Here Lies (1) Trivia Quiz

Answer: Isaac Newton

Born in January 1643 in Woolsthorpe (Lincolnshire, UK) Sir Isaac Newton was a scientist, mathematician, astronomer and author. He is best known for his 'three laws of motion' which essentially revolutionized science at that time. An early starter in the scientific fields, he was just 23 when he developed the theory of gravity. (Gravity being the clue btw.) His ground-breaking works probably shouldn't have come as a surprise to anyone, being that he was estimated to have an IQ in the range of 190-200.
Newton never married, and it is widely believed he never had any romantic dalliances. As a result of this, he never had children either.
Newton apparently experienced severe pain in his abdomen on the 19th March 1727 and passed out. Sadly, he did not regain consciousness and died the next day, at age of 84 (which was an extremely good age in those times). He was honoured with a State funeral and was the very first scientist to be buried at Westminster Abbey.

Newtons grave at Westminster Abbey, reads: "Here is buried Isaac Newton, Knight, who by a strength of mind almost divine, and mathematical principles peculiarly his own, explored the course and figures of the planets, the paths of comets, the tides of the sea, the dissimilarities in rays of light, and, what no other scholar has previously imagined, the properties of the colours thus produced".

Answer: Sir Winston Churchill

Sir Winston Churchill was born on 30 November 1874 and died on 24th January 1965, at the age of 90. His State funeral, a week after his death, was attended by representatives from an astonishing 112 nations. His funeral planning began in 1953, under the (rather lovely) codename of 'Operation Hope Not'. In 2002, the BBC did a nationwide poll among British people asking the public who they thought was "the best Briton of all time". More than 1.2 million people voted and Churchill, rather convincingly, won with 447,423 votes. His biggest achievement, of course, was leading Britain to victory in WWII.

Though he is buried in Oxfordshire, his memorial is at Westminster Abbey, befitting his achievements. Churchill was the Prime Minister of Great Britain twice; once from 1940-1945 and then again from 1950 to 1955.

A great one for quotes and speeches, he was most famous for his 'Never Surrender', 'We will fight them on the beaches' and 'Finest Hour', speeches. (Hence the clue).
His last words, 'I am bored with it all,' were probably due to the medical treatment he'd received for the eight strokes he'd suffered in the preceding years.

Queen Elizabeth II was said to have had immense respect for Churchill, and in fact showed this at his funeral - when she broke the protocol of arriving last at any event - by arriving before the coffin and family had even arrived.

Answer: Spike Milligan

'Spike' Milligan (MBE) was born 'Terence Alan Milligan' in India in 1918 where he spent a lot of his childhood before moving to the UK in 1931.

Spike Milligan was an actor, writer, poet and playwright who was perhaps best known for his rather irreverent, whacky style of comedy. In 1951, he, Harry Secombe, Peter Sellers and Michael Bentine created a comedy sketch program for BBC Radio which was broadcast as 'Crazy People'. A year later, it was renamed 'The Goon Show' and it is this he is most famous for, along with his cameo role in 'Monty Python's Life of Brian'.
He was the last surviving member of the Goons until he died of kidney failure in 2002 at age 83.

Perhaps not widely known is that he was very close friends with King Charles III. In 1981, the (then) Prince of Wales and Lady Diana Spencer were sent a poem from Milligan just before their marriage penned under the name of 'MacGoonical'. It was delivered to Buckingham Palace on a giant 3-foot-9-inch parchment scroll. Milligan also sent a telegram to Lady Diana Spencer on the eve of the wedding saying: 'This is your last chance. Marry me'. She didn't, but hopefully got a laugh.

A funny man to the last, Milligan had some very enjoyable quotes. I particularly liked these:
'I'm not afraid of dying; I just don't want to be there when it happens'.
'A sure cure for seasickness is to sit under a tree.'

Answer: John Keats

In September 1820, John Keats travelled from England to Rome in the hopes that the milder climate there would help mitigate his Tuberculosis, which he was believed to have contracted from his brother, Tom, who died in 1819. Unfortunately he wasn't to arrive in Rome (due to bad weather and the ship being quarantined) until the middle of November - thereby quashing any hopes he had of finding a warmer climate. He died just three months later on February 23, 1821.

Prior to his death, Keats had suffered from negative reviews and criticism about his works from people he admired, and some claimed that Keats died of disappointment over this. This wasn't likely, since Keats had been very ill for many months before his death, coughing up blood and having intense pain in his stomach and chest. He became increasingly more depressed and melancholy as his illness progressed, and was put on suicide watch numerous times. Perhaps it was the combination of these two factors that made Keats think that his life's works would amount to nothing and that everyone would forget his name. As such, Keats was adamant that his tombstone (in the Cemitero Acattolico in Rome) should not have his name on it, and that instead, it should read: "This grave contains all that was Mortal of a Young English Poet Who on his Death Bed, in the Bitterness of his Heart at the Malicious Power of his Enemies Desired these Words to be engraven on his Tomb Stone: Here lies One Whose Name was writ in Water."

Joseph Severn, an English painter and personal friend of Keats, who had agreed to travel to Rome with him, nursed Keats during his final illness. Fittingly, he was buried next to Keats when he died in 1879. Keats' last words were, in fact, to Severn: "Severn-I-lift me up-I am dying-I shall die easy-don't be frightened-be firm, and thank God it has come!"

'Ode to a Nightingale' is considered one of Keats' most famous poems, hence the clue.

Answer: John Wayne

John Wayne was born 'Marion Robert Morrison' in May, 1907. He was nicknamed 'Duke,' which came about when firefighters from Glendale, California starting calling him the name of his childhood dog - an Airedale called 'Duke'. He enjoyed a long and rewarding career that took him from the 1930s right through to 1976. Although he made nearly 80 movies, he is perhaps best known for his Westerns and war movies; and of course, his legendary swagger!

He died in 1979, after fighting stomach cancer for a number of years. He was 72.
His last words were to one of his 7 children, Aissa, who was at his bedside with him. Aissa asked Wayne if he knew who she was, to which he replied, "Of course, I know who you are. You're my girl. I love you."

His children, wanting Wayne to actually rest in peace, and not have his burial plot besieged with fans, buried him in an unmarked grave. Just under 20 years later however (in 1998), they had a plaque erected. John Wayne wanted his epitaph to read, 'Feo, Fuerte y Formal", which means 'ugly, strong, and dignified' in Spanish. However, his plaque ended up with a quote which read, "Tomorrow is the most important thing in life. Comes into us at midnight very clean. It's perfect when it arrives and it puts itself in our hands. It hopes we've learned something from yesterday."

A year later, in 1999, the American Film Institute selected Wayne as 'one of the greatest male stars of classic American cinema'. 'True Grit' was one his most famous movies, hence the clue, and in fact, it was this film that won him his only Oscar - for Best Actor in a Leading Role.

Answer: Eva Peron

Eva Peron was born 'María Eva Duarte' in Argentina in 1919, but was often called 'Evita' (which roughly translates to 'Little Eva' in Spanish). She was a politician, activist, actress, and philanthropist. She married Argentine President, Juan Peron in 1945, just a year after they met. She became First Lady of Argentina in June 1946 and remained First Lady until her death, from cervical cancer, in July 1952. She was just 33 years old.

Even though there were many who despised the Peron government, there were millions who loved Evita. Not only had she put Argentina on the world map figuratively-speaking, but in 1947 she also helped pass a law that meant Argentine women could finally vote. Never one to sit idly, in 1948 she set up the 'Maria Eva Duarte de Perón Foundation', which helped the elderly and poor of Argentina.

When she died, an estimated 3 million people came out into the streets of Buenos Aires to attend her funeral and pay their respects. However, three years after Eva Peron's death, her corpse disappeared. It later turned out that it had been taken by the Argentinian military after a coup that deposed President Peron, because the new regime thought that having Evita's body in Argentina would stir up too much pro-Peron sentiment. Her embalmed corpse was therefore sent, in secret, to Italy, where she lay in a grave which featured a false name - as an added security measure against anyone finding her. She was finally returned to Argentina in 1979 and buried where she belonged, in the family tomb.

In the film 'Evita', one of the main songs is 'Don't Cry for me Argentina' which of course, was part of the clue.

Answer: David Bowie

David Bowie died on 10 January 2016, just two days after turning 69. He had been receiving treatment for liver cancer for some 18 months but kept this a secret from the world. Sadly, three months before he died, his doctors broke the news that the treatment hadn't worked and that the 'illness had won'. Still, Bowie is said to have remained light-hearted, joking that the chemotherapy might have caused him to lose his eyebrows and hair, but that at least his cheekbones were back.

Bowie, who had been a Buddhist since age 19, and who had a special affinity for Bali, did not have a funeral at all when he passed away. Instead he requested that his body be shipped to Bali, where it was cremated in line with the rituals of his Buddhist faith.

David Bowie, in my mind, is one of the greatest musicians of our time. His hits include 'Ashes to Ashes', 'Space Oddity', 'Let's Dance', 'Heroes', 'Under Pressure' and 'Little China Girl'.
In terms of success, Bowie sold an estimated 140,000,000 records in his lifetime (fortune.com) and in early 2022, he was named as 'best selling vinyl artist of 21st century', according to chart analyst, 'Alan Jones'. 'The Beatles' came a close second.

Bowie's last album, 'Blackstar', released two days before his death, won all five Grammy awards it was nominated for in the 59th award ceremony in 2017. It was also the fifth-best-selling album of the year, worldwide; which seems a fitting tribute to a great artist.

Answer: William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare is best known for being a prolific playwright, writing 38 plays in his lifetime, many of which are still relevant to this day. But he was also an accomplished poet - writing more than 150 poems - and a talented actor. He was (presumed) born on 23 April, 1564, and (presumably) died on 23 April, 52 years later, in 1616.

Although there is a great supposition about Shakespeare's cause of death, it is not known what he died from, though speculation ranges from syphilis to cannabis use, and everything in between. The reality is though, that 52 was considered almost as 'old age' in that era since 35 was the average life expectancy.

When Shakespeare died, there were no (known) historical reports of any kind about his death, even in London. Thus there was no great funeral and, quite possibly, no funeral at all. It is thought that even his company of players did not hold a service (or, if they did, there is no historical reference to it.) There are believed to be two possible reasons for this: like many artists in history, Shakespeare's fame didn't really manifest until after his death; and the day he is thought to have died was 'St George's Day' in England, which was as big and important as Christmas Day at that time, so no-one really paid attention to his quiet passing.

He did manage to write some words for his tomb though before he died:
"Blessed be the man that spares these stones, And cursed be he that moves my bones."
Though this might seem odd today, back in the 1600s 'relic hunting' was common, and could be very profitable. Shakespeare knew that people might try to dig up his bones, so he had the curse put on his grave to deter this from happening. It clearly worked, since no-one has ever done so.

One of his greatest plays is 'Much Ado About Nothing' hence the clue.

Answer: Carrie Fisher

Carrie Fisher was born in 1956.

She was the daughter of Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher. (As an interesting note, Eddie Fisher divorced Debbie Reynolds in 1959 and married Elizabeth Taylor on the same day the divorce was finalised.)

Carrie Fisher was probably known best for her role as 'Princess Leia' in the 'Star Wars' franchise. However, she was also a writer who published 17 books including 'Postcards from the Edge', which was later made into a movie starring Meryl Streep. She also played supporting roles in many films such as 'When Harry Met Sally', 'The Burbs' and 'Scream 3'.

Carrie Fisher died in hospital on December 27, 2016, just days after she suffered a medical emergency on a transatlantic flight. The cause of her death was cardiac arrest. She was 60 years old.

Sadly, her mother, Debbie Reynolds, died one day after Carrie Fisher. Reynolds herself had a acting career which spanned 70 years, her most famous role being as 'Kathy Selden' in 'Singing in The Rain'.

When Reynolds was making funeral arrangements for her daughter, she told her son, 'I miss her so much, I want to be with Carrie.' This was said just hours before she had the stroke that killed her. She was 84 years old.

Some of the remains of Carrie Fisher were buried with Debbie Reynolds. Carrie Fisher had suffered with depression for much of her adult life. Her brother decided that her remains should be placed in the porcelain antique 1950's Prozac Pill ornament, because it had been one of Carrie's favourite possessions.

The hint of course was 'Solo', which was one of the characters in 'Stars Wars' - Han Solo.

Answer: John Lennon

John Lennon was born in Liverpool, UK in 1940. He was a founding member of 'The Beatles' and an incredibly talented singer/songwriter. One of his most famous solo career songs was 'Imagine'.
He was murdered outside the Dakota building in New York by born-again Christian, Mark David Chapman, who (apart from other issues) objected to Lennon saying 'The Beatles' were "more popular than Jesus". Chapman cold-bloodedly shot Lennon in the back four times at 10.50pm on 8 Dec, 1980.

Lennon's family, friends and fans - and indeed almost everyone who'd heard of The Beatles -were horrified by the 40 year-old's death. In fact, three Beatles fans reportedly committed suicide after hearing the news.

John Lennon did not have a funeral; instead, Yoko Ono, his wife, requested 10 minutes of silence across the world. His ashes were scattered in Central Park, opposite the Dakota building. There is also a memorial in Central Park called 'Strawberry Fields'. Yoko Ono instigated this 'international garden of peace', and invited countries from around the world to donate plants and trees for the 2.5 acre area. The city of Naples, Italy, donated the large mosaic 'Imagine' centerpiece.

The clue, by the way, was 'IMAGINE,' in case you missed it.

Answer: Bob Marley

Robert Nesta Marley, was born on 6th February 1945 in Jamaica. As well as being a songwriter and guitarist, he was also a talented singer with a distinctive voice. He started his career when he formed 'The Wailers' with Peter Tosh and Bunny Livingston (who later became Bunny Wailer) in 1963.

The group became the pioneers of 'reggae' music, taking it from Jamaica to the rest of the world. Their hits included 'Jamming', 'Could You Be Loved' and 'I Shot the Sheriff.'

In 1977, the singer was diagnosed with a malignant melanoma under his toenail. His doctors suggested amputating his toe (which experts now say could have saved his life), but two things prevented this. The first was that his Rastafarian faith labelled amputation as sinful, ("Rasta no abide amputation" were Marley's exact words). And the second was his vanity; he thought it would not be good for his image.

Instead of amputation, he tried skin grafting and seeking medical treatment in Germany, but nothing helped. The disease had spread to his brain, liver and lungs. He died on 11 May, 1981, four years after the melanoma was found. He was just 36 years old.

Marley's last words were to his son, Ziggy. They were: "Money can't buy life."

Marley was given a state funeral in Jamaica. He was buried (with his guitar) in his birthplace, a small Jamaican village called 'Nine Mile'. A gated compound here now holds Marley's childhood home, the Bob Marley Museum, and his mausoleum.

Marley's birthday, which is on the 6th of February, happens to be a national holiday in Jamaica, but there is also 'Bob Marley Week' which is celebrated every year around the 6th of February, which serves as a tribute to this great musician.

Answer: Amy Winehouse

Amy Winehouse was born in the UK in 1983. She was an outstandingly talented singer/songwriter, as evidenced by the 24 Grammy awards she won in her short life.
(She received five Grammy's for her album 'Back to Black' alone).

Winehouse had always struggled with drug and alcohol abuse, and ultimately it was alcohol that led to her death. She was found, deceased, by her bodyguard on the morning of July 23, 2011. The cause of death was cited as 'alcohol poisoning' and ruled 'death by misadventure'.

Winehouse reportedly had a conversation with her doctor the night before she was found, where she admitted she was drinking again. After hearing his council, she agreed she needed to stop, saying, 'I don't want to die.' These are believed to have been her last words.

Winehouse had a funeral in London and at this, a rendition of her favourite song, 'So Far Away', by Carole King, was sung. She was then cremated, and her ashes buried in a headstone at Edgwarebury cemetery in London. The headstone is black with pink writing and has an image of a songbird.

Amy's brother, Alex, now chairs the 'Amy Winehouse Foundation', which 'aims to prevent the effects of drug and alcohol misuse on young people'.

One of Winehouses' most famous songs of course was 'Rehab,' which features the line, "They tried to make me go to rehab, but I said 'no, no no'" - hence the clue.

Answer: Kurt Cobain

Kurt Cobain was the lead singer of grunge- band 'Nirvana'. He was born in Aberdeen, Washington on 20th February 1967.

Cobain, a talented singer and songwriter, was beset with health issues from a young age. He had scoliosis of the spine from when he was at school and then suffered from crippling stomach problems from the age of 21. He is reported as saying "I'm always in pain, and that adds to the anger in our music." He admitted that he started taking drugs and painkillers to help numb his constant pain.
Despite his worldwide success as a musician, he became severely depressed. In March, 1994, he attempted to commit suicide in Rome by overdosing on a mixture of Rohypnol and alcohol. Luckily he failed. However, sadly, a month later, on 5th April 1994, he was successful. He had crept out of a drug treatment centre in L.A, which he'd been in for 2 days, returned to his home in Seattle and shot himself. His body was found by an electrician who was installing security lights. Cobain had been dead for nearly three days.

Cobain left a suicide note which included the words: 'It's better to burn out than to fade away" from Neil Young's 1979 track 'Hey Hey, My My'.

The song 'In My Life', by the Beatles, was played at Cobain's funeral as a testament to his love of this band's music.
Courtney Love, his wife, kept some of Cobain's ashes, while the remainder were given to the monks at the Namgyal Ithaca in New York. The monks there took the ashes and formed them into 'tsatsas' - (Buddhist images made of clay). A Tibetan artisan also made a small 'nirvana stupa shrine' (prayer hall) to house them.

'Come As You Are' was one of Nirvana's biggest hits - hence the clue.

Answer: Marvin Gaye

Marvin Gaye (born Marvin Pentz Gay Jr.), was born in Washington, D.C. in 1939. An American singer and songwriter, Gaye was known as both 'The Prince of Motown' and 'The Prince of Soul'.

He released many big hits in his short-lived career including "Let's Get It On," "Sexual Healing", "What's Going On", "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" and "I Heard it Through the Grapevine". (This last, of course, being part of the clue.)

Marvin Gaye Jnr. had an extremely tumultuous relationship with his father, Gay Snr., a Pentecostal minister. In fact, Marvin Jnr. once said that 'living with Father was like living with a king, an all-cruel, changeable, cruel and all-powerful king'.
It was his father who killed Gaye Jnr., after a violent argument broke out in their home in Los Angeles in 1984.
Gaye Jnr. was shot twice; once through the shoulder and once into his chest. Marvin Snr. pleaded guilty to 'voluntary manslaughter' and received a six-year suspended sentence, plus five years of probation. He was also prohibited from owning any firearms or drinking alcohol for the remainder of his life. (The latter would probably have been torture since he was an alcoholic).

Many felt that Gaye Jnr. was suicidal in the months leading to his death , which possibly explains his last words which were barely a whisper, said to his brother, Frankie: 'I got what I wanted... I couldn't do it myself, so I had him do it... it's good, I ran my race, there's no more left in me.'

Gaye Jnr. had a private funeral service, but then an estimated 5000 people paraded past his open-casket coffin (Gaye was dressed in a Navy officer-styled suit) at the Forest Lawn Cemetery in the Hollywood Hills. Though he had a burial plot here, he was actually cremated and his ashes spread on the Pacific Ocean. Gaye was later posthumously inducted into the 'Rock and Roll Hall of Fame'.

His father died from pneumonia in 1998.

Answer: Marie Curie

Marie Curie (born Maria Salomea Skłodowska and sometimes known as 'Madame Curie') was born in Warsaw, Poland, in 1867. Her achievements as a scientist, physicist and mathematician, are nothing short of astonishing. She was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize (for Physics in 1903); the first person to win the Nobel Prize twice (for Physics in 1903, and Chemistry in 1911), and the first person to win the Nobel Prize in two scientific fields.

Marie married her work colleague, Pierre Curie, in 1895. They enjoyed both a loving, devoted relationship and a successful working partnership, with Pierre, co-winning the Physics Nobel Prize with Marie in 1903. Sadly just 3 years later though, Pierre died in a tragic street accident, leaving Marie devastated.

Despite her sadness, Marie carried on and is remembered today for her discovery of radium and polonium, and for finding treatments for cancer. Unfortunately, during the course of her work, Marie was exposed to large doses of radiation and it was these that eventually killed her. She died of aplastic anemia in 1934 in Passy, France.

There is no mention of a funeral that I have been able to find. However, we do know that she was interred twice. The first time was in the same cemetery where her husband was laid to rest. However, due to their contributions to science, Marie and Pierre were re-interred, this time with full honors, in France's national mausoleum, the Panthéon, in 1995.

As an end note, even though she was re-interred some 60 years later, Marie still had to be buried in a lead-lined coffin as her remains were still radioactive. It is estimated that she, and her belongings, will be radioactive for many more decades, if not centuries, to come.