistook hemlock for rice wine

He cut himself on his own sword while preparing to duel a rival

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Question 2 of 10

2. The death of an Austrian called Hans Steininger proved to be a bit of a hairy affair. How did it come about? Hint

His beard got caught in the wheel of a passing cart

His pony tail got caught in the wheel of a passing cart

He tripped over his pony tail

He tripped over his beard

NEXT>

Question 3 of 10

3. Jean Baptiste Lully was an orchestra conductor who played for the French royalty. How did his rather musical death come about? Hint

He was garroted when a string on the principal violinist's instrument snapped

He crushed a toe with his conductor's staff

He slipped on moisture that a careless trumpet player had left on the ground and broke his neck

He was hit on the head when the head of a kettle drummer's stick flew off

4. You know how your mother always told you to clear your plate? Well, one Swedish king probably wished he had not listened to that advice. Which meal course probably did it for King Adolf Frederick? Hint

Soup

Dessert

Fish

Meat

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Question 5 of 10

5. The American lawyer Clement Vallandigham died after shooting himself with a gun that was an exhibit in a murder trial.

True

False

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Question 6 of 10

6. Allan Pinkerton was the scourge of the bad guys in 19th century America. You probably think he died after some outlaw shot him in the back, but what, in fact, was the more mundane cause of his demise? Hint

He dropped his gun on the ground, shot himself in the foot and died from complications

He developed gangrene from a finger splinter

He bit his tongue and died of an infection

He developed blood poisoning after a cat scratched his left wrist

NEXT>

Question 7 of 10

7. It might be argued that forgetfulness killed the famous whiskey distiller Jack Daniel, but what was the physical cause of his passing? Hint

He died of an infected toe

He died of an infection after breaking an arm

He died of an infected finger

He died of an infection after breaking a leg

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Question 8 of 10

8. Picture the scene: You're a daredevil not afraid to take chances, why you've even gone over Niagara Falls in a barrel. Then you go and slip on piece of fruit. Which piece of fruit caused Bobby Leach to shuffle off his mortal coil? Hint

Banana skin

Orange peel

Apple core

Grapefruit pith

NEXT>

Question 9 of 10

9. As mad inventions go, surely an overcoat parachute was one of the zaniest of all. Yet that was the invention of Franz Reichelt, who decided to prove it worked by jumping off a monument. From which famous landmark did he jump to eternity? Hint

Statue of Liberty

Eiffel Tower

Empire State Building

Leaning Tower of Pisa

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Question 10 of 10

10. You've probably heard comedians talking about how they 'died' in front of a particularly stuffy audience, but which of these comedians literally died on stage while telling a joke? Hint

John Ritter

George Carlin

Dudley Moore

Dick Shawn

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Li Po was one of the greatest poets in China's literary history, even if he was fond of a drink or two. How did he die?

Answer: He drowned embracing the moon

The eighth century poet Li Po was well known for his love of liquor. One night he fell from a boat into the Yangtze River while trying to embrace a reflection of the moon in the water.
[Main source for all questions: 30 Strangest Deaths in History, 'Neatorama Only', 2007, and verified from other sources].

2. The death of an Austrian called Hans Steininger proved to be a bit of a hairy affair. How did it come about?

Answer: He tripped over his beard

Han Steininger was famous for having a long beard. One day in 1567, when his beard was four-and-a-half-feet long, there was a fire in the town. In fleeing, he tripped over his beard, fell, and broke his neck.

3. Jean Baptiste Lully was an orchestra conductor who played for the French royalty. How did his rather musical death come about?

Answer: He crushed a toe with his conductor's staff

Before they used batons, conductors banged a staff on the stage to keep time. While conducting for King Louis XIV in 1687, Lully struck a toe with the staff. He developed gangrene and died.

Answer: Dessert

Adolf Frederick was known for his love of food. In 1771, at the age of 61, he sat down one day for a meal consisting of lobster, caviar, sauerkraut, cabbage, smoked herring, champagne and 14 servings of a dessert called semla, a bun filled with marzipan and milk. He died, you won't be surprised to hear, from a digestive problem.

5. The American lawyer Clement Vallandigham died after shooting himself with a gun that was an exhibit in a murder trial.

Answer: True

In 1871 Vallandigham was defending a man accused of murder during a bar room brawl. The defence was that the victim had actually shot himself accidentally. Vallandigham decided to practice in a hotel room a reenactment he would give to the jury, unfortunately the gun was loaded and he shot himself.

Although he died, Vallandigham proved the plausibility of the defence and his client was acquitted - which prompts me to ask: What's black, made of leather, and looks good on a lawyer? A doberman.

Answer: He bit his tongue and died of an infection

Pinkerton (1819-1884) was the boss of the Pinkerton Detective Agency, which, for a period was one of the more effective law keeping organisations in the US. Unfortunately, he bit his tongue after slipping on a pavement in Chicago and died of an infection.

7. It might be argued that forgetfulness killed the famous whiskey distiller Jack Daniel, but what was the physical cause of his passing?

Answer: He died of an infected toe

In 1911, Daniel turned up for work one day but could not remember the combination of his safe. In a fit of anger, he kicked the safe, injured a toe and died of blood poisoning. Now, just remember that the next time you decide to reboot your PC in the literal sense while wearing carpet slippers.

Answer: Orange peel

In 1911, Leach became only the second person to go over Niagara in a barrel and survive (though he was badly injured). Then in 1926 while performing a trick in New Zealand, he slipped on orange peel and his leg became infected. It was amputated, but he died two months later. All of which probably confirmed a few Australian prejudices about life in New Zealand.

Answer: Eiffel Tower

In 1911 Reichelt set out to prove that his combination overcoat and parachute would work, unfortunately it did not open and he fell like a stone. What? You don't believe me? see for yourself on youtube. [Franz Reichelt - Eiffel Tower].

10. You've probably heard comedians talking about how they 'died' in front of a particularly stuffy audience, but which of these comedians literally died on stage while telling a joke?

Answer: Dick Shawn

Dick Shawn was born in Buffalo, New York in 1924 and died on stage in San Diego Califoria in 1987. He had been telling jokes about politicians, and when he lay down on stage, the audience thought it was part of the routine and it was some time before anyone realised he had died of a massive heart attack..
He was not the only comedian to die in such a fashion. Tommy Cooper the British comic/magician died while performing a routine on stage - and during a live nationwide television broadcast.

Source: Author darksplash

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
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