Will-I-Am: Men named William, Bill, etc (All U.S) Quiz

Answer: Italy

He was convicted of vehicular manslaughter and was given an eight month suspended sentence. Known for his rugged good looks, he was named one of the Top 10 Stars of the Year six times, including five straight (1954-1958). Some of his most memorable films include "Sunset Boulevard" (1950), "Bridge on the River Kwai" (1957) and "Stalag 17" (1954) for which he won the Oscar for Best Actor. He closed out his career with "S.O.B." (1981). He was a lover of animals and in 1959 he established The Mount Kenya Safari Club in Africa. Known to be a heavy drinker over the years, alcohol would literally kill him. While inebriated at home, he fell, cut his head on a table and bled to death. Born April 17, 1918 and declared dead November 12, 1981, Bill Holden had one of the great acting careers in Hollywood history. The American Film Institute (AFI) placed him 25th on their list of Greatest Screen Legends.
In 1983, Bob Thomas wrote "Golden Boy: The Untold Story of William Holden".

Interesting fact: Once he was asked by a good friend to be the best man at his upcoming nuptials and he said yes. His good friend, Ronald Reagan, said thanks.

Answer: New York

Seward, born May 16, 1801, served as the guv of the Empire State from January 1, 1839-December 31, 1842, as a member of the Whig Party. Seward attended Union College in Schenectady, N.Y. to study law and he became a member of the N.Y. Bar in 1821. He was a strong opponent of slavery and was also a key figure in the establishment of the Republcan Party. Although appointed Secretary of State by President Lincoln, he would finalize the purchase of AK on March 30, 1867 under the presidency of Andrew Johnson. And what a deal it turned out to be, when he got Russia to cough up 586.4 sq. mi. of land for $7.2 million bucks, roughly two cents per acre. He died at his home in Auburn, N.Y. in 1872.

Interesting fact: On the night of Lincoln's assassination, two of John Wilkes Booth's henchman were assigned the job of killing Seward in his home. But despite multiple stab wounds to the face and neck, he survived the attack of one Louis Powell who was later executed for his part in the plot.

Answer: Calamity Jane

Her actual moniker is Martha Jane Canary. Wild Bill also worked as a stagecoach driver and for a while was employed by The Central Overland California and Pike's Peak Express, the company that owned The Pony Express. Depending on whose accounts you believe, he killed dozens to over a 100 men, on both sides of the law. In 1871 as a marshall in Abilene, TX, he killed a man named Phil Coe who had fired at him, but in the confusion he also shot and killed another lawman who came to his aid, not as a threat as Wild Bill perceived. Although no charges were ever filed, he was fired two months later. He was later shot in the back of the head during a poker game and killed on August 2, 1876. The gunman, Jack McCall, was found not guilty after a speedy trial and just two hours of deliberation. Justice would later prevail when he was retried, found guilty and hanged.

Interesting fact: When Wild Bill was gunned down at the table he was holding two pairs, "Aces and Eights", forever to be known as the "Dead Man's Hand".

Answer: Marcia Muller

Marcia Muller is the highly successful author best known for her over 30 Sharon McCone private detective series. Pronzini, who was born April 13, 1943 in CA has written so much that he has "needed" several nom de plumes, including Jack Foxx, William Jeffrey, William Hart Travis and Alex Saxon.
His first novel, "The Stalker" (1972) was nominated for the Edgar Award and in 1984 his "Cat's Paw" won the Shamus Award for Best Private Eye Short Story.
In addition, two of his works have won the Shamus Award for Best Mystery Novel, "Hoodwink" (1982) and "Boobytrap" (1999).

Interesting fact: He has been the recipient of two very prestigious awards for his body of work. In 1987 he was awarded "The Eye" for lifetime achievement and he was named a Mystery Writers of America Grand Master in 2008.

Answer: Crazy

In 1962 he composed the haunting ballad which became the signature song for which the late country singer Patsy Cline will always be remembered.

Where do you start with a cowboy who has recorded over 95 singles and 60 albums, acted in over 30 Hollywood and TV films and co-authored six books? Well, he started bein' Willie on April 30, 1933 in Abbott, TX. After a brief stint in the Air Force he turned to music. Twenty five of his singles have hit number one on U.S. charts, including "Georgia on My Mind" and "Blue Skies" (1977), "On the Road Again" (1980) and "My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys" (1980). Of his albums, which have sold over 40 million copies in the U.S. of A. alone, over a dozen have reached the top spot, including "Stardust" (1978) and "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" (1981).
He is an outspoken proponent of legalizing the sale of marijuana, for which he has been arrested for possessing several times. The boy just loves his pot! He has been a tireless worker in support of American farmers helping to organize Farm Aid, raising millions of dollars to help them. Willie has won 10 Grammy's and seven Country Music of America (CMA) Awards. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1993 and in 2002 he won the Kennedy Center Honors.

Interesting fact: He is the president of Farm Aid, the association he co-founded in 1985, and in 2002 he was inducted into the Agriculture Hall of Fame.

Answer: Columbia University

He got his Bachelor's Degree in History from Marist, earned his Masters in Broadcast Journalism from B.U. and Harvard was the school where he graduated with a Masters in Public Administration. Viewed by many as a conservative politically (although he opposes the death penalty), he calls himself a traditionalist and is registered as an Independent. He worked for CBS as a newscaster from 1980-1986. On ABC he hosted "Inside Edition" from 1989-1995. After that gig he joined Fox News where he would later start "The O'Reilly Factor", where "we report, you decide", the "no spin zone" and analysis of the top news issues. And let's not forget some of those spirited, some might say heated, interviews with anyone who was willing to take the hot seat across from Mr. Bill, from Sarah Palin to Barack Obama. He is also the author of 10 books, four of which reached number one on the N.Y. Times Nonfiction Bestseller List, including "The No Spin Zone" (2001) and "Culture Warrior" (2006). Until 2009 he hosted "The Radio Factor" a show that was carried by more than 400 stations. According to The Washington Post (the parent company of Fox) in 2008 the big guy signed a fairly lucrative contract covering four years at over $10 million buckeroos a year.

Interesting fact: It wasn't always all school and broadcasting for the Big O. Back in the early 1970s he was an imposing 6'4" hard throwing semi-pro baseball pitcher for a team called the New York Monarchs.

Answer: Airplane crash

The plane he was on went down off Point Barrow, Alaska on August 15, 1935. He was a trick rider in an Australian circus (1903) and became known in America when he joined and soon became a star in the Ziegfield Follies. He famously sauntered onstage wearing his cowboy outfit and twirling a lasso to start his act. He wrote over 4,000 newspaper articles in which no one was spared from his homespun humor and barbs. From politicians ("A fool and his money are soon elected"), to everyday fellow citizens ("Income tax has made more liars out of the American people than golf"), everyone was fair game... and his readers loved it. He became a huge movie star when the "talkies" arrived in 1929. Some of his films were "A Connecticut Yankee" (1931), "State Fair" (1933) and "Life Begins at Forty" (1935). The Oklahoma Cowboy has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and on April 1, 1967 the U. S. Navy commissioned the "U.S.S. Will Rogers" submarine.
One of many biographies written of him, "Will Rogers: His Life and Times" (1973) was authored by P.J. O'Brian.
Will Rogers was an American treasure.

Interesting fact: The plane he was in was piloted by the famous aviator Wiley Post, the first person ever to complete a solo flight around the globe. He also perished in the crash.

Answer: New Jersey

He represented The Garden State from 1978-1996.
He earned his college degree from Princeton, the school he chose after being offered scholarships by 75 colleges. He had been a two time H.S. All American, and continued that success with the Tigers, being named to The Sporting News first team in 1963 and '64. He won Olympic Gold as a member of the 1964 U.S. hoops team. Over his four years at Princeton he averaged 30.2 points per game. After Princeton he attended Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar and joined the N.Y. Knicks in the 1967-'68 season. "Dollar Bill" was a key cog in their two NBA Championships in 1969-'70 and 1972-'73. (He earned that nickname due to his ability to hit the money shots at the vital end of games). He hung up his sneakers in 1977 and his number 24 uniform was retired by The Knicks.

Interesting fact: He ran as a candidate for the Democratic nomination for president in 2000, but wound up losing to Al Gore.

Answer: Alcoholics Anonymous (AA)

Alcoholics Anonymous came about as the result of a meeting between "Bill W"., a N.Y. stockbroker and Dr. "Bob S". (Smith) a surgeon, in Akron OH in 1935. AA now has an estimated worldwide membership of over two million and over 100,000 meeting sites. Bill, who was born in 1895 had his first drink in 1917 while serving as a member of the VT National Guard and that was the start of a lifetime of booze and depression. He had his last drink in 1934, staying sober as a judge for the last 34 years of his life. AA has literally saved millions of lives, and almost as many relationships. Unfortunately, he had another addiction that he could never kick and which would prove fatal. He was always a heavy smoker and even in his last years, when he often needed an oxygen mask to help him breathe, he continued to light up. He died of emphysema in 1971.

Interesting fact: Bill Wilson was included on the list of The Top 20 of the Time: Heroes and Icons of the 20th Century, as selected by Time magazine (1999).

Answer: Little People of America

Billy much preferred to be called a dwarf than a midget. A little group of 21 people attended that first meeting in '57, but membership has grown to over 6,800 as of 2010. His career included over 170 movies and TV shows and he was famous for an over-the-top imitation he did of the flamboyant pianist, Liberace. He made over 35 appearances on "The Spike Jones Show" between 1954-1957, and has appeared on an eclectic variety of other programs. A few were "The Love Boat" (1978), "The Golden Girls" (1985) and "Frasier" (1996). He appeared in dozens of Hollywood movies, including "A Midsummer Night's Dream" (1935) with Jimmy Cagney, "Harum Scarum" (1965) with a guy named Elvis something, and "Foul Play" (1978) with Goldie Hawn. He died just a little short of Christmas day, December 23, 2000. A memoir of his life "Within Reach" was published in 2002.

Interesting fact: In order to become a member of Little People of America, a person can be no taller than 4'6".