Achievements Trivia

1. This actress, born in Kingston-upon-Hull in 1903, become one of the first British Hollywood stars of the 1920s.

From Quiz Forgotten People

Answer: Dorothy MacKaill

A star of the silent screen, Dorothy MacKaill (1903-1990) made the transition to talking film before retiring in the late 1930s to care for her mother. She later moved to Hawaii where she spent the last thirty years of her life. There is a Pathé newsreel titled "The most kissable girl in Hollywood" which shows large crowds lining the streets of Hull welcoming her on a return visit in 1930.

From Quiz You Could Win a Pulitzer Prize for That!

Answer: Carl Sagan

Carl Sagan may be best known for his TV series "Cosmos: A Personal Voyage" but he was very active in astronomy, astrophysics and writing until his death in 1996. He won the Pulitzer for his book "The Dragons of Eden: Speculations on the Evolution of Human Intelligence" which took into account anthropology, evolutionary biology, psychology and computer science. There are many categories of Pulitzer Prizes; not all are awarded each year and the jury may issue special prizes as they see fit. The Pulitzer Prize was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, a newspaper publisher. It is overseen by Columbia University in New York City, where Pulitzer left money to establish a journalism school. Each winner receives a certificate and $10,000 (U.S.) and the winner of the public service category in journalism receives a gold medal.

From Quiz Rise From the Ashes

Answer: Cat Stevens/Yusuf Islam

Cat Stevens won acclaim for his albums (e.g. "Tea of the Tillerman" in 1970) and his singles (e.g. "Morning has Broken," "Peace Train" and "Moonshadow"). He converted to the Islamic faith in late 1979 and stopped recording in favour of humanitarian work. Yusuf recorded a new album in 2006 and returned to touring thereafter, especially for benefit concerts.

From Quiz Amazing Adventures

Answer: Kon-Tiki

Thor Heyerdahl's aim in sailing from South America to the Polynesian Islands was to prove that people from South America could have settled in Polynesia in pre-Columbian times. He used the only technology and materials that were available at that time and built a raft in Peru from nine Balsa tree trunks and hemp ropes. The main mast was made from mangrove wood, the small cabin was made from plaited bamboo with a banana leaf thatched roof. The expedition left Callao, Peru, South America on 28 April 1947 and the six-man crew sailed the raft 4,300 miles across the Pacific Ocean, which took 101 days. On 7 August 1947 the raft smashed onto a reef at Raroia in the Taumotu Islands but all the crew were safe. Men from a village on a nearby island came to their rescue after a couple of days, having seen washed-up flotsam from the raft. Thor Heyerdahl wrote a book on the "Kon-Tiki Expedition" which became a best seller. A documentary motion picture was also made which won an Academy Award in 1951. The Kon-Tiki raft is on exhibition in Oslo in the Kon-Titki Museum. What an amazing adventure this must have been!

From Quiz Don't Tell Me What I Can't Do!

Answer: Climbing Mount Everest

Tom Whittaker reached the summit of Mount Everest on his third attempt. Tom's "seven summits" quest details his inspirational dream to be the first disabled athlete to conquer the highest mountain on each continent.

From Quiz Integrity and Truth

Answer: He was sentenced to death

The man who is perhaps best known for the dictum "Know Thyself", despite having the opportunity to flee, chose to carry out the sentence on himself by drinking hemlock.

From Quiz Multi-faceted People

Answer: Aviation

Before the weirdness crippled him, Hughes was a pilot and businessman of talent and ability.

From Quiz Forgotten People

Answer: Harry Clasper

Rowing was a popular sport in the 19th century, though professionals rowed for substantial prizes rather than necessarily making a living out of it. Alongside his rowing, and later becoming a rowing coach, Harry Clasper (1812-1870) also ran a pub for many years. After his team was easily defeated by a River Thames team in a race on the Tyne, in 1842, Clasper realised that the Tyneside racing boats were too heavy to be competitive nationally. Having been apprenticed as a ship's carpenter for a time, he had the skills to improve the design of his boats. As well as using outriggers to house the oars, allowing the hull to be narrower and lighter, he also worked on streamlining the boats, varnishing them to reduce resistance further. Before sliding seats were invented in the USA, Clasper also taught his crews to slide on their fixed seats to improve their technique. These developments brought the racing boats into a form not unlike those used today. When Clasper died, in 1870, an estimated 130,000 people lined the streets of Newcastle to pay their respects at his funeral.

From Quiz Well, this is a First

Answer: Powered airplane

He was flying alongside Orville Wright in Fort Myer, Virginia on a demonstration for the airplane's usefulness to the military. The two completed four loops of the fort before something went wrong and a propeller shattered. Orville Wright glided the plane to a landing, but Selfridge became the first death in flight.

From Quiz X is the Key

Answer: GoldenEye

Born and raised in The Netherlands Janssen declared that the year she spent studying Economics at the University of Amsterdam was "the stupidest idea I ever had", packed her bags for New York in the mid 1980s and established herself as a successful model. She secured lucrative contracts with the likes of Victoria's Secret, Chanel and Yves Saint Laurent. Her move to acting met with early success, scoring the role of Xenia, a Georgian lust murderer, in Pierce Brosnan's first stint as the super spy James Bond. Five years later another "X" connection would consolidate this start. This time it was the role of Jean Grey/Dark Phoenix in the "X-Men" series of films. Her performance in "X-Men: The Last Stand" (2006) would earn her a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress. Famke is an animal rights campaigner and was appointed Goodwill Ambassador for Integrity for the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime in 2008.

From Quiz Rise From the Ashes

Answer: Marv Albert

Albert avoided a felony conviction by pleading guilty to a lesser offense for which he was given a year-long suspended sentence. He returned first to NBC (the network which had fired him) and then moved on to broadcast basketball on Turner Sports and CBS Sports.

From Quiz Amazing Adventures

Answer: Tenzing Norgay

Tenzing Norgay was a Sherpa, an ethnic group from the most mountainous region high in the Himalayas in Nepal. "Time" magazine named him as one of the 100 most influential people of the 20th century. He joined his first Everest expedition in 1935 when he was about 19 years of age. He also took part in three official British attempts to climb Everest. He again took part in an unsuccessful Canadian attempt to reach the summit in 1947. He took part in two Swiss attempts in 1952. In 1953 he was part of another British expedition (his own seventh expedition) led by John Hunt which ultimately led to Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary reaching the summit on 28 May 1953. He died of a cerebral haemorrhage in 1986, aged 71. What amazing adventures all of these expeditions must have been!

From Quiz Don't Tell Me What I Can't Do!

Answer: Stephen Hawking

Stephen Hawking's prestigious career has encompassed all areas of physics. His research and theories in relation to black holes is particularly important. Stephen Hawking is confined to a wheelchair and relies on a voice synthesizer to speak.

From Quiz Multi-faceted People

Answer: The Exorcist

He did a fine job there, too

From Quiz Forgotten People

Answer: The paintings of her, including one by Thomas Gainsborough, now in the Tate Gallery

Giovanna Baccelli (1753-1801) was born in Venice, trained in Paris, and was dancing professionally in London by 1774. As her ballet career progressed, she attracted the attentions of the Duke of Dorset and became his mistress, to the scandalised delight of the popular press which promoted a celebrity culture very similar to today's. The scandal aside, Baccelli was a significant dancer at a time when ballet was developing as a serious professional art form, and she had the skill and talent to combine technical expertise with artistic expression. Several other portraits exist besides Gainsborough's, including one by Joshua Reynolds, and also some statues.

From Quiz Well, this is a First

Answer: Virginia Dare

Virginia Dare was the first person born to British parents in the American colonies. She unfortunately disappeared with the rest of the Lost Colony at Roanoke Island, North Carolina, and it is not known what happened to her, but has come to symbolize many things for current Americans.

From Quiz X is the Key

Answer: Xylophone

Klezmer is a traditional style of dance music of the Ashkenazi Jews from Eastern Europe. Josef was originally groomed to play the flute. However, poor lungs led him to experiment with percussion based instruments. It's a matter of conjecture as to whether he created the wood and straw contraption that resembled a cimbalom on a straw soundboard or whether that honor belonged to his contemporary, Samson Jakubowski. Regardless, Josef soon developed his skill on the instrument to such a degree that he was sought after for concerts in Moscow, Kiev and Odessa. He impressed the Polish violinist Karol Lipinski so much that Lipinski sponsored him on a tour of Western Europe, a tour that managed to gain recognition for the xylophone as a genuine concert instrument. Gusikov drew praise from musicians as notable as Mendelssohn, Listz and Chopin. Shortly after the tour Josef was consumed by tuberculosis (truly, that pun is not intended) and died at the young age of 31. The xaphoon is a single reed instrument, a xiaoluo is a small Chinese gong and a xylorimba is similar in make up to a xylophone but has a much higher octave range than its mother instrument.

From Quiz Examples of Leadership

Answer: Calvin Coolidge

America's 30th president was the calm, cool, and collected Vermonter, Calvin Coolidge. Known as a man of few words and taciturn persona, Coolidge had his own unusual list of eccentricities. He was known to sleep at least 10-12 hours every day. When he arose in the mornings he like having petroleum jelly rubbed on his head while he ate. He believed that it was good for his health. He also had his own small menagerie at the White House including his favorite pet Rebecca the raccoon, who would follow him everywhere, and was often taken for walks on a leash. Coolidge was also known to simultaneously push every button on his presidential telephone and then run and hide. He found it hilarious to watch his secretaries, valets, military assistants, and Secret Service agents run around in panic looking for him. He loved to play cowboys and Indians and even had a mechanical horse installed in the White House. He was known for wearing unusual headgear and hats in public. In spite of his unusual behaviors, he performed his duties as a leader in an adequate manner.

From Quiz You Could Win a Pulitzer Prize for That!

Answer: Robert Frost

Robert Frost is considered one of the greatest American poets. The Pulitzer Prize jury apparently agreed, they gave him the award four times. Born in California, Frost spent most of his life in New England, where the poems he wrote frequently used the colloquialisms of the region to examine social and philosophical themes. Though achieving great literary acclaim Frost's personal life was filled with sadness. His parents died early, his wife died at age 43, and of his six children, only two lived past age 60. He died in 1963, at age 88.

From Quiz Amazing Adventures

Answer: Transit of Venus

In 1768 Cook sailed from England in on the "Endeavour". On 13 April 1769 he arrived in Tahiti via Cape Horn, where he carried out his task of observing the Venus Transit. He then opened sealed orders from the British Admiralty for the next part of this voyage. He was instructed to search the South Pacific for an assumed "Terra Australia" (Latin for "unknown land of the south"). He sailed south to New Zealand where he circumnavigated and mapped the complete coastline, and then sailed west. On 19 April 1770 he reached the southeastern coastline of Australia and on 22 August 1770, at Possession Island, he claimed he land for Great Britain. On his return to England he was promoted to the rank of Commander in 1771. For his second Voyage of Discovery he was again commissioned by the Royal Society to search once again for Terra Australis. Although he had charted the eastern coastline of Australia it was believed that Terra Ausralis was further south. In 1772 he commanded the "HMS Resolution" and circumnavigated the globe, becoming the first person to cross the Antarctic Circle. He almost encountered the mainland of Antarctica before sailing north towards Tahiti for fresh supplies. He then resumed searching for Terra Australia but to no avail. On returning to England he was promoted to the rank of Captain. In 1777 Captain James Cook, again on the "HMS Resolution" sailed to Cape Town, then to New Zealand, discovered the Hawaiian Islands which he named the Sandwich Islands. He then sailed to the Pacific coast of North America. He charted the west coast northwards but was stopped by ice, so he sailed again southwards to stay in Hawaii for the winter. Due to some conflict between the Hawaiians and the Europeans the crew attempted to return to their ship when Cook was struck on the head and then stabbed to death as he fell into the surf. Four of Cook's crew were also killed. The "Resolution" returned to England in 1780 commanded by John Gore and James King. Cook's voyages were truly amazing adventures.

From Quiz Don't Tell Me What I Can't Do!

Answer: Gail Devers

Graves Disease is an autoimmune disease which causes enlargement of the thyroid. Symptoms include muscle weakness, fatigue and increased heart rate. At 24, Gail Devers underwent radioactive iodine treatment and hormone replacement therapy before resuming her outstanding athletics career.

From Quiz Integrity and Truth

Answer: 1500

Copernicus advised that the earth revolved around the sun (in contrast to the notion that the earth was the center of the universe). He lived approximately 1473-1543.

From Quiz Multi-faceted People

Answer: Art

He apparently had a fine collection.

From Quiz Forgotten People

Answer: The Brontë sisters

The Methodist Revival was originally a movement within the Church of England, with the Methodist Church eventually arising out of it. While John Wesley was the most famous and dominant of the Methodists preacher by far, there were other travelling preachers and many local clergy who supported the revival. When William Grimshaw (1708-1763) came to Haworth, religious revival broke out and congregations of over a thousand came to hear his passionate preaching, hundreds of them having to stand outside in the churchyard. The Methodist Revival aroused considerable hostiity, and its opponents often stirred up fierce opposition. When John Wesley visited Haworth in 1748, rioters attacked both Wesley and Grimshaw in an attempt to disrupt the preaching. Known variously as a powerful evangelist and 'the mad parson', Grimshaw's caring and kindly nature was respected by supporters and opponents alike. Grimshaw's health failed in the 1750s and he died of typhus early in 1763, after visiting a sick parishioner. He was aged just 54. Patrick Bronte bcame the parish priest for Haworth 56 years later, in 1819, and the parsonage became the home for his three famous daughters.

From Quiz Well, this is a First

Answer: Attempt to assassinate the US President

Richard Lawrence attempted to assassinate Andrew Jackson, the sitting president of the United States while he was attending a funeral of a South Carolina congressman. His pistol misfired twice from point blank range, however, and Jackson beat him mercilessly with his cane.

From Quiz X is the Key

Answer: Xavier

Born in 1506 in the town of Xavier, in the Kingdom of Navarre, which is now a part of Spain, Francis came from a family that possessed both power and wealth. A co-founder of the Society of Jesus, he took his vows in 1534 and, in 1540, he accepted the role of spreading the faith in the newly gained Portuguese territories in India. The mission here was not merely aimed at spreading the word to the locals but to also reinvigorate the faith of the Portuguese people in the territories, most of whom were being dominated by ambition and debauchery. The time spent in India had proven to be successful for Francis and he now planned a new mission, the culturally rich people of Japan. Francis arrived in Japan in 1549 but soon found the task here to be a difficult one. The language was a barrier, the Emperor was a barrier and he found that the Japanese were not easily swayed from Buddhism or their Shinto teachings. Francis is seen as a pioneer and a great organiser within the church. Modern scholars estimate that he may have converted as many as 30,000 people to his faith. He passed away from a fever in 1552, was beatified in 1619 by Paul V and canonized in 1622 by Gregory XV. He is the patron of his native Navarre and his feast day (December 3) is held in such import that it is an official Spanish holiday.

From Quiz Amazing Adventures

Answer: Distinguished Flying Cross

In 1928 Amelia Earhart was asked to accompany two pilots on a flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to keep the flight log. That flight took 20 hours and 40 minutes. She had it in her mind that she would, some day, like to attempt that flight solo. In May 1932, aged 34, she took off from Harbour Grace, Newfoundland in a single engine Lockheed Vega 5B, intending to fly to Paris. During the fight there were mechanical problems, strong northerly winds, and icy conditions, and after a flight lasting 14 hours and 56 minuted she landed in a field at Culmore, near Derry, Northern Ireland. This historic flight made her the first woman to fly solo and nonstop across the Atlantic Ocean. She received the Distinguished Flying Cross from US Congress, the Cross of Knight of the Legion of Honour from the French Government, and the National Geographic Society awarded her the Gold Medal. Amelia Earhart made several other solo flights such as from Honolulu to Oakland California, from Los Angeles to Mexico City, and from Mexico City to New York. She competed in long-distance air racing and set several women's speed and distance aviation records. She planned to fly around the world following an equatorial route of some 29,000 miles, with two navigators. The first attempt in March 1937 was eventually aborted. Her second attempt followed a few months later with Fred Noonan as her only crew member. When her aircraft was approaching Howland Island, a ship received a transmission from her that fuel was running low. Howland Island received voice transmissions from Earhart indicating what position they were flying at, but she was never heard from again. A search around Howland Island proved fruitless. The search was widened but to no avail. Many differing theories of the unresolved circumstances of Earhart's disappearance have emerged over the years since her disappearance. What amazing adventures Amelia Earhart had.

From Quiz Don't Tell Me What I Can't Do!

Answer: Vietnam War

Kim Phuc was just 9 years old when she was photographed running, screaming in agony from her Vietnamese village. Although not expected to survive her injuries, Kim Phuc went on to become an advocate for child victims of war. She has become a Canadian citizen.

From Quiz Integrity and Truth

Answer: He was forced to recant his views

Gaileo was charged with heresy and was forced to recant his support of Copernicus and his theories under threat of torture.

From Quiz Multi-faceted People

Answer: Football

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